As the house renovation slowly but surely keeps chugging along, {I’ll be talking paint colors with you later this week!}, I find myself constantly furnishing rooms in my head. That’s why I was thrilled when one of my favorite San Francisco-based design firms, Niche Interiors, took us up on our request for a Designer’s Take. Founder Jennifer Jones has such a great eye. Here’s a couple of the gorgeous dining rooms they’ve designed:

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As a reminder, below is the architect’s drawing of what our dining room looks like. The space enjoys some pretty special features including the original 140 year old pocket doors, a fireplace {that I still have to design – oy!}, the original crown molding, a bay window and 12-foot ceilings. Jennifer turned her sights on our dining room and I am loving her thoughts.

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We took inspiration from the classic Victorian architectural details of Erin’s new home, along with her obvious love of black and white. Clearly, the bones of this space are the real star — we would create a restrained, contemporary dining space with subtle nods to traditional design.

First, we would paint the walls and moldings a warm white and add a larger ceiling medallion that is more appropriately scaled for the room. Matte black paint on the ceiling would make the gorgeous moldings pop and accentuate the tall ceilings. Graphic geode wallpaper peeks out behind tall metal bookcases flanking the fireplace, and kelly green drapery panels frame the bay window. The dramatic brass chandelier has a traditional shape with modern styling — a perfect focal point for this space!

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GET THE LOOK:

  1. Chandelier 
  2. Table
  3. Curtains (custom)
  4. > Minotti Aston chair
  5. Vase
  6. Zak & Fox with Apparatus Wallpaper
  7. Brass Dish
  8. Bookcase

Curious how other designers have suggested we design our Victorian? From the kitchen to the nursery, living room and bedrooms – you can find all the amazing inspiration right HERE.

 

Images 1 & 2 via Niche Interiors // Image 3 via Kay Douglass Interiors

 

When it comes to making a house a home, an often overlooked design secret is house plants! They truly do enliven a space, pun intended! And if there’s anyone who knows a thing or two about plants it’s Urban Jungle blogger extraordinaire, Igor of Happy Interior Blog. Igor has been a breath of fresh air from the moment he came on the design blogging scene. His casual European aesthetic is so inviting. I want to just move right into every space he showcases. Igor has also proven to be quite the savant when it comes to plants. I’ve somehow managed to keep two fiddle leaf figs and now a bevy of snake plants alive for over year, but when we move into the house I’m really going to have to step up my plant-life game. Thankfully Igor is willing to share some of his plant-whispering secrets with us today!

From Igor: Moving into a new place is exciting but it can be a tad scary too. It is like the beginning of an art piece where the artist finds himself in front of a gaping void. The empty canvas – as much as it offers a chance to create something unique and remarkable, it also carries the threat of failure and discontent. However, for us interior design loving peeps, this empty canvas is more of a chance than a threat, right? One easy way to bring life into a room and succeed for sure is by adding plants.

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Plants have that unmistakable power to infuse life to any room. The dash of fresh green, the thriving power, the benefits for a healthy environment as well as their decorative abilities make them a popular choice for decorators and people who want to live healthy and stylish.

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Choosing plants for a room can be challenging but it can be made much easier by simply considering a few points:

> Is your room well lit or rather shady? Choose your plants accordingly by picking either plants who love full sunlight or plants that thrive in shade or semi-shade like a rubber plant or a calathea.

> Is your room spacious or rather small? Choose either large statement plants or opt for small greens that you can group together. If your space is very limited think of a hanging plant instead.

> Are you easy going with plant care or does it scare you a bit? Here again, choose plants according to your preferences and lifestyle. Opt for low-maintenance plants like cacti, succulents or a philodendron if you do not want to turn into a plant mama. If you like to care for your plants and see them thrive happily ever after, go for any kind of plant that will make you happy.

Find the perfect plant friends for the new/old house is going to be quite fun. I see a ginormous fiddle leaf in my future, but who knows? Maybe I’ll throw a curve ball and do a banana leaf palm instead!

Curious how to care for your fiddle leaf fig tree? CLICK HERE! And the rest of our favorite plant tips are HERE and HERE.

