We moved in late August and it’s now … *looks at watch* … December. Wow. Four months?! It feels like four years. But it also feels like four weeks. Time has no meaning anymore … that’s my real takeaway.
Unlike other homes we’ve lived in, in the past, we moved into this home immediately as soon as we got the keys. Typically, we would do some renovations first, but not this time. It was a functional choice as was our decision to move—it was one big Covid pivot. The house has some wonderful features that we were able to enjoy immediately, but I knew going in that it was going to take a long time to personalize this home and give it our style—or any style really. It was very much a blank slate, which I’m so grateful for!
So today, I’m going to share with you our first phase of a dining room and also chat about future plans!
The first thing we did when we moved into this house was measure for a table. Our previous home didn’t have space for a long table and I was so excited to get something long. After spending an unreasonably long time looking at different options, I came full circle and ordered the first table and chairs I had originally wanted. We chose the Seno extendable dining room table, which seats eight. For chairs, we picked the Rus dining chairs in light oak. They have a Scandinavian style that I really love. I actually almost ordered them at our last home and then for some reason I didn’t—but I couldn’t get them out of my head.
They are comfortable, easy to clean (!!!) and beautiful!
I kind of want to start collecting tablecloths. Where do you shop for them and do you have any tips? I feel like it would be special to have some for special occasions and family dinners. What do you think? Are tablecloths granny in a good way or a bad way?
Let’s talk about the room and future plans!
I’m hoping to bring some color into the space, likely with wallpaper or possibly paint. Where the stone ledge is (in the carved out nook) I would like to build a full built-in. I like how it can be used to serve food for a big dinner, though, so I want it to still function for that, just maybe with some cabinets below and maybe some open or glass shelves above.
I am taking some time to decide whether or not we will go wood for the floors or keep the tile. My husband really wants to keep the tile and it’s fully heated which is awesome. It feels very cozy to walk on when it’s heated, but it doesn’t feel cozy to me visually and so far I think I would prefer wood. But I am giving it time to see if it will possibly grow on me.
I would LOVE to add detail to the ceilings. Some kind of paneling or white beams. They are very high, but they don’t have much charm or personality.
The biggest design challenge in this part of our home is that it’s very open. From the entry area (where the piano is) you can see into four different rooms. A part of me wants to go crazy with multiple wallpapers. I definitely feel over my all-white-everything phase, but I am still exploring what feels right for this home and this new phase of our lives.
For now, the white is pretty! I’m really glad the house came with all white walls so I could take some time mulling it over.
Let me know if want to hear all the details and thought process behind my rooms or if it’s more fun for you to just see it all at once. Like–Bam! Reveal! I can go either way and I’m always curious which one you enjoy more.
So far, I have scheduled myself to tackle the next phase of this room in February, so it’s coming up soon. So if you need me I’ll be over here obsessing on Pinterest over wallpaper and light fixtures.
Thanks so much for following along! And thank you Article for gifting us this table and chairs.
xx. Elsie
April Cornell for tablecloths!! And table linens in general — she’s a watercolour artist and an epic gardener and hand-paints most of her designs. My mum collected them over the years from her Canadian store La Cache (now closed — the store based in Burlington, VT now) and is slowly passing them down to me. I LOVE THEM they make me so happy
i love the process! give me all the insights into your mind! 😀
my house is similar – downstairs living, dining, kitchen, and main hall are all visible to each other, s i’m keeping them all white and doing fun colors in in all the rooms with doors. most of the rooms have beadboard walls (1930s farmhouse), so i can’t do wallpaper, but i’m having fun with paint so far!
Where did you get the chandelier? I am looking for one for my entryway. Thanks. John
Hi! We got it from a shop that no longer exists, but they have similar ones of Wayfair. XX!
How do you possibly keep a rug, especially a white one, clean beneath a dining room table with toddlers?! I would love for you to do a podcast on cleaning with toddlers!
Hi! We actually had a white rug in our previous dining room as well (for five years) and it was never a big regret for me.
They do get stains. I spot clean it as I go. I typically have more issues with my dogs than with my kids. My kids eat a lot of their meals in out kitchen at our island, so this table isn’t use for every single meal. When we had our high chair at our main table (with a white rug) at our last home we just put a gathre mat under the high chair and that solved it.
