I am not wishing away summer by any means, but I will always dream of cozy weekends with the kids – what we call the “soup and snuggle”. We partnered with Crate & Barrel this year (you hopefully saw the 7-week kitchen update/remodel) and today I have a living room that I curated with some of their new fall products – all in the name of “weekends at home,” (aka extreme comfort). We shot in this gorgeous house in Sonoma, (designed by the Homme Boys for a client of theirs), and with the help of Emily Bowser, we styled out this room with some of our favorite pieces. As we all know Crate & Barrel is killing it right now – with some of the best designer collaborations the design world has ever seen (Athena Calderone, Jake Arnold, and Leanne Ford to name a few) so I feel pretty darn honored to get to use their pieces on some shoots (and in my life). Today is a show and tell including some of my living room rules to live by. But first here’s the living room all set up:)
Pleated Lamp | Framed Art | Candelabra | Console Table | Basket | Green Velvet Chair | White Bistro Table | Dome Table Lamp | Leather Sectional | Cream Lumbar Pillow | Tan Lumbar Pillow | Soft Stripe Pillow | Faux Fur Throw Blanket | Metal Side Table | Coffee Table | Scrabble Deluxe Edition | Vase | Decorative Bowl | Rug | Swivel Chair | Green Pillow | Floor Lamp | Wood Side Table | Cream Pouf
And my “rules” really just being guidelines I think are super helpful if you don’t know where to start.
Here they are:
Oval coffee tables offset the squareness of sectionals (or sofas): It’s all about mixing shapes for a fun visual contrast. No one wants all hard angles or all soft angles, right?
At least all front legs on your rug = grounding: Cozy up, folks! When your seating doesn’t at least partially live on your rug, there’s a feeling that everything is its own island and you lose that overall cohesiveness.
Lighting evenly dispersed: I LOVE lighting so making sure you space out your pieces (and that you have enough for the size of your room) will automatically make the space feel warm and of course, cozy:)
Fabric shades are best for ambient lighting: They just are! I’m not saying all of your lamps need fabric shades but one or two will give off that beautiful soft light we all love, especially when snuggling on the sofa.
Large shag rug doubles as floor seating: If you have been following me for any amount of time you know I need my rugs to be plush for maximum comfort. So adding in a shag rug is perfect for when people want (or need) to sit on the floor.
Cozy pillows soften a sofa: Cozy pillows and fall are like PB&J. They need each other. And especially with a leather sofa, they really soften and make it feel even more welcoming.
Creating zones makes a space bigger (and more usable): I learned this time and time again. When you are designing your room (space permitted) see if you can make 2-3 zones. For example, you can have a group lounge area, a reading nook, and a beautiful storage moment. This will make it so much easier to design and live in once you’ve made those decisions.
Leather Sectional | Green Pillow | Throw Blanket
I can be wary re leather sofas and at first, was nervous about using this sectional in the living room, but the leather on it is so buttery and soft with a lot of give. It is thick but doesn’t have that stiffness that so many have that feels cold and makes you bounce off of it. It’s really really soft and cushy.
Swivel Chair | Side Table | Mini Bowl | Pouf | Rug
Always a fan of swivel chairs and this one has such a pretty modern shape. We mixed so many textures in the room in the name of “curling up”.
Lamp | Art | DecorativeBowl | Console Table | Basket
We couldn’t believe how good that large-scale piece of art is, and the carved lines of the console are just perfection. Emily Bowser was specifically obsessed with that black chunky lamp and I, too have been trying to find a place for it. It looks like it could absolutely come from a gallery, what with its chunky brutalist design.
Head over to their site to see the video content of this all in action. It was such a fun shoot. I was only there for a day but the whole CB production team shot the entire house for their fall collection, room by room and it was all so beautiful. Here are some more of my favorite picks 🙂
1. Rivera Sofa | 2. Petra Black Oak Wood and Metal Shelf | 3. Pamplona Ebonized Ash Wood Dining Arm Chair | 4. Kota Square Textured Black Pine Side Table | 5. Frederique Cerused Natural Oak Wood Upholstered Dining Side Chair | 6. Bisou Accent Chair | 7. Estate Travertine and Metal Square Coffee Table | 8. Henning Leather Accent Chair | 9. Oro Natural Walnut Wood Tiered Side Table
1. Venezia Glass Taper Candle Holders | 2. Grace Arctic Ivory Organic Linen Blend 70″x55″ Throw Blanket | 3. Cirro White Ceramic Centerpiece Bowl | 4. Spiced Orange Mongolian Sheepskin Throw Pillow Cover | 5. Ophelia Natural Ceramic Centerpiece Bowl | 6. Black Tri-Footed Ceramic Centerpiece Bowl
1. Eino Ivory Ceramic Table Lamp | 2. Iiona Small Black Chandelier Light | 3. Ellery Tripod Table Lamp | 4. Corfu Black Table Lamp With Woven Natural Shade | 5. Larsen Sandstone Table Lamp | 6. Ellery 3-Light Floor Lamp
1. Agen Wool Grid Light Grey Area Rug | 2. Laval Viscose Solid Blue Area Rug | 3. Telluride Wool Ivory Area Rug
And my new fall headshot (sorry the sweater is old but here’s a link to a couple of sizes!). Head over to Crate & Barrel site and see the entire project there. xx
*Styled by Emily Henderson and Emily Bowser
** Photos by Steven McDonald
THIS POST WAS ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED HERE.
