T he homeowners, parents who relocated from the South End with a young toddler, were excited to embrace suburban living in their new downtown Hingham home. To make the bungalow’s long living room feel cohesive and comfortable for the family, they brought interior designer Beth Bourque on board.
Bourque, who runs Milton-based Beth Bourque Design Studio, created two seating areas in the light-filled room. She recommended relocating French doors accessing the sun porch to allow more options for furniture arrangement.
"Before there were two sets of French doors on either side of one wall with a long casement window in the center," explains Bourque. "We moved one of the doors to the middle and installed casement windows on either end."
"The homeowners wanted the room to have a beachy, nautical theme," says Bourque, who had the walls painted "Repose Grey" by Sherwin Williams and infused the space with pops of navy blue and salmon.
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Furnishings came from a variety of retailers, and Bourque was able to incorporate several of the homeowner's existing items into the scheme.
"In all of my projects, before we buy any furniture I take photos of and dimensions of the pieces the owners already have and put in a spread sheet," says Bourque. "To the homeowner a chair that was in a bedroom is always a bedroom chair — but to me, everything is benign and it's easy for me to envision moving things to different rooms."
The room now has an airy, lively vibe with a laid-back appeal that suits the young family.
"Nothing is too fancy that a toddler can't be around it," says Bourque. "Yet the space is also sophisticated enough to accommodate adults-only gatherings."
Television seating area
Two navy blue X-benches that the homeowners used in their prior home are in front of a linen sofa. Throw pillows from Homegoods and Serena & Lily add punch. The worn brick on the fireplace is painted a captivating high gloss shade of blue: Sherwin Williams "Naval." An oriental rug with shades of navy blue and salmon pulls together the room's color palette
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Opposite view of the seating area
An off-white carved media cabinet is from Horchow and a white lacquer table behind the sofa is by Kathy Kuo Home. Nestled underneath is a cube upholstered in an orange and white geometric pattern that offers extra seating in a pinch.
Fireplace area
A Serena & Lily jute rug lays atop the wood floor in front of the fireplace. "It's woven with a metallic leather which makes it shimmer and feels more dressy," says Bourque. Two chairs on either side of the fireplace are upholstered in a blue ikat patterned fabric by Pindler & Pindler. A bar cart is from Serena & Lily. Blue and white print drapes were purchased at West Elm. When using off-the rack draperies Bourque recommends having them dry-cleaned before hanging. "The dry cleaners will fan fold them and give them back to you on a hanger," she explains. "Have them sit on the hanger for a week and then hang. They will drape in lovely columns."