April Stay Home - Free Designer for a Day (Vol. 6)

Hello, Happy Friday and Happy May!

It’s May, guys. It’s May. Just taking that in for a minute…whew.

Okay, moving on. First, we want to give you a quick update on some of the projects we’ve been working on through this crazy pandemic/virtual/uncertain time. We are business as not-usual on several projects that began before the Stay Home order and also starting several new projects in a fully virtual capacity. The biggest change has been no Install Day and no photography. So…come fall (fingers crossed), we’re going to have a lot to share. For now, our Instagram stories are the best way to see all the happenings with our ongoing projects - we’re nearly done with a Poker Room (wallpaper is hung, finishing touches on the wet bar happening this week) and we’re rounding the corner on a huge kitchen renovation.

For today’s edition of “Free Designer for a Day”, we’re tackling a living room. So many people are sitting in their living rooms…day after day…thinking of all the big and small changes they want to make. And we get it, we’re in our living rooms too…thinking of all changes we want to make too. The beauty of a living room transformation is that you can go all in - repaint, new light fixtures, new window treatments and all new furniture - or you can make just a handful of key updates and still get a major transformation.

Now, the question from an incredibly sweet follower (she sent us the nicest email):

Question - I have attached pictures of my very dated living room.  I am looking for a more relaxed feeling.  My main concern is furniture placement.  Would a sectional work in this room? We are empty nesters and I want the room to be inviting. The wall across from the fireplace measures 9 ft. 10 inches.  I would love any ideas you two might have.  Thank you so much for the opportunity.

First, this is a gorgeous space. We love the window seat and the built-in bookshelves. There are so many windows letting in a ton of natural light. And, the wall color is great, the perfect neutral foundation.

So, what do we want to change:

1) Add recessed lighting and a center light fixture - The existing ceiling lights feature specific elements of the room (fireplace and built-in bookshelves) and don’t adequately illuminate the room. There should be recessed lights across the ceiling, all on dimmer switches.

2) Update the Fireplace - We love the texture and vibe of vintage/historic brick (1800s) when it’s in the right context. But, in this case (and when it comes to most mid-century brick: 1940’s and later), we recommend it be painted. White or gray would be beautiful. Dark gray is a more modern look, white is softer and timeless.

3) Window Treatments - Based on the fact that there are no window treatments in this room, our guess is that none of these windows are street facing and/or there’s plenty of privacy coverage from outside landscaping. With that being said, window treatments are not needed. But, they can be a powerful weight on the aesthetic side of the home design scale (versus the function side). Adding fabric treatments will complete the space beautifully. More on this in a minute.

4) New Furniture - We have lot of general ideas and specific suggestions for updating all the furniture. Unfortunately, we do not think this is the right room for a sectional. It will close it off too much. Whomp, whomp. BUT, we do think there is room for additional casual seating. And the “casual” feeling that we all crave as we continue to hunker down in our homes and as home design trends in general lean more casual and approachable, can be accomplished without a sectional or really any major purchase. Casual is about clean lines (less ornate), soft fabrics (layered throw blankets and chunky knit pillows) and nature (wood tones, plants, woven baskets, etc.).

Okay, let’s talk about layout. The homeowner has a great layout in place - we have just a couple small tweaks. First, add some poufs instead of the chair in front of the built-in bench. A set of two matching poufs would be great to either kick your feet up while sitting on the bench or to pull over to the sofa for additional seating. They’ll also add a casual feel for to the space, upping the cozy factor.

Here are a couple beautiful options:

Option 1 - A woven cylinder. These are so classic and work with just about any style (Farmhouse, Boho, Transitional, etc.). They retail for $180 but are on a mega sale right now ($120).

Option 2 - This white and blue ticking fabric is also timeless. The square shape is a little more modern, but again works with just about any style. They retail for $89.

Option 3 - These canvas poufs come in 3 colors and are sold individually ($99) or in sets of 2 ($195). We love the soft canvas and bright blue color.

One more sorta/kinda layout mention. This room reminds us a bit of our Lovell Project because the sofa is best placed between two case openings. In order to maximize the size of the sofa, it’s nice to minimize (or altogether skip) the side tables and use wall sconces for task lighting.

Ok, finally, our mood board and all the sources!

