It’s no secret that most houses people buy aren’t turnkey dream homes. Often, homeowners make sacrifices—like opting for a 1980s build in a preferred school district when their style is more midcentury modern–chic. Over five years, designer and Stockwell Homes owner Jen Stockwell and lead designer and project manager Minda Ringdahl helped Bloomington homeowners Krista and Robert Rundle gradually transform their rooms, including their once dated dining room, into more personal spaces.

“I always knew I wanted the dining room to be dark and moody,” Krista says. “I wanted the space to complement the bright living room across from it.”

Stockwell avoided gutting the room’s footprint and worked with the golden oak–trimmed windows. “I don’t like to give people design whiplash,” she says. “If they walk into a clearly 1980s home and then, whoa, it’s an atomic midcentury home on the interior, that doesn’t quite work.” In the end, the designers’ balanced approach also reflected the 2020s and modern life elements. Here’s how they did it.

Elements of the Look

Jen Stockwell and her design team share seven tips for transforming a ho-hum room into a dramatic jewel box.