I mentioned a couple of week’s ago that I was planning a dining room makeover.
I’d put together a little mood-board, picked out the wall-paint and chosen a couple of bits and pieces to give the room a bit of a refresh.
The room was OK before — not hideous — but it was all a little bit bland and mismatched. The carpets were old and tatty, the paint was scuffed and the lights and chair cushions had certainly seen better days.
The biggest thing that needed to be done though was painting the dining room table and chairs.
I decided to freshen it up and get rid of the fagnolia cream finish that it had had since we bought it, in favour of a cotton white shade from Laura Ashley.
In the past I’ve used Annie Sloan chalk paint but decided to try something new; Laura Ashley’s decorative furniture paint was fabulous. Really easy to work with and gave a lovely chalky finish.
It was quite a big task as the table is fairly large and there are 8 chairs; all with lots and lots of surface area.
I took the rattan seats off the chairs, gave all the surfaces a light sand with medium grade sandpaper then set to work with the paint.
It goes on really well and gives a lovely coverage and *might* have just taken the top spot for favourite furniture paint! ;)
It took a couple of weekends; sanding, painting, waiting for the coats to dry — in between looking after two little three year olds! I daresay, if you didn’t have any other distractions, you could probably paint a large dining set in a weekend.
Teamed with fresh white and duck-egg blue checked seat pads, the painted dining room table and chairs looked so much better.
The rest of the room took slightly longer — painting the walls and the woodwork plus waiting for a qualified electrician to install the lights*
*I may be a fearless DIYer but I’m not stupid. The first rule of home improvements is
‘Know your limits.’
And electricity is definitely not to be messed with!! ;)
I’d chosen some gorgeous fisherman style wall lights that were really similar to a little side lamp we have up in one of the guest rooms. Very simple but very lovely — and so much more stylish than the up-lighters that we inherited with the house.
(Sorry up-lighters.)
So there we have it!
A few little changes and one tired — shabby but not chic — dining room, given a little makeover and looking so much better!!
Not a million miles away from how it used to be but cleaner, fresher and with a little bit of added jshoosh (is that even a word?).
Still no pictures on the wall or knick-knacks on the shelves or fireplace yet; but I made the decision from the start that I didn’t want to rush in and put everything back the way it was to start with.
I’d perhaps like to find some pretty tiles for the hearth plus I’d like some blinds — or curtains — for the windows and maybe a lovely mirror for over the fireplace.
Anyway.
There’s plenty of time to make decisions on that and I don’t want to rush things. After all that painting, this is the nice bit. Time to relax for a bit!
Huge thanks to the lovely folk at Laura Ashley who collaborated — very patiently — with me on this dining room makeover! :)
All photos, thoughts and words — as ever — are entirely my own.
Caro Davies is a former art-director turned writer and content-creator, and editor behind UK lifestyle blog The Listed Home. She writes about home-related topics, from interiors and DIY to food and craft. The Listed Home has been featured in various publications, including Ideal Home, Grazia, and Homes & Antiques magazines.
Oh Caro it is gorgeous!! I love it! Also love that you have a tree! x
Thanks so much lovely!! xx
I have enormous dining room envy! I’m desperate to brighten ours up!!
Aaah thanks lovely. It’s been a long time coming — so nice to have a little change!!
