Room of the Day: Moody Blue Update for a Family Room
Comfort, function and style bring this room up to par for a stately Georgian home on Long Island’s Gold Coast
This grand Georgian home on Long Island’s Gold Coast was past its heyday. The family room, especially, lacked a cohesive style and was easy for the residents to simply ignore as they cut through on their way to the pool.
Designers Catherine Schweber and Lisa Simek gave the room an inviting layout and brought in color, comfortable furniture, functional built-ins, and a range of textiles and decor. Now the room is a favorite destination for playing, reading, entertaining and lounging.
Designers Catherine Schweber and Lisa Simek gave the room an inviting layout and brought in color, comfortable furniture, functional built-ins, and a range of textiles and decor. Now the room is a favorite destination for playing, reading, entertaining and lounging.
BEFORE: The old room featured honey-toned paneling.
AFTER: The designers kept the paneling but had it painted in Farrow & Ball’s Stiffkey Blue. The floors throughout the house were sanded and stained in a walnut color. “Often people don’t realize they’ll need to redo the floors until after they see the rooms painted,” Simek says.
AFTER: The designers kept the paneling but had it painted in Farrow & Ball’s Stiffkey Blue. The floors throughout the house were sanded and stained in a walnut color. “Often people don’t realize they’ll need to redo the floors until after they see the rooms painted,” Simek says.
The pair designed new built-ins for the large TV, making the most of the long wall and providing a place to hide the media equipment.
Found, vintage and handmade objects add color and earthy textures.
Because the house has a separate library, the family had room for decorative objects here. “The natural browns, beiges and creams contrast against the blue in the shelves,” she says.
Found, vintage and handmade objects add color and earthy textures.
Because the house has a separate library, the family had room for decorative objects here. “The natural browns, beiges and creams contrast against the blue in the shelves,” she says.
BEFORE: The fireplace had a lovely surround, but it was lost in the sea of wood-paneled walls.
AFTER: The walls and trim share the same paint color, with the former in a satin finish and the latter in a semigloss. A painting completes the fireplace wall. “We wanted to add interest with a painting here, but we didn’t want it to be overpowering, as the space already had a lot going on,” Schweber says.
“This room is very much off to the side and was a later addition to the original home,” Simek says. French doors separating it from the rest of the house contain TV noise. They also make this a good spot for the adults to enjoy after-dinner cigars and brandy.
The house is now experiencing a new heyday, spruced up to match the architecture but still comfortable for a family to grow in.
See more photos from this renovation
More: Lessons on Blue From the Great Outdoors
The house is now experiencing a new heyday, spruced up to match the architecture but still comfortable for a family to grow in.
See more photos from this renovation
More: Lessons on Blue From the Great Outdoors
Family Room at a Glance
Location: Mill Neck, New York
Size: 300 square feet (27.9 square meters)
Designers: Lisa Simek and Catherine Schweber of Accents Et Details
“We wanted to make the room cleaner, brighter, and less stuffy and old-fashioned for this family,” Simek says. “We knew it could take a deep blue because of all of the natural light.” The French doors lead to the pool, so considering the traffic pattern from the patio to the bathroom played a role in the layout.
This is the family’s primary TV-watching spot. One side of the large custom sectional faces the TV, while the other faces the fireplace. It is covered in an outdoor fabric by Holly Hunt.
Zigzag patterns in the herringbone rug, throw pillows and window treatments enliven the room. “They are all in different scales,” Simek says. “Some add contrast, while others, like the gray-and-cream rug, do not.” A mix of Roman shades and draperies creates varied looks from the same window treatment fabric.
A sleek metal chandelier and a clean-lined sofa table contribute to the room’s more streamlined look.
Window treatment fabric: Ralph Lauren; Marsha chandelier: Arteriors