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December 17th, 2009
before & after: matthew’s dining room

matthew_before
this before & after comes from interior designer matthew lanphier in los angeles. he worked on this budget dining room makeover in chicago, focusing on keeping things as affordable as possible. matthew removed the wallpaper, repainted the walls, reupholstered chairs in sunbrella fabric (to prevent fading from the sunny windows), and then redid the chairs by sanding and spray painting them (professional refinishing wasn’t in the budget). matthew calls the new look “tailored, yet whimsical” and i love the way everything feels clean, fresh and modern. great work, matthew!

[have a before & after you'd like to share on d*s? click here to shoot me an email with your images!]

matthew_after

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67 comments
donkee said:
December 17th, 2009 - 10:07 am

I love how the chairs turned out! The white is awesome. The addition of the mirrors opens up the room tremendously – it’s a totally different space now. Plus, ripping up the carpet helped a ton too. Did he put tiles in the middle or were those original?

Nicole said:
December 17th, 2009 - 10:12 am

I love that this is amazing and attainable! Great before and after!

Lindsay said:
December 17th, 2009 - 10:14 am

So cool! I didn’t even realize it was the same dining set until I went back and read the text. Great makeover.

Jennifer said:
December 17th, 2009 - 10:17 am

Those appear to be Flor carpet tiles….

Erin said:
December 17th, 2009 - 10:19 am

The white on the chairs really adds a lot! What a punch! Beautiful!

December 17th, 2009 - 10:19 am

the chairs look really great. well done.

but i have the same question as donkee, whats on the floor? looks like tiles in the middle of hardwoods….?

melissa said:
December 17th, 2009 - 10:25 am

I want to do the same thing with a light fixture above our dining table! How did he get the shade over it? I know he took the glass shade off, but all the shades I find have wire on the top to sit on the lamp. Love the chairs too! Great idea!

veekee said:
December 17th, 2009 - 10:26 am

oh my god, look at those CHAIRS! well done!

Becca said:
December 17th, 2009 - 10:38 am

No way is that the same room! I love the paint color.

December 17th, 2009 - 10:40 am

Love the chairs! Well done.

Pamela said:
December 17th, 2009 - 10:48 am

Rock on! That’s an awesome transformation!

December 17th, 2009 - 10:51 am

Stunning Transformation… well done!

December 17th, 2009 - 10:54 am

beautiful color choice!! love the aqua!

Susan Gist Taylor said:
December 17th, 2009 - 10:54 am

Holy Cow! from a craptastic 70’s nightmare to a cool collected totally zen space. WELL DONE!

jessica said:
December 17th, 2009 - 11:09 am

I love how this turned out! and the white accents on the chairs is making me swoon!

Peggy said:
December 17th, 2009 - 11:11 am

Beautiful! So tranquil! Now the conversation can take the spotlight instead of the overly-loud room! The de-cluttering helped a lot, too. Those might even be re-purposed closet door mirror, yes? Just a lovely, lovely transformation! Thank you for sharing!

ann said:
December 17th, 2009 - 11:16 am

drastic change without drastic measures. it’s so nice that you even used the same potted plant but it seems so different. i agree with the comment about the smart white tips on the chairs.

what is the wall color?

micah said:
December 17th, 2009 - 11:16 am

Oh my gosh, I LOVE it!! It’s gorgeous!

micah said:
December 17th, 2009 - 11:17 am

Oh my gosh, I LOVE it! The paint color is perfect. Gorgeous!

Oonafey said:
December 17th, 2009 - 11:22 am

Love, love, LOVE the chairs!! So fab!

jennifer said:
December 17th, 2009 - 12:15 pm

The plant on the table in the black pot (sago palm) is poisonous to pets and can be fatal if ingested by a cat or dog. There might not be any pets living there I just wanted to say something just in case.

I never thought of using outdoor fabric on chairs in rooms that get a lot of light – very smart! I also love that little bit of paint on the chair backs and arms, it gives them a whole new look.

Kelly said:
December 17th, 2009 - 12:32 pm

I think the white rug is just FLOR tiles on hardwood.

Angela said:
December 17th, 2009 - 12:38 pm

Echoing others, I think those chairs are genius!

Amy said:
December 17th, 2009 - 12:47 pm

Wow! I really dig on Matthew’s aesthetic. Looking at the interiors on his website – this is one pretty talented man. His attention to detail and ability to pull things together are stunning. Matthew if you ever get the itch to do a budget job in the Pacific Northwest please look me up!

Nativeson71 said:
December 17th, 2009 - 1:00 pm

Great redo of the dining room….where did you source the floor mirrors??

jenny said:
December 17th, 2009 - 1:03 pm

Amazing! From Grandma’s house to super chic.

Jessica said:
December 17th, 2009 - 1:10 pm

I was about to have a heart attacke when I read the words “chairs” & “spray painting” in the same sentence – but that looks totally amazing!

Chris said:
December 17th, 2009 - 1:17 pm

Omg…that dining rooms looks amazing!! Looks like the perfect space for a nice relaxing meal. Excellent work!

Estelle said:
December 17th, 2009 - 1:30 pm

This is the reason I faithfully visit Design Sponge today. This is such a great Before & After. Love to see transformation like this – so inspiring!!!

