· ·

Dining Room Reveal + Decorating a Space that Isn’t You

This post may contain affiliate links. You can read my disclosure policy here.

Vintage Wallpaper - Dining Room Tour @ AVirtuousWoman.org

It’s been a little over a year since we first ripped out the carpet and tore off the old 70’s wallpaper.   When we first pulled the wallpaper down and discovered the original wallpaper from the 50’s. The mural appears to be maybe Italian or French, we aren’t sure.

Vintage Wallpaper Mural

I wasn’t sure if I liked the wallpaper, so I decided to live with it for a while so I could make a better decision. I mean, the paper was such an amazing find and it felt wrong to just rip it off or paint over it. But I wasn’t sure if it was something I could live with for a long time.

Vintage Wallpaper - Dining Room Tour @ AVirtuousWoman.org

Of course, I can always change it in the future, but for the time being we decided to keep it and now that the lower walls, molding, and doors are painted, I’m really loving the entire room.

Because of the mural, I decided that the art that was hanging above our buffet – a picture of a church with a floral/ tree background} just wouldn’t work. There was already enough going on on the walls! And really, up until a couple of weeks ago that really troubled me. I didn’t want to have NO artwork at all in my dining room. So a whole year went by with no artwork and me having no idea what to hang in it’s place.

Until one morning when it hit me that a chalkboard was the perfect solution.

I love my new chalkboard. I found it at Hobby Lobby – one of my all time favorite places to shop. It was the only one they had in stock the day I went there and it happened to be the perfect size and the frame was so pretty! It has a distressed finish that I love. And I feel the distressed look goes well with the old, damaged in some places, wallpaper.

Vintage Wallpaper - Dining Room Tour @ AVirtuousWoman.org

I currently have a phrase from the old hymn, Father Along, on the chalk board that I just love.

Cheer up my brothers, Live in the sunshine.”

On a complete side note, I love, love Josh Garrels contemporary version of this song. {Free for Prime Members.} And you can listen to this song on youtube.

But I can change it out for seasons, write Bible verses on it, or song lyrics, or poetry. Whatever suits my fancy. I used my favorite chalk markers on the chalkboard. Still love these and they work really well!

Vintage Wallpaper - Dining Room Tour @ AVirtuousWoman.org

Vintage Wallpaper - Dining Room Tour @ AVirtuousWoman.org

Vintage Wallpaper - Dining Room Tour @ AVirtuousWoman.org

Also, the dining room in the past had felt very formal to me with the crystal chandelier and the furniture we purchased 11 years ago when we moved here.

Vintage Wallpaper - Dining Room Tour @ AVirtuousWoman.org

Decorating a Space that Isn’t You

The thing about my furniture is that I guess I kind of just bought the first thing I saw that I liked without really knowing what it is I wanted. At the time we had just moved into this huge house and we didn’t have furniture for a lot of the rooms. So we went shopping. I was young and didn’t really know what “my style” was or would become.

Vintage Wallpaper - Dining Room Tour @ AVirtuousWoman.org

Needless to say, 10 years later {and probably just a few years later} I realized that the furniture didn’t really suit my tastes as much as I had imagined when looking at it in the showroom.

I am not a formal, elegant, fancy person.

I like horses and dogs; mason jars and flannel shirts.

And I was living in a house with fancy formal dining room furniture and a fancy crystal chandelier.

But then one day it occurred to me that this was my house. I didn’t have to decorate the dining room in a formal way. I could decorate any way I wanted. So, if I wanted casual tablecloths, a rooster on top of my china cupboard, and old quilts and antique blue mason jars tied with red ribbons on top of my cabinet, well, I could do that.

Vintage Wallpaper - Dining Room Tour @ AVirtuousWoman.org

So, now I have burlap lampshades {Walmart} and a burlap table runner {Walmart} on my buffet. I have handmade corn silk angels hanging from my crystal chandelier. And I have silk succulents {Hobby Lobby} “planted” in a chicken wire basket {Tractor Supply Company}. And a sweet medallion print tablecloth {Walmart} that I adore on my table. And the combination of elegant versus rustic makes me very happy. It’s “me.”

I’m so thrilled with every detail. I made a video so you could see exactly what the room looks like. If you didn’t see the original video you can watch it here.

Similar Posts

19 Comments

  1. I love it! Especially the big windows. I like bright rooms.I think it looks very nice and welcoming. I love the wall-paper, the table-cloth, all of it. Linda
  2. I absolutely adore this room! I wouldn't get rid of that wallpaper if someone paid me! It's glorious. The room reminds me of a castle I visited in Florence but on a smaller scale. You have done a most excellent job. It's functionally formal. By that I mean, you feel like you could sit in this room and be welcome in it. Very well done. Brava!!
  3. Gourgeous home! Will u come to my house and redecorate?though not likely ud be more than welcome
  4. Your wallpaper is gorgeous and timeless. What a lovely "find."
  5. I love how you mixed things up with some formal and some rustic! If you like it, that's all that matters, because that is where you will be happy! Thanks for sharing it with us!
  6. Wow! That looks incredible. I'm so impressed. Pinned and tweeted. We appreciate you stopping by to party with us. We hope to see you, Monday at 7 pm. Happy Sunday! Lou Lou Girls
  7. I love it!!!! I like French country decor.....toile wallpaper with the burlap and wire mixed in. I really like that you have made it your own.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *