My post-renovation dining room is naked! Photo: ©Moya Mc Allister
Here it is during the demolition phase.
Readers, please help this wayward blogger. Â Renovation of the dining room on the parlor floor of our brownstone apartment is DONE. Â But as you can see, this naked room is crying out for decor. Â And a mop, but that’s a story for another post. Â I thought I would decorate the minute we moved back in, but… work, budget constraints and some lazy time on the newly upholstered sofa have sapped my enthusiasm.
What I am badly in need of is some inspiration. Â Let’s see, I also need a rug for that big brown floor, some art for the walls, a runner for the table, a color scheme… Â Did I mention that I have almost no budget for this project? Â So high end pieces are out. Â Target, flea markets and DIY projects are in. Â Working with pieces I already have is a must.
I’ll post again soon with more pix of the room and some ideas that I have in mind, but if you have time to browse around my blog to the kitchen and the living room to give me some decorating ideas that suit the rest of the apartment, I’d be ever so grateful.  Here’s a current floorplan to give you the lay of the land.  Note that the dining room does triple duty as it is the entrance to our apartment as well as an occasional workspace (this is NYC after all).  Also note that there is no window in this room, but the ceilings are gloriously high.
What we’ve done so far: Â New floors, a new stair case and a glass transom above the guest bedroom door are the biggest improvements to the space. Â I designed the stair railings and our carpenter built them, so they are one of a kind, which I love. Â Scott and I oiled/stained the floors and banister ourselves, which makes me happy every time I walk in the room (him, not so much). Â The walls are valspar “breathe of blue”, which is also continued into the living room and kitchen spaces. Â I’m open to repainting this room, but I do like that right now there is one color continued throughout much of the parlor level. Â This room needs some definite PUNCH, so perhaps it’s due for a richer hue. Â Or just some pops of colored fabrics?
Two closets, like this one, separate the living and dining areas
The goods:  We added a ceiling fan from restoration hardware (we actually bought that pre reno) and I sourced three vintage ship sconces from Olde Good Things.  I don’t really mind that the fan and lights are different finishes, do you?  We bought the 8ft long table a few years ago at an ABC warehouse sale.  The antique folding chairs (a set of 4) were donated by my friend Allie and I recovered the seats with a latte/sky blue fabric.  I’m very open to recovering those again and I’m on the lookout for additional chairs.  So, especially if you have any great rug, chair or fabric links, please leave them in comments.
I plan to post your suggestions (perhaps in individual mood boards) and give credit where credit is due, so let the decorating by committee commence! Â Many thanks to everyone willing to take time out of their busy lives for this decorating intervention. Â Best, ADD
38 Comments
I love this challenge! That room has good bones but it does need help. I don’t have a blog (or a fantastically renovated house : ), but I’ll try to think of some ideas for you. Definitely a rug, ASAP. Are you thinking a solid or perhaps another sisal like the one in your living room? White might be a good contrast with the floor and the table. but it would get so dirty I suppose. hmnn.
There is nothing worse than asking for blogger decor comments…and then getting a comment with no advice at all! But I can’t not write a comment telling you how much I LOVED your kitchen over at Brooklyn Limestone. It’s completely gorgeous.
I plan on spending a good amount of time reading your blog and getting to know your house. Fun, fun!
I’m SO bad at the decor stuff – seriously. I don’t know how to pull stuff together.
I actually look at the simplicity of your room and love it as is. The contrast between the rustic table with just the sprig of lavender against the crisp white/light blue walls is very striking.
Do you have space against that long wall (in the before pic) to put some kind of a sideboard there? Either that or a big (like, really big) mirror?
See – I suck at this!
Have you seen this gorgeous room at 8 foot 6?
http://8foot6.blogspot.com/2010/07/back-to-life-back-to-reality.html
Has a similar feel IMO.
I love that link! Thanks. WISH I had great wainscoting in my dining room.
Ummm…what they said. I, too, think you should keep the paint color; an area rug might help to encapsulate the space a little better if that is your objective. I, too, have a dining room carved out of a “throughway”, in the space between the formal living room and the kitchen area. I used a sideboard in there to help define it as an actual dining area. Sorry not to contribute any new ideas.
