Jacqueline Tong Living Room Ideas
One of the owners grew up in the Netherlands, where large windows are common, so she was very pleased to find windows this size. Giving them the right finish was a question of creating large storage benches. A pine plywood, known in France as batipin, lends a warm vintage atmosphere. While inexpensive, the wood still has a gorgeous surface.“Initially, we didn’t plan to clad the strip of wall next to the window, but the mural, sold in one size, was not wide enough to cover the entire wall. This batipin wall veneer solved the problem and frames the window well,” Bourdon says.
Often, budget fabrics will cheat on durability, perhaps looking stylish in the showroom but not lasting through the wear and tear of real life. If you don’t want to replace your seating in five years, splurge a little up-front to get a well-constructed piece from a reputable manufacturer.
Next to the large open-plan living space is a smaller, more formal living room. “We wanted this room to have a softer feel, so we went for a gray chevron floor,” Stephen says. Deep blue-green walls surround a terra-cotta velvet sofa and two midcentury chairs. The coffee table once belonged to Stephen’s grandmother. Sofa: The Conran Shop; Chevron collection floor: Kährs; midcentury chairs: Everything but the Dog; Livid wall paint: Little Greene
“In this big room, we wanted to make a chill-out area where you can [turn on the TV] while someone’s cooking dinner,” Stephen says. A modular sofa sits in front of a cozy wood-burning stove and a stylish television. The thin cement coating runs up the chimney surround to match the floor. Stephen is particularly fond of the TV. “It took me awhile to convince Miranda to buy it, but it’s the only TV I’ve seen that’s beautiful enough to have on show,” he says.Wood-burning stove: The London Stove Co.; Mags modular sofa: Hay; Serif TV: Samsung
The other half of the large living room serves as a library and office. This was a necessity for the owners, who have a lot of books and who work from home regularly. The library was custom-made out of the same pine plywood as the window seats by Jan Maes, a carpenter with an artistic streak who also paints and sculpts in his free time. Paying great attention to practicality and the lines of the room, he recommended building slightly staggered, adjustable shelves and a desk that extends from the bookcase.
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