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Take a Peek Inside the Stunning Home Makeover That Didn't Require a Single Renovation Project
Behold, the art of an instant gratification “renovation,” in which a design-loving executive puts her personal, inviting spin on a 1950s home—all without knocking down a single wall.
Debbie Propst brings her work home every day. And she wouldn’t have it any other way. As the then president of One Kings Lane, an online home furnishings retailer, and now president of design company MillerKnoll, she believes it’s impractical to think work and life shouldn’t, or won’t, overlap. “I know our team members are thinking about creative briefs in the shower,” says Debbie, who recently blurred the lines between the two worlds in an unprecedented, somewhat dramatic fashion: by offering up her New Canaan, Connecticut, home as One Kings Lane showhouse.
“I wanted to engage with our customers, vendors, and partners in a way that felt personal—to showcase what the company means to me and how I live with our products.” So in spring of 2017, Debbie, alongside husband Michael and kids Charlotte and Henry, opened her doors to design-curious visitors for a month and, in December, for a holiday house tour that drew a whopping 1,200 visitors during a two-day period.
While many people shy away from hosting family and friends until their home feels “complete,” Debbie, who has lived in eight houses, from a classic cottage in England to a “modern concrete box” in Barcelona to a 1930s Tudor in Ohio, and “a bunch of apartments mixed in between,” is undaunted by change—or by company. Her unconventional open-door policy, combined with her artful approach to layering, makes the home a true lesson in housewarming.
Exterior
Designed by famed American architect Royal Barry Wills, the home was transformed from a ranch house into a farmhouse by its previous owners. The topiaries now flanking the front door, a nod to the One Kings Lane logo, are a classic component of New England landscaping.
Get the Look:
Topiaries: For similar, Boxwood Topiary In Pot from Wayfair
RELATED: The No-Fail Formula for Stunning Porch Planters Experts Swear By
Entry
To allow the surrounding Connecticut countryside to take center stage, Debbie opted for a creamy neutral wallcovering. A welcoming Dutch door and a casual grouping of straw hats set a breezy, laid-back tone.
Get the Look:
Trim Paint Color: Hardwick White by Farrow & Ball
Wallpaper: L’Oasis by Ralph Lauren Home
RELATED: 40+ Entryway Ideas That’ll Give Your Guests the Warmest Welcome
Living Room
Debbie worked with One King’s Lane's in-house design service to achieve her casual, collected mix. “You can get a layered, lived-in look without working at it for a lifetime,” says Debbie. A blend of fabrics (velvets, linens), eras (modern armchair, antique dough bowl), and muted colors (blues, browns, corals) reinforces the effortlessly layered approach.
Get the Look:
Wall Paint Color: Joa’s White by Farrow & Ball
Trim Paint Color: Wimborne White by Farrow & Ball
Armchair: For similar, Wide armchair from Wayfair
Dough Bowl: For similar, Custom Antique dough bowls from Etsy
Kitchen: Before
The dark and heavy kitchen just needed a few coats of fresh paint in addition to some colorful and personal accesories.
Kitchen: After
While it appears to be the most dramatic of the home’s before-and-afters, the kitchen transformation was purely cosmetic—and mostly due to a milky matte paint that allowed the home’s original hand-forged hardware to pop. Robin’s-egg blue barstools and the original beechnut island reinforce the farmhouse aesthe
tic.
Get the Look:
Cabinetry Paint Color: Hushed Hue by Benjamin Moore
Barstools: Wayland Fan-Back barstool by O&G Studio
RELATED: 60 Farmhouse Kitchen Ideas To Give Your Kitchen Charming, Timeless Style
Storied Collections
English silver reminds Debbie of childhood and makes for pretty props for kitchen’s open shelving.
Get the Look:
Teapots: For similar, vintage English silver teapots from eBay
Butler’s Pantry
Grasscloth wallcovering and waterproof—and slip-resistant—slate flooring frame the hardworking butler’s pantry where Debbie keeps her both her extra glassware and dishes for entertaining lots of vases and containers for flowers. Pretty butcher-block tops the white-planked cabinetry.
Get the Look:
Ceiling Wallcovering: For similar, Faux Grasscloth Wallpaper from Home Depot
RELATED: Butcher-Block Countertops: Pros, Cons, and Everything Else You Should Know
Breakfast Room: Before
This bland, but versatile room was ready for an upgrade.
Breakfast Room: After
“I collect things that remind me of my English childhood,” says Debbie of the dressers flanking the breakfast room’s doorway. She offsets her more serious, storied antiques with modern silhouettes, as with the beveled mirrors. Similarly, a sleek pendant casts light above a traditional pedestal table.
Get the Look:
Mirrors: For similar, Hexagonal beveled wall mirrors from Houzz
Primary Bedroom
One of Michael’s decorative demands: swapping the bedroom’s original baby blue hue for something more sophisticated. “I picked the dark blue based on a paint swatch with fears I might regret it,” Debbie says, “but then I read the color was ‘inspired by the dramatic Scottish skies.’” Debbie, who is 100 percent Scottish, felt it was a sign. Natural shades don’t compete with the serene scenery.
Get the Look:
Wall and Ceiling Paint: Inchyra Blue by Farrow & Ball
RELATED: The Best Dark Blue Paint Colors for Any Room in the House
Primary Bathroom
“My approach to color depends on the surroundings,” Debbie says. “Now that I’m in a farmhouse nestled in woodlands, I choose muted gray-casted versions of colors as opposed to super-vibrant hues.” That definitely applied in the primary bath that is wrapped with large windows letting in the surround lush scenery. Here, a stately white claw-foot tub sits atop a subtle gray-and-white basketweave tile floor.
RELATED: 35+ Creative Claw-foot Tub Ideas for Every Bathroom
Henry’s Room
“I love Mongolian rugs with rich colors, so I wanted a wall color that would make the reds and purples pop,” says Debbie, who selected a dark navy for the task at hand. A star light fixture adds playful decorative “pow,” as does an armchair upholstered in a quirky fabric.
Get the Look:
Wall Paint Color: Stiffkey Blue by Farrow & Ball
Charlotte’s Room
Of her approach to kids’ rooms, Debbie insists she’s not a look-to-the-future, convertible furniture sort of decorator. “I create rooms for right now,” she says. Kids’ fleeting tastes give the design-lover an excuse to change things up. Fortunately, a whimsical-yet-understated wallcovering makes it easy to swap in playful, colorful elements.
Get the Look:
Wallcovering: Folklore Wallpaper in Taupe by Hygge & West
RELATED: 70 Stylish Kids’ Room Ideas That Even Grownups Will Love
Patio
Outfitted with casually hung, porcelain-shaded disc lights, the patio serves up farmhouse staples such as barn lights and Windsor chairs with more buttoned-up boxwood topiaries.
Tour More Beautiful Before-and-After Projects!
There’s nothing more inspiring than a real life before-and-after story. These three stunning homes deliver room after room of makeover inspiration!
•This Charming Farmhouse Was Listed for $15,000 on Facebook Marketplace—You Won’t Believe the Before!
•This Couple Transformed Their Suburban Cookie Cutter Home Into an Authentic Farmhouse
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