Designer Janie Molster brings the drama to this classic Virginia space.
A 1700s Virginia home leaps into the present with a gutsy update that respects the past but feels decidedly right for today.
Organic patterns and earth tones mingle in the family room, where the ikat-covered love seat is by Lee Industries. A Seabrook grass cloth envelops the walls all the way up the pitched ceiling. The room’s trim is painted in Benjamin Moore Ozark Shadows.
In the dining room, Molster amped up the drama with floor-to-ceiling curtains in a charcoal linen velvet by Trend. A chandelier by Design Legacy hangs above an antique English table. The artworks are portraits by William and Mary de Leftwich Dodge, distant relatives of the owner’s.
In a corner of the dining room, a grouping of women’s portraits hangs over a Biedermeier settee. The sideboard is an English family antique. Wall paint, Benjamin Moore French Canvas. Rug, Fibreworks.
In the living room, 11-foot-tall curtains in a shimmering pumpkin silk taffeta offset the patina of the wainscoting. A contemporary painting of three nudes by Anne Darby Parker is mixed into a gallery wall hung with historic oil paintings. Wall paint, Benjamin Moore Collingwood. The Lee Industries sofa under the gallery wall is topped with House of Cindy pillows. Nesting coffee tables, Uttermost.
“Saturated colors balance the strength of the architecture,” says Molster, who opted for Benjamin Moore Mill Springs Blue in the study. Lamps by Uttermost and a Jonathan Adler chandelier add a modern touch. Rug, Stanton.
The narrow back stairwell is thought to have been pulled from another house that predates the construction of this one.
In the master bedroom, landscape paintings surround the custom headboard. Duvet and shams, RH, Restoration Hardware.
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This story was originally published in the April 2018 issue of House Beautiful.
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