A Tale of a Toddler and Two Pets

In a sprawling home near the banks of the Potomac, I was invited to redesign a family’s space in need of rehab. I found adjoining rooms positioned near the front door. One housed over-sized, hand-me-down family room furniture; the other hosted an onslaught of toys beneath a standard issue chandelier. My client was stumped and unhappy with anything in this part of her house. The rest of her home was lovely and enjoyed often, but this area suffered and was, unfortunately, what greeted visitors.  She wanted an inspiring space that would not be off limits to her young daughter and doggie duo. She and her husband collect fabulously interesting art and we found ourselves building the rooms around their latest passion piece a large-scale painting in inviting tones of seafoam.

The room had a lot to live up to: it needed to be a gallery, a playroom, a cocktail and TV lounge. Before we got started, we confirmed piano lessons were in the room’s future as well. The floorplan was drafted around the footprint of an incoming baby grand. The rest is Nesting magic.

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BEFORE:

The front room became a parlor with elegant (and space saving) armless seating for adults or children upholstered in Sensuede to give our hostess worry-free maintenance. The texture is informal while the pewter nailheads give the chairs presence and panache. A childlike rick-rack pattern on the throw pillows in a casual cotton coordinates with the boldly patterned wool rug-- locally treated with stain repelling Fiber-Seal.  Our round coffee table is toddler-friendly and echoes the elegant lines of the new piano. The adjoining lounge and playroom continues the color scheme of soothing blues, greens and creams and boasts an olive green modern sofa and blue green slim club chair. The carpet is 100% nylon shag making it both soft and stain resistant. 

AFTER: