Inspiration for my new house
Fri, 18 Jul 2014
Boy do I have decorating on the brain these days! Now that we are settled in our new house (in case you missed my posts here and here earlier this week) all I can think about is what in the hell I am going to do with this blank canvas. For the past few years I have been really excited about Scandi/industrial/modern spaces in white/grey/black and lots of wood. The more time I spend in my new house, the more I realize that I have to completely re-think how I am going to decorate. This has thrown me for a loop and while it freaked me out a bit in the beginning, is starting to become more exciting and less of a daunting task. One thing I cannot get out of my head is how beautiful dark and dramatic colours would look in this house. With lots of windows and very good light coming through, I think I could totally get away with it. And with this in mind, I immediately thought of Abigail Ahern, the queen of darkness. I love how she paints out floors, ceilings, woodwork...everything! I won't be painting my floors (unfortunately) or the wood work anytime soon I am totally up for going to town on all the walls and ceilings. And Downpipe by Farrow & Ball seems to be the most perfect, dreamy colour.
If anyone has any suggestions of what I should do or ideas for paint colours let me know!
Photos above: Abigail Ahern
Photos above: Michael's 47 Park Avenue home, also a huge source of inspiration.
Milk Magazine - Jo and Graham Atkins-Hughes home
Reader Comments (20)
The black tile in the kitchen (second to last picture) is so dramatic and - dare I say it - sexy
Anímate querida. Yo ya me estoy pasando al lado oscuro.
So you are fond of the dark Side of live ;-)
Well, when i was young, granny says, i had a dark blue Wall before iT was in fashion. That was in the '70's.
Now I am in great favor of the sunny Side, white, light colors.
Greeting, Elisabeth
That photo with pink table and this one http://www.desiretoinspire.net/storage/allpostphotos/071814rueimg_5071.jpg?__SQUARESPACE_CACHEVERSION=1405689823002
are so beautiful.
Please, where can I find the schnauzer pillow? I must have it!
Kelley, i think it's from Abigail Ahern's shop (although I don't see that exact one)
loads of good things! i think this dark drama would work so well in your new space. :)
Hi Kim, I think the dark/dramatic would work well in your new house. You'd be able to make those reddish stained panels really work, and bright pops of jewel colour and rich woods would make it reaaly lush. I love the selection of pics you've posted.
Love this idea and if anyone can pull this off? It's you my friend. So will you paint the wood too or just walls?
i agree with your inclination towards an abigal ahern aesthetic and i think it will suit your new space. AND you. will you be too busy to tour one of the house on the glebe house tour for your blog? i will certainly understand if you say no, not this time. let me know. cheers, and happy nesting.
Loving the dark moody side. My only question is...will you be painting out all that wooooooooood? Looking forward to seeing how you transform your new home Kim.
@jane @asterix :-)
@Jen @Barbara - there will be no painting of the wood. in the distant future i'd consider re-staining it. It's in way too good shape and there's way too much of it to mess with now though.
@suzanne - there's always time for the glebe house tour!!!!
I think you are right not to paint the woodwork, although I sympathize with your dilemma. Our 200-year-old house has a dark wood-panelled dining room, not painted for all these years, and I look at it sometimes with such a longing to paint it. But, tastes change, and paint is SO difficult to remove! I'm grateful to all the previous owners who must have resisted that impulse as well. Plus, there's something about beautiful old houses - they demand to be decorated on their own terms. It IS fun to see how you can compromise with your house's demands, though!
I think your house will be beautiful and unusual with the dark colors you are thinking of, and I also think that dark walls will change the look of the woodwork for the better. All that white seems wrong in such an Arts and Crafts-y house. How about dark grey with an slightly darker or lighter stencilled William Morris-type pattern? Wallpaper seems too prissy for your taste, but the imperfections of a stencilled pattern would loosen it up while still reflecting the house's style.
I vote for navy blue walls! And lots of hot pink accents. Oh and very large art. :)
@Jess - that's the issue here too. The woodwork hasn't been painted over all these years and I don't want to be the one to ruin them. I had someone else tell me to put tiny dots all over the bathroom walls. I think I prefer simple walls without alot of drama and leave the drama to the furnishings and art. Plus, by the time I get done with painting this whole house myself, I will have no patience or energy for fancying up the walls. LOL
@peggy - if I go with blue it's got to be almost black. i don't really like blue. And HELLS YEAH art will be big where I can manage it. :)
I have never regretted painting my rooms dark. They are so dramatic and other colours play off them so well. Go for it!
I freaking love your dark walls Jo - especially the brown.
I love both we have a charcoal black bedroom, a completely white bedroom and a white living space ..... it is just a matter of how I feel at a specific time. and I wish I could change colours more often - like switching on outfit :)
wow really nice
I think the darks will work well with your new home! Although I'm not brave enough to incorporate them in my home, I admire others who can pull it off. Thank you for sharing.