Contemporary Farmhouse

While the clients had just recently finished the first phase of updating their 40's built bungalow by opening walls, building an addition, and building out their basement, the now open floor plan felt cavernous and without purpose. The brand-new kitchen had been transformed into an inviting entertaining and gathering space filled with warm woods, a massive island, beautiful stone, and ample seating. But the warmth and clarity of the kitchen felt disconnected from the rest of the main floor's dining area, living room, and built-in home office nook.

To create a clear delineation of spaces without losing the openness they had originally worked so hard to achieve, we chose to add a fireplace feature to the current empty wall, use wallpaper in a contemporary and vibrant color to draw the eye, and install window coverings to warm up the space and dampen sound. By adding some lighting in the ceiling that mimicked our floor plan, we were able to define further the different areas without bulky furniture, and a similar approach was used with the rug placement. Touches of contemporary were brought in to tone down the heaviness of some of the vintage furnishings, and the whimsical pattern of the wallpaper kept the space light and fun. We sourced a one-of-a-kind raw edge mantle made of Black Walnut from the area. The grey stone hearth mimics the live edge pattern with its hand-chipped edge, and the rough-hewn stacked stone in a variety of whites and greys brings an added texture and depth to the pop-out section, further defining the living room area.

Because the room had remained a large rectangle, but the windows stayed in their original place, the offset of the fireplace made sense and provided a wonderful opportunity for the client to have a lounge nook for reading or cuddling with grandkids. The mix of old and new finished this space with the personality of the clients and the home, and made several distinct spaces unique and cohesive all at once.