A liberal application of paint, some judicious and affordable fabric swaps, and a bit of patterned paper turned this dated dining room into an inviting introduction to the house.
As the first space seen by anyone entering through the front door, this room left a lot to be desired. Dark furnishings, busy wallpaper, and out-of-date accents gave the room a neglected aspect.
The floral wallpaper was the first thing to go (which was no picnic—whoever applied that wallpaper meant it to last), offering a broad canvas for a vivid color infusion in green and turquoise. We painted the lower portion of the walls in a soft sage and the upper section in a perky robin’s egg hue.
We selected the wall colors based on the $9/yard fabric we chose for recovering the dining room chair seats. The seat-changing session prompted a late night wine fest with my husband and the homeowner as I showed them how to place the motifs and pull the fabric to minimize creases. Considering the mayhem and alcohol consumption, they did a surprisingly good job.
Before the makeover, the all-white finish made the built-in hutch fade into the background. To make the piece a standout, we used the same green paint on the serving surface and within the molding on the lower doors. Bottle-green glass knobs add sparkle to both upper and lower cabinets.
A paper doily (cheapest stencil ever!) provided the design for this permanent accent. For a similar look, paint your cabinet top in a base color and let dry. Spray the underside of a stencil with stencil adhesive and press it into place. Run a credit card or similar edge over the stencil to secure it to the surface. Paint the cabinet top with the topcoat color and let dry. Gently lift the stencil, using a crafts knife, if necessary, to loosen the edges without pulling away any paint.
Create a colorful grouping and add pattern to a large wall with pretty fabric scraps or quilting remnants. Stretch the fabrics on varied sizes of embroidery hoops, trim off the excess fabric, and secure on the interior of the inside hoop with double-sided tape.
If you lack confidence mixing patterns and colors, opt for a group of fabrics that have been designed as a coordinated collection. The hard work’s been done for you and you can create a pulled-together look that’s easy (and fun!) to change on a whim. Hang your artwork with 3M Command strips to avoid putting lots of holes in your freshly painted walls.
Light and bright and sparkling with cottage charm, the reimagined dining room welcomes visitors with a fresh face. The redo was long on elbow grease (all that wallpaper!) but short on cost. FLOR carpet tiles create a new rug beneath the painted table and chairs, while spray paint refashioned an old brass chandelier overhead.
A vintage bottle-carrier centerpiece holds cut-from-the-garden flowers in old Mason jars.
The decades-old brass and glass light fixture had to go but we were able to reuse the lamp parts in another DIY project (waste not, want not). We replaced it with another repurposed brass chandelier that we sprayed with ivory paint in a satin finish. Vinyl chandelier shades got the same treatment with glossy green spray paint formulated for use on plastics. We wrapped the candle stems with green and white brocade pattern paper for a final decorative touch.
The dining table and chairs were in great shape but begged for a new look that would enhance our fresh palette.
We rescued the dark dining set with paint and stain. A coat of creamy paint lightens the wood chair frames and table base, while a bit of distressing and a glaze adds a patina of age and shows off the lines of the furniture. Follow our instructions to get this look.
Gather these materials:
Medium and fine-grit sandpaper
Tack cloth
Painter’s masking tape for delicate surfaces
Paper or plastic sheeting for masking off the tabletop
X-I-M spray-on primer in 400 White
Rustoleum Painter’s Touch Semi-Gloss spray-on paint: Ivory Bisque
Minwax Gel Stain in Early American
Spray-on finish sealer
Use fine-grit sandpaper to sand all surfaces of the table and chairs (omitting the table top and removing chair seats) and wipe thoroughly with a tack cloth.
Mask off the table top and spray one coat of X-I-M primer on the table apron and legs and on all surfaces of the chairs. Let dry.
Spray on one or two coats of Ivory Bisque. Let dry.
Use medium-grit sandpaper to sand all areas where a distressed look is desired. Wipe thoroughly with the tack cloth.
Antique the finish with Early American gel stain: apply stain to turns, joins, and edges as desired; wipe and let dry.
Spray on one or two coats of finish sealer, letting dry between coats.
Fussy wallpaper, a busy wall of accent plates, and a dated window treatment overshadowed the cute cabinet and overlooked the possibilities of the bay window.
If you’ve got a great piece of fabric that may have a defect, hang onto it—you never know where it might work. Here, the reverse of an old chenille bedspread remnant provides a texture-rich pattern for the window seat cushion. We used fabric matching the dining chair seats on the flip side of the cushion for a quick-change option.
Subtle tones of aqua and green in a sheer striped fabric combine in a light-as-air gathered shade at the bay window and allow light to flood the south-facing room.
The homeowner’s cake stand mimics the sinuous botanicals of the chair fabric that inspired our palette so it got pride of place atop the vintage yellow cabinet. We added the only things that could have improved it: luscious cupcakes.
Doesn’t everyone need cupcakes that match their color scheme?
We updated a vintage 1940s frame with creamy paint. Keep the look fresh with a seasonal rotation of botanical images.
Let us know what you think of our update. What would you have done differently?
Photography by Kathryn Gamble
© Caruth Studio