Last Updated on February 11, 2019 by Kristi Linauer
If I had to pinpoint one single designer who has had the most influence on me, it would be Candice Olson. Chance are, if you own a television, and you’ve ever watched HGTV, you know who Candice Olson is.
I love her use of space, her use of fabrics and window treatments, and her use of banquettes. It’s no doubt that her use of banquettes greatly influenced the design of my little condo. I haven’t watched her show in quite some time (maybe even two or three years), so I don’t know if she still uses banquettes regularly, but she certainly used to.
You can especially see her influence on my little condo design in that last picture. I’ve had that picture etched in my mind for years now, and knew that someday I wanted something similar in my own home. Now, I’m on my way!
With the exception of my own home, I’ve only had one other opportunity to completely design a room the way I wanted it–without having to consider what a client wanted, or having a client influence the design in any way (well, with the exception of the carpet, which was selected by the builder). And that was this room I designed for the 2008 Waco Symphony Designer Showhouse. And you’ll notice, I jumped at the opportunity to use built-in banquettes!
On a couple of occasions, I’ve recommended banquettes to clients; but to this day, I’ve had no takers. I really can’t imagine why people are scared of built-in seating. It’s a fantastic way to utilize space, it gives opportunity for extra storage, it minimizes the space required for seating, and it’s an opportunity to bring in beautiful fabrics and color where you might not have it otherwise. And by the way, for a DIYer, a banquette seat is pretty easy to build!
I hope to have mine finished up this weekend. I can’t wait to see the finished product!!
Addicted 2 Decorating is where I share my DIY and decorating journey as I remodel and decorate the 1948 fixer upper that my husband, Matt, and I bought in 2013. Matt has M.S. and is unable to do physical work, so I do the majority of the work on the house by myself. You can learn more about me here.
I hope you’ll join me on my DIY and decorating journey! If you want to follow my projects and progress, you can subscribe below and have each new post delivered to your email inbox. That way you’ll never miss a thing!
7 Comments
Denise
February 24, 2010 at 6:24 pmI had to design a banquette for a client that lives in a unit right next door. I was pretty clueless and thankfully had a good carpenter working on it. I did the area around it with beadboard. Wish I had "known" you then–I would have passed it on to you! 🙂 I found inspiration from one of Christopher Lowell's books. I have a pretty large decorating book library, but not one by Olson, oddly enough.
The fifth photo with the round table like you posted yesterday reminds me of your design. That room is gorgeous.
Ellen
February 24, 2010 at 6:36 pmWhen we gut and redo our kitchen (sometime in the 5-10 year range…) I want to put in a banquette in the kitchen by the lower windows. Since we're in Waco, I'll give you a call!
Scientific Housewife
February 24, 2010 at 6:42 pmThat third room is breathtaking!
John Blunt
February 25, 2010 at 1:50 amI really like the half egg table, the Walnut(?) table with the breadboard ends, and the blue/green cabinets with the open basket spaces above. Sweet color harmony with the painted cabinets. Thank you for the post
Azra Momin
February 25, 2010 at 3:10 pmPic number three – WOW!!! And what's that waterfall-like thing beind the 'table'? Love it!
http://interior4homes.blogspot.com/
February 26, 2010 at 2:26 pmvery cool, thats what i call the wow factor. x
John Blunt
April 10, 2011 at 8:55 pmI really like the half egg table, the Walnut(?) table with the breadboard ends, and the blue/green cabinets with the open basket spaces above. Sweet color harmony with the painted cabinets. Thank you for the post