Dining Room Refresh

I am so thrilled to share my finished dining room with you. When we moved into our current home I was so lucky that my furniture from the old dining room fit like a glove in the new one. That was a huge bonus since I have a large round table that won't exactly work anywhere. The biggest challenge I faced was that I wanted to make the room special without it being the only thing you noticed when you walk in the front door. This house is an open concept, so one of the first things we did was paint the entire interior Benjamin Moore's China White. I love the bright fresh quality it gives the house. The star of the show here when you walk in is the view. We are on the Tennessee River and my goal has always been to make that the first thing noticed. So the dining room was a pickle, because I wanted to elevate it's formality without making it overbearing.

After painting everything BM's China White I changed out the chandelier.   

Next I decided to paint the ceiling blue. I used Benjamin Moore's Woodlawn Blue HC 147 half strength.

Half strength is very important. I love this color because it goes blue with a hint of green, but full strength would be way too much for the ceiling.

Millie is always a big helper!

So I still felt like something was missing...after looking at several different wallpapers and considering stenciling the room myself, I decided to call a professional and have the walls custom painted. It has turned out to be one of my MOST FAVORITE things in the house.

Lynn Arnwine is an unbelievably talented, local artist that I have been lucky enough to know for several years. If you decide to commission an art project of any kind this is crucial - do your research and find someone whose work you love. Meet with them about what you have in mind and show them pictures of what you like, but then leave them alone. I have found that if you do your research on the front end, find someone's work that you admire and then give them the freedom to do what they do best, the result is always better. This was definitely the case with my dining room and the results exceeded my expectations. Lynn gave my room exactly what it needed and I am so grateful for a space that I am thrilled with and that my family will enjoy for years to come.

It's hard to tell in the photographs, but some of the leaves have a hint of metallic gold paint that sparkles in the evening.

In the end, Lynn gave my room exactly what it needed and I am so grateful for a space that I am thrilled with and that my family will enjoy for years to come!