Hello friends! Today I’m excited to share a little refresh with you in my home. The last time I showed you our dining room it looked pretty different. And while it was probably the most photogenic room in our home and we did LOVE it, we decided to change up the wallpaper after just one year. Why, you may ask? Let me explain!
First of all, we had a bad install. It was the first wallpaper I had installed and I used a contractor I ended up never using again (I love the wallpaper people I work with now!).
She made a mistake of using dark gray primer under the white wallpaper. I remember thinking it was odd at the moment, but trusted she knew what she was doing. Well, she didn’t. It ended up that in person you could see pretty bright seam lines. Not cool. But it did look way nicer in photos.
The other factor was that after hosting a baby shower, a NYE party, friendsgiving and decorating through all four seasons, I realized that the wallpaper was pretty overpowering. While I loved the look of it, you couldn’t really decorate in any themes because it was all you could see.
So, after MUCH deliberation, we decided to replace the wallpaper with a more mellow pattern that matched our entryway (which is nearby). We chose JUJU wallpaper in the pattern Palea.
Most of our furnishings are the same, just moved around. We’ve added a few new plants and I moved my giant macrame from The Northern Needle in here.
Another bigger change is that I moved the DIY cabinet that was previously in this spot to the Airbnb (it was holding glassware and we’ve been child-proofing) and I replaced it with this mini console from West Elm. It took some time to find a smaller size console for a smaller spot like this.
Sources: Wallpaper/Juju Papers, Chandelier/Shop Candelabra, Rug/Marrakesh Shag Rug from Rugs USA, Mirror/Rejuvenation, White Chairs/Amazon, Teak Wood Chair/Lulu & Georgia, Table/DIY (I have painted it since then, but it’s the same table going strong since 2012!), Salt Holder/Kip & Co (I keep truffle salt and rosemary salt in it), Macrame/The Northern Needle, Wine cabinet/DIY (we didn’t write a tutorial for it, but just so you know where it came from), mini bullet planter/Hip Haven. My dress is from Free People.
Let me know if I missed anything in the comments!
The thing I love most about our current dining room is the ability to change it up throughout each season! We’ve hosted a couple big dinner parties in our two years here and I plan to keep hosting. I am looking forward to adding touches for Halloween and the holidays this year!
I also love how well it flows with the rest of our home! It’s pretty seamless.
I don’t plan to make this drastic of a change to any of our other rooms, but I am glad we made the changes here. It feels right. I think you know when your decor is right when you stop thinking about it, and I have now.
With a toddler on the way (!!!!!!) and our home 99% completed, I am focusing a lot of my blogging energy this autumn on getting room tours shot for you all. I want to immortalize it in the phase it is at now, since I’m not expecting to have as much time to focus on decor for a good bit after we bring Nova home.
In Nova’s report from her orphanage, we read that she likes to “scrabble on the walls.” (Haha!) So everything I do from here on out is to prepare our home for a new stage in our family. And honestly, I can’t wait for my walls to get “scrabbled” on.
Thank you so much for reading. I have so much love wrapped up in this home. It truly is one of my favorite projects of ALL TIME.
Oh! And it 100% does not offend me if you all liked our former wallpaper choice better. It was totally stunning and we loved it too. But at least you can understand why we made the changes we made. It feels more cozy and more versatile now.
xx! Elsie
I love how you designed your home! Where did you get the buffet table with the wine storage from?
I love the look of this room, and am using it as inspriration for our dining room redo 🙂 I have windows in my dining room and I’m wavering between solid white and a bold colorful print. Any suggestions? Thanks!!
Just came across your site and I am your newest fan haha 🙂 Where did you find the old rose wallpaper at?
We’re happy to have you here! 🙂 It’s from Spoonflower- http://www.spoonflower.com/wallpaper/3851143
Ahhh I have to admit, I’m disappointed. 🙂 That rose paper had such impact! But you couldn’t make a bad design choice if you tried – the room still looks beautiful.
The wallpaper change looks amazing! The floral was pretty, but I think this is even better! I would love to decorate in this room. And I feel like people would still want to take photos in front of this wallpaper. You could make great little photo-booth set ups in front of it, since it’s so neutral! Looks great!!
