How to Do a Cowgirl Chic Maximalist Dining Room Makeover
I am your host Katy and I have personally walked through the California desert to Joshua Tree, California, to make over my friend's Airbnb. Today, we’re doing a Cosmic Cowgirl maximalist dining room makeover.
Last time, we created a gorgeous desert-themed living room adorned with the cutest desert boho decor. Next up, we’re moving to the most challenging space in the Airbnb: the dining area.
The Airbnb has an open layout, so as soon as you walk in you can see the living room, kitchen, and dining room. So, we want to look for ways to define each zone.
Tools and materials
- Paint
- Painting equipment
- Chalk
- Projector
- Stapler remover
- Upholstery stapler
- Upholstery fabric
- Thrifted furniture
- Round rug
Table of contents
1. Paint everything white
When my friend bought this house, everything was brown. So, the first thing we did was paint everything white so that we can work with a blank canvas.
Before we start, there’s something you should know. Whether you rent or you own, every house has some sort of funky or weird thing that you probably wish just wasn't there. In this dining room, it’s inconsistent tile flooring, which is due to renovations.
Because we want to define the space and lift the eyes up off the floor away from that moment of
hell, we've decided that we are going to create a real visual moment in this little beautiful nook corner by painting a mural.
2. Paint a mural
So, we took all day (and 3 months of bouncing ideas around) to come up with a mural design idea, inspired by the Joshua Tree landscape. Then, we bought paint and used a projector to project the design onto the wall, so we could trace around it with chalk.
We filled in the shapes with paint, let it dry overnight, then painted a second coat in the morning.
3. Reupholster dining room chairs
We needed a table and chairs and one material I wanted to bring into the space because it is just inherently very “vacationy” is rattan. So, we found an incredible set of dining chairs on Facebook Marketplace; these are rattan, they are arched, Art Deco style, they have fluting in them, they have sizable padding… they’re gorgeous.
There's only one problem and that is that the seat covers are a little less than wow. They're a dingy dull beige and olive green pattern. Frankly, they're just not the vibe, so we’re going to recover them.
The seats are in incredible condition. We have beautiful great foam, we have fresh batting, and they're in a great position to be reupholstered. All you need to do is spend almost four hours offscreen hand removing all of the staples so that you have fairly clean wood.
How to upholster a dining room chair
Upholstery is kind of like wrapping a big beautiful present and the key is keeping it tight. You're going to start by stapling one staple in the middle of all four sides.
Now that we have all four sides, you start to staple from the middle out on each side and you keep pulling tight.
When you get to the corners, find the middle point, pull that up, and staple it.
Then, fold over this little corner to make a little pleat. Staple there. Do the same on the other side.
4. Add a rug
To further distract from the uneven floor situation, we're gonna add a rug. Rugs can be very controversial underneath a dining table. I personally love them, I have no problem with them, and I've done them before. If you have uneven or odd flooring you definitely want to cover it up. Plus, John really wanted highly-textured rugs in the space.
I felt very strongly that because we have these beautiful round organic shapes in the mural, I really wanted a round table and therefore a round rug. I especially love the tassels. This is a fun and easy way to add more texture to a space.
What size rug do I need?
When you are sourcing a round rug, you want to make sure that your chairs are going to be entirely on the rug and even have a little bit of clearance. You can figure that out with the size of your dining room table and then add a foot or two.
5. Source a statement dining room table
I found this statement pedestal base for a dining table on Facebook Marketplace. I love that we're bringing in a different kind of wood to play against the Rattan. It’s such a cool and unique piece. We’re topping her with glass.
This is why I love thrifting and Facebook Marketplace; you find amazing pieces that you never would have thought to search for and for a great price.
Desert dining room makeover before and after
Desert boho dining room makeover
Here’s the final reveal! How do you like this maximalist dining room makeover and this desert boho style? I love the result and I can’t promise that I won’t steal these chairs for my own home.
Let us know your thoughts and feedback in the comments below.
Frequently asked questions
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