And here is the view into the adjoining dining room:

And the view back into the living room from the dining room:

I’m pretty happy with how everything turned out. We’re still on the look out for the perfect rug and a floor lamp for the end of the sofa. At some point we may replace the wicker side chairs with something upholstered… two chairs or a love seat, perhaps.

Overall, my townhouse is pretty close to being completely decorated. I’d still like to replace the dining room chandelier, some of the other ceiling light fixtures in the house, and I need a headboard for the bed.

Living Room Resources
Wall color: “Moonshine” by Benjamin Moore in EcoSpec flat
Sofa: “Blake in Otter Velvet” West Elm
Wicker chairs: Ikea
White chairs: Refurbished – Here is a post about it.
Coffee table: Dania Furniture
Table lamp: Ikea
Floor lamp: West Elm
Pillows: made by me!
Throw: HomeGoods
Curtains: JCPenney – Here is a post about hanging and hemming.
Frames: Ikea
Artwork: (framed) vintage fabric (paintings) my own – Here is a post about it.
Baskets next to sofa: Crate and Barrel

I went to Ikea and purchased three of the largest frames they carried. I also picked up a yard of beautiful fabric and raided the fabric cabinet at home.

Pictured above are two antique flour sacks that the Mr. and I purchased when we lived in New England and went antiquing regularly. One is a beautiful linen stripe (they just do not make fabric like this anymore) and the other has a really cool pineapple print. I ironed and framed them, along with the piece of botanical fabric I purchased.

Next, I wanted to bring some life to the bare wall behind our television. Here is a before picture:

I decided I wanted some pattern and softness, so I stretched a piece of fabric I’ve had since high school (purchased while on a vacation in the Adirondacks from a hippie shop!) over a painting I’ve grown tired of.

I also wanted something for the other wall in that corner and decided to push three of my paintings together to make one triptych. Since I’m the maker of all three, I took artistic liberty. I think the three as one are more interesting as a single piece.

I also added some color to the coffee table arrangement:

When you put all those elements together, as well as two of my recently made over chairs, you get this:

Meanwhile, I also hung a new mirror (from HomeGoods) and two baskets (from Ikea… only $8 each) on the focal wall in the adjoining dining room. They are in good company with one of my paintings.

Soon, I will post pictures of our new sofa and show you how the entire room is coming together.

The first step in my living room makeover was painting the walls a beautiful shade of light gray. I decided on Moonshine by Benjamin Moore and chose their Eco Spec no-VOC paint in a flat finish.

The problem with my living room’s original wall color was that it all blended together with the warm floors, curtains, and even the sofa. Everything was pretty much in the same family of warm, golden-y, beige. The sheen was also all wrong. I believe the developer must have used a satin sheen rendering the entire surface very skin-like. I named the color Band-Aid beige.

Here are a few pictures, one taken the day we moved in and the other taken with our furniture in place.

It wasn’t too bad, it was just boring and I was ready for a change. I split the job up over two days and it was much more manageable than trying to paint all four walls in one day. Here are a few preview pictures of the new wall color:

Doesn’t the new color compliment the warm floors and curtains nicely? I really love the way the bluish gray brings out the wood and golden tones. Stay tuned for updates on the living room makeover including new artwork for the walls and a new sofa. Or subscribe and receive new posts automatically.

A living room makeover is in the works!

It’s that time of year… spring cleaning time. It’s a chore for sure, but I always feel so good when my home is clean and healthy from top to bottom. And there are some tasks (::whispering:: like cleaning behind the fridge) we haven’t tackled in the two years we’ve lived here. It’s time. I will be enlisting the Mr’s help.

You can vote in the comment section which chores you think I should ask the Mr. to complete! (Note to Ryan: do not create fake reader names and vote for the easiest tasks.)

So…

Here is my list of everything I’d like to accomplish. This is in addition to the regular cleaning I do most every week.

Deep clean kitchen

• Throw away all old food in cabinets and fridge.
• Donate un-used dishes and utensils
• Remove everything from cabinets and wipe inside and out.
• Thoroughly clean fridge and freezer
• Clean oven and stovetop
• Clean dishwasher and under the sink
• Pull fridge out and clean behind and around (ewwwwwwwww!)
• Wash floor and scrub grout clean
• Polish stainless steel

Bathroom

• launder shower curtains
• scrub tub and tile
• edit toiletries

Living room and dining room

• Vacuum upholstered furniture
• Rent steamer and steam rug and furniture
• Clean out the coat closet (it’s gross in there)
• Clean out the dining room sideboard and take stuff to donate
• Wash throws and pillows
• Wash curtains (mine are machine washable and dry-able)

Bedroom

• Vacuum and wipe down closet
• Edit down clothing (I recently did this! Yay, one thing done.)
• Vacuum and mop under bed (There is a family of dust bunnies that need to move)
• Rotate and flip mattress
• Wash mattress pad and skirt

Misc.

• Baseboards. Blah.
• Deep clean all wood floors.
• Dust crown molding.
• Clean light covers and bulbs.
• Get quote on exterior windows. (They are too high to do ourselves.)
• Use a sticky roller thing on the lamp shades.

Dogs

• Wash all bedding and towels
• Wash and edit toys

I’d like to have all of this done by mid-May, so I’m giving myself a decent amount of time. What’s on your spring cleaning list? Any tasks I’ve missed?

Vote in the comment section on which tasks the Mr. should do!

And, after much hard work, here are the after pictures:

You can read about painting and repairing the chairs here, and about reupholstering the seats here.

