Midwestern Project Reveal: Living Room

We are so excited to reveal the Living Room of our parent’s new home. As you walk through the front door past the dining room, you enter the great room/main living area.

This is the place our parent’s plan to entertain guests and relax in the evening. Our mother envisions sitting here on a cold winter day, reading a book, and enjoying the fireplace with a cup of hot chocolate. We kept that in mind when designing this space.

Please join us as we walk you through their beautiful room.

Room Details

Our mother loves a cozy, inviting, and elegant space. Her home reflects her two favorite locations for decorating inspirations. You can read about why she chose to go with the southern charm of Georgia and details of Middleburg, VA in her new home (HERE).

We carried her favorite color Sand 6 from Valspar from the dining room throughout this area. The warm color in this room compliments the tall ceilings and still provides an instant cozy feel.

The bamboo blinds continue in this room to add a natural, understated touch.

There is a love-hate relationship between our mother and her brick fireplace. As the focal point of the living room, it was important that she loved it. Her original plan was to tear down the arch at the top and cover it with drywall to reduce the overwhelming look of all that brick. However, with a little persuasion, we came up with the idea to just add a custom mantle to break up all of the brick. The mantle was painted Flint from Restoration Hardware, the same as the antique chairs in the dining room. This was one of the elements we added throughout the house to pull the color from room to room. The elk comes from Pottery Barn and seems to be made for that space. The beautiful clock on the mantle is from Restoration Hardware and is like a piece of art in itself.  The platter is from one of our mother’s Johnston Brothers collection. We believe you should bring your collections and sentimental pieces out of your cabinets and show them off. The candlesticks are from Pottery Barn and add height to balance out the clock on the mantle.  Each piece is elegant, simple, and add just a little subtle detail to not make it look cluttered.

The rug came from Overstock, as a last minute addition, and is our favorite item in the whole room.  It is so versatile and could go with many different styles of decorating.

The coffee table is from a furniture store in St.Louis, MO and is a mixture of different wood with ornate legs. A tip for adding an interesting detail in a room is to add an ornate piece of furniture with a simple piece of furniture.

We found the oatmeal chairs at a local furniture store and they help to lighten up the darker space. The use of different chair styles adds variety to the room.

For the curtains, the beautiful houndstooth fabric is from Nell Hill’s in Kansas City, MO. It is such a versatile fabric that can be mixed with so many different styles and colors.

The antique civil war cabinet came from a local antique store and was painted black to give it an updated look. There is something so neat about the juxtaposition of an old piece next to a new modern one. It also adds character to a newer home and gives it a collected look. The cabinet was filled with a collection of pictures, books, and an old riding hat.

The fox hunting picture added that detail from Middleburg, VA and was found at The Porch in Wildwood, MO. Some great advice is to mix high and low pieces. Spend a little more on a chair you will be sitting in daily and try to save on accessories.  You can find so many great deals at HOME GOODS.

On the coffee table, we used a wood tray found at Nell Hill’s in Kansas City, MO and layered it with some of our mother’s favorite things. A coffee table can house a collection of your favorite pieces, just mix and match. The items don’t even have to make sense as long as the proportions are right.

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The term “pillow fanatic” is an understatement in all of our homes.  One advice is to ditch the throw pillows that come with your sofa.  It’s best to start with a blank canvas and use new pillows as an accessory to pull a whole room together or tie multiple rooms to a common color theme.  Just play around with them, and you will be amazed! These pillows were found at Pottery Barn and Nell Hill’s in Kansas City, MO.

For that tricky space by the staircase, a vignette was a perfect solution. It instantly becomes a reading area or extra seating for guests.

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Our mother’s reaction to her living room was just what we were hoping for.  She is waiting for snow, a fire in the fireplace, and the cool weather of autumn or early winter to curl up on her sofa with a good book.  She loved that, despite the large open room with tall ceilings, it still has a cozy feel. Knowing her vision was accomplished was the best compliment and we look forward to helping with the rest of her house.

Thanks for joining us on the tour of our parent’s living room. If you haven’t checked out their dining room, reveal you can view it (HERE). Check back soon for details on how to get this look.

 

 

 

 

 

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