I love it, Caro. Absolutely love it. You’ve done such a brilliant job. And I have to say, it was amazing to follow along on InstaStories. I loved all the little snippets as you were painting and waiting for the new carpet x
Aaah thanks lovely. The Instastories was my way of keeping sane!!! It made me feel better that people could see the progress rather than a ‘before and after’ — so nice to share the during as well!!! xx
It just shows what a difference a few small changes can make! It looks fab and that is such a beautiful room, with the fireplace and wooden doors and tree/beam haha. Sanding is the worst bit, so props to you for doing 8 chairs and a table – my hands always cramp up in to that ‘sanding position’ in your picture so I look like a lobster – not a good look but always worth it! #HomeEtc x
Aah thanks so much Sarah! Yep — I was regretting the ‘I’ll just give the dining table an chairs a little makeover’ decision but hey! It’s all good. Definitely worth the effort :)
Wow, it looks like something out of a magazine, so clean and fresh looking and what an amazing amount of patience you have to re do the table, I love a good upcycle, I bought a table and chairs with the intention of doing just that, needless to say it was re sold faily quickly when I realised the mammoth task that lay before me! Hats off to you lady x #HomeEtc
Aw that’s so kind of you to say — thanks so much Emma! xx
Oh your room is beautiful and so light! Like you I love tweaking rooms to give them a fresh feel, and you’ve done a gorgeous job. x
Thanks so much lovely! It’s not a massive change but enough just to freshen it all up — it was all looking a bit meh before!! Much better now :)
It looks perfect! The chairs looks really great. I used Laura Ashley paint to do a dresser years ago and was really impressed. Where is your rug from? That tree trunk is amazing! x #HomeEtc
Thanks so much Lizzie! The paint is fab isn’t it? The rug is lovely isn’t it? Have attached a link to the post for you, so you can see where to buy from! :) https://thelistedhome.co.uk/on-new-rugs-and-being-indecisive/
Just wow! What a superb room and utterly beautiful transformation :) Looks amazing and you’re very clever! Love Jess xx
#Home Etc
Aah thanks so much chickie!! xx
Caro your home is SO beautiful!! Having seen so many beautiful old houses and cottages whilst we were away, if I can ever tear myself away from London I’d love something exactly like yours. Fab makeover Xx
Aaaw thanks ever so much chickie!! We gradually crept away from London… first Marlow, now the midlands. Amazing what you can get for your money!! Our first flat is now worth as much as our current cottage!!!! Wish we’d held on to it!!
It looks so lovely Caro, our house is ALL spotlights, whilst it looks contemporary I so miss having proper lights x
Yes — I agree — definitely nice to have a combination! :)
Ah it looks lovely! So fresh and bright and I love those lights! xx #HomeEtc
Thanks so much Becky — I’m SO chuffed with it. Took longer than I’d anticipated but SO worth it!! xx
Really gorgeous makeover Caro. Simple but lovely. You have such a great eye for these things :-) Emily
Thanks so much chickie — it look an awful lot longer than I first anticipated!! It wasn’t a drastic change either but little changes make the world of difference sometimes, don’t they? xx
Wow you’ve been hard at it with all that sanding! Worth it though. Results are fabulous Caro! #HomeEtc
It was SUCH a big job Nicky!! But really worth doing — so glad I persevered! :)
Caro I like it! It’s amazing how a few little changes make it look like a new room. I love the dining room table and chairs! x
Aaaah thanks so much Amy!! It’s been on the cards for so long!! So nice to have finally ticked it off the list!!
Gorgeous as ever Caro!! Love the lights! I’m in the middle of painting our dining table and chairs too and it’s not easy with 3 kids, school runs, swimming etc etc to fit inbetween but slowly getting there xx
Thanks so much lovely! Yep — it’s hard isn’t it? Trying to do any kind of DIY these days takes treble the time it used to!!
That paint looks amazing and I absolutely love how jam packed with character your home is. So beautiful! xx
Thanks so much Kerry xx
Looks great – and good to know first hand about the paint. Love how just a little bit of a change can make such a difference. And yes, that’s totally a word! Thanks for hosting X
Thanks chick — the paint is a revelation. Love it! I didn’t think I’d have my head turned by anything other than Annie Sloan but the finish of the Laura Ashley is fab :)
Caro….lovely! That new shade on the chairs, really makes a huge difference! I’m currently sat staring at a pair of similar boring up lighters that are on my list of things to change!! I just need to find the perfect fitting first. Take your time with the bits and bobs…they can make or break it ;) Thanks for linking up #bloggershomes xx
It’s not a dramatic change, that’s for sure, but it’s definitely fresher than it was before!! :)