Reveal! Living Room Part 1

We love our new house. Love. it. When we house-hunted, I almost didn't even look at this home due to the crazy paint colors and kitchen. But once we started actually looking, we quickly realized this home was the only one with a finished basement in our price range. As a bonus, it had a 5th bedroom, a bigger yard, and more square footage than any other home for the same price. The only problem was the decor. Ugh. Wallpaper, blue counters and ugly linoleum in the kitchen, horrid paint colors. We did the math: upgrade kitchen floor & counters + paint the whole house definitely cost much less than having to finish the basement! Besides, even if we had bought the other house in the neighborhood (smaller yard, smaller square footage, unfinished basement, below-grade basement, but had granite countertops, new carpet, and neutral paint) we would still want to paint and make it our own. So, now that we've had a couple months to settle in, have unpacked all the boxes, and said goodbye to all our summer company, it was time to paint!

First off, a reminder of what we started with (taken when we first walked through the house):

RED! And gold-lettered alphabet. And yes, that is a fake swan on top of the hutch. Can you say time warp?

And check out this train wreck! Who sprays a crackle finish on the fireplace?

Time for a makeover! We stuck to my favorite white "Powdered Snow" from Behr. And the new paint color is "Castle Path", also Behr. We painted three coats to cover the off-white trim (ugh, it's everywhere), and it took two coats of primer and three coats of paint (after a good sanding) to cover the crackle on the fireplace. The walls took two coats of paint, and ta-da!!!!

Love it!!! We have yet to hang the mirror. :) We keep the couch moved away from the wall a bit, or it just looks like a giant room with a coffee table plopped in the middle. Things to note: need to make curtains like this, out of these:

It's a dropcloth! I've read about people using them for sewing projects and I'm sold! The entire 12'x15' cloth cost $30, roughly $2/yard. That is a steal when you need to make 8 full length drapes. I'll hang them on this. I'm considering stenciling them, but I'm not sure yet. I also would like to add this above the fireplace.

This chair is in desperate need of a slipcover. Again, I'm considering using a dropcloth. I'll also slipcover the ottoman. How sweet is my $5 yellow stool/side table?

As for the couches, they are still in wonderful shape, but need a quick cleaning, I'll try to get to it soon. I want to switch out the pillows to more of this color scheme, and I'm on the hunt for just the right fabrics (I wouldn't mind these exact ones!)

The door will be part of a gallery wall. We also have space back there for a sofa table of some sort that will eventually hold a couple lamps.

On to tv wall.

We watch tv from our computer. We cancelled our cable in January and run an HDMI cord from the computer to the tv. We saved enough $$ by cancelling satellite, that we've recouped the cost of the tv and then some! Anyway, it's relevant b/c we have to run a cord from one side of the living room where the computer is, over to the tv. I am SO excited to use my favorite yard sale find ever for the tv stand. I finally fixed up the drawers and sprayed a coat of polyurethane on it to keep the paint from chipping.

Notice the cords on the right? We need to either paint or hide them in some trim. Computer wallpaper art done by Regan. ;) Love our coffee table too ($40 at the ReStore). I need to stain the top darker and re-paint it to a creamy white.

The bookcases are Ikea and I love them.

We do have this problem of the huge space above the bookcases/tv. Any suggestions? Art is pretty expensive, a gallery wall would be pretty cluttered, I was thinking something architectural (salvaged windows, etc)? I'm open to suggestions!

The computer is now in what used to be the tv hutch. It's in the invisible corner. Seriously, the previous owners had a piano in this corner and I almost didn't notice it. You can't see it from the kitchen, and now the computer has a good view of the tv (helpful when starting shows). And it uses the dead space behind the couch.

Here's how it looks with the hutch open. We need to install the cord covers that will run along the wall.

Soon-to-be gallery wall, and home to dropcloth curtains. Also, need to paint my cool side table ($10 Restore).

Like our duct tape solution? LOL! We need to run the HDMI cord from the computer to the tv. We got this piece of trim from the ReStore for only $5 (it would have been $25 at Home Depot). We plan on attaching it to the step up to the kitchen and running the cord behind it.

Where the computer used to be. And also, a sample of the new light blue kitchen color. We won't be able to re-do the floors or counters until the spring, but just ripping out the wallpaper will be a huge improvement.

Apples and crocks, your days are numbered!