Houzz Tours
Houzz Tour: Soft Industrial Style for a Classic Home
A designer adds contemporary appeal to a traditional home in Maryland using metals, rustic woods and geometric shapes
This Maryland couple were well-prepared for their first meeting with interior designer Kirsten Kaplan, whose work they’d admired on Houzz. “These clients had really done their homework before we even met,” Kaplan says. They presented her with photos of rooms they liked on Houzz, their favorite colors (shades of gray), the schedule they had in mind, measurements and descriptions of the furniture and artwork they wanted to use from their old house, as well as their budget.
After meeting with them and reviewing their materials, Kaplan had a clear view of the homeowners’ preferences. They liked industrial style with vintage influences and clean, geometric lines. In redecorating and remodeling their traditional home, the designer incorporated that style into rooms and added softness with texture, color and organic elements.
After meeting with them and reviewing their materials, Kaplan had a clear view of the homeowners’ preferences. They liked industrial style with vintage influences and clean, geometric lines. In redecorating and remodeling their traditional home, the designer incorporated that style into rooms and added softness with texture, color and organic elements.
Books Bring the Living Room to Life
The living room sets the tone for the rest of the house — it’s a place where reading and quiet relaxation rule. “Their favorite colors were bluish-gray and taupey grays,” Kaplan says. She added warmth via texture and organic materials.
The homeowners had an extensive book collection and vintage industrial bookshelves that Kaplan integrated into the room. “My clients love reading and collecting books, whether from their travels or about topics they are interested in,” she says.
“You know, with all of the digital reading out there, we’re seeing less and less requests for bookshelves and book display today,” Kaplan says. “Not so long ago, we all used to walk into a house and really get a sense of who people were from the kinds of books they had. I was so glad they wanted to do that here, and the books add so much color and texture to their favorite shades of gray.”
To add even more color, Kaplan chose lavender fabric for the accent pillows. She added texture by covering the ceiling coffers with a metallic vinyl grasscloth and hanging a crystal ring chandelier. “My clients love crystal light fixtures, so we used them throughout the house to tie things together,” she says.
Wall paint: Pewter, Benjamin Moore; wallcovering on ceiling: Phillip Jeffries
The living room sets the tone for the rest of the house — it’s a place where reading and quiet relaxation rule. “Their favorite colors were bluish-gray and taupey grays,” Kaplan says. She added warmth via texture and organic materials.
The homeowners had an extensive book collection and vintage industrial bookshelves that Kaplan integrated into the room. “My clients love reading and collecting books, whether from their travels or about topics they are interested in,” she says.
“You know, with all of the digital reading out there, we’re seeing less and less requests for bookshelves and book display today,” Kaplan says. “Not so long ago, we all used to walk into a house and really get a sense of who people were from the kinds of books they had. I was so glad they wanted to do that here, and the books add so much color and texture to their favorite shades of gray.”
To add even more color, Kaplan chose lavender fabric for the accent pillows. She added texture by covering the ceiling coffers with a metallic vinyl grasscloth and hanging a crystal ring chandelier. “My clients love crystal light fixtures, so we used them throughout the house to tie things together,” she says.
Wall paint: Pewter, Benjamin Moore; wallcovering on ceiling: Phillip Jeffries
With all those great books to leaf through, the homeowners needed comfortable seating — but with clean lines. Kaplan says the type of sofas they wanted didn’t exist on the market, so her firm custom-designed them. Their rectilinear frames give them a tailored look, while the tufted cushions add comfort.
Lamp-topped sideboards on either side of the fireplace provide storage. The cabinets and lampshades also have strong rectilinear lines.
Lamp-topped sideboards on either side of the fireplace provide storage. The cabinets and lampshades also have strong rectilinear lines.
The homeowners’ bookshelves inspired Kaplan to place a large vintage letterpress atop the concrete-and-metal coffee table.
“Their jobs are demanding and they wanted to enjoy quiet relaxation after their hectic workdays, so there is no TV on this floor,” Kaplan says. Instead it’s in the finished basement.
Browse industrial bookcases
“Their jobs are demanding and they wanted to enjoy quiet relaxation after their hectic workdays, so there is no TV on this floor,” Kaplan says. Instead it’s in the finished basement.
Browse industrial bookcases
This quiet sitting room is another favorite spot for after-work reading and relaxing. Kaplan sized a custom sofa to fit snugly in front of the two large windows and flanked it with two sets of nesting tables. She added more linear elements with the lamps and coffee table.
Pops of happy green go nicely with the grays, lavenders and purples that Kaplan used throughout the home. She layered in texture with the faux shagreen tables and hammered nickel-and-brass lamps. Because the dining room is open to this room, Kaplan continued the existing high wainscoting from that room in here.
