Design Dilemma: My Dining Room Needs Revamping!
Watch a dining-room makeover unfold in the Houzz Questions forum
My favorite thing about Houzz: When someone posts a Design Dilemma on the Questions board, the Houzz community chimes in, and the poster comes back to show us the results. Case in point: Back in January, Houzz user and artist lilbirdfly, a.k.a. Kim, did not know where to begin when decorating her dining room, so she posted her Design Dilemma. The results are a mix of furniture styles combined with her own artwork and rich textiles. We thought it would fun to show you how the room has come along.
Because Kim's place is a rental she needed to work with the traditional light fixture and deep moss walls (lucky for her, they were painted with Olympia "Green Briar" from Lowes). The IKEA set was swimming in the generously scaled new dining room.
The room is open to other rooms, so she needed to keep those views in mind.
To give us an idea of what she liked, Kim linked us over to this dining room, and said she loved "everything about it."
This room combines a Moroccan-style light fixture, warm wood table, leather dining chairs and a dhurrie rug with traditional architecture and built-ins.
This room combines a Moroccan-style light fixture, warm wood table, leather dining chairs and a dhurrie rug with traditional architecture and built-ins.
Kim's comments on this room? "I love the chairs and the table. Love the painting too. It's just wonderful."
Here we see traditional wood chairs and a rustic wood table, mixed with some eclectic art and contemporary pendant lights.
Here we see traditional wood chairs and a rustic wood table, mixed with some eclectic art and contemporary pendant lights.
Kim says she picked this image because "I do love these chairs too... just because they are so different. I like chairs that have very interesting lines — different from the norm."
It became clear that Kim liked handcrafted items; these iconic chairs are by George Nakashima.
It became clear that Kim liked handcrafted items; these iconic chairs are by George Nakashima.
Next Kim fell in love with these upholstered chairs at Pier 1, and thought they could be a good way to bring some blue into the room (a little hard to tell from this camera phone shot; you'll get a better idea of their color in the next image).
Kim found a farm-meets-industrial dining table at a favorite local shop, Umbrella Decor. The table embodies the rustic and modern look she knew she wanted. It also meets her wish for unique handmade furniture. The table was made by a craftsman in Pennsylvania who combined vintage industrial legs with reclaimed barn wood.
Kim did go ahead and buy two of the Pier 1 chairs, which function in the room as host and hostess chairs at the dining table, and also form a cozy sitting area in the corner.
Now for the side chairs. Kim started to veer toward clear acrylic chairs and some very minimal white molded plastic chairs. I decided to confuse her further by suggesting mid-century French cafe chairs, which I thought would l work well with the vintage industrial dining table legs.
It was fate; the acrylic chairs she had ordered fell through, and Kim fell in love with some vintage style Marais chairs from Industry West.
While picking up the chairs at Pier 1, Kim stumbled upon the curtains. She describes them as "sort of an iridescent green which shifts to blue as you move around, and they have beautiful embroidery on them in all the colors of the room." They are a perfect fit, and add softness and texture to the room.
Wondering about all of that fabulous watercolors and mixed media sculptures? It's Kim's work. To pick up a piece of her art for your own home, check out her Etsy shop.
Wondering about all of that fabulous watercolors and mixed media sculptures? It's Kim's work. To pick up a piece of her art for your own home, check out her Etsy shop.
So it took nine months, but Kim's dining room is ready for its closeup. The result is a collected mix of traditional, vintage and industrial pieces, and a rich look that's polished yet cozy. All right Kim, when are you having us over for a dinner party?
Are you suffering from design indecision? Add a picture and your question to our Questions board so that the Houzz community can chime in with suggestions.
More:
Help Fellow Houzz Users Suffering From Design Indecision
Design Dilemma: My Kitchen Needs Help!
Are you suffering from design indecision? Add a picture and your question to our Questions board so that the Houzz community can chime in with suggestions.
More:
Help Fellow Houzz Users Suffering From Design Indecision
Design Dilemma: My Kitchen Needs Help!
Our dining room. Just moved in. Trying to decide on a table and chairs (this is our old IKEA set.) I would love a coupling of rustic and modern. Simple well-made table with mid-century (or mid-century-like) modern chairs. What to do? Where to look? Curtains can change, but light fixture and wall color must stay. Rug??
Here is the ever-evolving orginal thread.