Dining Room VIP Design in a Day
Candace was one of my very first clients when I started my business in 2018. Back then I helped her decorate her single girl bedroom, and since that time her family has grown and moved in beautiful ways. I helped her design her newlywed apartment and her beautiful baby girl nursery as well! Now, she and her family are moving into their first home and she reached out to me about designing the rooms that they do not have furnishings & decor for.
One of the ways that we serve our clients at McNeill Brown Interior Design and give a lot of value in a short amount of time is our Designer VIP Day. With this service, we spend 6 hours with a client in one day doing a fast-paced session of space planning and selections. Because so many options for furniture and decor are available online, after we have done a consultation to identify what is needed, we can create mood boards that show the overall design with direct links to the products to buy! Typically we only complete 2 spaces during a Designer VIP Day but because Candace has been a client of mine for years and I know her style, we were able to knock out three spaces in just one day! They all came together beautifully and I’m going to share each one with you. Keep reading to see the designs and links to everything.
Dining Room
Prior to her Designer VIP Day, we asked her to review several images to give us a good idea of the style that she would like to implement in her dining room. The first embodies an updated traditional style, the second modern farmhouse, and the last midcentury modern. After reviewing them, she liked elements of each room but loved option number 1 the most. After honing in on what exactly she liked about each room, we poured through our preferred vendors to find options that met her preferences for this space. And voila! She had a dining room designed before we took a break for lunch.
Curtains - I always encourage clients to add curtains to soften their windows. They are an opportunity to easily add color, texture, or pattern to a room. In this dining room, I also wanted them to have some privacy on evenings when they are hosting since the window is at the front of their home which faces their street.
Curtain Rod - There are so many options for curtain rods and honestly you can get lost in just this detail of a room. For the dining room (and the adjacent rooms because we want continuity!) we decided on this 1.5” diameter brushed gold rod to bring some metal accent into the room.
Chandelier - During this Designer VIP Day, Candace's husband was not present and she felt comfortable making most of the furniture and decor decisions without his input. However, when it came to the dining room chandelier, she ran it by him to see what he thought about it. His response really tickled me, “We already have one of those!” he said. In his mind, why get another light when there is already one hanging in the room? If he was present, I would have definitely sold him on why this one is an upgrade to what they have and is definitely NOT the same as the dinky builder basic chandelier in their new home.
Dining Table - Obviously, the table is the most important piece in any dining room so we made sure to select one that is going to be a statement and set the tone for the updated traditional aesthetic.
Wallpaper - This dining room already has beautiful, crisp wainscoting on the lower half of the walls so we selected a grasscloth fan pattern with the greige color palette.
Dining Chairs - Because they have a busy (almost) 2-year-old at home, it was important for them to have dining chairs that were cleanable, durable, and beautiful at the same time. That’s why we selected a faux leather rather than fabric upholstery on the chairs. Unfortunately, the ones we originally spec’d are sold out in the beige color but I found this even better alternative!
Rug - To protect their beautiful new hardwood floors, we selected this 8’ round jute rug which will be easy to clean and also help with sound when they are having a lively dinner party.
Jeff Manning Art - Jeff is one of my favorite contemporary artists so I thought it would be perfect to add one of his pieces to their dining room. This work brings femininity into the space and also adds a dark contrast to the gold and cream color scheme.
Stay tuned for the other two rooms that we designed during this day! I’ll be sharing the living room and primary bedroom and you don’t wanna miss them.
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xo Niki
