Christy Davis Home Renovation: Entry and Dining Room

Let’s begin with the main entrance of my home–one large open rectangle that was originally a formal living room and entry.  Now it is our entry and dining room.  As I mentioned in my other posts, that we decided not to keep a formal living room.  I’ve followed some research studies stating that my generation and younger (Millenials) do not use formal living spaces.  I totally understand this practicality.  Why would I have a room that I do not use?  Especially if I can use the space for a room I would use.  My decision: keep a formal dining room.

We did go back and forth on keeping the dining space.  We thought about making it a formal study or home office.  That was what the husband really wanted to do, make it an actual daily used space.  And we would have used it every day if we had gone with the home office, but as you know my dining suggestion won out (insert a wink and a smile).  

So what made me replace a designated non-used spaced for another one?  Being from a more traditional upbringing, I did want to keep a dining room (for those parties and holidays I might host).  I also looked to my realtor on this one, and she did agree that most people in my hometown would want a formal dining space.  FYI, your realtor will give you great insight on your home and the area.  I like to talk to my realtor about certain suggestions on home remodels because they know the local market–what will sell, what won’t and what is desirable or non desirable.  If this was our dream home or forever home, I might not have cared as much, but we will sell this house one day.

As far as the renovation, this area was the least invasive when it comes to our remodel.  We did not change too much to these two spaces, other than adding 2 thick side walls in order to create a true entry and separate the dining space. In fact, for those of you wanting to segregate two spaces, this is an inexpensive way to do so without much fuss.  Yes, there is some dust and re-painting, but overall, this is simple and cost effective.  Also, we added a built-in cabinet where the window (left of the fireplace) was.  Below is the floorplan of the entry and dining room.

You can see where we added the two side walls.  We did lose some width in both areas, because I designed the ‘wing’ walls to be 12-inches thick and create a stunning paneled cased opening.  Actually, in all of our new addition areas, the cased openings are 12-inches thick and paneled (except for the one between the dining room and side entry–top left).  You can see at the top of the drawing in the entry area, this cased opening has not been widened.  We will do that in the second phase.

We decided to replace the walls with new sheetrock. The original walls are plaster (see photo above what plaster walls look like under the coat of paint).  Let me tell you, plaster walls can be such a pain!  Hanging anything on the walls is tough, and painting can be a pain.  Yes, we spent a little extra on new sheetrock, but it has made re-painting and repairing so much easier.  Especially since we added new lighting in both spaces.  Check out some of the in-progress photos, but come back tomorrow for more progress focusing solely on the dining room.

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Christy Davis Interiors is a full service residential interior design firm specializing in new construction and remodel, based in Columbia, SC, 29205.  Christy Davis works on projects throughout the state of South Carolina, including Charleston and Hilton Head.