Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Cool Colors and Whimsical Patterns Make a Splash in This 1970s Home

Cool Colors and Whimsical Patterns Make a Splash in This 1970s Home

Summer is hot, but one Iowa designer keeps things cool with a bright color scheme and loads of light and style.

You could call it aesthetic air-conditioning. When Amanda Reynal was asked to reimagine a mid-1970s home, she went back and forth about a number of design elements: furniture configuration, room size, and storage capabilities. But incorporating playful color was never in question. She did what any designer whose clients had green-lit bold color would do. She developed a palette to celebrate the spirit of the young homeowners and their baby. Making the final cut, a spectrum of cool tones alludes to sunshine, gardening, pool time, and other activities that mark the best of summer living.



Airy and elegant, the dining room appointments speak to the natural light that pours in through tall windows. Sand-color grass cloth, caned chairs, a white solid-ash table, and a graceful chandelier of glass discs provide a natural foundation for the blue-and-green damask that covers the chairs, as well as a rug of concentric squares in green and blue, and a pair of celadon lamps.



The house is in Des Moines, where Reynal operates her design business, now in its 20th year. The city is a place where summer beams heat and humidity into the air while winter contrasts with bitter cold. But Reynal made no seasonal mistake. The palette she produced looks as delightful with deer prancing through blankets of snow as it does in the heat of summer.

"My clients have acquired a nice art collection," Reynal says. "I created several color schemes that would support their collection, but they were ultimately attracted to a mix of blue and green with pops of yellow."



Reynal always identifies a "main event" fabric to serve as a springboard. In the family room, a whimsical motif of lemon trees, flowers, and butterflies invites a plethora of additional patterns for throw pillows and upholstery. The cabinet hardware echoes the watery hue.



Reynal's imagination brought a sunny outlook to a house that started in the camp of dark, dreary, and dated. The '70s structure had '70s characteristics: A-frame windows and a timber ceiling and beams. The elements were, in the designer's mind, worth keeping as long as they were juxtaposed against a fresh rethink of the decorative personality.



The living room's original brown vaulted ceiling warms a spacious room with plenty of volume to hang two large chandeliers of abundant candlesticks, display paintings, and show off a mélange of fabrics in patterns that appear to be borrowed from the sea.



In the lofted office, white, turquoise, and blue stripes painted across the floor repeat the colors of built-ins and a butterfly fabric on window shades.



The house welcomes with a turquoise shiplap ceiling and a pair of teal lamps on the credenza.

Architecture was first on the agenda. The layout of the existing house fell short of the airy, uninterrupted flow the homeowners need for gatherings. And when people entertain frequently, chances are they cook too. In this case, she is an avid cook, so shaping a large kitchen with easy access to the dining room was important to make their casual style of entertaining efficient and enjoyable.



The kitchen, the crown jewel of the house, had to serve as a hardworking spot for cooking, wine storage, and hosting. Blue took a back seat, or rather the barstool seat. Fabricated from a watery blue patterned fabric, the cushions are piped in green and coordinate with the large island, painted green to stand out against the white architecture of the space. While the dimensions of the existing kitchen and the adjoining family room remain the same, the space has a whole new feel. Original columns kept the rooms isolated from one another, so Reynal had the columns removed, then added structural support that allows one open, light-flooded area where the homeowner can cook and easily oversee her child's activity in the family room.



Anchored by a generous island painted green to contrast its white shell, the kitchen gains texture from wipable vinyl grass cloth applied to the walls. "I prefer wall coverings over paint," Reynal says."They bring dimension and personality, and in a kitchen, it needs to be a room with softness when it's not being used for cooking." Polished brass on hardware, plumbing fixtures, the range hood, and modern light fixtures furthers the room's glow.



"My goal was to outfit this kitchen with all of the amenities," Reynal says. "I adhere to the design theory of form follows function, especially in the kitchen."



Next on the priority list? Lighting. Reynal delivered oversize pieces that illuminate the cool colors that let the rooms breathe. Oversize fixtures, sometimes in pairs, dangle in each of the public spaces and balance the framed artwork with a sculptural kick.

"I try to educate clients about lighting from the get-go," Reynal says. "I like a beautiful, sculptural piece in a house with open spaces and big windows. I treat each area differently but acknowledge how it will look to its neighbor."

As the days are now at their longest, the light fixtures are usually off. But their shapely presence along with the crisp palette that cools hot summer days makes the time spent indoors vibrant and full of life too.



There's no question that the linchpin of the house is blue. The master suite and laundry spaces are bathed in a bright shade that matches the sky. In the palest form of the cool hue, paint coats the dining room's vaulted ceiling. The living room, office loft, and foyer-including the front door-divert from the heart of the color wheel to less common jewel tones of teal and turquoise.



A graphic starburst tile stretches across the floor of the laundry and mudroom. "I had just returned from a trip to Morocco when it was time to select the flooring for this room," Reynal says. "This tile spoke to the vibe that I spotted while I was traveling." Because this space is also a breezeway off the garage, it provides the perfect spot for the family dog to rest and catch a drink of water from the bowl situated beneath the under-cabinet faucet.

"Besides cooking, collecting ranks high among the homeowners' hobbies. They acquire new works regularly, so Reynal wanted decoration that would complement, not compete. For wall coverings, that meant patterns that introduce visual texture but read as solids. Grass cloth in the dining room, a crosshatch pattern on the master bedroom walls, and tone-on-tone motifs in the living room and foyer allow the framed artwork hung over them to shine.



The couple also wanted a more expansive master suite with space for built-ins, double vanities and showers, and a walk-in closet. So that end of the house gained square footage with an addition that's comfortable and private but also close to the nursery.



The bedroom is a mix of blue motifs including a cross-hatch pattern on the walls, a geometric on the bed, and an embroidered floral that hangs at the windows. Lavender accents on the lamp and bench keep the palette from becoming stagnant. In the closet, a cherry blossom paper covers the ceiling.



The bathroom beams with design oomph thanks to a large abstract painting that hangs above the tub and a striking blue-and-white ceramic stool.

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
Intel Reports Revenue Beats but Sees 81% Rise in Losses
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
Tulsi Gabbard Unveils Evidence Alleging Political Manipulation of Intelligence During Trump Administration
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Trump Announces Coca-Cola to Shift to Cane Sugar in U.S. Production
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
Moonshot AI Unveils Kimi K2: A New Open-Source AI Model
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Proposes Supplying Arms to Ukraine Through NATO Allies
US Opens First Rare Earth Mine in Over 70 Years in Wyoming
Bitcoin Reaches New Milestone of $116,000
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
Western Europe Records Hottest June on Record
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
France Requests Airlines to Cut Flights at Paris Airports Amid Planned Air Traffic Controller Strike
Poland Implements Border Checks Amid Growing Migration Tensions
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Amazon Reaches Milestone with Deployment of One Millionth Robot
Yulia Putintseva Calls for Spectator Ejection at Wimbledon Over Safety Concerns
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
×