French couple gain luxurious bedroom retreat

Veronique, Eric and their two daughters recently emigrated from France to North America. They spent the last eight years living a nomadic lifestyle, moving 11 times, but they have finally settled into a beautiful, traditional house in a family-friendly neighborhood.

With busy lives and jobs — Veronique works as a translator for pharmaceutical companies and Eric is a pediatric oncologist — the couple just couldn’t find the time to fix up their master bedroom.

The room was big, beige and boring, and the couple longed for a more elegant and sophisticated place in which they could spend precious quality time together. So I gathered up my crew and set out to create a relaxing and restful bedroom retreat.

I wanted to make Veronique and Eric feel at home, so I got my design inspiration from their home country of France. I decided to make the bedroom a mixture of traditional and elegant, with a modern touch and give it that certain “je ne sais quoi” it was missing.

The large room had lovely windows and high ceilings, but it was very bland; what it needed was detail and character. I decided to add architectural interest by putting in a mixture of panel and crown molding. Then I added some old-world charm with a floor of prefinished, wide plank wood that has an antique look.

Veronique prefers neutral colors, but neutral doesn’t have to mean boring. So, I chose a luxurious color scheme and a variety of textures and patterns to give the room a plush feel: warm taupe for the draperies, rich cocoa for the coverlet and glacier blue silk with chocolate detailing for the throw pillows.

I wanted the furnishings to be just as inviting, so I put in a bed with a gorgeous headboard, upholstered in a dreamy taupe color. I also installed two cocoa chairs and a small table, where the couple can sit and read at night, or have their cafe and croissants in the morning.

For even more atmosphere, I put in a new gas fireplace across from the bed. The fireplace is made of cast stone but looks like a hand-carved limestone fireplace you might find in an old French chateau.

Eric wanted a television, but Veronique did not want to see it. So, I compromised and put a television in the room, but concealed it the most gorgeous way. The couple had a personal connection to Mont Saint-Michel in Normandy, so I had an artist recreate the scene on canvas and added this painting to the front of a creamy cabinet above the fireplace. When closed, it is a beautiful painting; when opened, the television is revealed.

To further set the mood, I designed an elegant, traditional large-scale chandelier with antique gold and crystals. I also added two beautiful sconces on the fireplace wall and a variety of lamps around the room.

After a few final details — artwork here, Veronique’s perfume bottle collection there — the master bedroom was complete.

This room was a big, blank canvas. By adding splashes of luxurious colors, dashes of elegant lighting, and a few strokes of French-inspired finishes, it is now the perfect place for Veronique and Eric to get away from the stresses of their hectic lives. Now that’s divine and fantastique!

Interior decorator Candice Olson is host of HGTV’s “Divine Design.” For more ideas or information, visit www.divinedesign.tv. Her column is syndicated by Scripps Howard News Service.