The space between the doors and window is 36" , not 12". Don't know what I was thinking! Maybe something simple hung there. Let's see how it looks once the chandelier is hung.

Looking at all the wonderful wicker pieces, I wonder if you have a china cabinet or other glass fronted cupboard where you could display most, if not all, of your wicker pieces interspersed with white ironstone for contrast? Not necessarily in the dining room, but.....anywhere, really.....hallway? Entryway? Kitchen?

Unadorned sounds good!

The raku turtle piece.....could he sit in front of the plate on the cupboard?

Just going back over the photos....what is the story behind the wheel you placed on the sideboard for that one pic?

For a side table for the wing chair, I have this sweet little number next to a chair in the living room. Certainly could move. I do think the buffet is too tall for access from the wing chair.

Yes, it could move.....right over to the right side of the wing chair (when sitting in it)! I assume it has a glass top, so drinks don't tip over? What a great little piece!

Many of the objets you have posted are probably too big for a cabinet, Cherie, but I find this is a great way to display a bunch of beloved knick knacks. Looking at the teal vase(s), platter, the group of egrets, etc., I can sure picture them all living harmoniously behind the glass doors of a hutch or similar display cabinet. Do you have any such piece of furniture that could had some more of your trinkets? Keeping in mind that an update of the piece - by painting it white, maybe? - could do wonders for both the collection and the cabinet?

The wheel has history, too. It came off of an antique wheelbarrow my husband had attempted to restore, but some of the wood was rotted and too far gone to put back together. But he kept the parts. I thought the black picked up the legs of the heron in the artwork. That's what drew me to even try it out on the buffet, even though the themes (beach vs. garden) didn't align.

I think maybe too much roundness :)

We have an old pie safe in the basement that has lovely arched glass cabinet doors. It would need updating- as you say with white paint maybe. Not sure my husband would go for that since it is a piece from his side of the family. And, I just don't have a spot for another big cabinet anywhere! I do have kitchen cabinets that don't go all the way to the ceiling- that's where a couple of those rattan baskets are right now. Maybe I could rearrange there with some of the items I've posted. But for now, I need to focus and get this dining room done!!

Can I ask wha the lamp and cabinet height combined is! It looks low to me.

Love the glass vases, but the colors are looking staged from light to dark. I would do some mixing and get contrast between pieces. They are beautiful.

I was so hoping the chandy is up! Love this post and have fun popping in and seeing what is happening!

It's up!

Oh, oh, oh it is gorgeous and so pretty and so personal like it is you! The chandy is so perfect; I loved the relaxedness of it in the room.

If it were me I would scatter your very unique glass vessels randomly down the center of the table so they can reflect back the globes in the chandy! Would you try it and take a pic for me to see.

Aren't you just jumping up and down? Thanksgiving will be the bomb! Um where did the red chairs come from; am thinking you were doing grey stripe? But sooooo pretty. You must be soooo pleased.

Love, love love it!

Absolutely perfect, Cherie! I love it!

I am so pleased with it. Look how sparkly it is at night! It's in a dimmer and this is mid-low light.

Soosun- nice to hear from you. You asked about the height of the cabinet and lamp- I'm assuming you were referring to the ones in this pic. The cabinet is 30" and the lamp is 28". It's in the entry, but pretty much in the same visual space as the dining room.

Soosun- the red chairs will be reupholstered in the ivory-grey stripe, but I can't get to them before Thanksgiving. The 6 side chairs will be done in that fabric. I scotch guarded them today and will reattached to the frames tomorrow. Family arrives next Saturday and is staying for 10 days, so there is a lot for me to accomplish this week!

Omigosh, Cherie - I WANT that chandelier! It looks just magical! Oh my, I am swooning lol. I think we have really captured the perfect mood here.......casual, but with a bit of bling. Timeless, not trendy. Modern, with a nod to tradition. And yes, thank you to the genius who invented dimmer switches!