I agree that this room needs help. In the meantime, since the kitchen is so beautiful, I suggest that you eat there, standing up. I believe that the overhead light and wall light should coordinate. But the wall light is in a very unfortunate place. That space would be a great place to display a large piece of art viewable as one goes up the stairs as well as from the DR. If you hung something there you could probably easily relocate the light for the stairs, on a none permanent basis, and run the wire behind the art. I think the the basic problem is the you need stuff to hang on the walls. Even a Clemson pennant would help. Or maybe photos/portraits of your devoted and long suffering parents! More after I chew on it more.
It’s hard to offer advice without the risk of offending. I posted my new kitchen designs on my blog and people ripped me apart. So please don’t be offended by anything I say. I have to say, first, that this is a really difficult space because it’s not only a dining room, it’s very much a hallway. Let me start with what I like. I love how you handled the door heights of the uncased kitchen door and the transom window over the bedroom door. That’s wonderful. I like the paint color. I like the ballisters you designed. I LOVE the floors! My first impression is that the room is very “hard” and needs some softening. A rug would be a great start. Since there’s no windows, I guess some gorgeous curtains are out of the question. How about four upholstered chairs–maybe a bold print that matches the sofa?–and your antique chairs could come out when you need seating for six? I’m sorry to say, I don’t like the ceiling fan. Its dark color against all that light paint makes it a focal point that you don’t really want. I see that it’s centered in the room but not over the table because of the staircase. That makes it difficult to bring something down over the table without having it on a hook. In the photo of the closet that separates the living room from the dining room, do you have some kind of console or sideboard? That seems to be the only place you could put such a thing. On the big wall between the door from the stairway and the kitchen door, could you have maybe some huge (at least 60″x60″) modern painting? Isn’t your husband an artist? A huge painting with a simple box frame could be a great DIY weekend project. And a nice piece of artwork or salon style grouping (with some Bambi antlers!) on that opposite wall where a sideboard could go just to balance a large piece would be great. Those are my initial thoughts. I hope it’s helpful. I think you have great taste and you know what to do and we can’t wait to see.
Thanks Steve. This is exactly the kind of feedback I was looking for and I trust your opinion based on your phenomenal house progress. I hear you on the ceiling fan being too dark and drawing the eye, but have you tried to pick out a ceiling fan?! Dang it’s hard to find one that’s not ugly. The white ones are all plastic and that didn’t seem to work either. Sigh.
First things first, a rug is what this room is crying out for. I think you should consider flor carpet squares, so you can get a custom fit to frame that table. I woke up with that idea and had to run back over and comment. Let me know what you think. I love your blog so much by the way! Samantha
I’d love to see a giant chandelier/art piece that also acted as a focal point as you walk up the stairs. Something post-modern perhaps.
This isn’t exactly what I was thinking but it’s a starting place:
http://designshrine.net/2008/03/contemporary-chandeliers-shine/
Nice to see you here Jackie : )
I should clarify that it has to be a ceiling fan because the dining room is in the center of our long, skinny brownstone and has no window. We need the ceiling fan to keep air moving. But I will absolutely consider a fab chandelier like that in my LR, which is very much in need of a central “statement” light. Great idea.
i would paint the one wall (that backs to the kitchen) a deep cornflower blue then use two cream leather wingback chairs for your dining table. you need a white ceiling fan so it blends and does not distract from those FANTASTIC floors and awesome dining room table! i would put a mirror (that looks like a window) on each side of the lamp (far right in pic) to pick up all light and make area look bigger. i don’t know why you were asking for suggestions, your kitchen is spectacular…i can’t wait to see what you do with the rest of the house!!
Hey ya…. First of all- you have done a fab, fab job with your place so far. We are in the beginning stages of getting our house together, so I am inspired.
