How to Make that Brown Leather Sofa Look Beachy~

Recently, I had a client who lives in a traditional craftsman complete with all the beautiful, original woodwork.  Despite the fact that she loves the craftsman details of her home, she wanted to lighten up the space...give it a beachy feeling, if you will.  She was faced with two major dilemmas in trying to achieve such a look.  The first dilemma was the fact that painting the woodwork was out of the question.  The second dilemma was the fact that she has a matching pair of brown leather sofas, and it wasn't in her budget to purchase new ones.

I think this dilemma is actually a fairly common one.  With the popularity of lighter interiors, how does one incorporate existing darker furniture?  Well, for starters, we brought in the colors of sunshine and the sea. Here's the moodboard I created for her.

The walls were painted a pale greige because it incorporated the gray tones she was after while still having beige undertones that work well with the dark wood in her home.

I chose curtains with a white background to lighten up the window area, and a happy pattern that incorporated the grays, blues and yellows that we wanted to bring into the space.

A sky blue rug brings in the feeling of the sea and summer skies, while white coffee and end tables go a long way toward brightening up the furniture situation.  Throwing some happy sunshine-and-sea colored pillows on that brown sofa continue that beachy feeling and bring a little levity to the seating.

Last but not least, I chose lamps the color of sea glass.  What could be beachier??

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