Posted: June 2009

Situation

How do you transform an antique white living room that feels lost in a large space and has no identity? This was the challenge that this interior designer faced in her own 2000-built home in Bothell, WA. The living room was located right next to a large open entrance with a staircase and adjacent communal rooms. The objective was to turn the living room into a more defined space – something cozy, yet dramatic – where she and her husband could read and have quiet conversations.

Her vision was to leverage a bold color palette that would not only naturally separate the living room away from its surroundings, but also reflect her eclectic style. Another challenge to contend with was to tone down the cathedral ceiling and give the living room a more human scale.

Defining Space with Dramatic Colors

Everyone has an affinity for a particular color. For our interior designer, that affinity was purple. She chose an eggplant color as her primary driver, and complemented it with such other dramatic colors as black and white. Gold accents ensured the continuity between communal rooms, and warm the house up that is located in the grey and cloudy Pacific Northwest. The living room is now an eclectic mix of antiques and new furniture dotted around the oversized fireplace as the focal point. The one sofa was customized using black fabric around the base, a small pattern print cushion and pillows in various shades of purple for an interesting effect. The ottoman was recovered in purple fabric with a black and white stripe ruffle. An area rug sitting on top of the wall-to-wall carpet anchors the sitting area furniture in front of the fireplace. The artwork over the fireplace incorporates the entire color palette and pops off the wall with the metallic frame. Bold black and white fabric drapes were added as window treatments, with stationary panels hung from the ceiling. The advantage of these types of draperies is that they absorb sound and make a room quieter, an important consideration when ensuring flow between communal rooms.

All elements in the room now work in harmony because of the right scale, balance and concentration around the fireplace. Eggplant was the perfect choice of color to cozy up the living room as darker colors tend to come towards people and make a room with high ceilings more human scale. The living room faces west, providing interesting color shade variations over the course of the day, darker in the morning and lighter in the evening.

Our homeowner is environmentally friendly, so she used eco-paint from Benjamin Moore, and purchased her antique sofa and table from antique stores. The whole repainting project cost $10,000, and took two months to complete.

This story was written by the team at HomeSavvi, your comprehensive guide to finding local resources, ideas, tips and expert advice about home remodeling.

Founded in 2001, Albee Interior Design is a full-service interior design company located in the Seattle area that specializes in both residential and commercial design. Click here to learn more about the company.