Best Dressed Fort Worth Dining Room

It's been about 2 months since I met with my client to present her design plan for her dining room. She has been beside herself excited for installation day and has been waiting patiently.  Finally, yesterday was the BIG day.  I absolutely LOVE installation day because all the visions that have been swirling in my head come to reality! 

 Lesley (my assistant) and I started first thing in the a.m. prepping for their install.  We went over our checklist and made sure we had everything ready.  It is amazing what work goes into making sure all the details are covered and I'm so grateful for Lesley!  I spend many nights tossing and turning before a project install and often get up to write things down that we can't forget to take or buy for that special day.

  I like to take things that are precious, breakable or anything that needs extra care in my vehicle.  My installers take very good care of my items but I'm a protective mama.
  
Of course, it was raining on the day we had lots to load which was a challenge.  I'm so grateful for an amazing storage facility where I can back my car right up to it, making it easier to manage.
 Yesterday, as I was getting into the car, my tennis shoe slipped and I totally fell to the ground, I mean totally flat on my back.  I was a bit stunned at first because it happened so fast!  However, once I realized I was OK, all I could do is laugh and laugh.   When I got in the car I did say "Oh Lord, please don't let this day continue like this."
We headed out to Fort Worth with our coffee in hand, ready for GREATNESS.
When we arrived, we unloaded and placed the rugs.  We then anxiously awaited the arrival of all the custom built chairs that my amazing upholsterer and I designed. We dominated the freight elevator for a while, that's for sure!
 My client already had the table and it was AMAZING so we had 10 chairs made to complete the room. Just imagine the fun dinner parties that are going to happen around this table.  
BEFORE & AFTER
Check out that wine display cabinet, it was just finished up last month!  It is stunning in person, all behind glass! There is a lot of height in this room because it's a loft condo.  The arrangement on the table brings your eye up and adds a splash of texture and a bit of glam.
The captain chairs are a bit taller than the rest of the chairs and they truly add a special touch to the entire look.
 I'm crazy in love with all the colors, stripes and geometrics. The velvet is so soft and has a beautiful sheen to it.
It was a successful day without any other falls!  I am very sore today though! 
Stripes and geometrics make an amazing marriage don't you think?
 Keep a watch out for the living room we did in this home the same day.  
 Take a peek below!
Happy weekend!  I'm hosting a birthday party here at the house tomorrow night for my hubby.  Look forward to having my home filled with all the family! Barbecue is on the menu with blackberry cobbler & ice cream for dessert.
My new website will be launched next week too so I'm incredibly excited about that.   
Visit my Website to see my Design Portfolio.

Decorator & Client Relationship

 
I promised I would post before and after photos of the house I recently finished.  Their entire home was remodeled and updated.  Anytime you are doing a remodel it is a huge interruption to every day life for the client.  These clients truly got to experience organized chaos as we invaded their home!  The great thing about it was that we completed the entire project in 8 weeks which I thought was amazing for all that we accomplished.
 
 
Fortunately, I have an amazing crew that always comes through for me.  Everything from the floors to the painting to the granite, turned out beautifully.  There are always bumps in the road when you are doing a remodel but what I appreciate with my team is that we work together so well and we are all committed to making the client happy.  They very rarely say "no that can't be done" and are always willing to find a solution to problems that we encounter along the way.
 
 
Entire home remodels are incredibly stressful and it's a long process.  The client and I see each other almost daily and it's crucial to me that we build a strong relationship during that time period.  It is so important that the client and decorator have a great relationship. I take my job seriously when it comes to this relationship so there is honesty, compassion, reliability, trust, encouragement and most of all fun in the midst of complete demolition at times.  I find it an incredible honor when they say
 "I trust you"
 
I'm  blessed to develop these kind of relationships with all my clients. 
 They were incredibly generous and wrote a beautiful review on Houzz.com
 
 
"Ruthie Staalsen made my dreams come true. I can easily give her my highest recommendation. She took our outdated home and made it pop! It is now stunning, classy and elegant. We couldn't be happier. We did a complete home remodel, update and renew. It seemed like an overwhelming task for me to tackle on my own, so I hired Ruthie. She had remodeled my friends home, which I loved, so I had complete confidence in her abilities and taste.
From my first meeting with Ruthie, I knew this was going to be fun and exciting. The minute she walked in my house she started sharing her wonderful ideas and tips to make my house more current. She is extremely confident in her choices which made me feel confident. I knew I had found a treasure! She is professional, experienced and respectful to all. She kept the project on schedule and solved all problems with a positive attitude.
The most fun was the install day when Ruthie really works her magic! We came home to color and beauty. Lots of new items to enjoy and old items in new places. So fresh and inviting. Thank you Ruthie! You truly are the best!"
 
