In the entryway, a Hepplewhite bench that belonged to the client’s grandmother is lacquered in white and its seat is covered in a bold Zoffany print. The original Ionic columns on the fireplace were preserved in a nod to neighborhood history. In lieu of bookshelves, Dixon created benches on either side of the fireplace and upholstered the seat cushions and wall behind them in a modern-day Dominique Kieffer linen damask. In the bay window, sheers in a Calvin fabric through Donghia provide a veil of privacy and a “deconstructed columnar effect.”

Dixon focused the room on a pair of Niermann Weeks chairs upholstered in his own fabric for Vervain that revolve around a Tomlinson ottoman. Called a “cupcake” by the owner’s small children, the ottoman is upholstered in a coral pink Celerie Kemble vinyl resembling shagreen.

“It’s playful and interactive,” says Dixon of his updated, kid-friendly take on the formal seating arrangement. “It’s not a fussy, stuffy, formal living room. It’s a living room for living.”

INTERIOR DESIGN: BARRY DIXON, Barry Dixon, Inc., Warrenton, Virginia. PHOTOGRAPHY: ERIK KVALSVIK