Wall paint: Winter Gates, Benjamin Moore
Pops of happy green go nicely with the grays, lavenders and purples that Kaplan used throughout the home. She layered in texture with the faux shagreen tables and hammered nickel-and-brass lamps. Because the dining room is open to this room, Kaplan continued the existing high wainscoting from that room in here.
Wall paint: Winter Gates, Benjamin Moore
Room for a Crowd
The homeowners wanted a table that could seat their extended family comfortably. Kaplan designed one for 10 that accommodates two chairs at each end, making communication easier among everyone at the table. The table is alder with a light stain and gray-blue wash.
Kaplan added a geometric pattern she knew her clients would like on the backs of the velvet chairs. And she custom-designed the rectilinear light fixture with crystals surrounded by an organza shade. Additional texture comes in via the wallcovering on the walls and the ceiling. The light wood of the table provides a nice contrast to the dark tones in the floor.
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The homeowners wanted a table that could seat their extended family comfortably. Kaplan designed one for 10 that accommodates two chairs at each end, making communication easier among everyone at the table. The table is alder with a light stain and gray-blue wash.
Kaplan added a geometric pattern she knew her clients would like on the backs of the velvet chairs. And she custom-designed the rectilinear light fixture with crystals surrounded by an organza shade. Additional texture comes in via the wallcovering on the walls and the ceiling. The light wood of the table provides a nice contrast to the dark tones in the floor.
Shop for crystal chandeliers
Industrial Inspiration Continues in the Kitchen
The homeowners were happy with the layout of the kitchen but wanted to upgrade its spec house finishes. This included new lighting, countertops, backsplash, sink, faucets and furniture. They also wanted a table where they could enjoy most of their meals together.
The homeowners were happy with the layout of the kitchen but wanted to upgrade its spec house finishes. This included new lighting, countertops, backsplash, sink, faucets and furniture. They also wanted a table where they could enjoy most of their meals together.
“My clients wanted to replace the drop-in sink with a farmhouse sink,” Kaplan says.
Designer tip: Sink swaps can be more involved than you might think. When replacing a drop-in sink with a farmhouse sink, the cabinet doors beneath it will need to be replaced to fit the sink properly. This will also affect the surrounding countertops. (Here they were swapping in quartz with marble-like gray veins anyway.)
Designer tip: Sink swaps can be more involved than you might think. When replacing a drop-in sink with a farmhouse sink, the cabinet doors beneath it will need to be replaced to fit the sink properly. This will also affect the surrounding countertops. (Here they were swapping in quartz with marble-like gray veins anyway.)
The new backsplash is an elegant marble mosaic that works well with the gray tones in the home. Industrial style comes in through the stainless steel vent hood, the counter stools in the style of the living room’s bookshelves and the oversize hammered metal pendant lights.
Designer tip: Scaling pendant lights right is important. “In an open plan like this one, you can go bigger with lights like this — they can be seen from the hallway, the living room and the dining room,” Kaplan says. “But they might have overwhelmed a smaller, closed-in space.”
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Designer tip: Scaling pendant lights right is important. “In an open plan like this one, you can go bigger with lights like this — they can be seen from the hallway, the living room and the dining room,” Kaplan says. “But they might have overwhelmed a smaller, closed-in space.”
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“My clients wanted separate spots for more intimate dining and entertaining,” the designer says. For the former, Kaplan chose a wood table base and customized a glass top for it, adding Donghia’s Anziano chairs for their clean lines and iconic modern look. Overhead, a chandelier composed of globes throws a few curves into the room, while its black wires play off the chairs. A fiddlehead fig tree breathes some life into the corner and ties the space to the view of the yard.
“You have to be careful when custom-designing tables,” Kaplan notes. “Bases are engineered to take a certain amount of weight, and the thickness of the glass you choose can affect this. If you choose a top that’s too heavy, it will lead to disaster.”
“You have to be careful when custom-designing tables,” Kaplan notes. “Bases are engineered to take a certain amount of weight, and the thickness of the glass you choose can affect this. If you choose a top that’s too heavy, it will lead to disaster.”
The homeowners love encaustic cement tile and Kaplan helped them find just the right spot for it — in the mudroom. She added a bench with a metal base for putting on shoes or tossing bags. “I love this bench because it can look dressy or casual,” she says.
Kaplan continued the high wainscoting from the sitting and dining rooms into the mudroom, with one special touch. “It really helps to have a designer working with an architect early on in a project in order to create moments like this one,” Kaplan says. “Because we were familiar with the clients’ art collection, we knew that their photograph of the Capitol rotunda would look great in here. So we were able to carve out a special place in the millwork to fit it in at the right height.”
