Classic-Modern Elegance: Design Inspiration for the Curbly House

Earlier this week we told you all about our new Curbly House makeover. A house we’re so excited to take on, get to know, make beautiful, and then put on the market again (furnished and polished and perfect). 

More than just a flip

While this project is, by definition, a flip, I view it as a lot more than that. When we’re finished with it, I want it to have a cohesive design and a story. I don’t want it to feel cookie-cutter, or like blank slate. Plus, this house is going to be special, because we’re going to list it for sale fully designed and furnished! That means whoever buys it will get to keep all the great furnishings and decor we put into it (if they want to).

I want a family to walk through this home, once it’s finished, and see themselves in it (and the ways they’ll make their own mark on it). So, maybe it’s more like matchmaking than flipping. And I can be the Patty Stanger of the house design world! (Hey, HGTV, call me!) 

A new design direction (with a hint of the old)

I’m over the moon about this house, because design-wise, it’s going to push us in a very different direction. A lot of the design I’ve done on Curbly leans toward Mid-Century Modern or modern design, probably because it’s what Bruno and I like! For this one, I’m excited to incorporate a more traditional aesthetic, while remaining true to the clean lines and classic looks that I love.

Here’s a look at a few inspiration boards I’ve created to help guide the design process. We’re going to need lots of input from all of you when it comes to paint colors and finishes, palettes and furniture mixing and matching. So, think of these as loose inspirations guiding us as we go.

First, let’s start with a floor plan so you can get oriented:

The Living Room 

We’re planning to make the house feel a whole lot more open by removing only a few walls downstairs. This needs to happen because the kitchen is currently the size of a modest pantry and the dining room is cavernous. By opening up these spaces, the living room, dining room, and kitchen will feel like a unified space.

 

The Dining Room

The best way I can describe the second floor of this house is “castle-y”. Does that convey a message? It has a narrow landing (we’re looking into opening it up) and four bedrooms, each with some sloped ceilings and architectural window bump-outs. These details are sweet and visually interesting, and we want to embrace the architecture of the rooms with paint accents and impactful lighting. The intention is still to keep the color palette muted, but I can see some soft blues, greens, creams, and pinks gracing these walls.

Second Story Floor Plan

 

Bedroom Inspiration

So that’s look at where we’re headed and the vibe we’re going for with this sweet house. Let me know what you think in the comments, and I’d love to hear about the kinds of paint colors you see for these rooms.

Here’s a peek at what I’m feeling: