skip to main content

Furniture Flooring Home Decorating

Just bought this beauty....what next!?

Jasmine Almeida

6 years ago

We just bought a home for our family of 5 in North Carolina!

Would love ideas on how to modernize the space! House built in 94. I want to update the floors, paint, and eventually renovate the kitchen, expand the master bedroom and add a screened in porch. I don’t know much about floors - could these be stained a grey-ish color or something dark? Any paint color suggestions? I was thinking of doing the walls grey, keeping the beachy/seaside vibe that’s going on!

*^furniture is belonging to current owners. I will be purchasing all new furniture!!**

Any and all suggestions much appreciated!

Featured Answer

User

6 years ago

Nothing needs doing to this beautiful house!

Take the money and go on vacay... :)

Gray is gone already. The floors and the kitchen are perfect.

Your things and furnishings and a coat of paint will make this home your own...and maybe new light fixtures..

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (16)

Jasmine Almeida
Original Author
6 years ago
More pics
chispa
6 years ago
Looks like a well kept house. You have a neo-colonial and I'm not seeing a beachy/seaside vibe in the photos.

What do you mean by modernize the space?

If the floors are wood they should be able to be sanded down and re-stained. A dark color will show every speck of dirt and dust. Light floors are coming back in ... and gray walls are on their way out!
Related Discussions
Q
Comments (10)
That's looking a lot better. A few followup comments: 1. I agree with bepsf that the opening to the dining (formerly living) from the entry should be an "archway" or similar opening. A pair of pocket doors would work or make sure the french doors can open 180 degrees and stay out of the way. Similarly, I'd add an opening (with french doors if you must) on the other side of the fireplace to match the ones you have. 2. I'd flip the door to the utility room to the left so it aligns with the exterior door. Much more efficient use of space OR (better yet) flip the exterior door to the east and move the countertop to the other side. This way the door won't be as visible from the entry, you'll get more countertop, and the flow will be better. 3. Sitting room - if you need to keep the entrance from the front hall, why not move the fireplace to the southeast corner, flip the couch to the north wall and use this as your formal living room (and no door). The flow into the room will be much better. It also gives you much better use of the bay window. Then you can use the room now labeled "living room" as your more informal sitting/family room. 4. Squeezing past the shower to enter the powder room is still awkward. 5. Kitchen - it looks like the island (I assume that's what's in the middle) should move to the west to give yourself enough space to have a usable counter on the east wall. 4'6" is a pretty good distance between counters.. You seem to have more space than you need between the island and the patio doors. There's also a lot of inefficient space between the fireplace and island. I'd make sure that there's either enough room for a small table, or just make the island and east wall cabinets longer. 6. One last thought - since you rearranged the use of the rooms, had you considered switching between the dining and living? I think this would make things work even better. If you do, I'd go back to my comment of opening the sitting room from the study ha
...See More
Have to order flooring tomorrow. Help me choose.
Q
Comments (4)
Here is a "stone look" Armstrong product linoleum that will not compete with all the color of backsplash. It is slightly darker than the cabinets which will ground the room nicely. Agree that you probably don't need more tile lines.
...See More
Adding a tub to a small bathroom
Q
Comments (3)
We also bought our house before babies - but I can now tell you they usually are mainly in the tub yrs1-8 maybe even 10 or 11! We opted to put both a tub (with an electric shower) and a walk-in shower / wet room type arrangement in the main bathroom. Seems like a lot in 1 place but works for us.
...See More
Awkward Shape Living Area
Q
Comments (7)
Hi Pam, didn’t notice you’re dilemma before, just had a look at it. Milky Way mural sounds interesting. Although I’m a bit confused as to which wall you were thinking of putting it on. Is it the long wall where the fireplace is? The mural itself is most likely to be very dark in colour and like you say quite difficult to tie in with traditional furniture. But it could work with with jewel tone soft furnishings (emerald green, teal, wine red etc. in sumptuous fabrics like velvet and silk). You also say you have a conservatory garden wall mural upstairs on the landing, I imagine this to have a lot of green colours so I think anything downstairs should also have an element of green to link the colours through the house and create a better flow. Personally I wouldn’t put it on the fireplace wall as I think it would be too overbearing but the area where the dining table is would be nice and you could link it on the other side of the partition with paint colour and art. Was definitely thinking you need a rug in front of the sideboard as you come in from the hall. Maybe you could have a space themed rug:) here are some nice ones: https://jan-kath.de/collection/spacecrafted/overview/ https://www.kibek.de/teppiche/moderne-teppiche/81336/sky-and-sea Also here’s a link to some wall murals, I think the nebula ones with a greenish tinge would look superb. https://www.muralswallpaper.co.uk/wall-murals/space-mural-wallpaper/galaxy-and-nebula-wallpaper-wall-murals/ I’ll see if I can do some mock ups in photoshop, in the mean time here’s some inspo:
...See More
Jasmine Almeida
Original Author
6 years ago
Thank you! I guess I just got a beachy feel from the colors. And knowing I’m moving from the Midwest to a few hours from the coast, haha! Do you think the floors and walk colors look good as is? It just felt a little dated to me.
chispa
6 years ago
The beige reads a bit peachy, but that could be the photo or my monitor. With the light floors and what seems like a fair amount of natural light, you could probably go just a bit darker with your wall colors and not make the rooms feel dark, but give them some more depth.
arcy_gw
6 years ago
What a beautiful home. The kitchen could use some color. Except that there are no pendants over the island, nothing looks dated to my eyes. I think you floor are gorgeous. Pictures don't show wear and tear. Are they not in good shape? They are a classic color, graying the will just date them and assure you will be doing them again. How fun all new furnishings!! I would spend my money there and leave the bones as is!!
chispa
6 years ago
Have you gone through Houzz photos and saved things you like (and dislike) in your Ideabooks? Make different Ideabooks for different rooms and plan to spend an hour a day for the next few weeks to come up with a good collection of ideas. This will give you a good starting point.
Rita / Bring Back Sophie 4 Real
6 years ago
last modified: 6 years ago
Lovely house. Please do not paint the walls gray in an attempt to update it. As chips and Penny mentioned, gray is well on its way out of favor as a just because color- choose it if you love it and have always loved it- not because you have been looking at it for years on end.

