Thursday, June 30, 2011

Dining Room Makeover


Ta da! I picked up some beautiful (and affordable) new french style dining chairs from Marshalls and TJ Maxx over the last few months, and I am loving my dining room's new look!


It all started with this chair. Technically, I have owned it for about 4 months, but I didn't get to bring it home until a couple weeks ago. No, it wasn't at the hospital in intensive care... it was in Ohio. I may live 1000 miles away, but I still go shopping with mom and sister in Ohio almost every week - via camera phone! After sending me a picture, my sister bought the chair for me a few months ago at Marshalls (one of our regular stops) and in the meantime I've been scouring stores out here trying to find some coordinating ones.


I found two matching Louis chairs in a straighter, cleaner style with darker linen and upholstered backs instead of caning, and I ended up really liking the collected look that the different chairs create.


Of course, as you can see, I'm not quite finished "collecting" yet... One green "before" chair still lurks at my table :)


This is was the dining room before. Not too bad, but the green chairs and blue floral china were giving it a cottage vibe that seemed a little disconnected from the rest of the house.


I found two oversized white-washed terra cotta pineapple finials, also from Marshalls, to replace the centerpiece. I love the scale and height of these - everything else I tried was too short and looked silly, but these really make a grand centerpiece.


Some great new antique white ironstone finds replace the blue in my china cabinet.  (If you like blue patterned china, stay tuned... I think a few of my blue pieces will be showing up in my etsy shop in the near future!)



A collection of old ironstone platters, along with an oval frame from the 1800's, create a wall display behind the table. This is my first foray into hanging plates on the wall and I wasn't sure I would like it... but it ended up being one of my favorite parts of the room.



And I found this primitive black and white wooden pig at an antique mall in Ohio. I bought it to sell, but I just couldn't part with him :) He's now hangs on the wall between the dining room and kitchen.


This picture makes me laugh and reminds me of the Biblical reference to "casting your pearls before swine..." But I like the juxtaposition of rustic country farmhouse decor with a touch of glamour, and I think this picture sums that up perfectly!




12 comments:

  1. Your dining room looks fabulous! I love the new chairs, they all look old and well loved, how cool that they are not. I adore the old ironstone with the old frame, they are the first thing I noticed when I saw the photo of your d/rm. The pig is cool and the little cabinet in the corner looks wonderful in it's white ware now.
    Love it!
    Hugs, Cindy

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  2. I love it! You have such great taste and I love the feel of all of your rooms.

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  3. Did you refinish the table? If so, how did you do it? I really want a table that has a finish like yours.

    Lovely job!

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  4. Those chairs look great with the table. I saw a similar chair at Ross. It stopped me in my tracks. I was like oh.....I need that....but then I caught hold of myself because...no I don't need that. But you do! Check out Ross. Love your dining room!

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  5. Your dining room looks fantastic! I love the ironstone hanging on the wall, and that pig is awesome. I love the pineapple finials, too...they look perfect on your table. You have great taste!

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  6. Love your dining room, love your home oh i love your blog!!
    Pamela :)

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  7. Ellie, Everything looks beautiful! The little pig and your reference to the bible quote makes me smile!

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  8. Ellie- I'm lovin' your dining room with the whitewashed look. Great chairs! What part of Ohio does your mom and sister live? Who knows- we could be neighbors. LOL
    ~ Sue

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  9. Hey there, LOVE your ironstone and whites.....new follower, i think ive got you tagged on Etsy too!!

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  10. this is beautiful! you have a great eye for decorating. I was wondering what that large wooden thing is that is leaning against the wall? (kind of looks like an old ironing board for lack of a better term, but i know that's not what it is. Is is some sort of bread kneading board?

    I love those chairs! I also like the one green chair in there lol

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