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Houston House and Home - Index

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When I first saw Susan and Keith Lynch’s dining room, I
had a feeling the couple was not using the room. Although they had lived in
their house for a few years, they had not managed to make it feel like home.
The dining room lacked color and personality and simply didn’t feel good.
While they liked the style and quality of the dining furniture, the couple
thought it seemed dated, formal and very beige. They wanted the room to
have a more casual and inviting look. They really thought they needed to start
from scratch and had no idea where to begin.
Don’t let a builder force you into an uncomfortable furniture
tip> arrangement because of where a chandelier is placed.
A chandelier can be moved easily.
FLOORING & FURNITURE FIRST
After learning Susan wanted to replace the carpet in the two front rooms with
wood flooring, I recommended she get an estimate from Forsyth Floor Co.
This saved the Lynches $1,000 over another estimate, which more than paid
for my services and other costs incurred on the project.
They were surprised I suggested painting the furniture, walls and picture
frame instead of starting over with new furnishings. And I suggested a new
way to arrange the furniture. “As soon as Keith arrived home the first day, we
began moving furniture as you suggested,” Susan says. “We were amazed.
The room literally seemed twice as large.”
Allow 36 inches from the leading edge of a dining table to
tip> what you “hit” — be that a wall, windowsill or another piece
of furniture. The 36-inch rule allows you to stand behind a chair, take a
step backward, pull the chair toward you and sit down. A measurement
less than 36 inches becomes a hassle, and you won't use the table
frequently.
NOW FOR THE COLOR
After touring the house and discussing her color preferences and color comfort
level, I suggested Benjamin Moore’s “Nantucket Gray” (#HC-111) for the
walls and “Otter Brown” (#2137-10) for the chairs to break up the sea of beige
and yet flow with the rest of the colors in the house. I also recommended they
paint the chandelier and the picture frame with Modern Masters Metallic
Paint in “English Brown,” also available at Benjamin Moore stores.
“After moving several times and living in ‘builder beige’ rooms for years,
we were afraid of color on the walls,” Susan explains. “Painting the sample
boards you recommended really helped us feel comfortable with the color
before we began painting.”
Paint color looks different at night. Painting a large poster or
tip> foam core board with a tester of the color allows you to move
the paint board from wall to wall and from room to room to make sure
it does not “die” when sunlight becomes moonlight.
The couple admits it was hard to visualize the completed dining room.
“Once we moved the furniture, I knew we had made great progress even if we
didn’t change anything else,” Susan says. She says they really started to see a
change when they were painting. “It took time, but was inexpensive and
turned out great,” she explains. “We kept saying that we should have painted
the walls a long time ago. The room instantly felt better and the trim and
shutters just popped.”
Glazing the furniture also was scary, but Susan was so ready for a change
that she just trusted my suggestion to let faux painter Sammie Cockrell at
Faux FX paint the table and chests. “We now feel like we have new furniture
at a fraction of the cost of new pieces,” she says.
tip>
Paint consistently gives the most bang for the buck. Painting
sample boards keeps you from making costly mistakes.
HAPPY ENDING
The couple liked having a written list of things they could do themselves.
They both have busy schedules, so they completed tasks as time and
COME ON IN. SIT ANYWHERE.
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1549 Hwy 36 North • Rosenberg, Texas • 281.342.8775 • 866.808.8827
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