::design your space- Part 1

If I may...I'd like to design your home. This will be for the people I know- the people who I think when I see a picture..."Ooh, that would so look great in their house". I won't lie...I have files. I do understand that many of you out there don't share my love of white for your home...but you should. So with that in mind, I give you chapter one: Maria.

She is closing on her first home purchase this Tuesday! I've had the privilege of getting to walk through it as well as looking through many, many magazines and books with her. I think I have a little taste of what she likes...so here goes.

First let's start with the den. She has a great, HUGE den which opens up to both the kitchen and the dining room. She has a fantastic, vintage looking, white painted brick fireplace in there. I'd paint the walls this chocolate brown color (give or take a shade lighter). I love the color wood for any coffee tables, console tables. I would throw in a white couch (but that's just me *wink). I would also use red and yellow as the accent pieces. Who wouldn't LOVE that yellow arm chair? It looks so cheerful and inviting. I actually also really love the polar bear print. But if that's a bit much, using the red as your accent is easy. Throw in some pillows(below), a shiny lamp, even some candlestick on that fireplace.

And here's the rug to use (she actually picked this out):
This will tie in all her African-themed wall art, decor items perfectly!

Now onto the dining room. I have 2 options for this. First, eclectic charm. Her dining room is smaller and doesn't have alot of wall space due to the layout. One wall opens onto the entry way, one to the den, and one with a doorway to the kitchen. So, I would actually go with a burnt orange since there wouldn't be too much of it and thus it would not be overwhelming. Ok, I don't usually love an ornately printed rug, but the Indian print of this works really well in the space. I would choose a darker wood for the table (like the piano) and surround it with a bunch of yellow chairs! Too cute with the yellow chair from the den right?! :) I also love some floating shelves in a dining room to showcase your pretty china. The more random, the better!

Option number 2: natural grandiose. If option #1 is a little much...or you'd just prefer a more formal dining room, stick with a light neutral for the wall. It will pop against the brown in den. I would still keep all the furniture a dark wood color with yellow as the accent. How much do you want that yellow upholstered couch! Oh...you should just buy that anyways! I would get a fabric like this couch and upholster the bench for her piano in it. *falls in love* You could keep the seating more formal with a lightly colored upholstered chair and keep the accents neutral and natural. (If you haven't noticed those antler chandeliers btw, you should. Yes...you might get tired of it, but what a statement piece!)

The kitchen: I like the sand color on the walls for here. Her cabinets are white with a counter top that has both beige and blue specks. It's really lovely. She also has sort of a bay window thing going on where the kitchen table goes. I like the banquet, but if it's not in the budget, stick with a white table and seating. Or be bold and make the chairs an orange or brown! I also love these pillows for anywhere in the house you can find a spot!

And for an accent wall directly across from the kitchen table...

To die for!!! Paint it a striking dark brown (darker than the den) and put up 2 huge red flowers.

Last but not least: the guest bedroom. I'm not doing one on the master bedroom, as she already has her bedding...so, I thought this would be a great start. I love the material of the furniture. I really don't know what it is. Kind of a hybrid wicker? The textiles in here are what really sell the room. I'm a sucker for Moroccan print and these colors would compliment the rest of the house. Keep the paint and bedding neutral so you can switch out your accessories. You'll be a little more daring to take risks with this room as opposed to your master bedroom, so it's nice to have a neutral backdrop to work with. In my opinion, I would put more printed pillows on the bed instead of solids, but that's just me. I like how the solid color rug picks up the colors in the panels also.

Well, there you have it. Honestly the hardest thing about this was limiting the number of pictures! There's so much inspiration to be found. Just have fun with it! Whatever Maria decides to do, it will look amazing! Congrats on the house!!