Interior Design Case Study - Updating A Twenty Year Old Decor

I just finished a great project. A young (to me) couple with children had been in their house for around twenty years. The lady of the house engaged my services. She is an artist, a blog reader, and she has style. She and her husband had already done a fabulous kitchen renovation a couple of years ago, and now they were ready to update the rest of the downstairs rooms.  All "after" photos by Sara Essex Bradley. All crappy "before" photos by me from my notes.

Updated decor done by Valorie Hart for a client

Budget was a concern, so I started by talking about what we could re-purpose and keep. All the major pieces of furniture had good bones, and the homeowners still liked them. So remodeling, re-upholstery, and some paint were the order of the day. The furniture layout was fine, with just some minor tweaking needed.

Updated living room by Valorie Hart

Living room before

The club chairs were reupholstered by Leonels in a gray Ikat - We also had them add a swivel base since this is the only living room in the house where TV watching and socializing take place - We kept all the furnishings except for a large armoire that was outdated and overpowered the room

Before - This armoire was gifted to someone else - it overpowered the room

In place of the armoire - a mirror and a simple bench

Mitchell Settoon painted two matching French style chests - The paintings above were done by the homeowner

How the chests looked before Mitchell did his magic

How pretty the chests look now

White linen panels replaced the old drapes - They were dated but in good shape and were re-used in the dining room - We  re-used the existing rod and hardware here in the living room - I asked Jennifer from Shading Places to do the drapes - And yes we kept the ceiling fan, a necessity in New Orleans

Since the armoire housed the computer and we took it away, the console behind the couch was turned into the desk - A new Ghost chair was added - Note that all the lamps were re-used but updated with crisp white drum shades

The couch got a re-vamp - a washable linen slipcover, and a new bench cushion to replace the original three seat cushions

The couch has a new linen slipcover done by Leonels - Side table from AKA Stella Gray - pillows from Source

The couch before - still in good shape so a new slipcover and a more stylish bench seat cushion were all that was needed - Note the dining chairs in the background

This cane back chair (one of a pair) got a new seat cushion and a furry pillow

Here you can see the updated cane back chair done by Leonels, and a great view of the club chair they also did - Note new lampshade that gave a lift to the old lamps

Here's how the club chairs looked before - And you get a glimpse of the old drapes

We keyed off the kitchen paint color, continuing it throughout the living room, hallway, stairway, and dining room.

Even though I did not design the kitchen I wanted to show it to you - The homeowner opts out of window coverings because she loves the light and view of the garden

I changed out the old chairs for these modern ones - The old ones were French country with rush seats, very uncomfortable and a little dated for the new kitchen - I wanted to add a mix of mod with trad

A nice detail of the open shelving in the kitchen

The music room paint was in good shape and looked good with the other color choice in the rest of the rooms, so it remained as is. The dining room got a darker saturation of the wall color on the ceiling. The powder room was painted black.

The dining room - The furniture had to remain - Old living room drapes were reused in here - We just added new off-the-rack curtain rods - The room was repainted and we chose to do the ceiling darker - I moved the china cabinet to an opposite wall, leaving a better focal point for another great painting done by the homeowner, and flanking it with over size hurricane candle sconces from Global Views - An antique style chandelier was changed out with the old fixture - An antelope print rug from Modern Flooring was added, and I also had Leonels recover the dining room chair seats with washable durable faux leather

Moc Croc  I used on the dining room chair seats

The dining room before - I moved the china cabinet to an opposite wall (and restyled it)

Dining room before - A new chandelier was added, and the old living room drapes were reused in here

The dining room details now

A fireplace renovation was in progress when I came on board, designed by the homeowner and executed beautifully by her brother-in-law, Michael Ray Ernst. She was inspired by something like it she saw on various design blogs.

Though we weren't starting the project from zero there was a long punch list to get done in three months.

The music room - We kept the paint color, removed some outdated gold silk drapes, rearranged the furniture, restyled the bookshelves, and added a pair of leather slipper style chairs that are perfect for guitar playing

There was an old worn out stair runner, and at first it was not in the budget to replace it - I wanted to do the antelope print runner, and when we ordered the dining room rug the homeowners stretched their budget to include the stairs - It should be noted that this stylish print is the most forgiving of wear, and perfect for a family home

The powder room got painted black and a new mirror, medicine chest, and light fixture were added - I used a pair of chairs from the kids' early childhood for towels and TP

The powder room before

The entry hall with a view into the music room - A new light fixture (from Eclectic Home) was added

The hallway light fixture before - We are replacing the front door with a solid mahogany one that will be painted black inside and out

The entry hall chest before  - I thought I was going to move this mirror

 

The entry hall chest now  with a fantastic paint job by Mitchell Settoon - It made the mirror work, so it stayed - We added a small Jonathan Adler lamp with a bright lampshade

I love working with the things people love. I found a cache of wonderful paintings done by the homeowner in the her shed/studio. Hearing the famliy stories while hanging a gallery wall of several generations worth of wedding pictures was so much fun. Hunting for affordable fabrics and accessories is something I thrive on. Having a dream crew of local talent and vendors is a blessing.

Before -  A gallery wall of family photographs was attempted in the dining room

 

I moved the gallery wall to a focal point in the living room - There are several generations of wonderful family wedding pictures, and there is room to add more photos as the years go on

This home has good bones, a great foursquare type layout, and is a place filled with love, stories, art, books, music, and comfort. I am so happy to have helped infuse new energy and my love into it to last the next twenty years for this lovely family.

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