Family Friendly Living Room

We have some absolutely terrific clients. We really do get to work with some amazing people. The living room concept that I am going to share here with you is for a family that we have worked with several times over the last few years on their Calgary and Canmore homes. Recently, they purchased a new home and the very traditional furniture we used in the last home would not work in this more contemporary new residence. The trick was finding a way to incorporate the rustic casual look of the new house with the traditional furniture style they are drawn towards while still making the room family friendly. Here’s how we did it.

Photo of the Quartet Sofa by Kravet Furniture

Photo courtesy of Kravet Fabrics

Photo courtesy of JoAnne Fabrics

For the living room we started with this sofa, upholstered in a combination of saddle brown leather with the small toss cushions in light blue linen and the larger loose cushions in a mocha colored chenille. Our clients specifically requested the sofa be a combination of leather and fabric so finding a style that would suit this was a logical place to begin. Leather is of course easy to wipe down, looks better with age and extremely durable – perfect for a room where children will play!

Photo courtesy of Duralee Fabrics

The drapery fabric will be this handsome paisley of taupe, brown and steel-blue. It’s the perfect backdrop for the sofa which will sit in front of the window. This fabric set the tone for the color scheme, and the overall look.

Photo courtesy of Kravet

Photo courtesy of Kravet

Two accent chairs upholstered in this cozy chenille will flank the sofa on the right. These chairs will be perfect for curling up in and reading a book! The fabric is durable and the texture is great for hiding stains and wear. The chairs are elegant, simple and comfy with a capital “C”!

Photo courtesy of Lee Furniture

Photo courtesy of Kravet

This living room is large enough to also accommodate two smaller chairs. These will be upholstered in the menswear inspired hounds-tooth pattern. Adding chairs with a wood arm and slightly different leg shape will break up the styles of furniture in this room. The smaller pattern is a great complement to the texture on the other chairs and the solid fabrics on the sofa.

Photo courtesy of Hickory Chair

Photo courtesy of Kravet

The shape of these hassocks is so interesting and they will be stunning upholstered in this fun blue and khaki zebra print. These will sit in front of the fireplace and provide extra seating when the family entertains. Of course I adore anything animal print! I like this one especially because of the unusual color combination. Hassocks in general are really functional pieces of furniture. They can be moved easily around the house, can have storage built-in to them and are nice to look at!

Photo courtesy of Restoration Hardware

The coffee table has to be something that can stand up to the harsh conditions of a toddler! This lovely model from Restoration hardware will look better with more bangs and bruises – a patina of sorts.

Photo courtesy of Vanguard Furniture

Weathered wood is all the rage these days (check out my previous post) and this table sports this finish beautifully. It has a traditional look but with simple lines.

Photo courtesy of Vanguard Furniture

Adding a different material, like metal, lightens up all the wood furniture pieces and provides a different texture. This little side table has a different colored wood top and a terrific base that lifts up and down.

Currently, all these pieces have been ordered for our clients and now we are patiently awaiting their arrival. I can hardly wait to see the finished product! These clients are such a joy and I was so happy when they called on us once again to help with this new project. I know that the room that Corea Sotropa Interior Design has created for them will exceed their expectations!

Cheers!

Jacqueline

Animal Print – Why I am obsessed with it!

I adore animal print! In fact, my associate designers tease me about it because I am always trying to work it into design schemes for clients. I recently did a segment on Calgary’s Breakfast Television and I dedicated the segment to animal print. Surprisingly, more people comment on that one segment more then any other TV appearance I have done. So, I guess that I am not alone in my infatuation!

Animal print has a fabulous graphic quality that is so appealing.  Also, it is edgy but still timeless. I have one major rule about using animal print – don’t overdo it! Only use one animal print per room because otherwise you could end up with something that looks like a zoo. One statement piece is all you need.

This gorgeous wallpaper is available through Crown Wallpaper + Fabrics. I am using this wallpaper in my dining room.  Watch for photos of the finished product!

Kravet has an amazing rug program that allows designers to customize the size, colour and material that their rugs are made of. This truly is a designers dream since they can be created especially for our clients! This leopard print is so timeless.  It would look amazing in a living room.

Another great Kravet area rug. I can also imagine it as a solid cream colour in a wool and silk blend in a glamorous living room. So sumptuous!

A really fun giraffe print from the Barclay Butera collection from Kravet.  We are using this fabric in the paprika colour for an executive’s condo in Calgary. It will make lovely pillows in the family room. There are so many animal print fabrics available in traditional colours as well as more unexpected combinations.

This is a great bench from Lexington Furniture.

Here is my own bedroom with a similar bench at the end of the bed. Be brave and mix patterns together!

This incredible staircase and animal print stair runner was recently featured in Metropolitan Home Magazine.  It inspired me to propose a wool zebra print stair runner for one of my projects.

Designer Richard Mishaan has used some bold zebra print fabric for accent cushions on this settee. Photo courtesy of Habitually Chic .

Here is another great use of animal print on a bench. This room was featured in House Beautiful and shows how animal print can be used in a more traditional room.

I hope that this post has encouraged you to be brave and use animal print in your interiors! Have fun with it!

Cheers!