Gathering Place: A Historic Dining Room
Merging the modern with the traditional is one of our favorite things here at CFD —and bringing new life to this historic Chapel Hill home with a full renovation served up all the best design elements in one. Here in the South, a real dining room still reigns supreme- it’s a gathering place for families, friends, a place where holidays are enjoyed, and a connection-centered space where so many memories are made. Revitalizing this architecturally rich room and transforming it into a functional, beautiful, and family-friendly space, while preserving all of the original historic charm, made the experience all the more meaningful to these clients.
A look-through that we love so much: the original front door now in a gorgeous blue hue (we can’t get enough!) and, a peek through the entryway into the restored dining room.
A Joyful Homecoming
CFD Lead designer Rebecca Scott was the point person on this stunning full-home historic restoration. If you’ve been following along, we talked a little bit about these clients and their unique story in our post about the Living Room design, which you can find here. After getting their start at UNC and then living and working abroad, this family came full circle with a joyful homecoming to their much-loved college town. This sweet 1920’s cottage, located just across from the heart of campus, spoke to them —the history and connection to the town that was such an important part of their life together. When they came to us requesting to restore every inch of the house, while keeping all the incredible original charm, we couldn’t say yes fast enough.
That Dining Room Flex
If you’ve met Rebecca, you’ll know that she is a master at bringing light and joy into everything she touches (seriously, it’s amazing). You can’t be around her without smiling, and her design touch creates original spaces that also feel full of levity and contentment. The magic of bringing spaces to life that FEEL just as wonderful as they look is a design superpower that Rebecca delivers with ease. She connected deeply with this family and created a space that embodies all the classic elements and charm of a traditional formal dining room in a historic home, blending plush fabrics, elegant layered patterns, and a lightness that makes it a relaxing and beautiful place to gather at any time. Stunning and formal, while incredibly relaxing and comfortable at the same time? That’s the ultimate dining room flex, and we are here for it. Whether it’s a casual family game night on Friday evening or a traditional Sunday brunch with friends, this dining room is incredibly versatile and perfectly suited for it all.
With so much love for this show-stopping original molding, Lead Designer Rebecca chose the color palette strategically to highlight this detail throughout the house, while keeping the color scheme calm and relaxing and allowing the layered patterns to shine.
Restored with Love
When our clients purchased this house, many of the furnishings from prior years remained. Over the last century, it had undergone several iterations and changes in ownership, and the house contained items spanning many different decades. It was important to the family to retain pieces of the home’s history from years past, and one of our most interesting creative ventures during this project was to fully restore these pieces and then weave them seamlessly into a completely fresh, new design. This dining room table was just such an item —a true ’80s gem in need of a lot of love. After a full refinishing, we placed it here as the perfect vintage centerpiece to anchor the room.
A true blend of Modern and Historic, this room includes a vintage dining room table and a historic corner china cabinet, both lovingly restored and woven into the design story alongside fresh, bright textures and patterns.
A Storied Home
Returning to Chapel Hill was a huge life transition for these clients. After many years of living abroad, it was both coming home and starting over, all at once. It was crucial for us to honor their story throughout this design and to find every opportunity to weave together their lived experiences with a brand-new house. When our clients walk into a space we have designed, it feels complete, comfortable, and uniquely personal to them. They often describe it as a mix of total delight and also the world’s deepest exhale, as though everything is finally, and fully, just as it should be. They can see themselves reflected in every detail, created and curated to make a beautiful home that’s truly just for them.
The gorgeous corner china cabinet was another original piece in the house. After an extensive restoration, it was the final historic piece that completed this beautiful dining room. We filled it with china pieces that the family had collected during their years abroad- a nod to their story, their memories, and the threads of their life together, placed with purpose as part of their new space.
We’re so glad you came over to hang out with us on the CFD blog today. We’ll be showing you more of this historic cottage renovation soon (there is so much more to see!). Until then, if you’re looking for more CFD design work, take a tour around our Portfolio page. Curious about our process? Check out more about our full-home design process here. Curious about our team? Check out our decades of design experience and how we make your home one-of-a-kind here.
Have questions about designing your own dream space? We’d love to help. Start here at our contact page. Or, feel free to just give us a holler at hello@catfrenchdesign.com.
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