Ideas for this LR /DR divider

3 years ago

last modified: 3 years ago

We've never liked the look of this divider, (came with our 50s house). We are doing some updates to the living room (new fireplace, mantle, built in shelving/TV cabinet on wall to the right (still trying to figure all this out), painting fireplace wall a bold color), and the dining room (painting).

So this Divider:

We want to keep it. (1. we like some bit of division b/w dining room and living room. 2. The posts may be necessary support.)

Questions (#3 is the big one):

1. glass shelves - keep and just display a few things, or take off the glass shelves? (I'm going to take them off and sit with the idea for a while... see how we like it that way.)

2. Ideas of how to update the squared edges. Maybe put rounded corners in the "doorway" to make it look more arched?

3. And PAINTING it. (Or refinish/stain??) . If we paint it, do we paint it the room color or a trim color like white? Any tips on painting this?

This second picture is from the living room/entry hallway side. We painted most interior doors white, but not the closet door shown. If we paint the divider, we'll likely paint the door as well.

Bottom left of divider is heat return & shelf area with baskets for storage.

Also open to dining room wall color ideas, but maybe I should post that separately when we get that far and I can get better pictures of that space. The far wall is DARK cranberry/maroonish. The rest hasn't been painted yet and has a variety of wall lines that are unique. Trying to decide on a color that goes with the bold wall, but doesn't make it too much darker.

Featured Answer

grapefruit1_ar

3 years ago

last modified: 3 years ago

I would beef them up and paint them white. They can be very lovely!

I would remove the glass shelves.

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Comments (8)

JP L
3 years ago
I love natural/stained wood, but I'm not convinced this is an original fixture in your home (the glass shelves are throwing it off for me, and I think the separation between the shelving and the header is not ideal). I think painting it to coordinate with trim could be a nice solution, but I also think replacing the glass shelves with actual shelves would be an improvement. If you have the budget, I'd explore a complete tear-out and replace - I think you could get a much better result.
D thanked JP L
KW PNW Z8
3 years ago
That divider is pretty nice - reminds me of the craftsman home my family lived in during my teen years. It was between the LR & DR. I looked for images for inspo. Take a look at this

Room divider I also found pics of multi level wood shelves in units like this. A cabinet maker or finish carpenter might build wooden shelves in for you - the different staggered levels are interesting & might match your 50’s house style. Otherwise, the posts could be built up with added millwork to make them beefier & more interesting. Changing out the doors to have glass inserts might be nice - not clear or see through glass though, If you made changes it would need paint or stain. I’d make that choice after I knew what kind of wood it’s made of.
D thanked KW PNW Z8
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D
Original Author
3 years ago
KW - I love craftsman style homes! Wish we could have afforded it. Not thrilled with 50s style for ourselves. We ended up adding molding around windows that had none and that improved the . look a lot. The link you posted is very helpful to get ideas. Maybe building up the bottom portion higher, so there's a little less space on the top - makes it better proportions.
D
Original Author
3 years ago
last modified: 3 years ago
JP L - I always thought wood shelves would make it look bulkier, but with a few poeople suggesting it, we may look into that. The house was built in 1954, The owner lived here for a long time, and the wood matches the kitchen cupboard look. So we're pretty sure it's original.

It's all veneer.

Thanks for your suggestions.
PRO
Patricia Colwell Consulting
3 years ago
No arches in a MCM house and honestly if you do not like them take them away or the glass shelves with vey few items and only ones worth displayin . Some cool colored glass pieces might be perfect if you go the MCM way.It would be nice to see both rooms the LR in thta pic looks really crowded . Post the pics here in a comment it might help .
JP L
3 years ago
Seeing the heat return in your updated diagram adds to the suspicion that this isn't original - central heat/air was available in the 1950's, but many homes built in that time period were eventually retrofitted with central heat/air (I know mine was!) so you find vents and returns in odd places like this.
KW PNW Z8
3 years ago
@D I love Craftsman too! I looked at the pics at link again. Can’t figure out how to copy here but if you go to link & scroll down, the 4th & last pics show a shape that’s similar to your divider. Maybe those two examples of dressing up the beam across the span & the pieces around the pillars will spark some ideas. The first house my husband & I bought had pink fixtures in the single bath & also a pink wall oven door & gas cooktop! We did manage to send the oven door & cooktop out to be professionally refinished to a current color - wait for it —- Harvest Gold! 😄