Mid-Century Modern Detroit

Mid-Century Modern Detroit

Consultation Notes Jake and Erin live in Detroit, MI in a beautiful mid-century modern house. Erin is a mortgage banker and Jake works in investments. They recently got married and live with their dog.

Both Jake and Erin are active in their community and like to entertain. They’d like their home to be a place that they can be proud of and show off, but also low maintenance and a place where they can relax, watch television, etc.

Jake and Erin are mostly drawn to colors found in nature, but love the Aztec color scheme of their Pendleton blanket (light blue, orange, white, etc). They love meaningful, playful, and modern art. They’d like to incorporate some art that they can invest in (within reason) and would prefer to have a few larger pieces than many smaller ones. Even though they need to add/invest in pieces For their home, they still want it to feel open and clean. They are inspired by the colors and style of Wes Anderson movies (especially Grand Budapest Hotel), Banff Hotel, etc. and want their home to be comfortable, engaging, and modern.

The rooms we are focusing on: living room, dining room, sunroom, and entryway. The living room needs to be warmed up, add additional seating, and some space planning. We’d also like to provide a more integrated approach to entertainment storage through a focal wall element with the fireplace. The dining room needs to feel more “complete” with additional styling and storage.

In the sunroom, we primarily need to focus on an inventive floor plan and concept that will provide options for both a seating/dining experience when entertaining. The entryway needs to just be warmed up, styled, and add a focal point.

We will take our clients’ needs and knowledge of design to put together a plan that is inspiring, modern, and functional.

Living Room

We want to maximize the living room space for additional seating and function. First, move the sectional back a bit in the space and move the center ottoman to the end of the shorter end of the sofa. This will expand the lines & open up more space on the side by the dining room.

On the side by the dining room, add a pair of oversized leather chairs (in a color or natural cognac). This will introduce a new material for blending/mixing and provide additional seating. With the ottoman moved, too, it balances nicely in the space and provides room for a coffee table.

The coffee table should be round to offset the cube shapes of the rest of the space. It will provide balance and necessity to the room. Using glass or lucite would allow you to further see the beautiful rug underneath and help the room feel less “heavy� but we understand that it might not be as functional (will need to be cleaned more often).

Additionally, you should add some type vertical, mid century casegood for storage/serving/etc. between the entry to the space and the dining room. This will also fill the vertical space on that empty wall without filling it up with art (and will keep the sight line clean with the art we recommend for the dining room in the next section).

A large rug should be added to the space. (9x9, 9x10, or 9x12, 10x12 would work, depending on price, the larger the better). We recommend that it have some high ply or shag to add cushion and comfort. Vintage rugs have more colors/depth to them, but its harder to find the needed sizes. The rug is a great place to add some color texture to this space, but if you want to go with something more neutral (like the white one), make sure to balance come color with accents/throws.

Additional accessories outside of plants/books should be minimal. A couple of throw pillows, a piece of art for above the fireplace, and a large plant to the right of the fireplace will complete the space nicely.

Using shades of blue & green will connect the living space seamlessly to the sunroom, dining room, and view of the pool. Depending on need/ function, an arc lamp could be added from behind the sectional to light up the seating area more intently, but that is dependent on how you utilize the space.

For the fireplace wall, we recommend having a custom wood built-in unit designed to make it more of a focal element (likely walnut, but could be designed to match the freestanding tall casegood between the entrance and dining room). Adding the wood will war m up the space, make the storage look more intentional and well-designed, and would be a nod to mid-century design.

The built-in system would also be functional and would house your electronics/ provide storage for books or additional needs.

Dining Room

In the dining room, we recommend that instead of removing the credenza, build a feature wall with tile & shelving from floor to ceiling. It’s the perfect place for serving/styling and will really add a focal point to the room. Also, by adding shelving here instead of the wall shared with the kitchen, you give yourself more room to move around AND maximize the height of the space well. The tile can be anywhere in the gray/black/blue family (or a mix), but our favorite is the muted blue geometric style pictured on the right. It adds a colorful element to the space without feeling like too much and will blend well with your existing dining set. If you use an off-white or light beige grout, it will blend in seamlessly with the credenza.

On the wall behind the dining set (shared wall to kitchen), add a large scale piece of art (something fun and colorful or something black and white, vertical, and of substantial size) and either two wall sconces (one on either side of the art piece) or one oversized swing arm that angles into the space. Â We think you need the large piece of art as a visual when looking in from the living room (and to balance the focal wall), and the sconces will add some task/mood lighting. We do not recommend a chandelier due to the slope of the ceiling/beams, so this is a way to achieve that function & look without adding one.