Once the paint was drying, I set about choosing some new fabric for the seats. I have a closet full of collected fabric, so instead of heading to the store, I just committed myself to using some I already had. The trick was finding fabric that complemented my patterned rug, golden curtains, and the new white chairs. I narrowed it down to four and laid them on the rug to choose.

Clockwise from top left: The colors in the first striped fabric sort of coordinate with the rug colors, but this combo didn’t do anything for me. I immediately liked the golden floral on white because it related to the floral of the rug without being overly matchy. Next, I considered the brown velvet and decided it would look sumptuous with the white chairs. Finally, I thought about the khaki stripes on white (difficult to see here, sorry!) Can you guess which one I chose?

The golden floral! Not only does it relate nicely to the rug, it also picks up the curtain color.

I pulled the staples out of the back of the first seat and removed the existing fabric. To remove the staples I pried them up with a screwdriver and then pulled them out with pliers.

I left the other old layers of fabric on the seat, figuring they are holding the foam cushion in place. Then, I cut a piece of fabric leaving generous edges for ease of wrapping around the edge of the seat.

I just pulled the fabric tightly over the edges and stapled it all down with a light duty staple gun. All of my practice stretching canvas for paintings pays off here! Last, I trimmed the excess fabric from around the edges.

The other seat needed a new cushion. I figured a few layers of thick batting would do the trick.

I also picked up all new hardware to ensure a snug fit when I reassemble everything.

Stay tuned for the big “after” reveal, coming soon. Or subscribe and receive updates automatically.

What do these four chairs have in common? Besides being a bit worse for wear and in need of facelifts, not much. That is all about to change!

I decided my dining room needs a set of coordinated chairs, preferably in a light color. The rug, existing furniture, and walls are all relatively dark. The room is in need of some white.

The chairs were all relatively cheap, or even free in the case of the molded plywood ones. I think the black one is from our New England days, picked up from a junk sale for $10. I’ve already painted it twice and reupholstered the seat several times. My goal is to make this a coordinated set.

First, I disassembled them and took the seats off.

Next, I gave all four a good sanding with extra fine sandpaper and painted them with a coat of primer.

I let the primer dry for a few days and set about fixing the seat on the one that started off black. The seat was cracked all the way through in several places. You may notice that in my younger years, I tried to repair it by stapling it back together!

The Mr. cut a piece of scrap wood and I sanded down the sides to ensure a perfect fit.

I also replaced the black (and in some cases missing) rubber caps on the metal legs of the plywood chairs with new white ones to match the paint.

Over the course of a few days, I painted the chairs with two coats of satin paint. The trick to getting a smooth finish was using a small roller and sponge brushes instead of bristle brushes.

Don’t they already look so much more unified? Stay tuned for part two of the chair makeover where I will show you how I updated the upholstered seats. You can also subscribe to receive updates automatically.

I have a vision and I am stubborn! Despite the Mr. and a (very nice) sales lady trying to talk me into a medium gray sectional over the weekend, I am still convinced a dark chocolate brown sectional sofa is going to work perfectly in our living room. I tried various combinations with the gray, but everything felt very drab. I still love the way the dark brown will pop with light walls.

What do you think of my latest take on the mood board? It features a sectional similar to the one we are considering. I’ve also included various elements I already own and know I am keeping. And the brown, floral rug in the lower right corner is in our adjoining dining room.

If I go with this plan, the items I will need to purchase include:

• Sectional sofa
• 2-3 gallons wall paint
• Grass rug
• Plant
• Larger throw pillows and covers
• A new throw
• An ottoman
• Mirrored side table
• Large frames (I can make the artwork)

Items I already own and will keep include:

• Curtains
• Dresser
• Mirror
• Floor lamp
• Boxes
• Accessories
• Small pillows
• Smaller paintings

Of course, I wouldn’t purchase everything all at once. The paint and the sofa would come first. Followed by the rug and the ottoman. I’d work in the smaller accessories over time.

(You can see my previous attempt at a mood board here.)

I was inspired by the light, open, airy feel of the home. All the walls were painted a matte white, the floors were mostly bare wood, and the windows on the first floor didn’t have any curtains or blinds. The drama in the space came from the stunning art that decorated the walls. From framed photos and prints to modern oil paintings, this space had it all. Live gypsy jazz, exquisite food, a creative crowd, and an adorable dog all made for a great party. And yes, I am bragging!

But back to the point… the point is, I was inspired by this home. While my own humble townhouse will never compare, I decided I could borrow a few ideas to inform my own space.

Primarily, I decided to remove some of the small, visual clutter from our first floor, including:

• Taking the books and bookshelves out of the dining room.
• Moving two wicker chairs that competed with the main traffic flow in the living room.
• Swapping out the bookshelves that held the TV for something less “busy.”
• Clearing away the chair and clutter at the entry.
• Plans to lighten up the walls with a matte, pale silvery gray paint.

Here is a before picture of the shelves in the dining room:

And here are a few pictures now:

These two chairs are lovely, but positioned next to our staircase, they were in the way.

Now one lives in the corner by the window and the other lives upstairs in the bedroom.

I was also tired of all the visual clutter surrounding the TV that was sitting on black bookshelves. To make room for the bookshelves in the spare room upstairs, the Mr. and I brought this dresser down for the TV. It’s a bit unexpected, but I actually really like it. And the drawers are great for stashing clutter and stuff to keep the overall look clean and soothing.

I need to move those paintings about an inch higher. Or replace them with something else. I’m considering hanging a floating shelf above the TV, but I haven’t decided for sure yet,

Overall, the downstairs feels much lighter and airier now. It’s also easier to keep clean without all the shelves full-o-stuff. Do you have any tips for reducing visual clutter? Making a home feel more open and airy? Please share in the comment section.