If you love the Country French farmhouse style renovation Chip and Joanna Gaines tackled on their HGTV series Fixer Upper (Season 5, Episode 11), this Get the Look post with resources is for you! As a real life renovator, I enjoy collecting lessons and decor ideas from the show. Today’s Fixer Upper Episode With French Country: The Club House Dining Room will, without much fuss, aim to pull together a dining room in the spirit of the inspirational Club House on Fixer Upper.
Fixer Upper Episode With French Country: The Club House Dining Room
We previously explored getting the look of this project’s living room and entryway…so do check out those suggestions after reviewing the dining room!
In this episode of Fixer Upper, we meet a family who are admirers of French country style and want a spacious home.
I independently selected products in this post—if you buy from one of my links, I may earn a commission.
The approach to French Country Joanna took for the project involved keeping the palette very quietly tone on tone, providing seating for eight, mixing a few vintage pieces with new furnishings, injecting multiple textures (nubby linen, woven seagrass, and rustic wood for the chandelier as well as a soft cloud of an anchoring rug.
Serene Country French Farmhouse Dining Room: Addressing the Walls
The Club House dining room already offered a bit of architectural interest with its existing wainscot paneling before any reno, so the design plan was primarily a cosmetic one. Joanna Gaines chose a lovely grasscloth wallpaper for above the paneling.
Here are a few examples to consider.
Grasscloth wallpaper is typically made from a natural material such as hemp, and designers love it since it works so well adding texture and organic warmth to spaces both modern and traditional. It is a more delicate wall covering that cannot be sponged off to clean. Gentle vacuuming with a brush attachment does the trick. There are also plenty of products that mimic the look which are made from synthetic materials.
Read this for tips for designing and installing grasscloth wallpaper.
Grasscloth Wall Covering
Grasscloth is heavier than typical wall coverings made of paper, and is trickier to install so it’s best left to a pro. Since it is made of natural materials, each piece is not going to “match” perfectly. If your eye can’t relax with such variation, it may not be the right choice for you. Grasscloth wallpaper is also not as durable so it is not appropriate for rooms where it will be bumped or damaged by children.
You’ll note some of these grasscloth wallcovering options include a shimmery metallic feature.
Self-Adhesive Faux Grasscloth
For renters or folks who want to experience the look of grasscloth, there are self-adhesive faux grasscloth products which don’t require professional installation since they are peel and stick. I’d love to try this on the back of a book shelf!
Paint Color to Get the Look of Warm Sand or Soft Natural Linen
While you won’t achieve the woven texture of grasscloth with paint, you can approach the mood of it by reaching for paint color hues suggestive of those in the linen dining chairs.
I actually did some research into faux painted finishes to mimic the look of woven linen or grasscloth, and I must say the projects I found were not terribly convincing.
If it’s texture you want, I suggest…um…getting texture. But if it’s the mood and color you’re after, you may be able to satisfy that part of the design plan with paint.
Easiest way to see if a paint color will work? Order samples with Samplize and have them delivered straight to your door.
Idea for Neutral Decor on the Walls
Take a peek at this French country inspired dining room in which the owner hung framed dried botanicals. Such a beautiful way to bring nature inside yet still keep a serene mood happening:
Serene Country French Farmhouse Dining Room: Area Rug
Joanna Gaines chose a serenely muted ivory area rug for the tone on tone French Country dining room as well. The contrast is kept low with the light wood tone hardwood flooring, linen slipcovered dining chairs, and natural-linen toned walls. Here are some options I found:
While this last option is more geometric and contemporary in feel, it would work well with the other design elements in the dining room.
Rustic Elegant Country French Farmhouse Dining Room Table
If you like this traditional style solid wood dining table in our inspiration room, there are plenty of wonderful options to shop for that won’t break the bank.
Belgian Style Linen Slipcovered Dining Chairs
Find lots of stunning examples HERE. The dining chairs appear to be from RH, including their Belgian Slope Slipcovered Side Chair and Belgian Wingback Slipcovered Arm Chair.
Dining Chair Ideas
These skirted Belgian style upholstered chairs are much less expensive than others with pricey Belgian linen and would work in any number of rooms outside of the dining room.
While there isn’t an upholstered bench in our inspiration dining room, I found this one and thought you might enjoy entertaining the possibility! Wouldn’t it be wonderful in an entry, on a landing, or paired with dining chairs?
French Country Room Sideboard & Decor
The decor is kept simple in this Fixer Upper dining room and limited with white vases of a greenery on the sideboard and a mirror as well as a distressed planter in the center of the dining table with stems of green only.
Sideboard Ideas
A wood sideboard is topped with what appears to be a vintage salvaged wood mirror (or a wonderful replica). Some of the original paint remains on the rustic wood, imparting age and character as well as rusticity.
While there are a good number of wood sideboards in every size imaginable for your own design schemes, a vintage piece would work well and could even be painted to suit. Search your fleamarket for a treasure!
For a more sophisticated and elegant sideboard, I fell in love with this one:
If your dining room is on the cozy side and won’t accommodate a large dining table AND a buffet, a little cart like this can be functional and a base for creating a decorative vignette:
While it’s industrial in style and doesn’t scream “France,” you could definitely play up the character while giving yourself some storage and functionality for entertaining.
