Hi friends! I have a really special post for you today. I am taking part in The Inspired Room Tour with Melissa Michaels of the blog The Inspired Room.

I met Melissa for the first time back in September on my most recent trip to NYC for The Better Homes and Gardens Stylemaker Event. I instantly adored her and we had a wonderful evening dining together after the event with Kate, Jennifer, Darlene, Laura, and Emily. I felt an instant connection with her. She is exactly what you would expect by reading her blog. Kind-hearted, intelligent, and down to earth.

That’s why I am so thrilled to be sharing my room as part of her tour today in honor of her new book titled The Inspired Room. It releases November 1st and I have read it and you guys are in for a treat! (You can pre-order it HERE.) It is full of ideas on how to create a home you love no matter your budget using what you have. It has tons of ways for you to get creative to make your home one you love. She shares DIY ideas and plans of action to get you started.

The-Inspired-Room-a-new-coffee-table-book-Simple-Ideas-to-Love-the-Home-You-Have

Melissa asked each one of us to share a room in our home that we love and the projects and inspiration that shaped it. I am sharing with an amazing group of home bloggers today and you can blog hop to each of their blogs to read about their rooms at the end of this post.

MY INSPIRED ROOM

the secrets of this space

The obvious choice for me is my living room. So today, you get to hear all the details and projects that shaped this room into my favorite space in our home.

We bought the home I grew up in. I’ve seen the good, the bad, and the ugly happen in this house. It’s gone through changes over the years that I saw firsthand.

Once we decided to buy it, I threw all those images out. It wasn’t us at all the day we moved in, but the home possessed things that I have always been fond of. The original hardwoods, the two wood-burning fireplaces, original plaster mouldings, and a little dose quirkiness. It had bits and pieces going on. Those are things I chose to focus on and replicate throughout our home. Today, I’m taking you on a tour of our living room and how we made it reflect our style and family.

THE COLOR STORY

We’ll start with the colors…I didn’t know right away what I wanted for this space. We experimented with a couple different colors before landing on the white, black, and gray. This room set the tone for the rest of our renovations. This is the basis of most the rooms I plan for our home because it really is what I love most. Black and white interiors are classic and timeless. They allow you to change pattern and color on whim. Recently, I felt really inspired by a NYFW runway image and it shaped the fall look in my living room.

I knew that with my head always on design that changes are always going to happen, so I wanted a room that could accommodate those urges.

This space is one of the first rooms we completed and it took some time and patience to get it right. It became the foundation for the rest of our remodeling. The colors, the hardwoods, the Carrara marble and gold accents we’ve tied into our other rooms.

One project I get most asked about is our DIY stenciled wall. A lot of people think it is wallpaper, but it is just a painted pattern. It’s so easy to do and it adds interest to a blank wall. The wall tells you what to expect once you walk into the living room. It is also seen from the living room so it is important to have it work with the adjoining rooms.

SEE OUR DIY STENCILED WALL TUTORIAL HERE

THE FIREPLACE

One of my fondest memories growing up are the nights spent by the fire. I’ve grown up trained to love a wood-burning fireplace. My mom always made the holidays a really special time and did it up big. The fireplace was always a part of that. I have so many warm memories of those times. One of the things I loved most about buying this house was the opportunity to give those times to my kids. Christmas at our house is a very special time and I like to do it up big too.

Our fireplace was one of our first DIY projects. We took the outdated stone fireplace and turned it into a modern traditional beauty. We painted the stone, built a mantel, and tiled the surround in Carrara marble. I added the Greek key to give it some more detail. It is one of my most favorite things about our home. You have to have a mantel to hang stockings on, right?