I looked back through these posts, and sure enough, it was you way back in July who first suggested this chandelier. Hey, if you want to get one too, I don't mind! Haha. Thank you, thank you, thank you Karemore for pushing me out of my comfort zone. It's exactly what I needed and continue to need! Some friends stopped in this morning and just raved about it. They loved that it's modern but with that nostalgic flair. Just like you said!

So, I hung the mirror today. Decided that the poor palm was on its way out anyway, so out it went. I do like the idea of painting the mirror frame, I just hope my husband will agree. He could be a stickler on this one because it's a piece from his family and he refinished it some years ago. I hope he is open to change. I will probably not cross that bridge until after Thanksgiving. Anyway, does this corner need more than just the mirror? I'm perfectly comfortable with the open feel.

And here we are back to the buffet. Put the wooden bowl back on it. What else does this space need? Can I ask why you were opposed to the black wheel? When I see the buffet in photos, I feel like bigger hardware would modernize it more. What do you think?

The mirror is just perfect without anything under or near it....you are right - it is filling its own space quite nicely, without further embellishment. And, it really suits that wall. I hope you get some awesome reflections from outside in it as you move through the seasons!

I wasn't opposed to the wheel on the sideboard per se....I did feel that it looked a little barren. Looking back at the pic you posted with the turtle raku beside it, I liked how the raku kind of solidified the vignette. This is going to sound really nit picky, but if you could move the raku just a few inches closer to the wheel, you should get a better (tighter) grouping.

Looking at the wood bowl today, it seems a bit small - or, not so much small as I wish it was higher, so as to connect to the pelican art better. I otherwise love the wood bowl, but we will find another spot for it! So, I am back to the wheel - it is a great conversation piece, and you are right about it pulling the black color from the art - a very striking combination!

Hello Karemore! Seems as though its been ages since I've posted. I had family here for 10 days and then proceeded to get sick. All better now. I hope you have been doing well.

The newly decorated dining room was a hit with the family at Thanksgiving! My son and niece, both design-minded 20 and 30-somethings LOVED IT! That's huge in my book. My son loved the chandelier and my niece said she would not change a single thing. Wow! I'm posting a couple pics from the day and also of my guys hanging the new sheer blinds in the living room. I like them very much.

I'll be re-upholstering the slipper chairs during my Christmas break. What do you think we need to do next to wrap up the dining room project?

Hi Cherie! I'm glad the new DR got the family seal of approval lol! And, I love the centrepiece on the table - beautiful colors, and looks like this arrangement could work in any season?

I too have had some kind of virus - possibly a flu? - that I'm just now getting over. Last night was the first night I made it without taking cough syrup at bedtime. And my voice was reduced to a frog's croak for several days....good times!

I'm just coming into my last week of working on my daughter's reno - I fly home next Saturday. I'll bookmark your last comment so I can give it all some thought once I'm able to think clearly. I think we were discussing spray painting the mirror at one point, but then did we decide it looked fine as is? I seem to recall you thought your hubby might have issues with painting it, as it is an heirloom?

So, I think the last little details would be the wing chair corner - ottoman, lamp, maybe a small lumbar pillow? I will catch up with you next week, over a cup of coffee and - oh, I am just craving this - some PEACE AND QUIET. Lolol. Take care!

Love their new pics from 11/14, the new chairs and chandelier look fantastic. Love the light rug and drapes too. Great choices!

Hi Cherie! Well, I've been back almost a week and still trying to recuperate from the busy-ness and stressful the reno lol. The hardest part was trying to do things with a 2 year old in the mix....looking back, I'm amazed I got anything done! Here are some kitchen pics.....I hope to get more pics when we're back in January, but when I left there were still a few things needing to be done - enough that the pics wouldn't have looked so great. The kitchen was an IKEA one - cabinets, faucet and pendant lamps. We went with a quartz countertop, mosaic backsplash (which my husband installed), and the new flooring through is vinyl - luxury vinyl plank (LVP), laid like hardwood. It's commercial grade, so hopefully it will survive the 2 year old and his soon-to-be-born sibling (next June)! I wish we had thought to take before pics, as you see the transformation that way. The old kitchen was original, from about 1978.