Estelle said:
December 17th, 2009 - 1:35 pm

(i meant every day)

Sue said:
December 17th, 2009 - 1:44 pm

Wow, it now looks totally sleek and modern. Well done!

judith b. said:
December 17th, 2009 - 1:50 pm

Now THAT is a makeover! Matthew is a genius…those drop-dead gorgeous chairs, wow.

Heather said:
December 17th, 2009 - 1:58 pm

Does anybody know the best way to remove wallpaper that has been up for 20+ years? It’s taking our walls down with it!

Missy said:
December 17th, 2009 - 2:26 pm

WOW. That does not look like a budget makeover!

Shanon said:
December 17th, 2009 - 2:33 pm

Wow. I can’t imagine a better transformation than this one. Those mirrors do so much too. Great addition.

December 17th, 2009 - 2:48 pm

Simple & sharp – love this B&A! Do you know if the area rug is one piece or Flor tiles?

diana said:
December 17th, 2009 - 3:42 pm

Great make-over. Like Peggy above said: The decluttering already is a great improvment And with the other choices and solutions I think the result is simple yet chic.

Karen said:
December 17th, 2009 - 4:16 pm

Excellent example of the power of paint!

Adrienne said:
December 17th, 2009 - 5:03 pm

WOW! Fantastic! It looks like he put down the hardwood? I see carpet in the original. Or was there wood under the carpet?

James Gross said:
December 17th, 2009 - 5:08 pm

This is a terrific before and after. Great use of color, composition, and imagination. The room is far less cluttered and the china cabinet is now a wonderful focal point and gets the attention it deserves. The chairs are really terrific.

December 17th, 2009 - 5:24 pm

wow, that is a GREAT redo…I am loving that wall color, and the square lines created by the mirrors and white trim (on walls and chairs) really works.

kim said:
December 17th, 2009 - 6:40 pm

i’m with jessica above and thought “uh-oh” when i read “painting the chairs.” but holy smokes – well done.

Shelah said:
December 17th, 2009 - 6:48 pm

I wonder where he found the mirrors. I’m looking for some of a similar size and everything I’ve found is really expensive.

Jesse Lu said:
December 17th, 2009 - 7:42 pm

Wow this is snazzy! I love that you can see the transformation of the main furniture so well- the redone chairs and the original cabinet and table. Bravo!

Jody said:
December 17th, 2009 - 7:44 pm

Super WOW!

December 18th, 2009 - 4:33 am

Amazing !! That proves that we can change everything with only a few things !! great work !

tivogirl said:
December 18th, 2009 - 8:32 am

i grew up with those chairs (from the 60s, not the 70s) and my parents still use them. they have very comfy backs.

Heather S. said:
December 18th, 2009 - 8:43 am

This is awesome. Can’t believe that room went from country to chic with such little changes…LOVE it!

stella said:
December 18th, 2009 - 11:17 am

this is HOTT!

jen said:
December 18th, 2009 - 12:47 pm

simply stunning!

Merissa said:
December 18th, 2009 - 1:58 pm

I love this dining room!! May I ask what paint you used on the walls? I’m looking for that exact color for my bedroom!

Chrissy said:
December 18th, 2009 - 2:14 pm

That pop of white on the chairs is slick! I am going to have to find somewhere I can do that in my apartment!

chloe said:
December 18th, 2009 - 4:47 pm

I also love the wall color. Can we find out what color he used?

dinah said:
December 18th, 2009 - 5:13 pm

i love those chairs! the white feels like icing :)

December 18th, 2009 - 8:52 pm

This is what I call a real makeover. The end result is fantastic and is modern but not cold…Also, I love the fact that all the furniture was reused which is a very environmetal thing to do… Congrats!!!

December 18th, 2009 - 8:52 pm

This is what I call a real makeover. The end result is fantastic and is modern but not cold…Also, I love the fact that all the furniture was reused which is a very environmental thing to do… Congrats!!!

Jane said:
December 18th, 2009 - 9:09 pm

love your before and afters!

Teresa said:
December 20th, 2009 - 10:54 pm

Luscious! What an amazingly gifted designer. I’m over the moon just looking at his website. Thanks for sharing!

December 20th, 2009 - 11:45 pm

That room is fine work!

That is the look for 2010

I love design that takes existing vintage and refashions it. BRAVO

Cat said:
December 21st, 2009 - 9:26 am

No one would know it was the same room and furniture. Mr Lanphier is SERIOUSLY talented and inspirational. Great job and thanks for sharing – this is what d*s is all about for me!

jo said:
December 21st, 2009 - 10:57 pm

that before picture~ wowzers. hehe. awesome job with that! i love the paint color, and lamp shade/ chandelier <3

jo said:
December 21st, 2009 - 10:58 pm

that before picture~ wowzers. hehe. awesome job with that! i love the paint color, and lamp shade/ chandelier .

Marie said:
December 22nd, 2009 - 3:37 pm

Amazing makeover… I love the after color and the way he re-used the existing elements. That said, as much as I *don’t* like the before, presumably it reflected the tastes of the folks living there? I wonder if they’ve experienced a complete personality change! ;)

Lindsay said:
January 13th, 2010 - 12:43 pm

Amazing! I love the chairs…they look like they were dipped in paint! Awesome….

January 22nd, 2010 - 3:57 pm

preeeettttyyyy goood

June 18th, 2010 - 3:49 pm

The wall color is amazing. I rarely see that color in a dining room, but it looks so fresh here!

wardrobes said:
July 2nd, 2010 - 6:18 am

look amazing chair color nice WOW! Fantastic!

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