My two cents, I get wanting to have a ceiling fan. We were in a similar predicament with wanting one for our master bedroom, and needing to get air circulation, but I could not bear to install a ceiling fan. I never found one that was aesthetically pleasing. My solution was to look out for a statement vintage fan that you can have on a sideboard, or on a table somewhere on the side of the room, that you can ‘plug and play’ whenever you need it. Something in a fun color like turqouise. Etsy and ebay have a number of cutie ones you can use. That way you can get the overhead lighting you want in the dining room.
Also, I can’t find the picture but I loved how this kitchen/dining room combo used the vintage ship scones to light up their artwork. Once I find it I will post it.
here is the link.
http://vivafullhouse.blogspot.com/2010/06/rate-this.html
I couldn’t resist…and hopefully you take my comments with a grain of salt
I love what you’ve done with the rest of your house, so hopefully it works both ways. I’m sorry I can’t embed links, I’m totally technologically illiterate.
I would leave the wall color, as it is really beautiful and contrasts well with the furniture and flooring. For rugs, stripes would look awesome like this one from Flor in Cobalt/white:
http://www.flor.com/service/flor/shop/item/Side-by-Side/1372502500-2303.html
It would pick up the colors in your living room, but I noticed you have stripes in your kitchen already so maybe not. I dunno how you feel about faux bois, but I think it’s kinda preppy-quirky (like that massive tuxedo couch!):
http://www.flor.com/service/flor/shop/item/Faux-Bois/1248702500-101435.html
Or more traditional with:
http://www.potterybarn.com/products/maren-rug/?pkey=cbordered-rugs
I don’t know how big your dining room is so I don’t know if these options end up too pricey.
As far as decoration, I think this massive map from Ikea would pick up a lot of colors already in your apartment:
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/70119430
You could then fill in on other walls with pictures in white or dark wood frames (I love family pictures running up a stairway!). And on the table, a collection of these vases:
http://www.westelm.com/products/recycled-glass-vases-a755/?pkey=cvases
I don’t know if that was a little OCD or even if that matches your taste, but I’ll be interested to see what you end up picking!
Devon
Love it! I spent some time on the flor website today and am thinking about going in that directing. Will be posting an update soon with yours and everyones’ suggestions. Many thanks Devon!
Glad you liked…it just occurred, you could go with a smaller map if you don’t have the wall space. That’s a pretty common color scheme for a map, I just love world maps/gigantic pictures in general, and this obviously combines those two
Soho Dining Chairs – I think you should go with something like this that I found on Overstock:
http://www.overstock.com/Home-Garden/Soho-Espresso-Dining-Chairs-Set-of-2/3342704/product.html
Although I don’t know how easy it would be to re-upholster diy style (??) I think something like this would be wonderful with your other pieces.
If you choose to go with a Flor rug – I like these 2 picks for a more traditional dining room.
Lattice – http://www.flor.com/service/flor/shop/item/Lattice/1248902500-101798.html
http://www.flor.com/service/flor/shop/item/Ribbed-Stripe/1679102500-7451.html
If you want pops of color, I would go with 3 or 4 solid colors you like, and custom cut them into a stripe pattern. I think that would elongate & enhance the space.
I think a round table might give you better flow.
And I love this rug from West Elm. http://www.westelm.com/products/kite-kilim-rug-r894/?pkey=cpattern-rugs-flooring
With a black and white photo wall.
I don’t mind the fan. It’s simple and gets the job done.
What about some really highbacked upholstered chairs? That way, when they are grouped around the table, you will get a kind of enclosed, room-within-a-room effect. And a fabric would give the room more of a personality and a sense of cohesiveness. Just an idea…
I am thinking the same thing. I’ve been looking for upholstered chairs that won’t look weird with that rustic table and I’m having trouble. We LOVE the rustic table because Scott can make art and eat ice cream at it and I can I can make crafts and drink red wine at it. Priorities people. Priorities.
I will be no help to you. But, you have helped me! I have a staircase railing VERY VERY Similar to yours. ( here) But it’s ALL white. I have been toying with the idea of painting the railing, but haven’t been able to decide. After seeing your lovely railing, I believe I have been pushed in the right direction. THANKS!
