Living Room
Photos by Jacob Harr of Harr CreativeHouse at a GlanceWho lives here: Designer Carly Visser and her husbandLocation: Grand Rapids, MichiganSize: About 4,000 square feet (about 372 square meters) During the 18-month renovation, Visser touched nearly every surface of the house, demolishing the kitchen and bathrooms, swapping out a sea of tile for wood floors, painting all the walls and furnishing the new spaces with plenty of vintage finds from Grand Rapids thrift shops.
Go big with a rug. It might seem counterintuitive, but when possible, use a rug that extends beyond the furniture in each functional space. For example, in a living area, a rug that sits under the sofa, coffee table and additional seating will draw the eye wider and make that living space appear bigger. On the other hand, a smaller rug sized just a bit larger than the coffee table can feel more like a bath mat, causing the living space to read as its limited size.
Visser says she took her style cues from the couple’s travels to Scandinavia, whose design vernacular meshes well with the midcentury aesthetic. The sofa covered in light gray wool, the striped rug and the faux fur throws are references to Scandinavian style, while the Eames lounge chair and the coffee table with hairpin legs are distinctly midcentury modern. Visser considers the vintage chrome arc lamp, found at a local thrift store, the centerpiece of the room.
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