Changes to Our Living Room

Hi Friends!  We've been having a cold, white winter here in Michigan. I joked with a friend recently, who was hibernating like me, that we would just have to skype until Spring, because neither one of us wanted to venture out in this weather! Ha!

The last time I posted pictures of our living room, it was filled with blue and white toile and blue and white porcelain. But recently I decided to change it up and use a lot more neutrals. The nice thing is I didn't spend any money making these changes. They're all things I already had.

Oops! Except the two tables in each corner - they're new since I've posted! (new-used)

I put the jute rug that's been in the family room in here. I like the casual feeling it gives with everything else so romantic and feminine. I also like the neutral color.

I've had this coffee table for a couple of years. I found it at an indoor flea market and chalk painted it to match the end table that's in here.

The little cabinet on the left I found at my favorite used furniture store in Grand Rapids. It had kind of a funny paint job and so I gave it an update with chalk paint. I've moved it around a couple of times but if ends up staying here, I may paint it again. 

I've had a desk in this corner of the room for several years but I've liked this change.

I found this table on Craig's list. It's a reproduction but I love all the beautiful carving and curves. I left the finish and didn't paint it but it sure would be pretty painted to show off all the detail. 

This chaise was in our bedroom for a couple of years but I recently moved it here. I've really enjoyed having it in this room and often sit here in the mornings to read my Bible and drink my coffee. 

Or to enjoy a book in the afternoon. 

I got the art above the fireplace from Joss & Main a couple of years ago but could never find a frame for it. I found this one recently at Hobby Lobby. I've really been in love with these traditional gold frames lately and have been grabbing them when I find them. 

The love seat, chairs and chaise in this room I recovered with drop cloths. They were all bought at different times and had different mismatched fabrics. I unified them with paint and washable drop cloths.

I'm really enjoying the peaceful feel of this room after the busier feeling it had with all the blue and white.

And that's what's so nice about changing a few things. It feels like a whole new room.

I'm getting ready to repaint our family room. It's been a soft blue for several years and I'm going to start painting it "Antique White" by Sherwin Williams today. I'll try to post some of my progress on Instagram.

Have a warm Wednesday!

love and blessings~

"Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God." Matthew 5:8

love seat, chairs and chaise all bought second hand and recovered with drop cloth
coffee table and end table bought second hand and chalk painted
rug - HomeGoods 
fireplace screen - Amazon
pillows - home made
vase on coffee table - Joss & Main
candlestick on coffee table - Tuesday Morning
wooden bowl - HomeGoods
grandfather clock - second hand
art on fireplace - Joss & Main with HobbyLobby frame
gold candlesticks in corner - HomeGoods
mirror- Joss & Main
vase by mirror - HobbyLobby
candleabra - HomeGoods
cement angel - garden store many years ago
basket with wood - HomeGoods

Christmas in the Living Room

Our living room and dining room are really all one room. I kept things simple in here this year since you can see both trees from this room.

I got a new rug this summer at HomeGoods. I originally got it for the family room but didn't like it in there.

When I moved it in here, I loved it! The rug that was in here is in the master bedroom now and I'll show it to you soon.

It's hard to show you a good picture as the rug is very muted. It has a silvery background and medium blue print. I like that it's so subtle and it's very soft. It's thin so I got a rug pad for underneath and now it's plushy. :)

I also got another fireplace screen. I moved the one that was in here to the family room and put the new one in here.

All of our evergreen is faux. My husband has severe allergies and real evergreen in the house makes him feel bad.

My little desk in the corner is the perfect spot to address Christmas cards.

I stashed all my Christmas wrapping paper in this corner to get it out of the way and then I liked it here!

I'll be back soon with our entry way! Have a wonderful week!

love and blessings~

"Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. And behold an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid."  Luke 2

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Ticking and Toile and a Photo Shoot with Romantic Homes!

Hi Friends!

Sorry to be gone for SO long! There's honestly been so much going on and I just haven't taken the time to blog it. I will try to catch up!

Staci Dumoski, the editor of Romantic Homes magazine, contacted me a couple of months ago and asked if I would be interested in them sending a photographer to our house for a photo shoot. When I quit screaming, I sent back a very dignified, "Yes! Of course!" Ha!