Image 1 via Line Klein // 2 via Cotton and Flax // 3 via Lobster & Swan

We’re kicking off the week with a peek at our soon-to-be living room! I’m pleased to report construction on our house is picking up. Drywall is about to go in – which means our vision will finally start coming to life. The progress definitely has me dreaming of the final product and how I’m going to furnish it. This week I’m getting pointers on our living room from one of my all time faves – Justina Blakaney. I know this girl can stretch my aesthetic and convince me to consider some decor pieces that are outside my typical modernist comfort zone.

To refresh, here’s what the living room looked like when we found it. Stunning right?! Ha! Those floors are vinyl, the chandelier plastic, the fireplace faux and the ceiling raspberry pink! Good stuff.

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But the bones of the room are spectacular. The crown molding, the high ceilings and all the natural light gave us a lot to work with. We decided to simply improve upon them by making the space conducive to modern living. This is our new layout:

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I wanted the living room to feel open, warm and serve as the hub of the house, so we actually removed a couple of walls, connecting the space to both the kitchen and the den. The new layout creates a fantastic flow. Now it’s just a matter of creating a design that only builds upon that inviting feeling. I know Justina has the perfect pointers to do just that!

Justina’s Designer Take: For this room, I took what I know of Erin’s clean, modern and sophisticated aesthetic, sprinkled in a few pieces from the African continent and some elements that scream the 60’s. The color palette is controlled focusing on earth tones and whites–and of course I had to add in a bit of green because that’s my jungalow vibe :D. For Erin and her growing family, I see a home that is equal parts comfy and chic with a down-to-earth quality to it–because that’s how I see Erin!

OatHome_JC_147928084829e5438240fa026fa1e22038c96e637a8665d97c6999d7abb64432f57Designer'sTake_JustinaBlakeney_LivingRoomGET YOUR SHOP ON:

  1. Sofa
  2. > Chandelier
  3. Coffee table
  4. > PomPom Blanket
  5. Painting
  6. > Sideboard
  7. Pillows
  8. Vases
  9. > Rug
  10. Plant

 

While I tend to beeline straight for the mid-century modern, Justina offers a great reminder to look out for those unique pieces that will inject some unexpected character into your room. I’m loving the idea of mixing and matching genres and time periods to create a truly collected comfortable space. It really does pay to hold out for that truly perfect piece. While it can be tough for me to be patient, when it comes to designing our house the treasure hunt is going to be half the fun!

Thanks Justina for giving us your Designer’s Take!

For previous Designers’ Takes on our 140 year old Victorian CLICK HERE

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Today we’ve got our second installment of Designer’s Take, our latest series where our favorite designers and stylists share what they would do if they could ge their hands on our new/old house {reminder: I’m calling it that since the house is 140 years old!}. In this edition, our very own spring intern Ali Hartwell is offering her take on the perfect dining room. To jog your memory, here is what the dining room looked like! 

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Definitely scary on the surface, but here’s what we’ll have to work with when construction is done!

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We’re really not changing too much – everything we do in this room will be cosmetic. {What? You think we should leave the raspberry pink ceiling??} The dining room is a pretty large space with a fireplace centered on the far left wall. There are also the original pocket doors that separate the dining room from the adjacent living room. A large set of bay windows sits on the opposite wall. You can see what they look like from the exterior here. It’s definitely going to be a fun space to play with! But here’s what Ali would do.

Ali’s Designer Take: I think I’ve developed such a fondness for dining areas probably because a solid chunk of my life has been spent sitting within them. So many of my favorite memories are tied to laughing and connecting with family and friends over home-cooked meals and MANY a bottle of wine. That’s why when it comes to dining room decor, I always try to create a look that’s going to invite people to sit down and stay awhile.

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If the space allows, I love defining a dining area with a piece of statement art to serve as the backdrop to the actual table setting. And what better way to compliment said artwork than with a completely badass lighting fixture?! Since there’s not really much to a dining area, I say go big or go home.

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I imagine an Erin’s old San Franciscan Victorian to be the perfect setting for a killer dining room—high ceilings, crown molding, hardwood floors and plenty of natural light streaming in from oversized windows make for an already inviting space and the perfect blank canvas.

