It’s no secret that as a life-long Longhorn fan, Aggies may not be my favorite subject. As a mature adult though I can put aside my differences long enough to design them a beautiful, classic, quirky dining room #adulting. Just please, I beg of you, don’t WHOOP at me, I can’t think of a more awful sound. When I first started considering doing an Aggie room I was nervous about finding anything in Maroon – heaven forbid a maroon sofa, but then I remembered – those lucky Ags – the Pantone 2015 color of the year is Marsala. For those who don’t venture out of the ROY-G-BIV color world: Marsala is a beautiful, rich, maroon color. And it just so happens that Marsala goes beautifully with copper – the design world's new metal darling-du-jour. If I’m being honest, these are two color trends I haven’t been too keen on, but through the process of pulling this all together, they’ve grown on me. Not will this classy dining room will make my Aggie friends happy but it’s also a room full of warm tones that all of us fall-lovers can get behind.
1. The Place Setting - I love the look of these mixed white plates, a little bit country but the mismatching and the sleek copper flatware gives it a modern flair. The maroon linen napkins from Crate and Barrel will pop against the white farm table (and some maroon candles in copper candles sticks and I could go on forever - table styling is so so fun). You can achieve the mixed look by either scouring your local resale shops for a variety of white plates, or by visiting several different stores and buying 1-2 sets of several types of plates.
2. Artwork is so personal and nothing is more personal than the century tree on the Aggie campus. This Ansel Adams print will hopefully always remind you and your love of the first time you walked under the big old oak. I think this is my favorite Aggie tradition. If you don't know about it you can read about it here, and if you do know about it, you can buy a seedling from the Century Tree at the same website - so cool.
3. These Tom Dixon pendants may be a little over the top, but hey, so are those gigantic Aggie rings. Always be reminded of your favorite huge round jewelry when you stare at these floating orbs. But on a more serious note, these chandeliers and the rug are the real players in this room - and I would be over the moon if I were presented with an opportunity to use these pendants in a project. They really draw your eye up and keep the light bouncing in fantastic ways. Imagine a candle-lit dinner party (post-midnight yell?) with the flames reflecting in the surface - I'm not sure I can think of anything more dreamy.
4. This rug definitely becomes a show piece in the room. This is where the maroon really comes out to play! Soft underfoot and super rich in color, you could layer it over a darker wood floor for a more subtle look but I could also see it over a floor of beautiful oversize white Moroccan inspired tiles for a really eclectic impact. What I think is fantastic is that all the beautiful detailing is on the edge of the rug, so when a dining table is on top you don't miss out on any of the pretty.
5. This linen upholstered dining chair is fit for a 12th man. I love mixing dining chairs or at least making the head of the table special. Linen is a perfect rustic/chic fabric for this Aggie dining room - again, a little bit traditional, a little bit modern, and a little bit country.
6. Aggies are one big family. That means when they get together they get together in force, so you've got to have plenty of seating, meaning one big long farm table fits the bill. This table from Pottery Barn is great because it expands to seat even more when the occasion calls for it - and in white it pops against that rug and keeps the room from feeling too hectic.
7. While those pendants scream their presence like a quarterback who will remain nameless, sideboards and buffets are the unsung workhorse of the dining room - typically topped with flashier bar pieces - and what everyone came to see: the food. This buffet brings us back to the country look but it has really clean lines as well so I think it could play nicely with the more modern elements in the room too. Most importantly there is plenty of room to store all that booze.
8. Modernize that rustic sideboard with some copper barware from Crate and Barrel. None of these college football rooms are complete without a bar - alcohol goes just as much hand-in-hand with tailgating as it does entertaining. And since we're all adults here: at home lets aim to be just a pinch classier than Northgate.
One thing I know for sure about Aggies is that they have a whole lot of Aggie pride, so just in case a room full of maroon isn't quite enough here are some items I found while looking around the web for this post that might just be your cup of tea:
Even I can appreciate this coffee mug, this slate tray from College Artisan is a pretty classy addition, and if you want to get really extreme you can replace ALL the doorknobs in your house with these doorknobs from Collegiate Specialties
Whew! Aggie room: complete! As always I would love to hear from the Aggies and non-aggies alike. What do you think of the copper? This may be one of the more "on trend" rooms I've done - a fact that this Longhorn finds a little ironic. ;)
