The Canyon Chateau Reveal Part One: Living Room

Rip & Tan: What was the overall vision for the living room?

Julia Hunter: Because the living room is an extension of the entryway, we wanted it to feel like a calming and peaceful welcome that helps us forget the stresses of the day a bit when we walk in the door. It’s also essentially the passageway to all the different areas of the house, so it’s a place that we can walk through and know it will always be tidy because it’s minimal in décor but still inspiring with thoughtful details. I spent extra time choosing and placing the accent pieces and décor elements that went into the living room because it’s the place we see the most throughout the day.

Rip & Tan: From paint color to flooring, walk us through the details of the living room design.

Julia Hunter: Our favorite thing about the house was the design’s overall English countryside feel—we wanted to maintain that but lighten it up to be a bit more current. In the living room, those Cotswold elements were the beams at the ceiling, the fireplace, and all the molding detail. To brighten the space, we focused on upgrading the finishes.

The paint color is Gem in Flat Finish by Portola Paints. Jenni loves it because it’s such an elevated, peaceful, and romantic shade of white with a touch of grey.  The house floors were the original hardwood when we bought the house, which we love for the worn feel, but they were so dark that it made the house seem a bit sad. We decided to sand them down and found that they were a beautiful oak, so we just bleached them a bit. We love the stud details you can still see in the floors.

Rip & Tan: Where did you source the furniture and décor from?

Julia Hunter: Pretty much everything in the room is Jenni Kayne, with a few vintage pieces and favorite books mixed in to give the space extra character. I love the natural linen colorway of our Harbor Sofa because it feels so special and elevated, but is also cozy. Our Bay Coffee Table is my favorite new piece—the solid wood is a gorgeous material and really ties the room together.

I loved adding Jenni Kayne décor like our candles and blankets because they really complete the space and make it feel more like a home. Our Axel Einar Hjorth console table at the entry is one of my favorite vintage pieces and it’s perfect for adding objects that feel thoughtful and inspiring—it makes me happy to walk by our pieces on display there. The lights throughout the house are Rose Uniacke and I love the wall sconces in the living room so much.

Rip & Tan: What are some of your favorite elements of the living room?

Julia Hunter: I love the window with the built-in shelving and thought it was the perfect moment to add seating—we use it when we can find a quiet moment to work on an email for an hour here and there or sit with a cup of tea. I also love the design of the openings and doorways to the other rooms because they have such a historical feel. I think the molding details around the passageways and the double doors add so much character and almost make you wonder what’s on the other side of them. There are so many special and charming architectural details like this in the house that were fun to preserve, and we gave them a bit more space to really stand out by keeping the overall décor more classic and minimal.

Rip & Tan: Any other design call-outs you want to share?

Julia Hunter: The actual entryway by the front door that connects to the living room was another one of my favorite parts of the house. I have learned from Jenni how beautiful and peaceful an entryway can be if you make it both deliberately designed and functional. I love having hooks and a console table there to store necessities we always want access to when coming and going from home, but only the pretty ones get to be on display here.