I would paint the walls a pretty white. Refinish the floors if they need it and focus on your rugs and furniture, curtains and accessories.

You may want to check out Laurel Bern's excellent interior decorating blog for inspiration and great tips. Her writing is entertaining and her choices are classic and fresh.

Congratulations on the beautiful house!
Jasmine Almeida
Original Author
6 years ago
Thank you so much! A fresh coat of white paint sounds easy enough. I keep thinking I need to add some sort of wallpaper or accent wall. Focusing on the furniture sounds like a good start.
nosoccermom
6 years ago
Look at Sherwin Williams Creamy or Benjamin Capitol White. Another white I recently used was BM Simply White --- it works really well in bright rooms.
RaiKai
6 years ago
Pretty house! It looks well cared for which will be a big win as the new owners.

I don’t get a beach vibe at all though - but the trees are a pretty view too!

Not sure what you mean “modernize”, to me it reads more traditional due to all the arches and crown than modern.

I would not go gray. To me that house calls for lots of light - maybe look at a lovely white with variety in bedrooms, etc.

The kitchen does need some colour though, in my opinion. To me it looks a bit “stark” at moment, but a lot can be done with your seating, window coverings, and changing the fan likely. I will let others give their input on that as that is not my wheelhouse (blind leading blind and all that!).
Denita
6 years ago
"A fresh coat of white paint sounds easy enough."

OP, there are many whites. So it isn't quite as easy as it sounds. Here are a few brief storybooks to get you started on choosing the right white for your walls if you choose to go in that direction.

I agree with the others, no gray. You can even go for colors in your rooms. Consider living in your space first to plan and see which direction is right for you.

https://www.houzz.com/magazine/how-to-choose-a-paint-color-you-can-live-with-stsetivw-vs~95503956

https://www.houzz.com/magazine/dare-to-choose-a-more-colorful-neutral-stsetivw-vs~235431

https://www.houzz.com/magazine/how-to-pick-the-right-white-paint-stsetivw-vs~416809

By the way, your floors are perfect the way they are right now. Classic and light.
My3dogs ME zone 5A
6 years ago
SO glad that gray has been voted out. :-) I sent the pics to my large monitor used for work and the wall look to be a clean, soft beige, not peachy, as they appear on my home laptop. The floors are beautiful.

Wait til you get your new furniture, and come back and show us pics then, if you still think you need to repaint.
jill302
6 years ago
Beautiful home! The wood color is very classic, and is certainly the easiest to maintain with kids. I agree with other posters that the beige in the dining room is a bit peachy, otherwise the house is fabulous. Look forward to seeing how you choose to decorate it.
ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9
6 years ago
I would first of all get a much larger rug and base your color scheme on that. For this style of house the white furniture doesn't really seem appropriate. I would get a patterned rug, perhaps an Oriental, and pull the colors for the furniture from that. That coffee table looks rather dated and for you I'd choose a glass and metal one, which will also show off the rug more. It really depends on what your true style is, and that may be something you need to decide first. Look at Houzz and Pinterest pictures of living rooms and pin down what you really love before buying anything. Maybe "beachy" is your style, but just be sure that you're really certain in which direction you want to go. The house should reflect your personality and interests, and not just be another cookie-cutter interior that you see everywhere. Good luck! It's such a nice house.
PRO
Roald Smith Construction Inc
6 years ago
Hi Jasmine. it looks like stunning house. I have seen some awesome floor redone in matt finish. this hides the dirt and imperfections quite well. The house seems to have so much natural light that creates so much opportunity as my architect says it is only free thing you get in house. use warm colors on walls where you want to create a warm and cozy feeling. Remember you can always paint a house if you do not like the colour you choose. Last bit from me is get a idea of what you are going to buy for furniture as this can also balance the feeling of the house. I work with interior designers a lot and I think they are worth every penny. Choosing some one if you do is like any other business relationship. If you do not feel a connection try someone else. Hope this helps. beautiful house. take care

Sponsored

Reload the page to not see this specific ad anymore

Ireland

Tailor my experience with cookies

Houzz uses cookies and similar technologies to personalise my experience, serve me relevant content, and improve Houzz products and services. By clicking ‘Accept’ I agree to this, as further described in the Houzz Cookie Policy. I can reject non-essential cookies by clicking ‘Manage Preferences’.