Dishes and Designs: Style Board

White to Bright: A Peacock and Raspberry Living Room, Plus a Few Tips on Color!

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Have you heard of Chairish? I discovered this awesome site a little while ago and totally fell in love. Chairish is kind of like a Craigslist for designers. Except that it's available to everyone. And it's curated- meaning that you're not going to find junk. Just amazing vintage and designer pieces at great prices.

Chairish has found its way into my rotation of sites I like to browse while daydreaming about my dream house, especially now that I'm in the process of designing and furnishing the house we moved into last summer. Imagine my surprise and delight, then, when I was contacted by the Community Manager at Chairish about participating in this little project.

The goal: take a room from "white to bright" using one of their rugs from their latest collection as inspiration. I had a hard time choosing - there are so many beautiful rugs! But I finally went with this gorgeous Turquoise Overdyed Turkish Patchwork Carpet. Be sure to check out their whole rug collection here!

Those of you who know me know that I love color. Seriously, sometimes it seems I can't get enough color in my life. Case in point: I currently have an orange sofa and dark teal chairs in my living room, and I'm in the process of painting my bedroom Pantone's "Moroccan Blue." I'm also working to incorporate greens and yellows into my living room and entry. It looks great, and even more important, it feels good.

We are surrounded by so many beautiful colors in nature. Next time you are at a farmers' market, or even the produce section at your local grocery store, take a minute to notice all the different and vibrant hues of the fruits and vegetables! Or picture the bold colors you might find at a Moroccan bazaar– naturally dyed textiles and huge bins of spices. Color is the spice of life and I love to try and bring those colors and feelings into my designs.

This living room keeps things relatively clean and modern, while giving off something of a bohemian vibe. A cozy, lived-in look is achieved by mixing neutrals with bold colors as well as new furnishings with vintage (or vintage-look) finds. See below for sources (and be sure to check out the great side table and throw pillow I found on Chairish as well!)

Here are some tips for taking your room from white to bright:

Keep your large pieces neutral. This is especially good for those of you who are afraid of color. (You know who you are!) Having a neutral base allows you to change out the colors as well as tone down/liven things up more easily .

Use something colorful that you love as a jumping off piece. This could be artwork, a rug, pillow, book cover, your favorite plate, just about anything!

Build your room around these neutrals with colorful accents and accessories. If you're feeling particularly daring, add in a piece of accent furniture (table, side chair, etc.) in a key color.

Don't forget to mix in different textures along with the color, and throw in a few neutrals here and there to keep things grounded.

Choose a wall color last. It’s a whole lot easier to match paint colors to existing furnishings, than to find furnishings to match a specific paint color.

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