We really enjoyed bringing you our first tale of transformation at the start of the year (if you missed it, catch up here). For that reason, we’ve decided to spotlight another successful makeover this month. This time, we’re featuring a stunning living room in an old school building-turned-private home on the South Wales border. Covered in dated green wallpaper with little natural light when we first saw it, we were contacted to transform the space as part of a much larger project.
Our client’s brief? To create a luxury, ‘boutique hotel’ feel within the space, complete with monochrome touches and a timeless, relaxing ambience.
We can’t be the only ones who find these before-and-afters unbelievably satisfying, right?! Here’s an insight into the thought process behind the transformation…
From Dark Old School Building to Light and Bright Living
One of the most notable challenges with the living room was how dark it felt at the beginning. Initially accessed by a single wooden door, little natural light could reach the space. By replacing the single door with double crittal-style doors, we not only brightened the living room, but we also allowed more light to enter the adjoining hallway.
Furthermore, our decision to strip the dated green wallpaper and repaint the walls, wooden windowsills, and frames in ‘Portland Stone Pale’ by The Little Greene Paint Company elevated the space in an instant. We’ve mentioned this particular neutral range before, and these pictures highlight why we’re so passionate about it. It allowed us to meet our client’s monochrome brief while ensuring there was warmth and timelessness in the space, too.
From Printed to Panelled for the Ultimate ‘Boutique Hotel’ Touch
Not only did we strip the wallpaper and repaint the walls, but we also added wall panelling to both complement the crittal-style doors and add that ‘boutique hotel’ feel our clients sought. As long as it’s fitted by someone who knows what they’re doing (there’s nothing worse than wonky panelling!) panelling is an easy way to add character to any property, and the results speak for themselves.
For more ways to add character to your home, read this blog from a few months back!
When coupled with the decision to replace the green carpet with this stunning herringbone floor, the space immediately felt elevated and considered.
The Final Touches
In our opinion, if you’re going to commit to a project like this, it’s important to go all in (and by that, we mean no shortcuts allowed!). For this reason, though we could have repurposed the old, tiled fireplace surround but we chose to replace it with a new limestone one, complete with a log burner, that, as you can see, is far more suited to the overall style we were aiming for. We removed the old wall lamps and replaced them with these stunning monochrome shaded wall lights adding in the monochrome detail on the shades.
Finally, we handpicked new furniture to ensure a sense of cohesion within the space – key to achieving our client’s request for a ‘relaxing ambience.’
We’d love to know what you think about the final results. Let us know in the comments below.
For now though, we hope you have a wonderful month ahead and we look forward to bringing more tales of transformation your way, next month.
Emily and Danielle
PS. Looking for an interior designer for an upcoming project? Get in touch here.