 
Thank you Mark and Linda for allowing us to invade your home so we could transform it! 
 
 

Who wouldn't sleep tight in this master bed?  I created this headboard because I wanted it to be higher than usual.  Many times I see headboards hung too low.  By the time you get the euro shams on the bed with a few pillows, the beautiful headboard is covered up.  We hung this one on the wall so it has a grander appearance!  Perfect for sitting in bed to lean against while you read or drink your morning coffee.
 

 

Newly painted beams and hardwood floors makes this room incredible now.
 
New black leathered counter tops were added to their bar area.  The leathered granite is honed down so it's not shiny and has a wavy feel to it.  I really LOVE it!
  
Looks beautiful doesn't it?  It is now a conversational piece in the room.
 

 
I never skimp on lighting!  It is the jewelry in every kitchen.  We always include dimmers so the light can be adjusted as needed.  I love being able to adjust the light to the mood I feel, especially when entertaining.
 
 
 
We gave the bar area a little more curve and that really made the space look fantastic.
 
 
I don't have before pictures of the dining room :( so you will have to just see the after :(!
 
We added new drapes, rug, parson chairs and put new hardware on the china cabinet. 
 
Of course the new accessories make this room sparkle.
 
Hope you enjoyed the tour.  Thanks to Marquette Bellinghausen with Simple Treasures Photography my incredibly talented friend, that always come through for me with her gorgeous photography.  You rock girlfriend and thanks for photographing my little topiary trees as they were (even though it bugged you that they weren't both upright).  I love the artistic twist this image has.
 
 
Today is an exciting day because I pick up my youngest daughter from the airport after being gone for 10.  She was on a missions trip to Czech Republic.  While she was there she became ill and had to be hospitalized.  I'm incredibly grateful to all those that cared for her and can't wait to hug all their necks at the airport today.
 
You can see a quick video of their trip here created by one of the students that went on the trip! 
 
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New Dining Room & Family Room and a time to be thankful.

What a great install we had yesterday! 
 
I put a Design Plan together several months ago for a client that wanted a Dining Room, Family Room and office transformed "using what she had" as well as incorporating some new pieces.  We had the install yesterday so here are the before and after's.  I was quickly taking snapshots so sorry my pictures aren't as clear as usual. It was getting dark out too and I was trying to finish up so we could do the big reveal! My clients were waiting next door anxiously.
 
BEFORE
 
Previously Formal Living Room
 
My client wanted to change her existing formal living room into her dining room.  They never used this space and she needed an office.  We made her old dining room into a great space for her now to have a desk. 
 
AFTER
 
NOW the Dining Room
 
Painted this room and her "new" office (across the way) a dark rich blue/green.  We transformed her existing chairs by painting them a soft distressed grey.  Her china cabinet got the same treatment. 
 
BEFORE
 
Chairs and china cabinet BEFORE.
 
 She had the parson chairs in storage so we had those reupholstered for each end of the table.  I tried to use as much as "what she had" as possible to save on the budget. 
 
AFTER
 
Painted and waiting to be picked up to be re-upholstered in a great red fabric.
 
 It not only saves on the budget but it gives us the "collected over time" look that I love so much and what my clients usually request!  The table has an extension so we painted and reupholstered ALL the chairs so they can be pulled out when entertaining.
 
BEFORE
 
Old dining room
 
AFTER
NEW DINING ROOM where formal living use to be.  You can see the china cabinet peeking out.  Sorry it's not a great picture but you get the idea.
 
Grandma's silver tray was put on the table and a blown glass vase was added along with the flowers.

Added electric wall sconces and a chandelier. We kept the existing rug and added new draperies and the large mirror. I love how now the mirror reflects the chandeliers in both rooms beautifully.

 
 
FAMILY ROOM TRANSFORMATION
 
BEFORE

 
Goodbye yellow paint!  Their family room needed personalizing.  The "matching" set of leather furniture wasn't working for the room and made it feel very dark, especially since they have wood floors throughout. We decided to keep the entertainment center and the large leather couch.  The rest of it got put in another room and we added lighter wall paint and brighter colors.
 
