I am so excited to be sharing our summer dining room with you all today! Since summer is in full swing I have joined a group of talented bloggers to share how we refreshed our homes for the summer months. The links are shared at the bottom of this post, be sure to check out all of the beautiful summer rooms and projects!
For this room refresh, I decorated our summer table with a lot of natural elements and my signature palette of black and white. Hey, black and white are definitely colours! The heavy doses of white feel light and airy and help our relatively small home feel much larger than it really is. The touches of black ground the space and add drama. The small hits of gold and the natural wood and bamboo elements keep things from feeling too cold or sterile. I added quite a bit of greenery, which really makes the space feel fresh for summer!
For this summer refresh, I only used items I already had on hand. The table runner is a simple canvas drop cloth. This is a really affordable way to add big impact! Having the runner fall to the floor adds elegance and a touch of drama.
The two main centerpieces are just candlesticks that I have had forever (okay, not forever, but they were a wedding gift, so over ten years), that I spray painted white. I balanced white teacup saucers on top and added dollar store greenery on top of those. I secured each piece with foam tape. That’s it! They add so much impact, for such a small amount of work and very little money!
The rest of the table-setting is made up of mason and pasta jars, rocks and small white candles. When you are trying to decorate on a budget, always think about using multiples of items. Just one or two mason jars would have had very little impact. Add a dozen though, and you’ve made a statement.
The place settings were so simple to create. These are our everyday dishes, from Ikea. (I love these plates, but if you are considering purchasing, just keep in mind they chip very easily!) The cloth napkins I have had for a few years. I just love that little “bon appetit” peeking out from beneath the salad plate. I clipped the rosemary from our backyard garden and tied it together with simple jute twine.
The “love lives here” word art was a very simple DIY. It took all of maybe 20 minutes. My love for sharpie pens knows no bounds!
Our built-in cabinetry is probably the feature I love the most in our dining room. Styling the shelves is somewhat challenging, but with practice it’s becoming one of my favourite things!
I love the small and slightly sentimental details that come with old pieces. The center chair came with the house. The previous owners left it behind. She was just sitting there, in the basement, beside the washer, very old and slightly neglected. After a bit of love and attention, she is shining again! I love that it’s a small piece of the history of the house that gets to live on. It’s the little things. The small bentwood chair was handed down to me from my cousin, when I was a teen and I’ve carried it with me to every home since! The larger bentwood chair was one of my first thrift store finds just after my husband and I were married. I was 21, we were poor and I was hunting for two thrifted chairs to go with our hand-me-down table and the two other wood chairs we already owned. I remember thinking that $15 was a bit much for one chair, but I went for it, thinking it still had a long life ahead of it. I was right!
The farmhouse bench was found on a local online used site . I saw it pop up for $40 and didn’t hesitate to buy it! Our table is from Ikea, but we purchased it from a local used site at a fraction of the resale price.
The greenery you see in the white vase on our kitchen island were clipped from the small tree in our front yard. Some of the best decor is straight from the outdoors!
Our main living areas are very open concept. When we bought our house, we made tearing down the walls that separated the kitchen from the dining and living room a priority. I really love open concept living, but it also means that our home can very quickly feel cluttered and messy! Keeping our colour palette very neutral keeps things feeling calm, even when a bit of mess builds up.
I have always wanted a window seat and now we have one! Do you want to know a little decorating secret? That little pillow you see there is just wrapped with a tea towel. I didn’t even bother pinning it in place. Sometimes you just want a quick fix!
Seeing all of that black and white, along with the pops of summer green just makes me so happy!
Sources
- Wall and Cabinetry Colour – Chantilly Lace by Benjamin Moore
- Closet Door Colour – Onyx by Benjamin Moore
- Floral Wallpaper – Norwall – discontinued, similar, similar
- Chandelier – Home Depot about 2 years ago, same
- Cabinetry Hardware – knobs, pulls, similar,
- Table Runner – similar
- Blinds – same, similar
- Table – same, similar, cute and budget friendly
- Bench – thrifted, similar
- Chairs – pre-owned, classic windsor, love these ones, modern farmhouse option
- Dinnerware – same, cute and affordable, ornate option
- Topiary Centerpieces – DIY, similar, candlestick holders, topiary
- Sofa – Ikea
- Metal and Wood Side Table – Thrifted, similar
- Piano Lamps – Homesense about 5 years ago, with DIY ribbon trim, similar, similar
- Faux Antelope – Homesense, spray painted black, similar, similar
Thank you so much for stopping by! Please feel free to leave a comment below! Don’t forget to visit the other talented ladies who will be sharing their summer home refreshes today, tomorrow and Sunday on their blogs. The links are provided below. I’m sure you will find so much inspiration for your own home!