For me, it’s worth it to use white rugs (just because I like them more) as long as they are natural fibers so I can spot clean them! :)) If it gets really bad I can always take it outside and give it a shampoo with a hose.
xx
I agree about Home Goods. I have found great looking ones there, especially during a sale. Look for the ones which don’t need ironing; just tumble dry, grab out and fold well. Easy Presy. On my larger table I shop at fabric warehouse stores. For the proper number of yards, measure the width of your table plus 24 inches. That will tell you what width fabric you need. A standard “drop” (length from edge of table) is 12 inches. A 30” wide table plus 24 inches = 54 inches, a standard width for decorator fabrics. For the length of the cloth, take the length of the table plus 24” and divide by 3. This will tell you how many yards are needed. I usually round up to the next yard. Trim off the printed selvage with sharp scissors, turn up a 1/2 inch hem and press it well. Turn up a 1” hem and use
heming tape to iron in a hem.
Love the table and chairs! I would love to hear more about your thoughts and process for designing the space. Thanks!!
As a side note- depending on what stone the floors are possibly there is a professional that can sand or use a chemical to strip the glossy texture so they are honed (with a matt finish) and more your style?
Great post! One of my favorite things is being taken around a house for reno by a friend or family member to hear their thoughts and ideas and get to dream it with them- and this post had just that vibe. Thank you for taking us along for the ride. Just seeing your stories walk through. This is probably too much but I would keep the floors (I know I can’t believe I am saying that myself) and focus on the 5th wall. I would love to see your version of complete wood amber interiors style ceiling throughout the whole first floor. You could even switch up the pattern and when you transition into a new room allow the ceiling to transition (imaging a very understated coffer ceiling w wallpaper accents). For me this would make the greatest change to your house with a single unionized feature (and bonus could hide all your can light holes).
My mom (60) has tablecloths for every occasion/color scheme, plus coordinating cloth napkins. I don’t think it is bad/granny at all! When I have more disposable income I feel like I will buy them, it adds something to the whole vibe of the occasion for sure.
Lovely progress on the dining room! This might sound backwards to some people, but I am pro-tablecloth for every day. We have a large formal dining room and we use it for every meal, now that we are home all the time. I put a clean cloth on it Friday afternoon, and usually switch it out around Tuesday or so—two per week. Pre Covid, I liked a covered table for family meals with little kids, and preferred a bare table for entertaining, to highlight my pretty burl table and settings.
Oooh yeah, have to show off those burls! I want a table like that when I have the space.
Cute furniture! I’d LOVE to see a floor plan of how those rooms intersect if you are comfortable sharing.
We built our big round dining room table – seats 12, 13 in a pinch. We stained it black and it was wonderful for years, I then (foolishly) ironed on it, breaking the finish which I have had a terrible time time trying to repair so we’ve had tablecloths for the last few years. Ebay Spoonflower, Crate and Barrel, TJ Maxx have been good resources for tablecloths,
but I would love to return to the clean sleek stained wood finish look
I do agree that you need some kind of color contrast in that room. Visually it’s kind of a white blob. This is exactly what our house was when we moved in. We kind of went crazy with paint and painted the ceilings black and now our dining room feels like a café. It is lovely. There are lots of wallpapers, as you know, that are very neutral looking and not necessarily huge patterns. I like the tile floors but maybe a different rug. That rug seems pretty versatile so maybe you can go somewhere else. we just finished having our home completely decorated by a truly gifted designer and we learned a lot from her even though we have worked with six other Interior Designer’s in our life. She pushed us out of our comfort zone and I couldn’t be happier. You are very talented though and I’m sure whatever you pick will be amazing.
There you go again, taking over another corner of the world and making it so cute. I didn’t previouslythink there could be any potential for beauty in a 1990’s macmansion, but you have proven me mistaken.
I got the same chairs and black and I agree that they are very practical with a lot of style. I if you’re looking to splurge I love Heather Taylor home table Linens but they also have some affordable ones at Zara home. I like the short updates!
Lately I’ve been OBSESSED with wallpaper from Borastapeter, I think almost all of their designs would look great in here too
I love a big dining room table! We have an old Victorian semi detached townhome so it is quite narrow but the dining room is one of the biggest in the house. My kids and I use the dining room table for everything. Right now it is a wrapping station and Christmas card prep area. I LOVE LOVE the Article chairs. In fact they are giving me just a teensy bit of buyer’s remorse. Last year we took the plunge on some from DWR that I love but yours are ?. If I had known about them I might have reconsidered. And yes! I’m all ears about tablecloths. I like the *idea* of them but have had finding some that are long enough. Personally I’m on the hunt for linen.
Cute! Where is the rug from??
Looks beautiful! And I agree with Jeremy on keeping the tile, it looks like it’s in great shape and the fact that they’re heated is awesome!
I love seeing this “first step” kind of post. Hopefully looking forward to more 🙂