Steal This Look: A ‘Cheap, Cheerful, and Durable’ Dining Room on Cape Cod

When we visited designer Victoria Birch’s beach house in Falmouth, on Cape Cod, a few summers ago, we were charmed by the backstory—Victoria worked with her college roommate, architect Tei Carpenter, on the project—and by the creative approach the friends took to create a “cheap, cheerful, and durable” summer cottage, as Victoria puts it. The dining room, an open space clad in head-to-toe shiplap, has spray-painted wicker lampshades, a reclaimed wood farm table, and our favorite budget dining chairs. Here’s a roundup of sources to replicate the look.

Above: The view from the kitchen into the open dining/living room space. For more on the kitchen, see Kitchen of the Week: A Compact, Nautical Entertaining Kitchen on Cape Cod. Photograph by Justine Hand for Remodelista. Above: The all-white room is accented with select color in the palette of Wes Anderson’s The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. Photograph by Justine Hand for Remodelista. Above: On the wall is a vintage life preserver from 1st Dibs. Photograph by Justine Hand for Remodelista.

Paint

Above: The interior walls and ceiling are [product id="1022085"]Benjamin Moore White PM-2[/product] eggshell, shown, and the floors are painted in a California Paint high-gloss finish. Above: The sliding doors are painted in Benjamin Moore’s high-gloss [product id="984448"]Bluebelle[/product].

Lighting

Above: The red barn light is vintage from 1st Dibs. For something similar, the [product id="1022130"]Cooper Pendant[/product] in Barn Red is $240 at Barn Light. Above: The [product id="984452"]Wicker Dome Pendant Lights[/product] are $145 each from Kouboo. Victoria spray-painted them and had them rewired with gray cloth electrical cord. For something similar, the Lilliana Single Light Rattan Pendant is $229 from Joss and Main.

Furniture

Above: The dining table, the [product id="984450"]Farm Table[/product] from Recycling the Past, is made of salvaged barn wood; inquire for more info. For an off-the-shelf style, Crate & Barrel’s [product id="1022098"]Basque Dining Table[/product] starts at $799, depending on size. For more, see our post 10 Easy Pieces: Modern Farmhouse Dining Tables. Above: The table is surrounded with black [product id="599447"]Salt Chairs[/product] designed by Ton Design Team for Design Within Reach; $375 each. Above: The [product id="599964"]Fiberglass Case Study Arm Shell Dowel Chair[/product] is from Modernica; $570. “I prefer Modernica as a source because their chairs are made of fiberglass, not molded plastic,” says Victoria.

Accessories

Above: The peg rail seen leading into the dining room is made up of individual pegs integrated into shiplap. Similiar pegs can be found online, like these White Wall Hooks, $7.91 each from German maker Rowzec on Etsy. Above: The Niwaki Hand Broom is $26 from Terrain. For more, see 10 Easy Pieces: Garden Shed Whisk Brooms over on Gardenista. Above: The Leather Flyswatter is particularly useful in a beachfront summer cottage. This one is $28 at Salt Creek Mercantile Above: A rope door stopper like the one shown in the dining room is the Maritime Door Stopper is $60 at Annie Selke.

For more dining rooms to steal, see our posts:

• Steal This Look: A Modern Farmhouse Dining Room in France
• Steal This Look: Tiina’s Summer Tabletop Setting
• Steal This Look: Kitchen/Dining Room in São Paulo
• Steal This Look: A Casual Canteen in Copenhagen

N.B.: This story originally ran on July 3, 2018 and has been updated with new products, links, and prices.