Hugo Living Room
The sun is shining, and as Martha says, “It’s a good thing!” About a month ago, I wrote a post on an Arts and Crafts styled home where I am redoing the living room and parts of the dining room. Our goal was to take Arts and Crafts one step further, to use the philosophy of the era but not the actual A&C styled furniture. As Barry Darr Dixon, one of my all time favorite interior designers once said, you need to “take it out of itself”. He was referring to exactly what my goal was–to reference the feel of an era without using the tangibles from it. I never get sick of looking at his environments! They are like looking into a wonderful piece of art that has so many layers, and each time you look at it, you see something new.
I have made quite a bit of progress, and thought I would share updates on the living room. Soon it will all be coming together, ***the best part!!***, and then I can show you some awesome pics, but for now–bits and pieces:
I know you all have fabulous memories, correct? No lack of empty files in that little hideaway, but just in case you are having an off day, let me refresh your memory.
The layout: plan view below…
The Inspiration for color: fireplace tiles below…
The coffee table: my wonderful find of an early 19th century Turkish copper tray being built into a 54″ round coffee table of reclaimed, dark stained wood below…
And now… The new additions!
The sofa: I have a fabulous sofa with simple, square lines. The frame is in a dark brown leather with large antiqued brass nailheads and the cushions in a warm, dark grey faux mohair below…
The slipcovered chair: This chair is an updated, contemporary version of a traditional wing chair. It swivels, so during parties, the occupant can talk to people in the window bench, OR, when you need a relief, or a fresh conversation, you can spin around and talk to people on the sofa, or totally zone out and watch TV! I absolutely love how I’ve complemented the more formal wing chair style with a casual linen slipcover. Fabric and chair style below…
So sorry for the blurriness of the chair pics, but I was having a bugger of a time with the chair image.
The patterned chair: This chair has a more rounded style, and again swivels. The dweller of this chair has oodles of entertainment options. They can swivel to peer out at the wonderful lakeside, spin and talk to someone in the kitchen, spin and talk to someone on the couch, or again zone out to the tube. Fabric and chair style below…
The side tables: The homeowner has a couple of wonderful
Stickley side tables I want to reuse. They will be an awesome transition piece between the Arts/Crafts architecture and our more casual, earthy style. See below…
The window seat: On the opposite side of the fireplace from the TV cabinet was an open space, perfect for some type of built in. Hello, window seat! The back wall of the window seat will be upholstered in a semi tufted style in a fabulous cinnamon color, and the bench seat cushion in a cinnamon/grey trellis style. See fabrics below…
Accessories: Today I found some wonderful floor lamps, large worn grey lanterns, and made her a super tall dogwood & moss arrangement in a black metal galvanized container for her mantel. The ceilings are super high! See below…
Meanwhile my client found some incredible fabric for accent pillows and made the most wonderful pillows–the colors and patterns are perfect for the room!
What do you think? Getting excited? I am. I absolutely love it when it all starts coming together. Can’t wait to show you the rest as it unfolds!
☞☞☞☞☞ Susan ☜☜☜☜☜
MiriamS
May 11, 2011 at 6:56 pmSusan I'll be looking forward to the photos! 🙂
Susan E. Brown
May 12, 2011 at 10:09 amThanks Miriam! All comes together this weekend!
Ed Iwasaki
January 24, 2012 at 9:03 amI like those chairs, and they would be more relaxing to use if there were extra seats for foot rests. That floor lamp is definitely an eye-catching piece in that living room. And all of the accessories you've chosen are all unique and artistic! Please let us see how it looks once you've finished with it and share some photos after you finish designing.
Susan E. Brown
January 24, 2012 at 6:19 pmHi Ed! Thanks so much for your comments! I greatly appreciate hearing how my designs are interpreted by others. The living room is finished and I posted about it in a August 2011 blog post: http://susanebrowninteriordesign.blogspot.com/2011/08/completed-arts-crafts-inspired-living.html
Check it out, and let me know what you think! I am doing a photo shoot on this room and the accompanying dining room in the next couple of weeks to be published in Arts & Crafts Homes and the Revival magazine coming out in the Winter 2012/2013 issue. See the finished dining room July 2011 blog post here: http://susanebrowninteriordesign.blogspot.com/2011/07/arts-and-crafts-dining-room-completed.html
Again, thanks for the input and hope to hear from you soon!! Best, Susan