Sep 12, 20215 min read

Shop The Room: A New Traditional Dining Room

We get a lot of questions about the sources for the furnishings we specify for our projects. I wrote a long post about it HERE discussing the reasons why we cannot always share these sources on social media. But because we believe in being generous and a resource to our community, we always think of ways to inspire our following to decorate their homes, even if they go the DIY route.

One of the reasons we cannot always share the source is the obligation we have to our clients who have paid us for the specific design, knowledge, sources and execution.

But what if we shared rooms that we did not design specifically for a client?

We have decided to start a series here on the Lux Living Blog that we are calling "Shop The Room". This series will highlight rooms that we have designed but not for a client, but specifically for the blog. These rooms will be rendered in photorealistic 3D and will include some of our favorite products that you have access to.

If you've been following us for the last few months here on the blog, you will know that we newly revamped our online shop to include more curated products from some of our affiliate vendors and brands including Etsy and Amazon. Our affiliate brands and vendors will handle all the processing and fulfillment of most orders you place through our website.

We also have a handful of "Designer Picks" that we will handle the processing and fulfillment, as well as our Custom Drapery Shop, Our Paint Color Palettes, Our Veronica Solomon Style upholstered occasional pieces, and soon to arrive, our licensed collection that we will be announcing soon.

The Shop The Room series will feature beautiful aspirational rooms that are just like we would design for a client, that we know you will love.

Our first room in the series is this "New Traditional" dining room that I absolutely love!

Truth be told, this room was actually designed for a client, and though they loved it, we together eventually decided to go a different route.

It was too good a room to waste, so I would love to inspire someone else to create a version of this space in their home.

Here is the concept board and floor plan for this new traditional living room

Before we get to the sources for this room, let's explain what "New Traditional" is, in case you are not familiar with that term. It is basically a blend of the old, more traditional style and the new, more modern style.

Traditional furniture has a lot of history and wonderful for giving a room a more storied and authentic feel, but going all in can be heavy, dark and dated. Modern can be fresh and clean, but too much of it can feel colorless and lifeless. The New Traditional blend is a perfect marriage of both styles for a more eclectic mix. New traditional opens up more options for furnishings.

I recommend starting with some staple pieces in the traditional style to ground the room, and then layer in more modern or transitional pieces.

In this gorgeous room rendering, the Chinoiserie wallpaper is the star, and the main element that says tradition and history.

If you are not familiar with the term Chinoiserie - it is a style in art and furniture that reflects Chinese influences through use of elaborate decoration and intricate patterns. I curated an entire Chinoiserie shop in my Amazon shop. If you love Chinoiserie as much as I do, check it out HERE

The gorgeous wallpaper is from a trade source but I was able to find a similar one through Decorators Best HERE

This one is a bit more aqua than the one we used, but the color palette is very similar. It does come in a few more colors as well.

Madame De Pompadour Wallpaper In Blush | Alabaster | Aqua

You can check out my curated collection of wallpaper from my favorite Etsy shop HERE for more options.

The rug is the next big thing in the space. The first one found HERE is the one that we have in the rendering, but it may be a bit off with the new wallpaper we found. Below is a second option to consider.

The rugs as well are leaning to the traditional style, but a more updated take.

The blue dining chairs found HERE are pretty distinct and add so much to the room.

They are also leaning to traditional with the empire style, but a modern interpretation. I love adding different chairs on the ends to mix things up a bit so everything is not so matchy-matchy. I love to use skirted chairs to add some softness, as dining rooms can get pretty leggy between all the chairs and table.

These are some of the actual or alternate pieces for the room. Links can be found further down the page.

Here's a better view of the dining table. Again, a modern interpretation of a traditional piece. The almost black wood finish with the gold details feel fresh and updated.

Here is a closer look at the sideboard. I love the detail of the pattern on the front. I love mixing wood finishes in a room for a more collected feel.

Here is a curated collection of some of the pieces in the room and alternates to consider. You can purchase right from the links. Scroll to see all the items in this collection.

The chandelier and mirror for the room can go either way - modern or traditional. In the rendering we have a traditional crystal and gold chandelier and a sunburst mirror.

The draperies are a very important component, and necessary to pull off the look of this room. Here we chose white silk with a trim detail on the leading edges.

You could also do white linen instead of silk if you prefer.

You can check out our Custom Drapery Panels shop HERE or our Etsy curated collections HERE for some great custom options.

Of course you want to add some table top accessories like candleholders or even place settings, and a few pieces on the sideboard.

The gourd style lamps lean to the modern feel. They are clean and sculptural, which adds some interest. I love the blush tone of the ones in the rendering, but white or a deeper coral tone can work just as well. I love this one below from Shades Of Light

I would suggest keeping the wall decor to a minimum since the wallpaper is already such a bold element in the room.

I love these flocking birds wall pieces. You can find them HERE. They complement the birds already found in the wallpaper. They are also available in gold.

The fiddle leaf fig tree found HERE is also a pretty necessary element in the room. It has the function of adding height to the space, and every room could benefit from some greenery - even if it is faux. If you do go with faux, please ensure that it looks as natural as possible. You can find real ones HERE