Room of the Day: Paring Down to Style Up
A designer helps a San Francisco couple bring better order to their living room to highlight their eclectic style
Bryan Anthony
December 7, 2015
With an ever-expanding collection of art, books and collectibles, these homeowners turned to interior designer Rachel Seldin to help them find a new way to show off their wares. Simplifying the space (formerly a TV room, library and entertaining area) into one solely for hosting guests, Seldin provided a fresh canvas to showcase old and new treasures.
Living Room at a Glance
Who lives here: A young couple (one works in tech; the other is a writer)
Location: San Francisco
Size: About 250 square feet (23.2 square meters)
Designer: Seldin Design Studios
Seldin says that after she met her clients for the first time, they gave her the following list of design inspirations: 1920s Caribbean, animal, whimsical, lots of vignettes, 1950s, New York Public Library, industrial and Beaux Arts.
“It’s obviously an eclectic list, and it speaks more to their wide range of tastes than any one particular look,” Seldin says. The homeowners are avid travelers and collectors, so creating a space to best display their treasures without overpowering the room was key.
Who lives here: A young couple (one works in tech; the other is a writer)
Location: San Francisco
Size: About 250 square feet (23.2 square meters)
Designer: Seldin Design Studios
Seldin says that after she met her clients for the first time, they gave her the following list of design inspirations: 1920s Caribbean, animal, whimsical, lots of vignettes, 1950s, New York Public Library, industrial and Beaux Arts.
“It’s obviously an eclectic list, and it speaks more to their wide range of tastes than any one particular look,” Seldin says. The homeowners are avid travelers and collectors, so creating a space to best display their treasures without overpowering the room was key.
BEFORE: The homeowners wanted their library collection of more than 800 first-edition books to be incorporated into the new design. Two overstuffed bookshelves were previously located on either side of the fireplace.
AFTER: Two book towers on one side of the fireplace and an industrial bookcase across the room now hold a pared-down collection of books. “Instead of cramming all the books into the living room, they are now judiciously spread throughout the house,” Seldin says.
The homeowners initially wanted a bold wallpaper for the fireplace wall, but Seldin suggested that a neutral color palette would allow the art, furniture and collectibles to stand out better. A chevron-patterned grass cloth wallpaper on the fireplace wall provides a happy compromise and a subtle dose of texture.
Wallpaper: Phillip Jeffries
The homeowners initially wanted a bold wallpaper for the fireplace wall, but Seldin suggested that a neutral color palette would allow the art, furniture and collectibles to stand out better. A chevron-patterned grass cloth wallpaper on the fireplace wall provides a happy compromise and a subtle dose of texture.
Wallpaper: Phillip Jeffries
BEFORE: The previous furniture arrangement included a sectional in a bay window and a large overstuffed armchair and ottoman. “The room used to include a television, but the homeowners wanted a new space solely dedicated to hosting guests for dinner parties and conversations,” Seldin says.
AFTER: Removing the sectional and replacing the heavy curtains with natural-fiber sheers let much more light into the room. The ceiling above the bay window is painted in Benjamin Moore’s Tomato Red, the same color covering the dining room walls. “The dining room is so bold that it’s nice to add this little touch to better connect the two spaces,” Seldin says.
Seldin says the homeowners didn’t want anything too matchy-matchy. As a result, the living room features a wide variety of styles and pieces, including a blue velvet tufted sofa with stainless steel nailheads, a vintage rattan coffee table with a shelf for holding wine bottles and a contemporary chandelier topped with glass birds.
Chandelier: Arteriors Home
Chandelier: Arteriors Home
BEFORE: The previous entryway included bold blue walls, traditional white wainscoting and a metal statue of a cat the homeowners named Alfred.
AFTER: The new entryway features a white and gray wallpaper with a palm tree pattern, a fresh coat of bluish-gray paint for the wainscoting, a custom yellow powder-coated pendant light and good old Alfred still greeting visitors.
See more Rooms of the Day
See more Rooms of the Day
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Wow what a great transformation! It's amazing to how much life is now in this room.
where did all the books go?
Thanks for sharing this! I love eclectic spaces, before-and-afters, and decluttered spaces, so this was the trifecta!