Warm and cool tones pop in modern living room
The need for an in-law space for Kim Klunzinger's mom spurred Kim and her husband, Verne, and their three children to move from Hinckley Township to Sharon Township. But the new home, built by Elite Designer Homes and designed by Chez-Del Interiors designer Becky Harrell, has other appealing spots too. Verne, a certified public accountant, has a nice office, and there’s a pool and an open-sided covered lanai porch to enjoy the outdoors. And the living room gives full sway to the Klunzingers’ modernistic tastes — and let Harrell play with concepts that she doesn’t get a chance to often.
“It’s really nonconformist for the area,” says Harrell, describing the Klunzingers’ home as clean and modern. “Most homes around here are transitional to traditional.”
Harrell and Verne explain how the modern living room pops.
Flooring: At first glance, the living room looks like it has marble flooring. But it’s a tight-weave white carpet with a marbled pattern. “That gave it a contemporary look,” Harrell says. “It was really fun to work with.”
Furniture: That aesthetic continues with gray couches and chairs with stainless-steel accents. “Our goal was to keep it sleek and contemporary, but still warm and cozy,” Verne says. “Becky softened it with the fabrics. That’s part of the secret sauce.”
Textures: The carpet looks like marble, but the end table tops are marble. There’s exposed metal on the ceiling beams and in the furniture. And there are dark wood beams and dark wood shelves built in on either side of the stone wall containing the gas fireplace. That’s by design, Harrell says. “In a modern house, what you want are lots of textures,” she says. “You want to incorporate all the trends to make it beautiful. Design isn’t about matching today. It’s about the different textures blending together to create a space.”
Lighting: Harrell would love to take credit for the light fixture, a round modernistic crystal chandelier, but the Klunzingers picked out all of the light fixtures. “We love our chandeliers, so there are a lot of them in the house,” Verne says. “Because everything is angular, we wanted to go with a round chandelier. It helps soften the room.”
Accessories: The built-in wood shelves are decorated with a variety of items, from metal-framed family photos to wicker baskets to ceramic pottery. The idea was to warm the naturally cool area with grays. “We worked together to fill it in to give a nice warm look,” Harrell says. “I was delighted how everything came together.”