Room Rx: Family Friendly Dining Room

How was your week-end?  The weather here in Madison continues to be spectacular, a beautiful Indian Summer streak which sadly, will come to an end on Wednesday. We made the most of it, and even did a few outdoor projects....my back is still talking to me from the raking!

Today, we'll continue the tour of my client's home with a peak at the dining room. Since the kitchen is small and has no eat in area, the dining room gets used on a daily basis.  With three small children, the room needed to be not only stylish, but practical. Beautiful features such as a bay window, wainscoting and a built in add to the charm, but the fact that either a door or window is present on every wall, made it tricky for flow as well as adding a serving piece.

So here we are, just after move in...

We moved the existing sisal-like rug from the living room for a neutral, easy to clean foundation and kept the paint color. With that in place, the first order of business was to find a table and chairs.  My clients chose this one from Pottery Barn and purchased a set of leather parsons chairs from Macy's.  A local store was the source for the buffet from French Heritage which we tucked into the bay window.

Now to infuse some color and pattern. My clients did not want fabric window treatments so we picked up the warm, rusty red tones from the rug in the living room and built upon that with upholstered host and hostess chairs and custom lamps/shades. A pierced metal drum shade pendant over the table continues the more rustic modern feel of the room.

The fabric on the host and hostess chairs is a rich, gorgeous raised velvet. The texture is the perfect compliment to the smooth leather of the other chairs.

I love the style of and finish on the buffet and think it works wonderfully with the other pieces adding not only storage but a place to serve from. In it's current finished state, the dining room has a great foundation and is more formal than an eat in kitchen but definitely comfortable enough to be used everyday, so I think we accomplished our goal.  The beauty of this room is that by adding additional accessories, artwork and maybe even window treatments or a different rug, the room can continue to evolve.

Does your room need a “prescription” for a change of decor, function or design? 
If so please contact me, I would love to help your room feel better with a Design Concept Board or a complete Room Rx.