I am just seeing this. Beautiful! Even though I was thrilled you picked my rose wallpaper the first go around, even I couldn’t live with that much color for long! The new print is lovely. Remember, I’m in the neighborhood if you need a custom print fabric or wallpaper elsewhere or for your other projects! X
This dinning room is by far one of the best that I have seen till date. It looks very elegant and attractive. Thanks for sharing. Many people can get the ideas from this set-up and make their dinning room looks good.
http://southshoreroofingma.com/
You are going to sooo love being a parent. It’s hard but even more wonderful than you think it will be.
I seriously love everything you organize and create.. seriously, this room looks incredible. I have to admit that I saw the little mention of baby proofing and I got so giddy for you. How exciting! Are you worried about white cabinets and walls with a little one around? I can’t even keep my white trim in my house clean because of a dog.. haha.
xx Jenn
floraandforest.com
I’m not worried about it because I’m choosing to let that go. If she draws on our wall- we’ll live. It’s worth it….. 🙂
omg im gonna die when i see her
I’ve honestly never, ever been a fan of wallpaper. Usually it just comes off as tacky to me but this wallpaper is so chic and adds the perfect touch and amount of detail. I might be a wallpaper convert now thanks to this article!
I love your table!! You may have answered this somewhere so I’m sorry if you’re repeating yourself. What paint and sealer did you use on the table? I would love to make this table and paint it!! But I want a high shine look that is also durable and can withstand the craziness of my two toddlers. (I would love to have my dining room table also be our crafing/homeschool/project table) I’m wondering if I could go this route. Thanks!
I use rustoleum oil based paint in glossy (no sealer necessary).
Man I’d be really interested to see the DIY or where you sourced your materials for that wine cabinet. It’s amazing ❣️
I love all the pieces in here! It’s perfect!
Paige
http://thehappyflammily.com
Hi Elsie,
I know someone who dedicated an entire wall to their kids’ scribbles. From the time they could hold a crayon until they left for college at 18, the wall was basically a history of their childhood. I always thought that would be such a neat thing to do. I would probably never want to paint over it, or move for that matter!
Hi! Mind sharing where the geometric/hex planter with the cactus is from? I’ve been looking for one like it. Found a couple, but that looks to be closer to the size I need.
I think it’s from Home Goods (last year).
xx!
It’s from Home Goods (last year) xx!
I like the new wallpaper SO much better–I think the room looks more relaxed/cozy, the furnishings match better, and the plants/wood elements look nicer. The flowers were a fun, bold choice, but they are really overwhelming even in photos–the new direction is gorgeous and I love it! So glad you were able to make a change that you feel good about.
Cannot wait for your daughter to arrive! Not sure if you do as much “personal life” blogging here but I love that side even more than the DIYs, in case you decide to sprinkle some in–just a thought 🙂
Hi Eliza, Thank you!!! I have a (just-for-fun) family blog here http://thelarsonhouse.com I’ll have some kiddo DIYs here occasionally. Right now I have a playroom tour I am almost done with! xx
Everything looks lovely! I love that you are childproofing some things and are just “live and let go” about things that may not work or only fit for a season. As families grow and change, so does the home. <3
Wow! What a transformation! I like it so much more than the one with the flowers. I think it reflects so much better your present state of mind! So cool! 🙂
Great update! Don’t you hate those moments where your gut tells you, “wait! stop!” but the profession is like, “no it’s fine!” I love how bold your choices are for both sets of wallpaper – and they both were great. But I agree, when it’s too bold and specific, you have no choice but to decorate with certain colors and styles so the whole room doesn’t clash! You picked a great neutral. Would you guys be interested in doing a post that talks about HOW you make choices for rooms, and how you narrow down your picks? It’d be great to learn about your process so when making bolder design choices, we know how to do it like the pros!
www.shessobright.com
Hmmm. I mean I would love to write a post like that, but I’m not sure what I would even say. I am definitely one of those people who spends too much time overanalyzing each purchase, but then picks a bunch of stuff in one day and never regrets it. My process is kind of random. But I think having a color scheme and a mood board is the key to building a cohesive home! NOTHING worse than changing inspirations or styles halfway through!
xx