Now I don't know about you but when you think pictures of your home might be in a magazine, you begin to look around with a very critical eye. Staci told me they planned on photographing our entry, living room, dining room, family room, guest room, master bedroom and possibly the kitchen. (I don't think I've ever had all those rooms looking perfect at the same before!)

About that same time, I spotted a fabric that I loved and that always starts the redecorating process.

So we started by finishing the beams in our living room. (See how we built them here.) We had made the one closest to the dining room and I was hoping for another one by the fireplace. My husband has been so sweet! We now have two beams!

Staci requested that the ottoman be back in the living room and the two chairs be in front of the fireplace. That left a bare wall so we moved our grandfather clock into the room and I love it there! It has been in the entry but now it's found a new home. Thanks, Staci!

I made several pillows with the new blue toile and recovered the back of the blue chair (again!) You can see how I do that here.

I love this fabric! The pattern is stitched on ~ not printed. I got both the fabric and the tassel fringe at warehousefabrics.

I also made a couple of pillows out of a blue and white ticking that I got at warehousefabrics.

This little ottoman that's been in the entry got recovered with the new toile fabric too.

For those of you who have been following along, I got all my doors and frames painted. They flow well with the beams and faux rustic wood.  I love the way our new beam looks as you enter the room.

I finally figured out what to do with my little blue and white stand. I got all three of these pieces; the stand, the bowl and the topiary frame, at HomeGoods. This is my new favorite thing! Wait. Maybe my beams are my new favorite thing...or the toile...

Our photo shoot is Tuesday. I'll take lots of pictures of the photographer taking lots of pictures and post them.  I'll also be posting them on instagram.

My son arrives from Boston the evening of the photo shoot and is staying with us for a week. During that week, we'll be celebrating two of our grandchildren's birthdays! Rhynn will be four and Lucas will be one! There's a BIG party in the works! :)

Then before our son leaves, the contractors will be arriving to start the demo on our master bathroom!

So my brain is in a bit of a whirl and I'm a little tired. I'll be cleaning madly tomorrow and running around picking up fresh flowers and a few other little things for the photo shoot.

I'll be back soon to show you the new slipcovers and seat covers I made out of the same ticking and toile in the dining room and the other changes I made for Romantic Homes.

Thanks to the thoughtful ladies that sent me emails and messages checking on me during my absence. You made me feel so loved! I am so blessed.

Love and blessings~

"Behold, I will set your stones in turquoise, and your foundations I will lay in sapphires. I will make your summits of rubies and your gates of crystal, and your entire wall of precious stones."

Isaiah 54:11,12

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How To Make Faux Beams

I love rustic beams. I have been bugging suggesting to my husband that we put beams in our living room and family room for years. When I finally painted the existing beam in our living room, that was covered in drywall, to look like wood, he agreed that we could add some more details.

I wanted our beams to do this...

I didn't know what to call it so I showed a picture to my husband.

He never said a word. He just disappeared into the garage and I thought he was cleaning up from what we had just finished. When I went out to check on him, I found him making these!

He mitered the sides so that they fit together perfectly and so that they looked like solid beams.

He reinforced them.

And put the lid on them!

He then delivered them to me to be painted. I wanted to paint them so that they would match the faux wood treatment I'd already done in here.

We had already gotten boards that matched the width of the beam on the ceiling. He attached them to the wall...

using big bolts that we pre-painted black.

We did the same thing on the opposite wall - added a board down the wall and attached our faux beam. The black bolts tie in with the black gate hinges on the shutters.

Now I'm bugging  suggesting to him that we need another one on the other side of the room!

We've also recently added some wood trim to hallways and I hope to add some to the wall with the mirror. And I've almost gotten all of our doors painted and will show them to you soon!

You can see more pictures of this room on yesterday's post.

love and blessings~

"Behold, I will set your stones in turquoise, and your foundations I will lay in sapphires. I will make your summits of rubies and your gates of crystal, and your entire wall of precious stones."

Isaiah 54:11,12

I''m joining these linky parties:

diybydesign
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addisonmeadowslane