A Library: After

If you where here yesterday you saw the library before.  Now here's the (almost) after.  I'm still missing a pillow or two and I did no styling for these photographs.  You can look past that, right?  It's now a true library that's warm and cozy with a comfy place to curl up with a book.  It's also bright and cheerful with plenty of places for the family to kick back and put up their feet. Take a look:

My client has been a dream in every sense of the word.  It was so much fun making this room happen. 

A Library: Before

Today I wanted to share another project that I'm wrapping up.  It's actually part of this project that I shared a couple of weeks ago.  This room was the main tv watching area for the family.  It had a hard working wood burning fireplace but NO storage.  My client is an avid reader (an understatement) and wanted a place that she could display and store her books instead of keeping them squirreled away in closets and under beds.  She also wanted it to still be a comfortable place for the whole family to gather for movie night as well as a place to curl up with a good book.  Let's look at the befores.

As you can see the work had already begun.  The trim was painted white.

The fireplace mantel, hearth, and fireplace insert were removed.

And some of the kitchen appliances were stored.  Then as an inspirational jumping off point I left the client some paint swatches to get a feel for what she wanted for the room.

This is typically not how I start designing a room but it was the nature of how this project needed to proceed.  A color was picked and then the real fun began.  Tune in tomorrow for the big reveal!

Dark and Moody

Today has been a dark and brooding day.  It's cold and raining and our normally dark house is especially dark today.  I've decided to embrace that and find inspiration in the deep recesses of my tear sheet pile.  I have no idea where I got this pic but it is making me oh-so-happy today.  (if anyone knows the source, please let me know!) 

 

I want to be hanging out here today.   Love, love the wide plank floors and beamed ceilings (and walls?)  Love the dark bookcase, that fab sofa and the dark green curtains.  Really, I love it all.  Going dark definitely has it's charms.

In the Library with the Chandelier

Today I am looking for lighting for a client's library.  My client isn't sure what she wants.  She's also a bit conservative with her choices so I am trying to find the right balance of excitement without pushing her envelop too much.  Here are a few (very different) options that I'm thinking about to see what direction she wants to go.

So which light looks like it belongs in your library?  Happy Friday everyone.  Hope you have a great weekend!

sources 1,2,3,4,5,6,7