I’m so happy to hear that. I checked out your stair rail and it is similar!
i would look for a rug with soft colors, or even neutrals, like this one from ikea: http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/00080186, would soften up the look. The floors are gorgeous – don’t cover them up! I would also keep in mind the scale of the area and the height of the walls. I love the entire look of the room, but I would consider changing out the industrial lights on the stair case for something a little bigger. Love the contrast of the industrial with the dark wood, but I think something larger would help to fill in the space some more.
I think adding some art would be a great way to personalize the space and showcase your personalities. You certainly have space for a huge piece of art, or you could do a collection of framed art in a collage on a wall. You might even want to consider painting one wall a color to add a pop, but I like the white wash nature of the room.
Adding some seat cushions too could soften up the table a little and bring some color into the room. A sideboard with a collection of some sort would add some texture to the room. So a stack of books with a silver ice bucket and a vase of flowers would bring some interest. Or the oh-so-trendy antler collection on a wall.
You’ll figure it out
but life is a collection, it’s a matter of pulling in pieces you love and those that communicate your personality, which can take a while to bring together. But you’ll love it because it resonates with you because it IS you.
A rug underfoot would definitely soften the edges and will feel nice underfoot. I keep thinking that the sconce looks a little lost there and that an art wall would bring something to the party.
Where did you get that fan? I LOVE that fan! I have been fighting with my husband, refusing to get a ceiling fan with a light because they’re all ugly…and then I see yours! Yours is pretty!
Please, please, please tell me where you got your lovely ceiling fan! It’s going to be 99 degrees this weekend! Do you want me to melt?
of course i don’t want you to melt! but i do want you to keep leaving hysterical comments on my blog. Here’s the fan:
http://www.restorationhardware.com/rh/catalog/product/product.jsp?productId=prod1432024&navAction=jump&navCount=1
it is SO hard to find ones that aren’t fugly. Hope that helps! Best, Ann
I love your railing and the design of it.
I’m thinking paint the walls an antique gray blue green and hang a large mirror above the staircase; a rug isn’t a bad idea either-kilim or sissal. It’s nice now, but the bright white is a little too much, especially with the same trim
If Flor carpet tiles don’t work for you, you could look at carpet and have it cut to the exact size you need. Then just have the edges serged. A remnant might work also. (ie:cheap) Not all carpet is beige. They have some interesting patterns an wall-to-wall carpet now. But I agree…you need something under the table.
And I love the idea of high backed upolstered chairs. If you are worried about ice cream stains, use an outdoor fabric.
Just bought this carpet for our beach house dining room. If you want a casual look, this might work.http://rhbabyandchild.com/rhbc/catalog/product/product.jsp?productId=rhbc_prod139010&navAction=jump&navCount=1
with delivery it’s under $150 For a 8×10 – they have an extra 10% off this weekend. I was just googling stripe rugs and came across your blog.
The above link doesn’t seem to work. The carpet is the awning stripe rug in silver sage and is in the rhbabyandchild.com website in their clearance section.
i love that rug. thanks!
Hi Ann,
I am a friend of your father’s and an Interior Designer in southwest Virginia. Ed emailed the blog sites showing your brownstone upgrades. You and your husband are doing an excellent job. I have a few ‘ideas’ for inspirations. Professionally, I would prefer to email the information vs adding it to your blog. Thank you.
Hope you have a nice visit with your father this upcoming weekend.
Marie
I love your blog! I just came back to peak at your ceiling fan. I actually really love it – I’ve had such a hard time finding a decent ceiling fan for my own house. We really need the breeze in our upstairs bedrooms in the summer, so I’m installing them despite their unattractiveness. Where did you get yours? It’s one of the nicest I’ve seen.
Thanks for stopping by Alissa! You have done such great things with your little yellow house. Here’s a link to my fan on restoration hardware:
http://www.restorationhardware.com/rh/catalog/product/product.jsp?productId=prod1432024&navAction=jump&navCount=0
Best, ADD
I just have to say that I absolutely love your railing!
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