A “Useless” Dining Room Got Color-Drenched and Now Is the Coziest Family Room
Before Alice Kuaban created this multifunctional room in her home, it was a “useless” dining room that barely fit her multigenerational family for dinners (let alone other guests from out of town when they hosted holiday meals).
“When we sat down for just a family dinner (me, my three kiddos, husband, mother, and father-in-law), there just wasn’t room for all of us to sit comfortably,” Alice shares.
Alice is the founder of Oddessence, a blog where she showcases her home transformations through organization, design, and decor. When the formal dining room she set up didn’t work for her family, she quickly realized what the room’s purpose should be to benefit her home and her kids.
From Unused Dining Room to Multifunctional Space
“I was trying to create what the English would call a ‘snug,’” Alice says. Her goal was to create a space where her kids “could have their tea parties, read their books, and do homework.” And where she could entertain guests, take Zoom calls, or lounge and read.
With the functionality of the room decided, Alice laid out the room in CAD and rendered it, as she does with every design project. “I am a visual person and like to make sure I see what the final product might look like before investing in pieces,” Alice explains.
When determining the design, she first decided on a color scheme that was kid-friendly but still colorful and sophisticated.
That meant color-drenching the room in Sherwin-Williams’ Iron Ore, swapping out the builder-grade light switches for brass Forbes & Lomax toggle switches, and adding a “deep chocolate brown Arvin Olano rug from Rugs USA.”
IKEA’s JATTEBO Sofa and Personal Antiques Added Practicality
But just because Alice wanted her style of rich colors and curated antiques to continue in this space, it didn’t mean that storage and toys weren’t included. After all, this was a room for her family.
So when Alice wanted a large sofa and a place to store the kids’ toys in her design, IKEA’s JÄTTEBO sectional was the ideal solution to both. “[It] isn’t very obvious, but it is the most functional part of this room,” Alice comments.
The sofa has modular seating, creating tons of storage space under the cushions. “When the kids have retired and or when we need to clean up the space, the toys can be thrown into the sofa storage,” Alice explains. “It looks like no kids used the space at all.”
Another trick she uses to combine antiques with practicality is by finding solid wood chairs with a flat seat and using them as side tables by placing a lamp on them. Plus, it adds just-in-case seating for guests.
“It’s a trick I use when I’m working with a small footprint,” Alice shares.
Smart Design Choices Still Gave That Antique Feel
The two IKEA SVANSELE gold mirrors Alice added were a bit tricky to hang. “My husband needed to make sure we had enough support on the wall to hold the mirrors and to make them level,” Alice explains. But they made the room look larger and feel more open, while fitting in with her stylish, antique aesthetic — making it well worth the hassle.
For the gallery wall, she wanted to add picture rails to the room, but they were out of her price range. Instead, she got creative and used Zoroufy wall hangers and chains from another vendor.
“They worked like magic,” Alice says. She loves that she didn’t have to put an excessive amount of nails in her walls for a gallery and can swap out the art easily whenever she wants.
When everything was complete, Alice added her kids’ books and some of her own to the space — once again combining practicality with style.
“I love this room. My kids love the room. We especially love it in the evenings when the warm lights are on, and we are playing tea party time or just lounging, doing nothing important,” Alice describes. It’s become a cozy room that makes them “feel happy together as a family.”
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