Whew, yah--we finished our dining room the weekend before a big fall family gathering--woohoo! Now we're figuring out two days before our guests arrive that we don't have 8 matching anything, except for napkins. That's okay--I know a place.
I was hopeful I'd be able to pull off a bright and cheerful color palette despite the dark wood trim that we have through much of this 100-year-old house. I'm happy to say my strategy worked. We kept the dark wood for the doors and windows while painting the dark baseboard and picture rail the same color as the walls. I knew that would also make the room feel more spacious and the ceilings higher, because it would remove some of the edges. I chose orange as the key bright in the room. By keeping it in harmony with the orange undertones of the dark wood trim, it feels like it all works together. The dark wood trim now feels like a purposeful dark contrast in the whole scheme.
There were some thrifty moves and some splurges in this room. We're big second-hand purchasers so of course something had to come from Craigslist. In this room it's the pendant light. I'm in love. The plant stands and even some of the plants are from Craigslist, too. The drapes are from Ikea (Ritva), and we bought some new handcrafted furniture. My favorite piece is the sideboard from Hedgehouse Furniture.
The wall color, Marble Green 0454 by Miller Paint, is a blue green that creates a beautiful complement to the oranges. It's a pastel with enough grey in it to make it easy to live with. It's a beautiful backdrop to some of my favorite Woonwinkel accessories like the Framed Mirror, the LouLou Vase, the Platform Tray, and the Omar Carafe. I adore my bud vases made by Melanie Abrantes. The chindi ball I picked up from Cargo is like a little sculpture on the floor.
Now I'm going to hop down to the shop to fill in some missing pieces. On my list: Estelle Colored Glass and some more candles. Shop our Fall 23 Table Edit to see some of my current tabletop favorites, or check out our latest little lookbook for more ideas. And check out our before pics, below. It was a looooot of wallpaper scraping. I didn't love that part but we DID IT!! I'm feeling immensely grateful for this bright and cheerful space, for safety, for shelter, and for the ability to share a meal this week with friends.
Do you need help pulling together a color palette for your home? Check out our color consultation services and get in touch! We'd love to help.
