Paul Miller
Interior Designer Through millwork and masonry, furnishings and finishes, lighting and leaps of faith, MakeNest Interiors transforms spaces with thoughtful decisions based on core design principles. In our ‘Why We Did That’ series, we take you behind our recommendations.
Sometimes the parts of our home that we wait the longest to pull together become our favorites in the end. Such is the case for my clients at Nest #46, who approached me about reimagining their lower level family room, which had been furnished with pieces that had not found homes elsewhere and was simply not working for them.
My job was to sensitively add new pieces to make this puzzle whole.
First, I studied the layout. Once I established the need to carve out a new TV area in an under-utilized end of the room and create a seating area around the hearth, I set to work finding rugs to layer over the wall-to-wall carpet to better define the areas of the open floor plan and set the palette.
I have always found color the best tool for fitting disparate elements together. Two pieces of my client’s art exemplify the disparity of those diverse puzzle pieces - and became my inspiration for color. One depicts a nineteenth century Parisian street scene and the other a traditional Crow dancer by Native American artist Kevin Red Star.
The palette that emerged was a study in natural tones: the gentle blues and greens of a spruce-hemmed lake; the ocher and rust of an autumn field; the mellow clay and ivory of a sun-washed arroyo. My rug selection perfectly captured this variety.
Drapery panels were designed to highlight the softest of the tones in the palette, while further weaving natural motifs into the aesthetic. The rugs and TV area sofa expressed deeper hues. A geometric weave that brought all of the shades together became a key textile, used in the hearth area ottoman, the TV area loveseat, and accent pillows.
Another one of those thoughtfully chosen new puzzle pieces was the art for the mantel, a spare but warm study of grazing horses on a valley slope that connects visually with the Red Star piece. Accented with locally-sourced candlesticks, blending dark and golden metals, the mantel conveys relaxed, but curated eclecticism.
In a sparely furnished area at the far end of the room, I created a TV viewing space, recovering a sofa, loveseat and chair to coordinate with the hearth area furniture. Added art carries on themes of art elsewhere, natural spaces and street scenes. Hand-woven rattan lamps reflect the high contrast of forms in the Red Star piece. Along with the four swivel chairs in the hearth area, this room can offer comfortable seating for ten and one more.
My client wanted to repurpose her mother’s buffet as a hospitality bar, given that the location of a spare en suite bedroom on this level made for a perfect home away from home for visiting loved ones. We reinterpreted the dark antique with Ben Moore’s Inner Balance, an ideal foil for the warm and cozy Misted Fern that we used on the primary walls.
The striking sconces that light this corner and the TV area were selected to evoke the sculptural lighting prevalent in Paris during its nineteenth century renaissance. With Beaux Arts influences already at play and Art Nouveau emerging, urban architecture was grand, triumphal and still organic. The design of the sconces, while modern, are a natural extension of the world depicted in the Parisian cafe scene. The original buffet hardware, lovingly belt polished by our furniture painter, adds a note of old world glamour.
My love for eclectic design lent itself to this transformation and I am thrilled that my clients have a newly discovered oasis in this part of their home. Every project offers a chance for creativity and I always appreciate the openness and trust that my clients provide me.
Interested in seeing how design can transform your home? Get started.
After Photos: Matthew Lofton
Before
A designer’s every choice is intentional, mindful of scale and proportion, rhythm and harmony, contrast and texture. Our ‘Why We Did That’ series is a bite-sized dive into one-off changes, big and small, that are part of our home transformations.
Interested in learning how we can bring change to your nest? Give our studio a call at 540-336-3385 or hit the button below to tell us more about your project.