A rug should also be added to the space to provide additional texture & anchor the dining set in the room. The actual color or pattern should be dependent on what you choose for the focal wall tile, but its important that it have some type of pattern or texture (to add some depth to the floor) and that it be thin/easy to clean (as its in a dining space).

We recommend considering Flor brand tiles to create a rug as they have many options, are low pile, and easy to care for. You can also make the exact size you need (as opposed to using a standard size rug). A standard rug would also work, but again the color/pattern will be dependent on the focal wall.

Your existing table and chairs can remain in the same place, but moved ever so slightly as necessary to be centered with the art.

Note: Additional open shelves in wood or glass can be added to focal wall for additional storage. Art is just representative of scale/your style. Scale is most important and actual pieces can be helped to source/commissioned.

Sunroom

In the sunroom, we’d like to create a comfortable lounge space/oasis. This would be a place to read, curl up, etc. and also a place for additional seating & entertaining. We’ve come up with a few different concepts & layouts that would work in the space. The first being the most straightforward/simple and the last being the most complex in terms of sourcing, but the best in terms of function & entertaining long-term. Regardless of the layout chosen, it’s important to keep in mind the sizes, shapes, and function as opposed the exact colors or examples shown.

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The second concept adds some curves with opposing moon-shaped sofas and a large ottoman (or modular ottoman) in the middle. This concept adds more visual interest/seating than first two options.

The first & second concepts include a series of circle ottomans or square ottomans placed evenly in the space.

This layout provides clean lines & functionality. If the round pieces can break away, you can even use them at a dining table as chairs.

The final concept is a one-color modular furniture concept that when broken up, could go around a custom wood, white dining table (kept in storage) for formal dining. This concept would provide the most in regards to maximizing entertaining, dining (seats 10-12), and extra seating potential. It would also be the most costly as it would be custom built to specs. Regardless of layout chosen, we think a green velvet color would make the most impact in the space (ignore the colors on the left as they are just examples of shapes/sizes).

The light fixtures should be replaced with something more clean and modern, like these pendant lights from West Elm. Both the clear and milk glass would look classic.

The terra cotta floor works just fine (perhaps consider removing the white borders to keep it more clean), but longterm consider adding a patterned black and white floor (see mood board for more examples). This would really add some visual interest to the space and make an impact, but is definitely a longterm consideration as what you have currently works with all recommendations.

Two hearty large plants should be added for life and the impression that you are in nature (since the sunroom is such a transitional space to the outdoors). We’d love to see an ornate set of urns or planters, but you could go with something a little more modern as well. Any colors used should play off of the colors in the living space to marry the two rooms nicely,

Entryway

The entry way should remain bright, clean, open, but we need to add some necessary function & possible drama. The biggest impact needed is a large, vintage rug right inside the door. It should fill the space between the closets at the stairs.

On the wall between the bedroom and the sitting room, consider adding an oversized light/wall sconce. This allows you to leave on some mood lighting for night time living/guests (as opposed to turning on the overheads). We do not recommend any type of art or storage to go on that wall as it will compete with the sightlines into both the bedroom and sitting room- making it a bit cluttered & over sensored. The closet has enough storage for guest items, so going without additional storage is okay.

Consider painting the main wall on your stairwell a satin black for a dramatic/ bold effect. The line would be clean as you have a natural line divider right up to your bedroom door. This would blend in well with the black railings. You could also consider a patterned wallpaper if you are feeling extra bold.

A large piece of light colored art (or a vertical diptych) can then be added to the main wall for a focal element on the way up the stairs. If you don’t paint the wall black, the art can have deeper & brighter colors. If you use a wallpaper, you could forego the art all together.

Your bench placement is functional, and the lines work, so no need to change. If you did want to change, though, consider adding something a little “roughed” up to bring in some depth/ visual interest to the space.

So, what’s next?

Whew! That was a lot of information. Now that you have seen the inspiration/recommendations, soak it all in.

Let us know if you have any questions. After processing the information, you have a couple of options. ü Call or e-mail to set up an appointment to discuss your likes/dislikes of the design and how we can move forward together with Hunt & Gather managing the project (we would discuss what items you would like to purchase yourself, what we should be hunting for, budget, and timeline). ü Start working on the room on your own (purchasing items, hunting for things, etc.) and only call us when you need clarification, recommendations, or final styling. Remember, the WHY is more important than the WHAT, so if you don’t like a pillow/lamp/etc. that we recommended, find something with similar lines or a similar purpose (or a cheaper price) and consider purchasing that instead! ü Nothing. This wasn’t what you were looking for, and you would like to discontinue working together.

Additional pricing for services would be given at the follow-up meeting that fit your specific needs. Hope you love the design concept! Can’t wait to hear from you!

THANK YOU Kelley Howley & Fernando Ramirez Hunt & Gather 740 Curve St. SW design@huntandgatherGR.com