Coastal Neutral Living Room Design: Where We Started
Hi guys! Thanks so much for hanging out with me at Postbox Designs….I am so happy you are here! I seriously love all of my clients-I have worked with these wonderful people from coast to coast, on all types of room projects and styles. However, I think I finally found my style BFF! When this fabulous client from the West Coast filled out her Postbox Designs Welcome Packet I soon discovered we have the same taste in decor, love all of the same stores, and she wanted the same look that is my personal fav. So I sort of felt like I was designing this room a bit for me as well. Bonus.
My client wanted a neutral, coastal look that was a mix of modern and traditional-not going too far in either direction. Her Living Room also had to be kid-friendly, durable, and able to host large gatherings. This family just got done building a gorgeous new home, but after all of the decision making she had to do with their new build, she was worn out and tired of making decisions. So as you can see from the “Before” photo above, she hadn’t had the time or energy to tackle her brand new Living Room.
I can’t tell you what perfect timing it was that she found Postbox Designs, and I was able to create two custom mix-and-match Living Rooms suited just for her. So let’s check it out together (P.S. I’ll be sharing Part II of this coastal Living Room makeover in my new blog post!)
Coastal Living Room Makeover: Part I
So what do you get when you mix in a bit of coastal, farmhouse, neutral, modern, and traditional? It is not as odd of a combination as you would think! You get a soft, serene color palette full of comfy casual furniture with some coastal elements. Feels like bliss to me.
For her coastal Living Room Version #1 I started with this soft palette of tans, creams, heathered blues, and grays. This Pottery Barn sofa comes in many “Performance” fabrics-which are extra stain resistant, durable and easy to clean. If you have pets and/or kids I would highly recommend spending a little more on this ultra durable fabric. I also love slipcovers-I have them on ALL of my sofas at home. And they are truly a god send. While this Pottery Barn sofa is really comfortable and casual we kept the “modern” flair by choosing a version with straight lines…an element mimicked in these heathered blue Ballard Designs modern wingbacks. Then we layered on a collection of multi-patterned pillows that all pull in the same color scheme.
Rustic, coastal style elements like this seagrass basket (#3) and sea grape tree (#15), rustic metal vases (#6) and rattan tray (#5) are scattered throughout the room, bringing in touches of nature.
P.S. If you love the look of a fiddle fig but don’t want to be like everyone else who owns one…try a sea grape tree instead!
This one is from World Market, and popped into a woven basket, it ooooooozes casual coastal charm.
Casual Coastal Living Room Decor Touches
A great way to mix in furniture is doing a combination of wood and painted furniture. Her coffee table and console table but have a reclaimed driftwood finish which works great in this casual coastal decor style. But then we layered in painted furniture such as these white end tables (#19). Different design styles call for different metal finishes as well. In this case I stuck to nickel finishes in the curtain rods and lamps-I especially loved the pair of mercury glass table lamps for on top of her console table.
A coastal Living Room isn’t complete without seaglass vases (#18) and this great driftwod piece (#23) from World Market. And finally if you have young kids and don’t want fragile vases around, try WOOD vases instead, such as these from Magnolia Market (#17).
Pulling It All Together: The Neutral Coastal Living Room Makeover
And here is her whole coastal Living Room Makeover pulled together so she can see her entire room custom selected piece-by-piece:
Custom Living Room Built-Ins
One request my client had was custom built-ins for her TV. I created elevations and construction drawings for her exact room (not shown), but I started it off with these inspirational photos to get the ball rolling. Both have floor-to-ceiling built-ins with window seat benches for extra seating. I also found fabric for her custom cushions, cabinet hardware, and more coastal style pillows to layer onto her window seats.
Neutral Coastal Living Room Makeover: The “Before” and “After”
Remember the Living Room we started with? She had GREAT bones to the room with tall windows, wood floors, and a light, airy space. For large spaces such as Living Room and Family Rooms I love it when my clients choose to add in a 3D rendering into their design package (you can check out all of my ROOM PACKAGES & PRICING). My client chose the “Large Room Package” which includes two different mix-and-match designs as well as the 3D rendering. She was able to see exactly what her room would look like before ordering a single item for her Living Room design.
Here was the before:
And the 3D rendering of her “After”: a serene, neutral coastal Living Room design:
Coastal Living Room Makeover: 3D Rendering
The focal point of this Living Room makeover are the beautiful built-ins with window seats. Then a collection of serene, neutral furniture with touches of coastal decor and natural elements fill out the final design. Her beautiful windows are dressed up with white cotton drapes and woven shades, which further enhances this great Living Room element. This Living Room is open to her Kitchen, so it was purposefully designed to look good from all perspectives.
Coastal Living Room Makeover: Part II
I will be sharing Part II of this oh-so-fun Living Room Makeover in a few days on the blog…so keep an eye open. But in the meantime, if you love this look as much as both my client and I do, then you can check out this past Real Postbox Designs project. I created this Traditional Coastal Living Room for a client in the Charleston area. You can check out all of the details here:
Create a Timeless Coastal Living Room Design
Want to Know About Online Interior Design?
I know! It is still a new concept to most people, but I have been doing exclusively online interior design for nearly three years now (I was a traditional interior designer for over a decade before that). I am able to work more efficiently and better for you, so not only can I charge less, I also charge a fixed price per room so you know exactly how much you will spend before you start. I custom design your room, then I create two different mix-and-match designs for your space. I create all of the drawings, shopping lists, and notes you need to pull together your room. After sending you your digital drawings, I also package it all up into a Postbox and mail it directly to you.
You can order your entire room in an hour. From the comfort of home…in your PJs over a cup of coffee.
Yup, it really is that easy and fun. You can see How It Works and my different Room Packages and Prices. Or you can simply email me at kristin@postboxdesigns.com and we can chat all about your project!
But I want to leave you with one more resource…my favorite one. I create a Free Resource Library where you can find dozens of free Worksheets, Mood Boards, Guides, Shopping Lists and more. One of the things you can find in there is my:
“10 Starter Pieces for Your Home” Guide
You can sign up to get free 24/7 access to my Free Resource Library (as well $50 off your first Postbox Designs project with me):
I Want Some Free Design Goodies!
Already a member? You can log in with your password right HERE
See you back here in a few days!
Cheers,
Kristin
Margaret M McCarthy says
Where can I purchase number 18?
PostboxDesigns says
Hi Margaret, Those are the “Barcelona” vases from World Market…one of my favorites! 🙂 Hope that helps!