Country French Farmhouse Dining Room Chandelier
Joanna Gaines went on record saying the chandelier for this French country dining room was her favorite piece. It truly sets a tone, and if you’re going to splurge on one thing, this is going to give you a lot of bang for the buck.
Lots of more cost conscious French Country beautiful possibilities reside HERE. If you’re fortunate enough to be able to add sconces to your dining room’s design, here’s a stunning option:
Country French Farmhouse Decor in Dining Room
There’s an obvious absence of anything floral in the space, and the very low contrast and spareness yields a tranquil, serene mood. White painted trim keeps things feeling pretty and elegant, and casual place settings with white dishware set a welcoming tone for everyday enjoyment.
Here are some ideas for a wall mirror, either above a buffet/sideboard or elsewhere.
Rustic White Vases & Planter Options for a Country French Farmhouse Dining Room
Mood Board to Get the Look: Country French Farmhouse Neutral Dining Room
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Get the Look of More Fixer Upper Homes With French Country Too!
French Family Room (in the Club House Episode)
Get the Look: Fixer Upper Club House Living Room
Fixer Upper Club House Entryway
Kitchen and Sunroom in The Club House
Get the Look: Fixer Upper Hot Sauce House
Fixer Upper English Tudor House
Home Tour of an “Undone” Rustically Elegant Celebrity Home
Omg, you can learn so much about the personal lives of entertainers simply by touring their homes and meeting their family. Soooooo many stories are shared, and you’ll get to glimpse collections, nostalgia, and the unexpected. Who watched ‘General Hospital’ back in the day? Ha!
I independently selected products in this post—if you buy from one of my links, I may earn a commission.
Peace to you right where you are.
-michele
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Enjoyed the home video you shared! It’s always fun & interesting to me to see famous people’s personal homes and get ideas! This one was interesting having them actually do the tour themselves! Your blog is SUCH a resource to me of ideas, inspiration, and helpful info…especially now in the midst of our house build! Thanks for all the time, effort, energy, and love you put into it! I’m thankful I found it! 🙂
Author
I am so glad the resources shared here help! Love to hear that. Keep me posted on the build – always game to create a story with you if have been taking photos along the way! 🙂
I will take it all! Wow, love neutrals and textures that you displayed.
Author
Yay! So happy you approve! 🙂
Well what can I say, I LOVE it all. 🙂 But I’d like to address something else in your post.
Your comment, “All lives cannot matter until BLACK LIVES do…..” is undoubtedly true.
But, when we single out one color, one race, one sex, one profession, one political party, one anything….then we must also remember that when we single out one group, there is also a danger of ignoring the others.
Due to the coronavirus, advertisements honoring and singling out those in the medical profession are abundant. Yes, these people have a big job to do. But they aren’t the only ones who are working hard and rightfully deserving of our prayers and thanks. Those who never see the spotlight of “fame and claim”, those like the farmers and ranchers who tend to their crops and livestock daily to produce food, those teachers who teach tirelessly from home via internet (often while also trying to keep their small children quiet in the background), those in service industries (think for example plumbers who came to unclog your pipes because now your entire family is working and living from home all day/everyday!), those who own small mom-pop businesses, desperately working on ways to try to get some income to continue to support their families while their business was mandatorily “closed”, because it was deemed “nonessential”, etc. etc. etc. etc. etc…….. Well e.v.e.r.y.o.n.e is actually essential from my point of view and yet because someone singled out some groups of people, some people were forgotten…and worse it might even have been said “Only Essential Worker’s Lives Matter”!! :'(
Normally I would never have left a comment like this on a beautiful blog such as yours. But with your comment, you opened it up to discussion and response. I fully suspect you may delete it and it is your blog, your choice to make. However I sincerely hope you take a moment to read it.
We all most certainly DO need to remember that ALL lives matter. There should be no distinctions made, for it’s when those distinctions are made that the danger of exclusions begin…………..
Author
Thanks for reading. Your words help me understand your fears. Not sure why you “fully suspect you may delete it.” Of 11,407 comments I have probably deleted 10 for spewing hate. Humans who leave comments here seem to be gracious souls thanking me for the free content.
I graciously and sincerely thank you for reading my comment and you are very kind for not deleting it…but I do understand this is your blog, your choice.
Michele, all our hearts are going out to a very troubled nation. I thank you for letting us all know we must “look into the mirror”. For beginning to right the wrongs, begins inside each of us.
Author
I can only tell you what I am doing very imperfectly but wholeheartedly – which is beginning with transformation right where I am. It can’t be about finding the proper words or getting creative about presenting the message – I simply must do the work first (inner work and education) and let everything flow from there. It doesn’t feel comfortable at all. I am seeing that racism is in the fabric of our lives, infecting our subconscious in powerful ways. When I consider how many images on the news and in entertainment of Black men in jail or committing crimes over the years, and how little Black history and Black success, it’s staggering. Our culture is infected with racism, and the consequences are often deadly.