Remember Tammy with her maroon terrazzo tiles and dark yellow knotty pine ceiling that Patti and I hated and Judy liked?
Well we got a letter from Nancy showing us how she dealt with her pine ceiling and asking us for some help:
Hi Shira!–
When we bought our new home it also had a pine ceiling that I couldn’t stand!!
Before we moved in we put white “Geves” (plaster) boards between the beams. It was a challenge because in some places the ceiling is nearly 3 stories high.
I love the way ceiling looks now! (I’ve attached pictures)
I thought I needed to see more before giving an opinion – so I wrote back asking for more photos.
This is the front of the house – and the two side sliding glass doors are where the living room is located. As such there’s a definitive traffic way via the living room because people would automatically go through the sliding glass doors over the front door – mainly because the front door has stairs.
As you saw from the picture above the floors are high gloss.
I don’t know your budget so I don’t know whether you can afford to change the furniture or not. I think the space is begging for different furniture. But the first thing, if you can’t get new furniture, would be to move the shelves so that they are centered on the wall between the window and the wall. I can see that you want them to balance the other chair on the other side, but it makes the space look off.
The rug is too small for the space. The furniture is not cozy at all. You might want to consider a new sofa set and get rid of the black completely. The rug should be about 6 inches (which is close to 12 cm) under the legs of the chairs and sofa. This isn’t for every case – but since the space can handle a large rug, this is the size you should be looking for.
Dark denim is supposedly the new trend in the US (read about it on Twitter) – and it happens to be a favorite style of mine – but if that isn’t your style then a dark burnt orange tweed would look good as well. I don’t recommend Ultrasuede. It doesn’t have any of the attributes they claim it does in my opinion and typically looks horrible in no time.
The coffee table is too small for the space as well. And side tables would be good, as would floor lamps.
If you love the paintings on the wall then use them as your color story. Create a theme board and choose colors that you think work from the paintings. Work out the space from there.
To create some interest in the dead space by the patio, add some greenery in the right corner by the sliding glass doors and drapes. The close grouping of the chairs encourages conversation – if you get a new set keep a similar setup.
Another long rug could be added in the open space by the patio doors for the winter time.
It’s a great house though – mazal tov.
These counters are far too spare for my taste… but that’s just me. I like to see, well everything in my kitchen if I can.
We have some seriously opinionated readers on Tchochkes – what do YOU think this space needs?
Shira Abel is the CEO and founder of Hunter & Bard, an award-winning public relations and design agency that works with scale-ups and enterprises on building their brand, awareness and thought leadership.
As CEO of Hunter & Bard, Shira oversees a team that manages public relations, marketing, design, and brand development for clients across multiple industries. She develops strategies for organically growing companies through sincere digital engagement and the application of behavioral marketing.
Clients include JELD-WEN, Benchling, Sixth Continent, Totango, Folloze, Radix DLT, Axa Tech, Allianz, and many more. Shira is also a sought after corporate speaker and marketing mentor, and has spoken at events such as Confluence and Content Marketing World, and taught at institutions such as Kellogg School of Management and S. P. Jain Institute of Management and Research in Mumbai.
Read more about Shira’s company Hunter & Bard at https://www.hunterandbard.com
This is the Tammy with the infamous maroon floor.
I love your house, it is so bright and airy.
I agree with a lot of what Shira said – especially the bookcase. However, I think what throws me off with the furniture is that unlike the rest of the house, it is not bright and airy. I think the modern style of the pieces suits the house (although other styles could work too). It’s the dark black that is out of place.
Of course, it’s a huge expense, but I would at some point switch it all out. You could either go neutral (cream, mushroom, taupe) or light and colourful. Personally, I would not choose the same colour for all four pieces, but vary it for interest. I would keep everything in the same colour family (different shades), except maybe for one accent chair.
You could of course play it safe and get all the pieces in one colour, but it has to be a light or medium shade, to flow with your white walls and glossy floors. (If you really want dark furniture, I think the walls should be painted a darker colour- taupe, sage, whatever – so the contrast doesn’t jar).
You definitely need a large area rug here – I think the ‘rule’ is that the furniture needs to actually sit on it. But again, I would not go so dark. If you choose neutral furniture, you can choose something slightly colourful for the floor, to add some interest.
I would add a side table or two and pull the lonely chair closer to the couch.
I love the kitchen. Just add a fruit bowl to the table and it’s perfect (who needs clutter?)
That’s my two cents. The house is simply gorgeous, and the furniture can wait.
Hi Nancy,
Great space. I am a color consultant and I see an open canvas in your house with all of those white walls.
How about some color to tie in the furniture and the art?
Your house calls for warm color. Maybe a burnt orange or a nice Tuscan yellow in the living room on the wall behind the couch. A nice fresh green would also work if you are not into the warm tones.
I would also consider re-arranging the furniture. Maybe move the couch to the right facing the shelving unit…
As Shira mentioned, adding a rug would really make this house cozy. I would even suggest using a few rugs that work together in the living room to cozy up the space. I love that style, it always adds personality to a room.
Love your house!
~Patti
Paint the walls a creamy off-white, maybe with some light blue accents (picking up the blue from the paintings) leave the ceiling white. Window treatments. Maybe lighting above the paintings?
Furniture if you can afford to do this: move the bookcase somewhere else if possible. Would it fit on the wall on the right of the window?
Like Tammy said, a bigger rug. And Definitely agree with her colour choices for a sofa as well as her call for some variation.
I would try to get an large L-shaped sofa that sits nicely in that corner, a much larger coffee table on the bigger carpet, and the additional chairs around it, couple of nice ottomans. Keep it warm and light. That should fill up your space nicely.
Pretty house but I agree with the others that a bigger rug would help tie everything together. Also the couch set is a bit dark and too coordinated which makes it boring. I think a living room using different colors, fabrics and designs can be interested, if not used in excess. If you can’t replace the entire set add a different color chair, for example or throw some colorful pillows on the couch. I would go with blue like the paintings. I am not a big fan of curtains, I like lots of light. Also what up with that glass table, doesn’t seem to fit. Overall, a great house, with lots of light and space.