Sofa - Price varies by fabric choice

Coffee table - $1,000

Accent Chairs (to flank console table) - $450

Console table - $329

Rug - Price varies by size

Mirror - $80

Flushmount Light Fixture - $70

Floor Lamp - $110

Wild Blossom Art - $17

Pillow (shown on accent chair) - $22

Pillow (shown on sofa) - $17

Blanket (shown on sofa) - $66

Basket - $50

Finally, let’s talk window treatments. If she wants to add treatments, we recommend ivory linen drapes for the triple window behind the console table. Head to our prior post (Vol. 1) for options on drapes and drapery hardware. For all other windows (flanking the fireplace and above the built-in bench), we like fabric roman shades. The fabric could also be a plain ivory linen or ivory linen with an accent stripe (blue or gray). Here is the source.

But wait, we have more! It’s like a home design game show and we’re giving it ALL away. We couldn’t help but come up with extra sources for this project - alternative mirror, rug, art, etc. Head to our Pinterest page to see and shop those extra options.

Even thought it’s no longer April (and we’re no longer accepting submissions for “Free Designer for a Day” advice), we still have quite a few submissions that we WILL address. So, more transformation advice to come throughout May. Let’s keep this party going.

- Leah

*This post contains affiliate links*

April Stay Home - Free Designer for a Day (Vol. 5)

Today we’re answering a fun question about creating a guest room space in a beach house. Pretty dreamy task.

Question - I am trying to pull together a design plan for a guest bedroom. We live on the beach so I would like to keep the style casual and have a little fun in this occasionally used space. At the same time, I do not want it to look juvenile. Do you think the Mare Wave Wallpaper in GRAY would work well as an accent? ( I know you have used it in NAVY in your #GOSProspectProject ) 

If YES, can I paper two walls, one behind the bed and the adjoining wall so that you would see it as you enter the room. Other walls are BM White Dove with cream berber carpet and bamboo roman shades. Any other advice on art, lighting, area rug to go in this space to keep it casual but not child like?

Let’s dive right into the photos so you can understand the space.

And here are the specific walls she is interested in installing wallpaper.

We say yes to both walls…and yes to the rest of the walls too. We recommend she go ALL. IN. This is a small room with lots of unique angles and it can totally handle wallpaper…everywhere. Wallpapered eves are awesome.

Below are some amazing inspirational spaces.

image source

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And now…our plan. First, the layout. It’s always best to have the bed facing the doorway, so you can see the door opening when lying in bed. (Here’s a great Feng Shui guide for the bedroom). It doesn’t look like there’s enough room to fit a headboard in the nook (that would be ideal - even if it means blocking the built-in bookcase), but there might be enough space on the wall next to the nook? If it’s not possible here because it blocks the closet, she should block the window on the side of the room and have the bed facing the closet.

We picked a “wave” wallpaper in gray (with some blue undertones) that is “peel and stick” - it can be DIYed or installed professionally. And we have more wallpaper options below! The wood tones are light, the palette is washed out and muted. Like the beach itself, the idea is to let the textures run the show and keep the mood serene and calm. A welcoming, relaxed guest room.

Bed - $800

Chair - $300

Round Leather Pouf -$300

Rug- Price varies by size

Light Fixture - $199

Gray Blanket - $50

Body pillow - $10

Lumbar Pillow for Chair -$25

Art - Varies by size and frame choice

Wallpaper - Varies by amount needed

And, because we couldn’t help ourselves, below are more awesome wallpaper options.

Option 1 - We love the neutral on neutral colors and the TEXTURE. This is not a flat paper, but has a woven texture.

Option 2 - This is a bit more modern and graphic. We love the muted blue color.

Option 3 - We love the moodiness of this pattern and the color is a bit more saturated than the others, which would give the whole space more color to contrast the otherwise neutral palette.

We hope she sends us follow-up photos of how it all comes together!

- Leah

*this post contains affiliate links*

April Stay Home - Free Designer for a Day (Vol. 3)

It’s almost the weekend and the end of Week 5 in quarantine. Is it week 5? Or week 6? or 4? Or…who knows. Let’s just keep on keeping on. Am I right?

Today we’re tackling another window treatment dilemma and a paint color question. These were all submitted as part of our Free Designer for a Day in April. We have been getting all sorts of questions through Instagram, Facebook and a good, old-fashioned email (hello@grayoakstudio.com). It’s still April (I think), so you still have time to submit your question!