Anyway, I spent some time looking for ottomans and pillows for the wing chair, and this is just to give you an idea of what I'm picturing....I'm not sure if you would see the pillow yourself? The ones I'm posting are all from Pottery Barn. The ottomans are from an etsy site called Anita's Casa, based in Florida. You can find this type of ottoman at places like Home Goods, too.

So, my vision for that wing chair is to create the perfect cozy corner for reading (or Houzzing lol), right down to the finest details - lumbar pillow, ottoman, throw, lamp, martini table. Starting with the ottomans and pillows, I looked for colors and patterns that were soft and somewhat weathered. If your ottoman has a bolder pattern, maybe the pillow should be solid? And vice versa. So, let's start with those - is this how you envision this corner as well?

First, the ottomans:

And the pillows:

We've also talked about painting that mirror - and I know your hubby is reluctant to alter it in any way - but, now that we have most of the puzzle put together, I am really liking a warm/creamy white for that mirror frame. What do you think? Could he be convinced? (Crossing my fingers!)

This library style task lamp has been what. Envisioned right from the start, and I'm sure I've probably posted some version of it. Like your chandelier, they seem to bridge the modern/traditional style so nicely. I also like that they are fairly unobtrusive, keeping the focus more on the wing chair. Mthese two are from Lampsplus:

Looking back at some of the possibilities for a drink table, I think maybe this one is our best bet.....I like that it is visually light and, again, wouldn't be the first thing you notice when looking at that corner. I don't mind the current color, but wonder if we could come up with a fun update for it by spray painting it a satin nickel color? Also, I wonder if it would be more practical if you were to have a piece of glass cut to fit at least the top shelf, if not both? In which case, I might be inclined to spray paint the glass white?

I wonder how it would look spray painted oil-rubbed bronze?

Hi Karemore- so good to hear from you! The kitchen looks great- I love the bar stools. Everything is so clean and functional looking. How in the world did you do anything but play with your grandchild? That is amazing you were able to accomplish anything at all!

Thanks for coming back to my project. I had to put it on hold during Thanksgiving and the aftermath, then Christmas things have taken over. My plan is to start on the slipper chairs next week.
Yes- the little metal drink table sprayed in oil rubbed bronze- I thought of that, too. Good thinking Karemore - lol! Also, the floor lamp you pictured I have one in the living room that I sprayed in oil rubbed bronze (was originally brass). I'm thinking that when the living room is rearranged I might be able to spare it and move it to the wing chair corner.
Did we ever land on a fabric for the wing chair? I don't recall that we did. I would like to settle on that before deciding on an ottoman, although I love the ones you found. I want to paint the wood frame of the wing chair an off white to modernize it. That was a suggestion from somone way back in July when this project began.
I am waiting for a good segue to bring up the idea of painting the mirror frame with my husband. A creamy white neutral might go over better with him than a color.
So, can we discuss chair fabric? At one time you mentioned white (I think) and then we went back and forth on the light tan fabric I already have on hand. I think the right thing is somewhere in between those two. Solid or pattern?

And if I don't hear from you soon- Merry Christmas!

I like the idea of light tan - I think it would show off the white legs to best advantage. I don't remember the fabric you have...well, I remember it but not what it looked like, if that makes sense! Can you post another pic of it? I do like a solid as opposed to a print, as you have the striped fabric on the other chairs. Then, going with a pattern on the ottoman seems like plenty enough....it's amazing how easily a room can get busy-looking with patterns and other shapes! Since we are going for a calmer, quieter look, a solid would be perfect for the chair.

And Merry Christmas to you and your very patient husband, Cherie! I've really enjoyed going through your dining room transformation with you!

