Before & After: Punchy Patterns Bring a Drab Front Room to Life
The delightful new scheme in a makeover of this Victorian home's front room is a lesson in combining colour and pattern
Georgia Madden
16 December 2019
In a Q&A format, we talk to the designers – and examine the creative thinking – behind some of Houzz’s most loveable rooms.
Images by Tom Ferguson
Interior design by Sonia Warner and Jacinta Woods at Woods & Warner
Answers by Jacinta Woods
Who lives here: A family with two young children
Location: Millers Point, NSW
Room purpose and size: A living room and adjoining dining room, together measuring approximately 40 square metres. The family uses the space to watch television, for the children to play, and for more formal entertaining on weekends
Budget: Approximately $120,000
Where did most of the budget go: On the cabinetry
How did you use Houzz: The clients showed us a few images from Houzz to communicate their brief
Interior design by Sonia Warner and Jacinta Woods at Woods & Warner
Answers by Jacinta Woods
Who lives here: A family with two young children
Location: Millers Point, NSW
Room purpose and size: A living room and adjoining dining room, together measuring approximately 40 square metres. The family uses the space to watch television, for the children to play, and for more formal entertaining on weekends
Budget: Approximately $120,000
Where did most of the budget go: On the cabinetry
How did you use Houzz: The clients showed us a few images from Houzz to communicate their brief
The new living-room layout
What was your brief?
The clients couldn’t pinpoint exactly what wasn’t working about the room. They just felt it lacked colour and energy.
The brief was to bring back the charm and make the two adjoining rooms feel family friendly while retaining their heritage features.
Need help bringing your scheme together? Find a local interior designer on Houzz to help you create a scheme you’ll love
What was your brief?
The clients couldn’t pinpoint exactly what wasn’t working about the room. They just felt it lacked colour and energy.
The brief was to bring back the charm and make the two adjoining rooms feel family friendly while retaining their heritage features.
Need help bringing your scheme together? Find a local interior designer on Houzz to help you create a scheme you’ll love
The new combined living/dining room
What wasn’t working for the clients about the space originally?
There was no storage and it was lacking in personality.
What wasn’t working for the clients about the space originally?
There was no storage and it was lacking in personality.
The living room after works. New custom joinery provides ample space to conceal toys, the television and sound system, and even some kitchen items
What were the client’s must-haves?
What were the client’s must-haves?
- Storage for the children’s toys and books.
- A grown-up feel to the space while also being family friendly.
The living room before works
What was the room like originally?
Dark and dull with insufficient storage.
What state was it in when you came onboard?
The area was clean and well-maintained, and had been renovated a few years ago. However, a lack of storage and lighting, and incorrect furniture and window-treatment selection made it feel boring and lifeless.
What was the room like originally?
Dark and dull with insufficient storage.
What state was it in when you came onboard?
The area was clean and well-maintained, and had been renovated a few years ago. However, a lack of storage and lighting, and incorrect furniture and window-treatment selection made it feel boring and lifeless.
What was your starting point?
The dining table and chairs, which worked so well in the space but required a new lease on life. The design of the chairs was fabulous, however the original neutral canvas fabric felt underwhelming in the space. We kept the chairs in the new scheme and had them reupholstered.
Their Hollywood regency style, combined with the rooms’ beautiful historical architecture, suggested a fairly traditional design for the new scheme, but modernised with colour.
The dining table and chairs, which worked so well in the space but required a new lease on life. The design of the chairs was fabulous, however the original neutral canvas fabric felt underwhelming in the space. We kept the chairs in the new scheme and had them reupholstered.
Their Hollywood regency style, combined with the rooms’ beautiful historical architecture, suggested a fairly traditional design for the new scheme, but modernised with colour.
The fireplace before works. The chandelier, seen above, had been recently purchased by the client and was integrated into the new scheme
What exactly did you do?
What exactly did you do?
- Restored the original fireplace, cornices and ceilings.
- Lowered the fireplace and put in a new hearth to sit flush with the floor.
- Specified custom, built-in joinery.
- Reupholstered the dining chairs and armchairs.
- Stained the legs of the armchairs to match the dining table.
