Dark Green Georgian Living Room - Before and After
Today, I'm sharing the final reveal of the dark green living room at a Georgian building in Halifax where my lovely clients live with their two daughters. It was originally a detached dwelling but at some point was converted into two semi detached houses. I'll be showing you how we completely transformed the room with deep green paint to create a fantastic living space for the whole family to enjoy.
This room has fantastic bones. Just look at the deep skirtings and the cornice detail! The clients hadn’t decorated since they moved in so it was looking a little dated. Their furniture was a mix of items that had been given to them by family and pieces that they’d collected over the years. As part of the brief, they asked for a modern living room with wow factor, while keeping and restoring the lovely original features (which is something I of course always do in a period home).
I did the consultation in the evening, hence the darkness. It’s a north-facing room so in the daytime, the natural light coming through is cool which makes colours in here look a bit bluer. The man of the house is a massive fan of gardening and used the window alcove to grow seeds. The seed tank wouldn’t be part of the new design, obvs, but I used the gardening hobby to inform colour choices and finishing touches for the space.
Existing Features
The lovely Georgian marble fireplace is the focal point of the room and it has such a beautiful shape. The clients had the log burner installed a few years ago so this would be staying.
We were so lucky that there were two beautiful vintage cast iron radiators in this room, and they were in great condition.
I love this mid-century Greaves & Thomas egg swivel chair - it previously belonged to the client’s grandad. This was definitely staying (but obviously needed a bit of restoration).
The Interior Design Scheme
Layout
This room is VERY large space at 7.5m x 5m. Although the usual tendency is to position the sofa area in the centre of the room around the fireplace, it just didn’t work here. There was so much wasted space around the edges and it felt disjointed. It really needed zoning.
I decided to separate the space into three zones, with a TV zone; a reading zone (using that lovely chair); and a work/play zone in the window alcove for board games/extra workspace/space to sit with a coffee and enjoy the garden. I also recommended traditional style built-in cupboards in each of the alcoves for storage, with tall bookshelves in the reading zone.
We made a couple of tweaks to the layout at the detailed design stage, replacing the sofa with a large corner sofa to incorporate more seating. The clients also decided against a table and chairs in the window alcove - partly because they weren’t sure it would be used and partly for cost reasons - so we replaced this with a space for them to display lots of plants.
And a final tweak was to remove the console table to the right of the double doors and replace it with an additional radiator (moved down from the landing) to make sure the room had enough heat output.
Detailed Design
I used the client’s love of gardening as inspiration for the scheme, with a green paint colour on the walls and blue, orange and pink accents to add warmth. Green has become one of the most popular colours in recent years - it's a great choice for living room walls because it has a dramatic effect but feels so relaxing, especially in a dark shade. We added pattern and lots of texture in the soft furnishings for cosiness.
Restoring the floorboards
Although the floorboards were in good condition, the edges of the entire room were painted in bitumen paint which was often used in Victorian times around the edges of a big rug. It can be a bit of a nightmare to get off so the decorator/floor sander had a really great time.
We stained the floorboards with Mylands Earth Stain in Silt - dark wood tones create a cosier feel especially when paired with dark walls. Then we use three coats of Mylac matt lacquer for a lovely waxy finish. You can read my blog post about how to restore original floorboards, including advice on the best finishes, here.
Ready for the before and afters?!
Such a lovely living room colour scheme! We experimented with different shades of green for the wall colour. I originally chose Pleat by Little Greene but it looked far too blue in this room (always very important to look at samples in the space). We eventually decided on Ambleside for the walls and we continued it on to the woodwork. Cool greens usually have a tendency to look blue in north facing lights but Ambleside was the perfect colour - a cool-ish green without feeling too blue. We carried the dark green colour up above the picture rail, with Linen Wash on the cornice and ceiling. Because it’s such a long room, if we’d stopped the dark colour at the picture rail, it would have made the room feel kind of squashed. The contrast also highlights the beautiful detail of the cornice.
Painting walls and woodwork in the same colour is also a great idea for small spaces because it makes them feel bigger and creates a more calming feel.
May I please draw your attention to the lovely light? It’s the Melvillous chandelier by Pooky. It’s not cheap but this room needed a bold statement and this is absolutely perfect for creating a bit of drama!
Marble is a tricky material to clean, and the budget didn’t quite stretch to getting a specialist in so hearth restoration is one for a later date.
The fluted detail on the bespoke bookcases really suits the Georgian era of the house and provides storage space for the clients’ many books.
We created a black and white gallery wall of the family’s favourite photos - the dark green walls provide the perfect backdrop and make the pictures really stand out. The client found the footstool on eBay and it looks great with the newly upholstered accent chair. The deep teal colour really complements the green hue of the walls and the navy blue sofa perfectly.
The rugs help to zone the different spaces and they also add softness.
Such a cosy space for watching TV. The botanical prints by Monika Petersen tie in with the garden theme and the gold gives the space a lift. I chose bright colours in the cushions for contrast.
The floor length curtains have an elegant look and the subtle diamond pattern of the Studio G fabric complements the rest of the living room decor.
So there you go - a new modern look for a stunning traditional living room. It feels so warm and cocooning now and it’s packed full of character. I hope I've given you lots of dark green living room ideas if you're planning your own project. Let me know in the comments!
I’m a Halifax based interior designer and I cover surrounding areas, including Leeds and Manchester. I also provide an online interior design service. If you’re starting a project and need some help or inspiration, please get in touch.
