A Week In Weston - Project Reveal

This living room, with it's powder blue sofa, weathered leather chairs, colorful playful pillows and accessories, belongs to my clients, attorneys Athalia and Sam and their two adorable girls, Emerson and Noa. It captures the way they live: a fun family who sees everything in bold hues, a family that doesn't take themselves very seriously.
When Athalia first emailed me in March, they had already sold their Miami home and were two weeks away from closing on this home in Weston, Florida. Their new home would bring them closer to family and friends, and to a premier school district for the girls, but they hated everything about the decor and wanted it vanquished. How bad was it? Well, let's take a stroll down memory lane shall we? The living room looked like this:

Yes, that decor had worked for another family for many, many years but it desperately needed an infusion of some color, some spark to reflect the personality of its new owners. It would be a challenge. They closed on the house in April and wanted to move in by the end of May. This is a six bedroom home, that needed everything done - except thankfully, the bathrooms. We dived right in.
At first, the plan was to sand and stain the floors but there had been some water damage to the floors and once we started sanding, we realized the extent of the damage and it would prove a challenge to stain it evenly. Installing new hardwood floors throughout the entire would significantly impact the planned budget, but thankfully we snagged some hardwood on a great sale, and even nixed plans to install carpet on the second floor in favor of running the new hardwood everywhere. So here's how it all came together:

This is what they now see as they step inside the front door each day. A fun, quirky space that reflects their love of color and the unexpected. I knew immediately that the walls would need to be painted white to balance out the extensive use of color. Athalia immediately agreed and so the entire main floor is painted in Extra White by Sherwin Williams.
 

Athalia and Sam already owned some seriously amazing pieces - all of the artwork that you'll see throughout the home, the powder blue sofa, this mirrored buffet and that solid wood bar to name just a few. We added these stunning leather chairs which we waited patiently for three months, custom curtains throughout the home, the coffee table, lamps and much of the accessories.

Yes, this is a fully stocked bar at the very entry of their home! I told you they are hella fun so having a drink handy as he comes home from a long day at work, made perfect sense to Sam. Hehe. Side note: the girls understand that the bar is totally off limits.

Sam and Athalia had this little table in their collection but it was a tad beaten up. We attached an area that had come loose, sanded and added some polyurethane for some sheen and voila, a fab piece was restored.

A design lover, Athalia had this incredible collection of design books, so it made perfect sense to showcase her love of design in the homes first room. The gold crocodile book-holder fit right in with the skull, skeletal hand, birds and other quirky animals and body parts that adorn this home.

I love mixing finishes and definitely did that here with the silver plant holder and candle holder and throughout the home in general. Trays are a signature part of my designs and I almost always use one or more to ground the accent pieces atop a coffee or end table. I do think the Zebra kinda stole the show in this vignette, don't you?

I designed these curtains with a black and white trim to add a tailored feel to the space, especially since it would be filled with so many colorful pieces. I stumbled across that Tripod Lamp one night while shopping  at Home Depot and loved that the trim on the shade mimicked the lines of the curtains.
 

We reused this old stool the family already had as an end table. The skeletal hand atop a wooden piece is quite the juxtaposition. Inside story: I had originally placed that hand atop the coffee table at the bachelor pad I recently revealed but it's the one thing he hated and demanded be removed pronto! I knew immediately that Sam and Athalia would love it and yes, Athalia was so thrilled when I added it to her accessories instead. One man's trash, is indeed, another man's treasure. Lol.

 Ohhh, that Peacock. What a thing of beauty. It was one of the few items I could see when we first met for our consultation as everything else had already been placed in storage or was wrapped up tight for the move. I knew it would be the focal point of the space and worked with it in mind as I shopped for accessories such as the throw pillows.  

 

As you can see, the living room flows right into an adjoining dining room, but ohh baby, has it come a long way. Here's where we started: 

The first thing we agreed on for this space was the light fixture which Athalia loved instantly. Let me tell you this about Athalia, she has an amazing design aesthetic. She thankfully fell in love with most of the items I presented and trusted me wholeheartedly to make many purchases without her approval. But she only feels very strongly about things she dislikes. There is no in-between for her and therefore no indecisive moments. She either loves it or hates it and that made designing and shopping a lot easier for this project. Thankfully we had many more love it moments than hate it moments! Whew.
 

The dining table was one of those instant loves. It was customized to fit the space and it came with some show-stopper lucite legs to boot. We are adding a glass top however as it is a well used table and has seen a stain or two from the kids. The rug stole my heart when I saw it and knew right away it would be the perfect fit for the space.

The artwork was already in the couple's collection but we added custom frames. Another insider story: Sam and Athalia gave me free reign to hang the artwork as I saw fit. Art has a funny way of speaking to you and without even knowing it, I hung all the pieces they'd collected from specific trips/outings, in the same groupings. For example, the pieces hung in the living and dining room were all purchased in New Orleans, a tidbit I hadn't been privy to.   

The black and white dining chairs were our final purchase for this space, simple, clean lines to not fight with the other colorful elements in the space. And there you have it, our introduction to this mammoth design project which was one of the most intense yet enjoyable projects of the year. How mammoth was it? Big enough that I'll be blogging about it all week since there are so many rooms to see. Hope you'll stick around to follow along and share your thoughts. Tomorrow we'll get up close and personal with the foyer, a space that's already gotten some crazy love. 

P.S.

Happy Veterans Day to all the men and women who have served and continue to serve. Eternally grateful for the sacrifices you've made for us all. Stay blessed.

  
                                        Source Guide

Lucite leg Dining Table - Modloft Miami
Black and White Dining Chairs - Modern Miami
Ghost Chairs in Dining Room - Lexington Modern
Pink and Orange flat weave rug in Dining Room - Overstock
Cowhide leather run in living room rug - Overstock
Hans Leather Chairs - Dania Design Center
Clairemont Coffee Table - Crate and Barrel  
Sofa - Macys (no longer available)
Mirrored Buffet - Z-Gallerie
Tripod Lamp - Home Depot
Blue Lamps - Home Depot
Dining Room Light - Eurostyle Lighting
Custom Curtains Fabric - Designer Discount Fabrics
Custom Curtains Workroom - Titan Decor
Living/Dining Room Paint - Extra White (SW 7006) Sherwin Williams

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Write by: A-Efendy - Monday, November 11, 2013