- Specified a new custom rug to run the full length of the two rooms.
- Selected new paint.
- Specified new wallpaper.
- Chose new interior doors.
- Specified new curtains and Roman blinds.
- Selected a new sofa and coffee table.
- Included new accessories, such as the mirror above the fireplace and the floor lamp.
The armchairs were reupholstered to give them a fresh new look
What was your thinking behind the arrangement of furniture?
Limited floor space, and the fact that there needed to be access between the living and dining zones, meant the furniture plan was fairly restricted.
What was your thinking behind the arrangement of furniture?
Limited floor space, and the fact that there needed to be access between the living and dining zones, meant the furniture plan was fairly restricted.
The original upholstered armchair
What challenges did you work around?
The original wallpaper that we had ordered, which was matched to the joinery colour, turned out to be faulty, and the supplier couldn’t provide a replacement.
Sparkk came to the rescue and printed us the perfect paper to match our joinery. The setback was only a week, but it was touch-and-go there for a while.
What challenges did you work around?
The original wallpaper that we had ordered, which was matched to the joinery colour, turned out to be faulty, and the supplier couldn’t provide a replacement.
Sparkk came to the rescue and printed us the perfect paper to match our joinery. The setback was only a week, but it was touch-and-go there for a while.
Generous built-in joinery now provides ample storage
What does the new colour palette consist of?
Soft French blue, grass green and cherry red.
What does the new colour palette consist of?
Soft French blue, grass green and cherry red.
The original living-room storage
Which aspect was the client most surprised about?
Their initial hesitation was around the fact that the design might be too overwhelming. They were surprised at how the space could feel so calm and comfortable with this amount of colour and pattern in it.
Which aspect was the client most surprised about?
Their initial hesitation was around the fact that the design might be too overwhelming. They were surprised at how the space could feel so calm and comfortable with this amount of colour and pattern in it.
This rug from Designer Rugs was custom-designed to run the full length of the two rooms in order to visually integrate the spaces
Why do you think the room works so well?
It is peaceful yet playful, formal yet inviting, and it responds so well to our client’s original brief. We have injected colour without detracting from the beauty of the home’s architecture.
Why do you think the room works so well?
It is peaceful yet playful, formal yet inviting, and it responds so well to our client’s original brief. We have injected colour without detracting from the beauty of the home’s architecture.
Key design aspects
- Taubmans Forever More paint.
- Cabinetry designed by Instyle Design Interiors.
- Designer Rugs custom rug.
- Sparkk wallpaper.
- Arthur G sofa covered in Pepe Peñalver Block 14 velvet in Colour 14 from Elliott Clarke with contrasting red piping.
- Curtains in Schumacher Aylesbury Vase linen in Aqua.
- Armchair upholstered in Kravet Lee Jofa Julianne velvet in Rose.
- Dining chairs upholstered in JF Fabrics Hicken 76 rayon/cotton/poly mix in Green (backs) and Schumacher Antique Strie Velvet in Emerald (seats).
- 1stdibs pendant light.
- Regency Distribution wall lights and Cesario mirror.
- Cromwell side table.
- Bloomingdale’s floor lamp.
- Artwork on dining room wall: Waterdrops on Peonies Fleur oil on canvas by Helena McConochie.
- Artwork on hallway wall (seen through doorway): Evie oil and acrylic on canvas by Felicia Aroney.
Your turn
Do you love this scheme as much as we do? Tell us in the Comments, like this story, save the images and join the conversation.
More
Keen to peek inside another well-designed home? Don’t miss An Interior Designer’s Step-by-Step Sophisticated Home Makeover
Do you love this scheme as much as we do? Tell us in the Comments, like this story, save the images and join the conversation.
More
Keen to peek inside another well-designed home? Don’t miss An Interior Designer’s Step-by-Step Sophisticated Home Makeover
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Just lovely, delightful practical and not fussy. Luv the fresh curtains. Lots of inspiration here..
Interesting to see the difference a wall colour can do, especially when it is the main affair. From cluttered & busy, with a feeling of being cramped to spaciousness, lightness & elegance. Very pleasing!
This is a great example on what fabrics you can choose with an unlimited budget (relatively, given the scope of this project)