Ashley Frey of Schoolside Design gave her living room a colorful upgrade with our Serena Sea Salt curtains. Follow along to learn more about her design decisions and how she leaned in to the coastal aesthetic for her CT home!
First off, tell us a little bit about yourself!
I was born and raised on the Connecticut shoreline, which is what fueled my love for the coastal aesthetic. My husband lived just one town over and we ultimately decided to stay here in Connecticut to raise our three kids, we have 2 boys and a little girl! I am an avid DIY’er, lover of all things design and love empowering others to create spaces that they love. I created Schoolside Design to document and showcase my interior designs and my varying builds within our home. It's been such an incredible and rewarding experience!
What was your design vision for the living room?
My living room has been an evolving space over the 5 years that we have lived in our home. In my recent design I focused on the walls and the ceilings, both had just fallen flat, with an odd white color and no true interest. I decided to draw your attention to the angled wall/ceiling by adding shiplap and beams and on the adjacent walls I added a soft peel and stick faux grass wallpaper along with the Serena Sea Salt curtains. Which is definitely what catches your eye first!
What drew you to our Serena pattern?
At first it was the pattern, it reminded me of the shoreline and gave me the initial feel of shells and flowers that you at times find along the coast. Second was the color! The soft green with the subtle touch of blue was the exact pop that my space needed. The green was something a bit outside of my normal comfort zone, but it has been the best decision I made in this design!
How did you decide which construction type was right for your space?
I chose the tailored pleat as I loved the elegance that it gave the curtains, it is the extra detail that really makes them stand out. The pleat also allows the curtain to naturally fall and requires very little training of each panel.
We love how you paired the curtain with Sky Velvet trim! How did you land on Sky Velvet vs. our other trim options?
This was one of those easy, no-brainer decisions! I am a true lover of the soft blue colors, and the sky velvet trim really brought out the soft blues that you find within the Serena Sea salt pattern. I also loved the width of the trim, you can stand from a far distance and still see that beautiful trim detail!
We're obviously all about accessorizing! Tell us a little about your curtain rod choice!
The curtain rods that I LOVE and have throughout my home are ones from Amazon, they are affordable and high quality. What I love most about them is that they have a large range of sizes, so you are able to get a rod for a standard window all the way up to one's 144”+!
Loving Ashley's look? Shop custom curtains here!