Question - I need some help with a specific issue I’m having related to window treatments in my dining room. There are three windows in the room and each one is slightly different in terms of the amount of space I have on each side of the window casings. I’d love to do panels throughout, but I’m not sure it would work on the two side windows, given I’m right up against a wall. (Pictures attached) I’m also not sure if it’s okay to mix Roman shades (side windows) with panels (front window!?) If I AM able to do panels - how would you do it (e.g. thinner panels, only one on each side window, etc.) Would love any advice!! 

We worked on a window treatment problem in our first edition of this post series and talked a bunch about why window treatments can be so darn tricky. This is another example of just that - one room, 3 very different windows, what to do?

Here is the lay of the land. The two double hung windows flanking the fireplace are on a wall that is perpendicular to the floor to ceiling window.

All three windows have different amount of surrounding wall space. And one is a different size.

Window 1

window 2

window 3

Our follower would love to install (drapery) panels on all 3 windows…but we’re gonna suggest (and she already knows this in her heart) that it’s not the best plan. Two reasons. First, one of the pillars of installing drapes is that you go high and wide with the rod to make sure all of the window itself shows when the drapes are fully opened. There’s no way to make that happen on Window 1, even if she uses a super thin panel. Second, this is an amazing historical home with gorgeous (original?) molding. We want to showcase the trim, not hide it.

So, what is the solution? She hinted at it in her question - go with 2 different types of treatments. Drapes for the tall window and roman shades (or nothing) on the windows flanking the fireplace. Mixing window treatments in a room is totally acceptable as long as everything ties together. Here’s a beautiful example.

image source

In our Prospect Project, we used drapes on the windows facing the street and none on the windows facing the side yard.

It looks like the dining room in this house is also at the front of the house and there is likely another (possibly similar size) room on the opposite side of a center entrance. We wonder what the window treatment is on the floor-to-ceiling window in that room (…if there is one)? It’s not a hard rule, but it’s nice to match the look of window treatments on street facing windows. The symmetric and uniform look is beautiful and classic. Good curb appeal.

Here is a photo from the other street facing room in our Prospect Project. Again, drapes on the front windows and no drapes on the side windows.

For the tall window, she should hang the drapery rod just below the crown molding and wide enough so that when the drapes are fully opened all of the window shows and (ideally) some/all of the molding. We’re total suckers for drapes in a dining room, and this homeowner clearly wants them, so this is a wonderful spot for them. Quick Note: we get nervous with drapes around radiators…don’t want to encourage any fires. So be cautious and keep the fabric away from the metal!

For the windows flanking the fireplace, she has some considerations. From a functional perspective, it depends how much privacy she wants. If privacy isn’t an issue, no window treatments are needed. From an aesthetic perspective, she might want to add a different color, add visual interest with a pattern or add a soft texture to contrast the architectural details. All are great reasons to bring a window treatment into a room and fabric roman shades will handle the task beautifully. The key will be to unite the treatments on all windows with the same fabric or complimentary fabrics (one fabric for the drapes and one fabric for the roman shades…not 3 different fabrics…don’t get too, too crazy).

One more thing to address: We love plantation shutters in historic homes. Actually, we love plantation shutters in all homes. So, of course, we considered making this recommendation here. But, we don’t know the specific location of these windows or how many windows are in the entire house. Plantation shutters are more of an architectural addition to a home, so it’s important to be thoughtful as to which windows get them and which don’t. Sort of like you wouldn’t put baseboard in just two rooms. Typically all the windows get them or just street facing windows. There is a big picture plan when it comes to shutters.

Question - What are your go to paint colors?

Our “go to” paint colors are…all over the road. The colors we specify vary by the size and shape of the room, the natural light and, most importantly, the feel we want to create. We love using whites and pale grays and beiges.

From hutchins Project (nimbus by Benjamin Moore on the walls)

But, we also love a deep saturated greens and blues and grays.

from Mayberry Project (Hale Navy by Benjamin Moore on the walls)

And our most recent nursery need a “Hint of Pink” by Benjamin Moore.

Wall colors are deeply tied to the overall style of a room - there’s no one-size-fits-all solution. We did, however, recently write a round-up of favorite whites. Check it out here.

Have a wonderful weekend.

- Leah