Purchasing the house in 2016, moving abroad for work then coming home to a house that seemed to consume them, these homeowners were looking to brighten and modernize the outdated palette of their home. Above you have the before image, yes the ceiling really was maroon. To start we painted all the ceilings in the house white, selected a neutral palette of creamy whites, refinished the floors and clad the fireplace with marble.
The first step of any design is to see what kind of style the client gravitates towards, what their likes and dislikes are. I always start with inspiration boards like the one above to get the creative process rolling. Next we move on to actual product selection and pricing.
For the game room, we wanted it to be different from the rest of the chateau-inspired house. We conceived of this space as a South African Gallery for the ex-pat owner's vast collection of artifacts. We designed 2 custom pieces of millwork here, a storage cabinet for the ping pong table tops and all game accessories, and a gallery wall with built-in TV.
phase 1: the idea
phase 2: the nitty gritty
phase 3: the construction
The gallery creation started with cataloging all the pieces we intended to include, almost 35 uniquely sized items! From there I created a millwork drawing which allowed the shelves to avoid blocking the HVAC ducts and existing outlets. After that our carpenter came to site and the magic began. Once it was patched and painted, we started to stage all the items and move things around, finding a visual balance for the gallery as a whole.
The homeowners have so many unique pieces and consolidating them into one themed room allows them to shine as a collection. Bold patterns are layered on a neutral palette which keeps the space from looking too busy while allowing the room to have a spirit all its own.
before...
In the dining room we applied the same strategy as the living room: paint the ceilings, remove the faux finish from the plaster details to update them and refinish the floors.
Often clients have certain pieces they don't want to part with as in the case of the china hutch. To update it, the door pulls were changed and displayed items restyled. This allows it to stay in the space without clashing with the more modern vibe.
after!
before...
The foyer was another great space where paint and trim were all the tools we needed. To add more character to this stunning double-height space, we installed picture frame molding and refinished the stairs to match the rest of the house. Being conscious of budget, the existing flooring and chandelier stayed.