Here’s a look I think would play nicely in Erin’s dining room:

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GET YOUR SHOP ON:

  1. Table
  2. > Light
  3. Chairs
  4. Art
  5. Pitcher
  6. Dishware
  7. Planter
  8. > Rug

 

I think Ali has the right idea when it comes to our dining room. I see a statement chandelier in my future and I’m very excited about that. And a eye-catching piece of art over the fireplace would be quite nice too. The search for the perfect dining table is likely to be the ultimate treasure hunt but only time will tell. Once our walls are closed up and we’re moving on to finish work I think it’ll be much easier for a design direction to take shape.

Where do you think it should head??

To see more of Ali’s design work, you can visit her website or follow her visual musings via Instagram @athartwell.

For our first Designer’s Take on what we should do in our kitchen, CLICK HERE! And for even more inspiration for our renovations you can check out my remodel Pinterest board and our Tumblr!

 

image 1 via The Design Files // image 2 via arper // image 3 via My Domaine

As you may have noticed, updates about the ongoing remodel of our San Francisco Victorian have been rather few and far between these days. I’ve come to learn remodels are like molasses – they move at a pace you cannot control! And while progress is in fact being made, there’s not a lot of excitement related to rough-in plumbing, insulation or rewiring. I am getting super excited to share our plans as the designs are coming together! But in the meantime I thought it’d be fun to play what-if with some of my favorite designers. What if they had their hands on this house and could do whatever they wanted! I knew they’d have as much fun dreaming  of what could be done with the space as I have. So for the next few weeks you’re going to be treated so some major design inspiration from a bevy of design studs! I’m thrilled my dear friend and interior stylist extraordinaire Kirsten Grove is kicking things off with some serious kitchen inspiration!

To jog your memory, when it comes to the kitchen we’re basically starting from scratch because this is the house’s current “kitchen”:

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This is the floor plan for our new kitchen:

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While not a terribly big space, we hope to maximize storage with a separate pantry {woot!}. I’ve toyed with the idea of a kitchen island too. And I’m still debating what the cabinets should look like. And lighting?? Oh the lighting dilemmas. I am excited the kitchen will be directly connected to our living room via a breakfast bar. Obviously, it’s a very blank slate at the moment as we’re still in our demolition phase, so I’m excited to see what Kirsten thinks we might do with this design!

Kirsten’s Designer Take: Hi everyone! My name is Kirsten Grove and I am an interior Stylist/Blogger from Boise Idaho. I am a huge fan of Apartment 34 and I think the world of Erin and the team! She definitely has her work cut out for her with this renovation. But it’s something that I know she will successfully complete.

We all know that the kitchen is the heart of the home. Whether we cook or not, we all want the perfect kitchen. Of course they are the biggest money takers, but it’s well worth it at the end.

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I have always been a fan of modern, minimal kitchens. Especially in older homes. The juxtaposition is always stunning! Right now cabinet slabs are on point. No molding, no panels. Just clean slabs. Paired with hardware or just kept plain, these doors are simple yet beautiful.

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Here’s a kitchen with simple hardware that doesn’t take away from the doors. I also love the style of hood that mirrors the cabinets. It’s a nice, clean look. This same thing can be assigned with the refrigerator.

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Another trend is two toned cabinets. Above we have a dark paint on the top and natural wood on the bottom. You could also do one color on top and another color on the bottom. It breaks the kitchen up and adds stylish personality!

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Here’s another example of two-toned cabinets. This kitchen also has another favorite trend of mine. Square tiles! It’s a refreshing change from the classic subway tiles. White grout keeps it more traditional while dark grout keeps it modern.

Kitchens can be a lot of fun to design! Good luck, Erin! We can’t wait to see what you come up with!

I love that Kirsten named a few of my favorite kitchen trends – and a couple that just might make their way into my final kitchen design. But you’ll have to wait a little longer before I can reveal all of that. For now, follow more of Kirsten’s design savviness on her blog, Simply Grove!

Image 1 via Simply Grove  // 2 via 30 Collins // 3 via The D Pages // 4 via Emma’s Design Blog