Living Room & Dining Room
Interior: Dynamic dining room
Image: Virginia Macdonald | Styling: Tara Ballantyne
Living Room & Dining Room
Interior: Dynamic dining room
Disparate treasures acquired over time form a harmonious whole in Style at Home editor-in-chief Erin McLaughlin’s dramatic, dynamic dining room.
The light fixture
One of the few brand new pieces in the room, the light fixture works with the custom wool and silk rug to add brightness and sparkle to the dark-painted space.
Back satin glass accents
Erin has long had a penchant for the lustrous finish of black satin glass, and her collection has finally found a perfect home here.
The seating
Picking up on the brighter notes in the room, dining chairs that Erin bought from a magazine shoot add an eclectic touch and freshen the traditional lines of the dining set.
The shelving
New pieces in sleek dark hues sit on contemporary cantilevered shelves as bold complementary accents to the aged textures that appear here.
The settee
The jumping off point for the colour palette of the room was this glorious Lee Jofa fabric that Erin instantly fell in love with. The print takes pride of place on a cherished antique settee gifted from a friend; Erin had the piece rebuilt by Whittington Furniture. Painting the walls in a dark charcoal shade ("Knight’s Armor” 518-6 from PPG Pittsburgh Paints) picked up from the tones in the fabric gives the room a dramatic air.
The backdrop
This original plastered ceiling was a selling point of the house for Erin. Its majestic appearance provides a fitting counterpoint to the sophisticated grandeur of the dining room’s moody colour scheme.
Treasured mementoes
Ornate silver candlesticks inherited from her late mother are Erin’s cherished possessions. Their formal silhouette works well with her eclectic manor-house-meets-modern-boho aesthetic.
Attention to detail
The doors of the armoire may have seen better days, but Erin adores the shade of their original blueberry colour.
Original artwork
What’s a room in Erin’s house without something equestrian-related? In the elegant dining room, this stunning Rob Fiocca photograph of a horse in Iceland fits the bill.
Beloved collections
Inexpensive vintage mirrors were brought home from an English antiques market in Erin’s carry-on luggage eight years ago, and have been waiting patiently ever since to be put on display in a room like this.
Painted armoire
Erin was determined to find a place for her large blueberry-painted antique armoire from Quebec, one of the first pieces she ever bought herself. In a happy twist of fate, it looks as if it was custom made for this space.
Classic dining set
Although Erin loves contemporary decor, in her formal dining room a more classic, traditional style organically emerged, thanks in part to the dining room set she was given by her stepmother, who was downsizing to a smaller home. Erin put her own stamp on the set by re-covering the chairs in a tailored Designers Guild stripe.
Paint colour: Knight’s Armor” 518-6 from PPG Pittsburgh Paints
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