I'll post a pic of the fabric in the morning when there is good light. I've so appreciated having you along with me on this decorating journey!

Here are several pics of the fabric. It is a high quality fabric I bought to go on this chair before the big scale dining room reno began. It is a light taupe color, with kind of a menswear weave look to it. I think it could work, serving as a backdrop to cool accessories like the pillow and ottoman that would pack more punch. I included a pic of the fabric on one of the dining chairs so you can get an idea of how it might coordinate with the other woods in the room and the dominant striped print. I am always open to suggestions and change! Thanks!

Its lighter than it looks in these pics.

I agree, Cherie......it will look really nice with your other colors, and looks like it coordinates with the striped fabric.p, so that's good. When you describe "menswear", I can picture just the right amount of nubbiness to balance with the smoother textures in the area. I think it will be just perfect!

It has a suede like texture, without actually being suede. The chair is in the que- after the slipper chairs!

OK, a peached something-or-other then? Lol. Still a thumbs-up......anytime you can get a nice mix of textures, you also get heightened interest. It will be beautiful, I just know it!

I am not familiar with the term peached. I take it that refers to the texture of a peach? Yes, that's a good way to describe this fabric. It reminds me of a menswear fabric because of the subtle cross-hatched weave and neutral color tones.

I may not have ever mentioned it, but the blue and ivory striped fabric on the chairs has a semi-rough pebbled texture to it. Still comfortable and soft enough, but an interesting texture for sure. One aspect that drew me to it in the first place.

Yes, I can see that texture now....after enlarging and having a real good look at that last pic you posted of the striped fabric. The weave reminds me of linen, and yes, it's lovely!

So, here's an early thought on your living room (lol).....I came across this pic in a decorating magazine, and the rug reminded me of you. I love how the decor worked with the floral Persian rug by creating contrast.....the soft, feminine rug playing against the rustic, masculine brick and beams. I thought this room came together really nicely.....so, might be a starting point for you when the time comes?

It's always surprising to me how rustic and refined can play off each other so well. I have been anxious to get started on the living room. We are in dire need of replacing the worn out ottoman with a coffee table. I have been thinking of one that would mimic the dining table top. I'll post a few pics to see what you think. Here's a pic of the fireplace. My husband made the surround and mantle, so that's a non negotiable as far as replacing it. It's painted the same as all the trim and moldings in the house. I plan on replacing the sofa, and possibly replacing the two chairs with loungers I have in the office, which would need reupholstered. But they have dominant curved wood arms that I think would help bring in the wood tones from the dining room; that and the coffee table. You suggested a rearrangement of the living room a while back and I hope to do that this coming week. I don't think this room will be as involved as the dining room was. Famous last words...!

Pic

Coffee table ideas

Your husband is a very good carpenter! That's a beautiful fireplace surround! And, yes, any of those tables would bring in the rustic while giving a nod to the DR table. I think the LR will benefit from the same treatment you gave the DR - just a hint of modern somewhere - and a clean, "light" look, with minimal pattern.

Well, I'm ready to start whenever you are!

Happy New Year Karemore! I hope the new year will be a good one for you, filled with all sorts of great decorating advice to share! (now that's a bit self-serving, isn't it!) Seriously, I do wish you all the best.

I thought I would give you an update on my projects. The slipper chairs are in process. And as it generally happens, I got into more than I bargained for. Had to re-do the webbing and springs, then found the seats were padded with horsehair in between layers of cotton. So the chairs are much older than I had thought, and quite well made. Anyway, I am replacing all of that with new, clean material, and my husband is refinishing the legs so they better match the other dining room chairs. I can't tell you exactly when I will be done with them, but you know I will post pics as soon as they are back in their rightful place at the dining table. Upholstery is such hard physical work; I usually take a good deal of
time between projects to help myself forget how demanding it can be.

I rearranged the living room based on your suggested layout with the sofa in front of the picture window, to better square up the space. I will post some pics in another post.