Wall paint: Rock Gray, Benjamin Moore
Kaplan continued the high wainscoting from the sitting and dining rooms into the mudroom, with one special touch. “It really helps to have a designer working with an architect early on in a project in order to create moments like this one,” Kaplan says. “Because we were familiar with the clients’ art collection, we knew that their photograph of the Capitol rotunda would look great in here. So we were able to carve out a special place in the millwork to fit it in at the right height.”
Wall paint: Rock Gray, Benjamin Moore
Elegance in the Powder Room
In the first-floor powder room, Kaplan removed the generic vanity and replaced it with a marble and chrome sink stand, and she installed new lighting and designed new millwork for the walls. The sink takes up less visual space in the tight room. And the large mirror makes the room feel bigger.
Kaplan’s planning for the millwork was meticulous. Part of its grid serves as the sink’s backsplash, and the mirror had to be measured and cut perfectly to fit into the grid’s square above the sink.
Wall paint: Silent Night, Benjamin Moore
In the first-floor powder room, Kaplan removed the generic vanity and replaced it with a marble and chrome sink stand, and she installed new lighting and designed new millwork for the walls. The sink takes up less visual space in the tight room. And the large mirror makes the room feel bigger.
Kaplan’s planning for the millwork was meticulous. Part of its grid serves as the sink’s backsplash, and the mirror had to be measured and cut perfectly to fit into the grid’s square above the sink.
Wall paint: Silent Night, Benjamin Moore
Continuity in the Guest Room
In the guest room, Kaplan worked with the clients’ existing bed and nightstands. The same pewter hue she used on the living room walls is soothing for overnight guests in here. She brought in the sparkle her clients like with a flush-mount crystal light fixture and continued the use of purples.
In the guest room, Kaplan worked with the clients’ existing bed and nightstands. The same pewter hue she used on the living room walls is soothing for overnight guests in here. She brought in the sparkle her clients like with a flush-mount crystal light fixture and continued the use of purples.
Lamps, a pair of mirrors with rivets and a chair with a metal frame add vintage industrial-style touches, creating cohesion with the rest of the home’s decor.
Vintage Industrial Style in the Study
This bedroom serves as a home office. Here, Kaplan made good use of a section of her clients’ bookshelves that didn’t fit in the living room. “This helped create continuity throughout the house,” she says. A simple desk and chair with metal frames mix clean lines with vintage industrial style.
The trust the clients placed in Kaplan, their organized approach and their quick decision making moved the process along quickly enough to meet their timeline, which was just under three months.
“They both agreed on all of the inspiration photos they showed me,” Kaplan says. “And he really trusted her to serve as the point person and keep what was important to him in mind when making the design decisions — there wasn’t the back-and-forth of ‘OK, I like it but let me check with my partner,’ which causes delays.
“Not having to present lots of different options for every decision, and all of the communication and time that takes, cost them less in design fees and made the process go smoothly and quickly.”
Takeaways
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Shop for industrial-style decor
This bedroom serves as a home office. Here, Kaplan made good use of a section of her clients’ bookshelves that didn’t fit in the living room. “This helped create continuity throughout the house,” she says. A simple desk and chair with metal frames mix clean lines with vintage industrial style.
The trust the clients placed in Kaplan, their organized approach and their quick decision making moved the process along quickly enough to meet their timeline, which was just under three months.
“They both agreed on all of the inspiration photos they showed me,” Kaplan says. “And he really trusted her to serve as the point person and keep what was important to him in mind when making the design decisions — there wasn’t the back-and-forth of ‘OK, I like it but let me check with my partner,’ which causes delays.
“Not having to present lots of different options for every decision, and all of the communication and time that takes, cost them less in design fees and made the process go smoothly and quickly.”
Takeaways
- Arrive well-prepared when you meet with your designer. Bring ideabooks, your favorite colors and patterns, an inventory of the furniture and art you want to use, your budget and your timeline.
- Your book collection is a great way to put your personal stamp on a space and add color and texture to a room.
- Continue design elements such as materials, colors and style throughout a house to create a cohesive design.
- When you trust your designer, you can let go of a lot of back-and-forth decision making. If he or she charges by the hour, this will save you money and keep your project on schedule.
More on Houzz
See more Houzz Tours
Find a local design professional
Shop for industrial-style decor
House at a Glance
Who lives here: A busy professional couple and their dog and cat
Location: Kensington, Maryland
Size: 4,300 square feet (399 square meters) including finished basement; five bedrooms, 4½ bathrooms
Designer: Kirsten Kaplan of Haus Interior Design
First Impressions
“A lot of people struggle with entries like this,” Kaplan says. “They want to do something but they aren’t sure what that should be.” She found a narrow metal console table and decorated it with elements that hint at what’s to come in the rest of the house: metals, rustic woods, straight lines and organic touches. “The composition is pleasing because it follows the angle of the stairway from low to high,” Kaplan says.
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