Room of the Day: Wrapped in Blues and Silvery Hues

Interior designer Joanna Chiappone loves the quiet sophistication a monochromatic color scheme can bring to a room. It allowed her to honor this traditional Rhode Island house’s classic architecture while freshening it up with metallic finishes, striking artwork and dramatic fabrics. While the room looks elegant, it’s far from a no-kids-allowed zone. The family of five who lives here wanted to be sure that everyone could enjoy the formal living room in informal ways.

The room’s chic transitional style — a mix of traditional and contemporary lines — is comfortable for the whole family. While the room is full of elegant finishes, the fabrics are durable and the furniture is cushy. Chiappone painted the walls a serene blue (Borrowed Light from Farrow & Ball) and grounded the room with a geometric rug in a similar hue. “I chose a geometric pattern because I knew the large upholstered pieces were going to be solid,” says Chiappone, of Digs Design Company. Hand-blocked drapery fabric extends from the floor almost all the way up to the ceiling.

Drapery fabric: Galbraith & Paul; sconces: Visual Comfort


The fireplace is a traditional focal point that Chiappone topped with stunning floral photographs by Debby Krim. The more modern artwork sets the updated tone in the room. A vintage faux bamboo chandelier adds a touch of chinoiserie.

Sofa, chairs: Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams


“Painting something black is a good trick,” Chiappone says. “It’s almost like painting something white — it can make it just disappear.” The black fireplace focuses the attention on the mantel’s millwork and the dramatic photographs.

Two alcoves flank the fireplace. Because they were too small for window seats, she filled each with a console table and matching mercury glass table lamps. The one on this side has an open Asian-style table. To throw off the symmetry a bit, she filled in the space beneath the other console table with a patterned table skirt (next photo).

Using solids on the big pieces, like the sofa and chairs, meant she could play with dramatic patterns elsewhere. Mod throw pillows give the sofa some moxie, embroidered ottomans mix things up in front of the fireplace, and the table skirt adds some drama to the corner.





“We fought just a little bit over the TV, but the owners had to have one in here,” Chiappone says. They reached a compromise by allowing her to trim it out with an elegant Greek key–patterned frame. The TV means they’ll spend more time in here enjoying the room; the frame keeps things refined.

Rather than filling the room with a wide range of hues, Chiappone concentrated on textures, using silvery finishes to make the decor cohesive and creating a luxe palette with woven, embroidered, hand-blocked and velvet textiles. This bench adds a modern print that picks up on the silvery metallics, and it seems to float on Lucite legs.

More: Duck-Egg Blue: The Friendliest Color Around

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