Empty Living Room Challenge

Donna's client Christy has a lovely new home, but she and her husband, who travels a lot on business, have not had time to do anything with the formal living room. In the meantime, the room, by default, has turned into the kids' playroom, and is currently occupied by a large bounce house. Christy calls on Donna to help her transform the room into a sophisticated and elegant room the whole family can enjoy, and which will also be suitable for entertaining guests. The room has very high ceilings, and intricately carved moldings and woodwork surround the tall windows as well as the fireplace and large overmantel. Everything is painted white, so the room presents a monochrome effect that doesn't do justice to the impressive detail work. The room is also completely devoid of furniture, so Donna is working with a completely blank slate. Bookcases occupy both sides of the fireplace, and are topped by tall niches that rise all the way to the ceiling. Donna feels the high ceilings and the monochrome palette make the room feel open and cold. To counteract that effect, she puts large, elegant chandeliers in the niches on either side of the fireplace, and installs heavy, scrolled wrought iron doors on the bookcases. This, along with a rich amber paint scheme makes the area surrounding the fireplace much warmer and more elegant. To bring out the fine detail in the woodwork on the window wall and the fireplace, Donna's faux paint artist applies a tan and metallic gold glazing that highlights the intricate woodwork and gives the room a warm and elegant feel. On the fireplace over mantel that once housed a large mirror, Donna installs two elegant pieces of custom wall art that perfectly fit the bifurcated space.Donna frames the previously uncovered windows with an elegant cornice and luxurious fringed curtains that contribute greatly to the warmer feeling Donna and Christy were going for. Donna furnishes the room with a large, luxurious faux ratchet sofa and a matching swivel chair, both covered in fabric that is plush, yet durable enough to hold up well under daily use by the family. Other clients, Gene and Shelley Tyler, want to redo their daughter Mallory's bedroom, making it more elegant and distinctive. Donna and Ashley begin by embellishing three plain crystal chandeliers with colorful beads, crystals, necklaces and earrings, then hanging all three in the room. They also install brightly colored red, purple and turquoise draperies on the windows. However, the draperies that are delivered are too short to fit, so Ashley and Donna improvise by constructing a cornice board using a scrolled wrought iron piece, covered on one side by colorful fabric. The final touch in the room is a unique headboard for the bed featuring tufted fabric, scrolled iron work, and a multi-colored, remote-controlled night light installed in the curved frame of the headboard itself.