Lucky you guys! It’s almost like a two-for-one special with the kitchen reveal and dining room back to back.
Since the rooms are pretty much just one big room now, you saw the dining area, (I think I’m going to stop calling it a room since it’s just an area off of the kitchen now), in the big reveal.
The area hasn’t gotten any crazy remodeling, although most of the walls and ceilings are new drywall after we removed the old plaster, but it still feels really updated from where it started. Here it is during our walk-thru before we purchased:
The only major project that is visible is the addition of the window seat. We also replaced the fan with a pendant light, since we never used the fan.
The addition of curtains definitely helped add some personality to the room.
But the it was the liquor cabinet that really was the final piece. That and some little décor items here and there, made this room pretty much complete.
I spent an entire afternoon filling up the cabinet shifting things around making it look decent. Filled, it adds a lot of interest to this side.
We brought up all our liquor and kept the beer and wine in the basement, since it’s a cool constant temperature down there. Mike had organized everything by like items; gins, whiskeys, bourbon whiskeys, vodkas, and weird stuff like the bottles of Akvavit Mike had shipped over after reading The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. I added them on shelves that made the most sense, the most used liquors like whiskey and vodkas on the top shelf, all the cocktail ingredients and tools at working height, glasses below that, (I’ve since added bottles of sparkling water to this shelf), then the weird or less used stuff on the bottom, sloe gin anyone?
I still want to add a few decorative items here and there, but Mike wants them to make sense. Unlike my living room box and bowl ol’ succulents I threw in there for the photos. Things like lemons and limes in the bowl at the bottom.
The cabinet is exactly what I wanted for this wall, and just as I thought the glass makes it seem less obtrusive, especially when looking at the dining area from the living room.
On the opposite side of the dining area I added a Navy Geo print from Britt Bass, that’s so popular these days. I actually ordered it awhile ago but didn’t have anywhere to put it. I figured I’d throw it in an Ikea frame I had lying around and try it out in this little corner.
It’s exactly what this little bit of wall needed.
You’ll also notice my poor traveling fiddle leaf fig. I took it outside earlier that day so that it could get some Vitamin D and thought I should try it here for a second and started shooting away. It’s not looking so hot recently, I’m pretty sure I over watered it. Seriously these things are sons of bitches, but I love it. The leaves got wrinkly and some turned brown the day after I watered so I’m positive it wasn’t happy with me. I’ve since moved him back to the living room window, but am going to be on the lookout for a less fickle, larger plant for this corner.
In anticipation of the peninsula seating, we knew the dining table would be shifting. We had to make the decision early on when Mike added the new ceiling drywall since he had to add a junction box for the yet-to-be-purchased pendant light. We just added some space to the end of the counters for room to sit comfortably, then placed the light halfway between that measurement and the wall.
To be honest, I don’t think we’ve eaten a meal at the table yet! We’ve used the peninsula seating or we eat outside.
I should mention the “table runner” I have on the table is actually some hmong batik fabric I bought that I’m waiting to make into some pillows. I draped it over the table after I opened the package a couple weeks ago, (I know, make the damn pillows already!), and figured it looked a little better than a plain table.
Overall I’m happy with the way the dining area has come together. I still want a new table, but I don’t hate the one we have right now as much. I also think I’d like to make a window seat cushion, but I need to work up my sewing skills before I tackle that. I think it needs some softness over on that side since I won’t be adding curtains due to the countertop meeting the edge of the alcove.
The real looker is the kitchen, but I think the dining area compliments that nicely and I’m not embarrassed of it anymore!
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