Organization
House Tour: Living Room and Planning Center
You know, there is just something about a comfortable, plop down on the couch, furry rug…… living room! Don’tcha think?
Well, I do!
Folks, I can’t think of a more comfy space than the living room in my house. I really wanted it to be this place that was easy to keep clean but also a place where you could do just that…… PLOP! Just come in and sit right down. Kick up your feet and stay a while. Well, not too long, I suppose! LOL!
In order to do that, I knew I was going to have to put things that were easy to wash, were soft, but could also take the abuse that my family would give it.
Yes, I jumped on the white slipped cover “band wagon” . We went to IKEA right before we moved in and bought these couches. BEST DECISION EVA!
I really love how the white is so versatile, yet can be washed if it were to get dirty. When I bought these, I chose to get a second set that was a darker gray. My idea is to switch them out every few months. Hopefully, this will help with the longevity of the slip covers. If not, the good thing is they are not expensive to replace and who doesn’t like a good excuse to go to IKEA, right? 😉
My last couch was a wrap around and we literally had it until it began to dry rot. I am not one who likes to buy a really expensive nice couch when I know my kiddos are probably going to spill something on it , or, like my little man, use it as a trampoline or a base jump spot to dive off of. *What is it going to take to make that KID stop! AHHHHHH! That one is definitely going to be my ER baby!
I yell and yell at my whole family and tell them that we will not be eating or drinking on this AT ALL, but let’s be honest. That is like saying the same thing about a new car. You have really good intentions initially, and then that one day comes where you make the exception and suddenly it goes from looking like this:
to looking like THIS:
Well, hopefully not this bad. I mean, we don’t smoke so we shouldn’t have the cigarette packs and all. 😉
When we first moved in, we only had our fireplace on the wall here. I knew that I wanted to do built ins, so I called Steve Egloff from The Wandering Woodshop who did all the carpentry work in our house and together we came up with plan. He custom designed the built ins to work for my space.
If you notice, the thermostat was put on the wall very close to where I wanted the built ins to go, so made sure the design would work with the position of the thermostat and still look good and symmetrical for the space.
I think he did a fantastic job!
We went with a backing that has an unfinished horizontal boarding. At first, my plan was to white wash the backing, but after looking at for a day, I noticed that the backing was really picking up some of the yellow and tan accents I had in that space so I decided to keep it and I am so happy that I did. It also, to me, has a beach feel and since I have coastal accents in my house, I LOVE IT!
*Reference Purposes: The color of the blue paint that is used on the accent wall is Benjamin Moore’s Labrador Blue. Benjamin Moore’s Revere Pewter is the main color on the wall.
I really love the contrast of the honey tones on the back of the space work so well with the greens and silver.
We went with some of the same hardware that we have used in the kitchen and the baths throughout the house. They are from The Martha Stewart line at Home Depot. They are usually in the store and also in stock.
We went with a lot of the same squared off craftsman style cuts we have used on other detail projects in the house.
It’s really believe it is all in the details, and Steve really takes the time to do that.
On to the thing that was probably one of the biggest reasons we chose this house. For as long as I can remember, I have tried to create a “command center” or area that we can utilize for the kids things or things for the home that require planning. Papers always overflow if they do not have a home. Homework always ends up on the dinner table. I could go on and on……….
BEHOLD!!!!!!
THE PLANNING CENTER!
I am so happy we have this space. It is out of the way at the base of our stairs and holds all the homework items, important papers, and crafting items that one could need.
Everything is nice and hidden behind the cabinet doors and the countertop stays open for the kids to spread their homework out.
I made sure when we were adding electrical outlets, that I added plenty in this space for purposes of charging any phones, tablets, laptops etc. While we are using the cubby areas currently for scratch paper for homework or construction paper for projects and headphones, and staplers……. the first thought we had for the space was “WOW! We that space would be perfect for the tablets and ipods! The ideas are endless !
I decided to put a photo holder in the space for fun memories and and also put an IKEA organizing bar in the corner too. The extra hooks are there to hold up to two more buckets as the need grows to have them.
Even though the light above the space is casting a yellow glow, the granite is actually not that yellow. The color for reference purposes is Santa Cecilia.
Hardware for the space is a mix of Martha Stewart silver knobs and square cup pulls (Special Order) from Home Depot on the lower cabinet area and a glass knobs for the upper cabinets. I couldn’t find them online, but they are always in stock at either Home Depot or Lowes for about $3.50 each.
Probably the best thing about this area of the house is this. You can’t see the mess that might be made behind the wall that it resides behind.
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We have had the Z Marquee Light for a little while now and got this from our good friends at Vintage Marquee Lights. They are awesome!
