E - Design Complete - The Entry - Amber B Design Studio

I was so excited when I received an e-mail from a sweet mom looking for design ideas for her first floor. She has a one year old and is looking for kid friendly spaces, more storage and a beach inspired color palette. She wanted to have soft blue grays/whites on the walls with pops of color in the furniture and accessories. She recently purchased this beautiful farmhouse table and gray wicker chairs from restoration hardware for her dining room.

With the dining room well on it’s way, she was looking for some design changes in the rest of the rooms on the first floor. She sent me this beautiful inspiration photo when thinking about the colors in the rooms.

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What a fun project! I’m so honored to be asked to work on these designs! She has a great starting point with the gorgeous dining room furnitureï»¿, and her rug inspiration has some of my favorite colors too! So after some discussions together, I got right to work on these designs! She was looking for design boards for the living room and den, while also some suggestions for pulling the kitchen into the design. I will start by discussing the entry, which leads right into the living room. Here is a picture of her entry now:

Those wood floors are gorgeous and a great starting point! To give the beautiful wood stairs some extra pop, I suggest she sands, primes and paints her stair risers, spindles and bottom railing White Dove by benjamin moore. I would then sand, prime and paint the newel post and top stair railing a glossy black. It would make the entry a focal point when you first walk in the space! I also love the wall space she has by the stairs and the space to the left of the front door. I decided those two spots would be great for practical seating and storage. I decided to give this space its own design board, primarily focusing on this area. And here’s what I came up with for the entry:

I proposed that the walls and baseboards be painted Paper White (1590) by benjamin moore in an eggshell finish.ï»¿ The color is a very pale gray/blue, almost showing white at certain times of the day. On the wall by the stairs only, I proposed a nautical chain link stencil painted in Sterling (1591) also by bm and is the next darker shade on the swatch. It will give the wall a subtle sense of texture and attention. This wall will have a chic practical bench for seating, with baskets underneath for storage of toddler shoes and toys. She likes some DIY projects, so I suggest she purchase a paisley/floral fabric to cover the bench cushion. It will be another way to add her inspiration colors into the space. It’s also an outdoor fabric, so it will hold up well in a high traffic area. Above the bench will have a gallery wall of family photos in these frames and the addition of these chic convex mirrors. The gallery wall will be hung on a diagonal, following the line of the stairway. By the front door, this soft and durable chenille/jute rug will be a great addition to the entry and would fit well purchased in a 3×5 size. To the left of the front door, this practical hall tree would fit well in the space and serve as a functional extra storage/seating option. The two pillows on the hall tree are fun and add a pop of color to the entry.

She loves the design, and I’m so excited for her! I will continue next week, with the living room and den designs.

If you are looking for some design ideas, please e-mail me at [email protected]. I would love to work with you!