Swallowtail in Heights Dining Room

This is a beautifully renovated and updated 2-story 1920’s bungalow in the Heights neighborhood of central Houston.
Unlike the trend for homes that are all white or grey , this family went for color and fun . In other rooms, the woodwork and walls are painted cheery yet soft shades of blue , orange , yellow , salmon , and green . You may be able to find some photos by doing a Search here.

The fun doesn’t stop with paint colors … Here is a colorful and visually active wallpaper pattern in the family’s dining room .

The pattern might be overwhelming floor-to-ceiling , so the board and baton wainscoting gives the eyes a resting place.

The pattern is called Swallowtail . Not sure if that refers to birds or butterflies , but either way, it’s a fitting description .

You can almost feel the swooping and swirling wings .
The homeowner chose sconces that coordinate beautifully with the theme of the wallpaper .

The manufacturer is Flat Vernacular . The material was pre-trimmed , and was printed on a non-woven substrate . It could be hung by pasting the paper or by pasting the wall (I pasted the paper, as I usually do). It was nice to work with.
Unlike most wallpapers that come in rolls of standard dimensions , this material was priced and sold by the yard , and came in bolts of continuous lengths .

Busting a Myth – Dark Wallpaper Makes Rooms Look LARGER – Not Smaller

Everyone advised this homeowner not to put black in the dining room, that it would make the room too dark. But she had a vision and went with her gut. She was right – the room looks fabulous and elegant. And the texture and sheen on the walls visually expanded the space.

There is enough white molding in the room to play against the black. And the satiny drapes, along with the slight sheen of the grasscloth wallcovering bounce light around the room.

Accent wall in dining room. White swirls (look closely – they’re snakes!) add movement that make this wall lively, not closed-in.

In this master bedroom , everything’s dark – dark green walls , black ceiling , and black floral wallpaper .
If this accent wall had been left painted green , the room would have felt dark and lifeless . But the black against the green, along with the limited color pallet and the visual movement of the wallpaper pattern visually push the wall back and add depth .

This powder room started out all black. And it was a bit oppressive .

But add wallpaper with a little color and pattern , and now the room feels larger and alive with personality .

A powder room with black moldings and black wallpaper. Nothing claustrophobic here!

Another powder room that started out with black painted walls . Yes, it has an enclosed feeling.

Wallpaper with a black background and dark flora / fauna open up the space.
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