Our house is the very opposite of an open floor plan. We have one of those random rooms that you can’t really call a living room, but you can’t really call it a den. We call it a sitting room, unless we are drinking whiskey in it, then we call it the parlor (in a really bad English Aristocrat accent). Here’s the listing pic of the room:
Those curtains make me crazy. And no blinds?! Nuts.
The floors were pretty bad, so we replaced them with some vinyl plank flooring and painted the walls in Sculptor’s Clay by Behr.
After:
We had the smaller Mersman side table when we moved in and the very next weekend a neighbor had a garage sale and had a matching one for sale. Score!
The vintage chair belonged to my grandmother and was one of my keep-it-for-myself reupholstery projects. It’s not the greatest job, but its on the list of re-dos. Again.
The trunk coffee table belonged to my great-great grandfather. I added casters and had some thick glass cut to set on top. If you saw my vintage guest room makeover, you know I’m fully stocked with vintage and antique hand-me-downs that I just can’t get rid of.
I love curtains. Curtains can make or break a room. I’m a hang-em-at-the-ceiling and puddle-em-at-the-floor kinda girl. You can see the difference it makes when you compare this next image to the before pic. Huge.
The thing in between the windows is an old radio I picked up at Woodstock Antique Market.
And clearly I need to clean underneath it. It still works, though. And listening to a hip hop station on this thing is the weirdest thing ever.
The white love seat was my Moms and she had it recovered. Ya’ll, its red and white plaid with toile pillows. I can’t. So glad she had it recovered. And, since it’s white, it’s obviously the hound’s favorite place to dry off after a rainstorm.
The china hutch belonged to my great uncle and is my favorite piece of furniture ever. It’s got some veneer chippage, but.. love.
I begged for this thing forever, but was only allowed to have it when I was an “adult”. Rules are so dumb.
Across from the china cabinet is another piece that belonged to my great uncle…
…and contrary to the milk paint fad, I would NEVER paint this baby. Never.
I framed my great great grandfather’s brand records and hung them above the sideboard. The colors were just too perfect for this room to leave the papers in a box somewhere.
I styled up the couch with some throw pillows and a fat Basset…
and the end tables are chillin’ with some of my grandmother’s old school books…
…and one of my grandfather’s old cameras…
This room is right off of the entryway, which was also not so pretty when we bought the house….
The entryway before:
The stairs weren’t carpeted but the wood was unfinished. There was a small place on the landing where there was carpet, but it looked like someone had just ripped the carpet up and added some unfinished molding to the steps.
This room was also painted in Sculptor’s clay, the boob-light fixture was replaced, all trim was painted a bright white and we had the stairs carpeted. I know that’s not the most popular decision, but we had our fat Basset Hound in mind and wanted to make it easy on his old-man hips and keep him from slipping when going up or down the stairs. They’re a pain to vacuum, but if the hound isn’t happy, no one is happy.
The red table is a piece my Mom refinished.
Entry before:
After:
With the exception of the carpeted stairs, all of the changes here were pretty simple. Paint and a new light fixture make a huge difference in space.
Yes, those are fake apples. Judge me.
Another before:
And after:
We almost didn’t get this house. I mean, as first impressions go, this one isn’t the greatest:
But I’m so glad we got it because it’s amazing what curtains and paint can do for a room. Even if we hadn’t replaced the flooring and carpeted the stairs, those simple changes would have still made a huge impact on this space.
So, if you’re in the market for a new house and you come upon something truly hideous and only a little bit smelly, close your eyes real tight and imagine what you can do with the space.
If you’re trying to sell a house, a fresh coat of paint makes all the difference in the world for those people who can’t see anything different when they close their eyes real tight. I mean, this house was on the market for two years before we bought it. I’m glad we got it, but I don’t think it would have sat for so long if the sellers had made it irresistible.
So, there’s our new sitting room. We sit here.
Come over, bring whiskey, we’ll parlor it up.
dena@heartsandsharts.com
Very nice, you made it feel so cozy amd comfortable. I just painted a table for my daughter in a very similar color red . Love that shade of red and Love all the antiques and vintage decor.
Thank you, Debbie!
You did a fabulous job on this room, but most of all, love how you told the story. You invite your reader right into your home and don’t leave out a detail. Great blog, great tour.
Awwww, thank you, Renee!
Wow, looks gorgeous! It’s hard to imagine from a listing picture sometimes how a room could look beautiful with your own stuff. You’ve done a great job!
Tania
Thank you so much, Tania! 🙂
Love! My fave part is the leather strapped books. Well done! 🙂
Thank you, Emily! 🙂
I love absolutely every teeny-tiny detail of this room Dena! That china hutch – you ain’t kiddin’. That thing is spectacular! I want to come root around in your antiques and take some home, k? 🙂
The artwork over the sofa and hutch…the books…the trunk! LOVE.IT.ALL. I’m about to redecorate my dining room and you have given me some awesome inspiration. Thanks bunches!!
Oh, and the whole fat-basset-hound-old-man-hips-thing? We have a fat ol’ lady basset named Daisy…slower than molasses going up the stairs. Grunts the whole way. Awesome-sauce. LOL!
Thank you so much, Kristin! That makes me smile! Glad you got some inspiration from it, love hearing that!
Ohmygoodness! Aren’t bassets the best? Howard makes noise going up the stairs, too, but it mostly comes from the back end.
Love the room and staircase. I have wanted an antique 1920’s- 1940’s radio that works, but can’t find one that isn’t too expensive, to go in my book room (I don’t call it a library because it isn’t that big!). My husband and I say we don’t know what our “style” is. We decided if we like we buy it! 🙂
Thanks, Shana! I think “if we like, we buy it” is a fool proof strategy for decorating your home. Also, if you aren’t far from Woodstock, the guy I got this radio from was really trying to get rid of an older one he had. It was a PhilCo and super cool.
It looks gorgeous! I love that you have so many antique heirlooms. And how lucky that your neighbor was selling a table to match the one you already had! Awesome.
Thank you so much, Erin! We (I) didn’t want this house and then after moving in and buying that table next door, I was like, “Ohhhhhkay. This is my sign. We are exactly where we need to be.” God is in everything. Even garage sales. 🙂
I am bringing the whiskey!! The area looks great and I love all the personal pieces from your families history!
Yesssss! I’ll make a cheese plate! Thank you, Sarah!!!
I think you have great taste in furniture. I feel like you choose all the ‘right’ vintage stuff in your rooms. And even better that it is real and memorable.
Awww, thank you, Eska!!!
The room looks beautiful! I love to see how you mix styles…and it works! It helps me to see that my plan of mixed styles for our living room can totally work. I also love how you’ve honored your family’s history in your decor. Beautiful decor is great, but it’s even better when it has meaning!
I didn’t think a mid-mod chair and radio would work with the antiques, but honestly, I just said “screw it, I have no where else to put this stuff!” I think as long as the colors coordinate, it gives it a cohesive look. At least I hope that’s the trick. 😉 Thank you, Rachel!!
Awesome! I love all the vintage pieces and the stories of who they originally from. Talk about a home with meaning. Wow! Glad to hear you didn’t shart yourself during this project.
Hhahahah! Thanks, Hong! You and me both!
Your sitting room looks gorgeous! I love all the furniture. Excellent combination. I could certainly sit there all day long! Best wishes, Julie
Thanks, Julie!! 🙂