AFTER
 
 
Our rug was the inspiration for the color scheme we went with in this room.  The new custom draperies really add style and height to the room and added the color and pattern we needed.
 
 
 I had the two club chairs made from scratch and they turned out beautifully and are extremely comfortable.  New pillows and some lamps and the room is good to go.  A round coffee table is coming soon. 
 
I asked my client to clear the rooms before I got there and create a shopping room for me.  As I worked throughout the day, I shopped in that room for items to place that were important to their family. 
 
 
I was so pleased with the chairs and they go beautifully with the rug and draperies.  I found these pillows on one of my shopping excursions and thought they brought in the brown from the leather couch and pulled the room together nicely.
 
  
BEFORE
 
 
AFTER
 
 
 The fireplace was painted a darker color and the green dated fireplace surround tile will be replaced eventually with a nice slate tile when the new carpet goes in upstairs. 
 
BEFORE
 
 
See what I mean about everything being the same color?  It made it boring and dull.
 
AFTER
Now it's light, open, fresh and stylish.   Much more like the homeowner's personality!  We add that island light fixture in the background too!
 
 
Getting darker outside by the minute.  My client was scared of this fabric because it resembled an animal print.  However, she trusted me when I told her that it would be the star in the room and she was pleased to see that it was!
 
Crazy over this lamp.
 
 
If you follow me on Facebook, you saw that I posted about this little side table.  The base of it was a cherry wood before, passed down from the family.  My client wanted to keep it for memories sake so we gave it a makover.
 
A peppermint candle filled the air during the reveal and these little wooden handpainted birds were a gift from me.
 
 We had it painted this wonderful metallic silver with a turquoise undertone.  Placed the heavy marble on top and it looks fantastic in the room now and totally updated.
 
The inside of the lampshade has a leopard print that is to die for.
 
 
These velvet embossed down filled pillows are one of my favorite things in the room.
 
BEFORE
 
 
AFTER
 
 
Added this beautiful console under the stairs and stacked some of their favorite artwork.
 
I used their existing buffet that was in the dining room in their "new office" and it makes a nice welcoming statement to guests who walk into the entryway!  This rustic metal mirror makes the traditional space feel less stuffy and pretentious.  I wish I had been able to take some photo's of their new office but the lighting wasn't good by that time at all!  I'll have to go back and snap a few.
 
 
I found this glass candlestick holder that was filled with potpourri in one of her rooms and got rid of the potpourri (a dust collector by the way) filled it with moss and artificial floral stems.  No vase needed now and we "used what they had".
 
BEFORE
 
 
 
AFTER
 
 
I learned a wonderful thing during this install!
 I was disappointed  that I didn't get good pictures because of time and it getting dark.  However, when the client came to the door to see the big reveal they were so overjoyed, tears and all.  The neighbors came over and we walked from room to room talking about all the items that had been passed on from family or painted by special people in their lives, I realized something
 at that moment..........
I don't need pictures to capture that moment!  An even better thing to have is that memory of making their house a home for them.  The memory of their reaction (yes it was like on HGTV)  will always be in my heart and that is way better than a picture any day.   That's why I started DecRenew Interiors in the first place.  I wanted to be able to use my gifts that God gave me to help others make their humble abodes feel like a place that they want to spend time with friends and family.  No picture can ever capture what I felt last night and it was a special  gift and a reminder of the blessing of my business.  It was a good way to start the Thanksgiving break with my family. 
 
I drove home  with tears filled in my eyes feeling truly Thankful!
Happy Thanksgiving to all of you! I'm taking the week off to spend with my family!
 
 Visit my website at DecRenew Interiors to see more before and after photo's as well as my Design Portfolio.  Let me make your house a home!

Sophisticated Dining Room

Completed dining room this week.  The client had the furniture.  We reupholstered the chair seats, painted entire room a soft butter yellow (in draperies) and had the niches done in this beautiful copper metallic finish.  Added draperies and accessories.  The ceiling insert is painted that wonderful chocolate brown in the draperies.
BEFORE
Painting done by Mary Howe.
BEFORE
Have a Happy Friday!
Visit my website DecRenew Interiors to see my portfolio.