A Chinoiserie Before and After

The room I have been telling you about is finally finished! As much as I adore color and fun wallpaper, I absolutely love a client who totally trusts me and is willing to take risks. This client did just that! I'm starting with the "after" picture because when I showed it to my husband, he thought I had done the before ( hand-me-down pink chairs and floral sofa). 
Needless to say, it will all make sense if you read on...
Here is the BIG REVEAL...

This is what it looked like BEFORE...

I opted for a new sofa and coffee table, but kept the rest of her pieces. See the lamp in the far right corner? He was my inspiration for the room. 

 She got a pair of them as a wedding gift and we instantly hit it off:
Dear cute Chinese man, you helped me design one of my favorite rooms. I know you will feel right at home here. 

 The wallpaper is "Summer Palace" by Osborne & Little. It's divine in person.

 The secretary was moved to the wall opposite the sofa and we added two new chairs on either side, plus a cool gold sconce I stole from a friend's garage.

I love the detail. I added a little zebra (I'm thinking it should be my trademark??)

 The coffee table is an Indonesian bed. I just loved the color and the woven top. It adds another texture to the room (bonus: it can hold a small person). 

The Kensington goose neck chairs got a total make over with a Vervain fabric I found as a remnant (SCORE!). 

I love how they turned out. They are much prettier with a pattern that plays off of the curves of the chair (an improvement on the solid rose fabric).

I mixed in custom pillows with store-bought. Can you guess which one came from World Market? 

 Accessorizing was easy with her pretty things and silver tea service. 

 I added cobalt blue silk to the base of graphite gray draperies to add a punch to the windows. 

I loved her silver pheasants, so I place them front and center. 

 Look how the wallpaper just glows when the lamps are on. So pretty. I've saved my best find for last. Yes, my friends, this bamboo mirror was the SCORE of a lifetime.

I found it (because I am evidently very lucky) and because I scour Craig's List daily. Met the guy in the Panera parking lot to load it into my car, and paid full price...A whopping $225! It is solid wood and weighs as much as my 8 year old, but truly makes the space (with the wallpaper of course). 

Oh yeah, and it was already this color. 

(I couldn't make this stuff up, plus it annoys Ann so it's fun to blog about my luck).

So what do you think? Please tell me, I'd love to hear. A little wallpaper goes a long way, don't ya' think? Oh how I love a makeover...

Bye bye birdie,
~H

P.S. The World Market pillow is the one in the center.

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Write by: AN - Friday, February 24, 2012