Be sure to check us out on Instagram as well, with the hashtag #summerhomerefresh. You can find me there under @prairiegirlhome.
Summer Home Refresh
Friday
Honey N Hydrangea
Bees N Burlap
Simple Cozy Charm
Hip Hip Home
Belle Amour Designs
Hood Creek Log Cabin
Prairie Girl Home
Saturday
The Creative Nook
The Home I Create
A House With Books
1111 Light Lane
Joyfully Rooted
Bright Yellow Door
Sunday
Gratefully Vintage
Farmhouse For Five
Love Your Abode
My Sunset Avenue
One Horse Lane
Little Home Reloved
*Please note, some affiliate links are used. This means that when you purchase an item through one of these affiliate links, you receive the same great price and Prairie Girl Home receives a small commission. All opinions expressed are entirely my own. Thank you for your support!
Hi Kari! I love your dining room, and the contrast between the black and the white. The built in shelves may be my favorite feature too! And you are right, sometimes the best decor is straight from outdoors. I also love the fact that you were able to redecorate with items you already owned!
Thank you Vin! Black and white are just my absolute favourites!!!! So happy the built-ins were here when we bought the house. I will have to blog about the before and after transformation, they don’t look at all like how they looked originally! Thanks for the sweet comments!!!
I love your dining room even more. That runner is perfection going all the way to floor!! I am so going to copy that at some point, hope that’s ok!!! So happy to have done this with you!!
Thanks Jessica, and copy away! I probably stole the idea from someone else, can’t remember who, but isn’t that the way it goes with decorating! So happy we got to do this refresh together, it’s been great! Thanks!!!
Kari, it is all gorgeous!! I love the teacup plates on the candlesticks! Beautifully done <3 So fun getting to you know you!
Thank you so much Martha! I love using what I already have in new way! I guess it’s part creative/part cheapskate, lol! So glad we got a chance to do this blog hop together!
Oh Kari, everything about this is gorgeous! I just love the way you refreshed your dining room for summer. Your use of blacks, whites, and greenery is perfection. So happy to have met you through this fun blog hop!
Thank you so much Stephanie! You’re so sweet! I adore your style as well, and am so glad we got a chance to meet!
Kari, your home is so sweet and cozy. I love the changes that you made. I would love to hear more about your built-ins.
Ps. Love the drop cloth runner. I love seeing other uses for them.
Thank you Emy! I plan to do a post about the built-in makeover we did! I am loving the drop cloth idea for curtains and a bedskirt and pillows – the look of linen at a fraction of the price!!! Thanks for commenting!
I love this gorgeous tablescape, Kari! You did a beautiful job!
Thank you so much Keila!!
Kari, your home exudes warmth and coziness. I love how you decorated with shades of white and it’s so bright and fresh! Your tablescape looks so lovely too! Great job!
Thanks Yuni! I used to think white was boring and now I think white is the perfect backdrop to all décor! Thanks so much for your kind words and for commenting!
Kari,
I love everything and those bookshelves are amazing – you did an incredible job styling them!! Love all the black and white – one of my most fav classic combos! Beautiful home and post! xo, Beth
Ah, black and white will have my heart forever! Thanks so much for the sweet words!!!!
Such a beautiful refresh! Loved it girlie!
Thank you Tiffany!! Your words mean a lot to me!
Kari, what an amazingly gorgeous space you have! Love how you styled your bookshelves!
Thank you Linda! Styling can be so tricky, it’s a learning curve for me, for sure! Thanks for the kind words!
Kari, your refresh for summer is gorgeous! I am so happy to have done this blog hop with you & to discover your gorgeous blog!! I can’t wait to see more!!!
Me too! Thank you so much for your sweet and kind words! I so appreciate them!
This is just so beautiful! I love the idea of balancing the saucers on the candle sticks. And the runner draping to the floor is so pretty! Wonderful job!
Thanks Dara! I liked the drama the runner added! Thanks for the sweet comments!
Kari, your home is gorgeous! I love how you used the canvas to make table runner, brilliant!
Thank you Ty for your kind words! Drop cloth is so affordable, I can’t wait to use it as drapes, that’s my next plan for them!