Well, my dear friends, that is all for today! Thank you so much for spending more time with me as I shared the living room space and planning center area with you today. I hope you were able to get some great ideas that may help you with your own decorating journeys.
If you have some great tips to share, or if you have any questions, please feel free to do so in the comments! I would love to hear from you.
Please check back next week where I share how I turned what might have been a girly office into a shared office space for the hubster and myself! 😉
XOXO,
Esther
Office Makeover
You know those days when you fly away to an exotic destination and forget the mess that you call an office?
Or better yet…… Snap your fingers and it’s clean, organized, and redecorated?????
Then you ACTUALLY WAKE UP and realize that it was all one mean dream? That you aren’t actually about to board a plane to your dream vacation. That you don’t possess magical powers that allow you to snap your fingers and things just fix themselves. No! The reality is that you have to go through every cluttered box you own and piece by piece, organize it!
BLAH!
Well, luckily……… that’s not how I role.
I love looking at organized stuff and my things may have some rhyme or reason to why they are all grouped in one general location, but I am definitely NOT a self professed organizer.
Oh yes, I have very ambitious thoughts from time to time, but then I get distracted by more important things…… like ice cream and chocolate.
I am, however, VERY happy with the way it turned out!
The lighting was hideous the day I tried to take these pics, thanks to all the rain we have gotten.
It’s not completely finished yet. I still have a few things left to do, but for the most part it’s complete.
I wanted more of an open concept than the one I had before. Before, the desk on the right was in the middle of the office, which really cut off the room visually.
I’m still brainstorming with ideas for that open wall above the desk, but nothing concrete yet. I’ll update once I’ve decided.
Also, as you will notice, my lovely hubby still needs to go and finish painting the baseboards. (I’ll do a post soon on how to build up your baseboards for practically nothing!)
I am notorious for painting my ceilings. It gives the room such a custom look. Plus, when you have high ceilings, the height can make your room seem too empty. Painting your ceilings can either give you the illusion of higher ceilings or lower, depending on the color you choose. Painting the ceiling a neutral tan color in this room, really “cozied” it up for me.
Paint colors:
Benjamin Moore’s At Sea – Walls
Benjamin Moore’s Bleeker Beige – Ceiling
High Gloss White – Trim
On the left side of the room is where all the organizational stuff is. I decided to not have any closed storage. This kept things open for me to just grab when I needed. Instead, I chose to go to Target and Homegoods for all my containers and idea boards.
I found the 3 shelf bookcases at Walmart for only $17 each. When it came to the idea boards on top, I almost splurged on Pottery Barn. The thought of spending over $700 on boards that I was going to hang on the wall, made me sick to my stomach, so instead, I went to my trusty ole’ Homegoods store to see what I could find first. I’m so happy I did! Not only did I find something, in my opinion, prettier……… They were far CHEAPER! I only spent $40 on the big one in the middle, and $20 each for the ones on the sides! Woot! Woot!
I felt like the colors were perfect. Lighter is what I was going for. So, when I start to put my ideas on the board, they will really POP!
I am so happy that most stores in general are really starting to amp up their office storage. All the designs are so nice these days. You can find cute stuff everywhere! AND CHEAP!
I got the brown storage boxes and multi colored file box from Target.
The cream colored baskets (set of 3), grey woven boxes (set of 2) from Homegoods.
The black boxes from Walmart.
Pattern file folders from Office Max.
This table was a MUST have! I could see in my mind what I wanted and how I wanted the office to turn out. I just couldn’t find a white pedestal table to go in the middle…….. that I could ACTUALLY afford!
I found plenty online! But they were all a small fortune and I just didn’t want to spend it.
Then, one night when I was searching Target’s website, I found it! Their new line Threshold, had the perfect one. It was so late and I was literally about to go to bed. So, when I saw that it was only $120, I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me! It happened to be on sale because I think it is normally around $150. Plus, if you use your Target red card, which is the Debit card, you get free shipping even if it isn’t supposed to be. Not to mention you get the 5% discount.
I’m in love with it! The great thing is that it is a dining table, so it can double duty as extra eating space if you ever have people over! 🙂
This chandelier was originally meant for the girl’s room at our previous house. I had just bought it when we decided that we were going to sell our home. So, I held onto it hoping that I could find a nice spot for it here. So happy that it worked out for the office. I think it gives it an unexpected chic feel.
I have big plans for these two pieces if I can sweet talk the hubby into it. Two words……. MILK…… PAINT!
I want all the furniture to maintain a lighter look, so that black is driving me crazy………. (PATIENCE ESTHER!)
I picked these cute knobs up at a local gift shop in Pawley’s Island.
I have to say, I REALLY enjoy drinking my coffee in my office now.
Apparently, I’m not the only one! 😉
Happy Saturday Y’all!
XOXOXO!
-Esther
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