SEE OUR DIY FIREPLACE MAKEOVER HERE

THE LIBRARY WALL

The long wall opposite our large windows was a blank canvas. D and I really wanted music piped in this room and a place to store our books and mementos. The idea hatched to work all those things into a library wall. We took Ikea Billy bookcases and made them look built-in and even added lights on remote with built-in speakers and a sound system. The bookcases hold our family photos, art from our kids, our favorite books, and hunted treasures and mementos from trips. It is more than just a wall of shelves but a place that holds our memories. This year, I added grasscloth to the back to add more texture and depth.

DIY LIBRARY WALL WITH IKEA BOOKCASES

THE MIX

I wanted this space to be a mix of all the styles I love. It had to be comfortable for sitting and watching television. With that in mind, I’ve found a way to work that into the room but not scrimp on style. You can have beautiful spaces and still really live in a space. I am a firm believer in the fact that an amazing standout room is curated over time.

As a family, we all enjoy hunting flea markets, thrift stores, resale shops, you name it! Our boys are both collectors and we’ve rubbed off on them that way. It’s an activity we do as a family that is a lot of fun for all of us. Our boys learn history as we explore and they have a keen eye for quality and value now.

My furniture is a mix of old and new. High-end and thrifted pieces. One thing I didn’t try to thrift was our sofa. A sofa can make or break a room and I splurged on one that I loved that is made really well. The chairs are mid-century and I found them in one of my favorite shops for cheap. The bamboo credenza is vintage Thomasville and I painted it and restored the hardware. The accent tables are all thrifted finds that were great as-is or I gave them a facelift. I look for marble, caning, bamboo, and metal work in accent tables. The bar cart was found in an antique mall and was a bargain. I still was holding tight to my pocket-book and didn’t want to spend the money. D surprised me with it for Valentine’s Day. All these furniture pieces are different eras and styles but they all work to create a thoughtful and interesting space. Scale matters and quality is most important when shopping for used furniture to bring into your home.

MY TIPS FOR SHOPPING AND BUYING VINTAGE FURNITURE

ALL IN THE DETAILS

Our living room is the hub of our home. I am not one of those people who wants to live in a museum where no one can touch anything. I scotch guard my white sofa regularly, and have no worries about spills. I know a white sofa may scare you, but it sure does keep you honest! It’s amazing how easy it is to clean and I’d rather know if stuff is on it than have stains hide.

I buy high-end decor and thrifted accents and use them all together…It is just stuff. It may get broken or trashed. It’s all replaceable. I love what I love and like my surroundings to showcase that. Your home should be a reflection of what you find beautiful and interesting. As far as living with kids goes if they break something it can always get replaced. My son plays with our brass animals, pillows become forts, and furniture gets jumped on. I wouldn’t have it any other way. A home can be beautiful and family friendly.

With that said, I really think the details make the design. They add that extra needed layer of interest and beauty.

I love art and my son is also a gifted artist. We have an appreciation for paintings and sculpture. We mix art and life into our home. Plants and flowers; sculptures and paintings. I splurge on a few key pieces that I really, really love and we hunt for the rest on one of our thrifting adventures.

When it comes to the details, I’ve learnt over the years what I am willing to DIY and what is worth paying for. Through trial and error, I’ve learned some good techniques for painting and restoring furniture. I can recover simple things like ottomans and chair seats easily. I’ve even painted my own curtains and make smaller decor pieces when the mood strikes.

Here are a few samplings of smaller DIY projects in this space:

MY LIVING ROOM DIY PROJECTS

Bamboo Credenza Makeover with Oil-based Paint

The Crock Pot Method: Removing Paint from Brass Hardware

Painting Abstract Art with Kids

Mondrian-Inspired Paper Cut Out Art

Painted Border Curtains

Stacked Wood Block Candlesticks

Vintage Arrow Table Makeover with Mirror Glass Spray

Gold Leaf Agate Slice Coasters

Grasscloth Backed Bookcases

It’s been almost 3 years working in this space in between other home projects, but we have it pretty much how we like it. This room welcomes people into our home. It sets the flow for the rest of the house. It has become our most loved room to date.

I’m not sure if it will stay #1 because the kitchen renovation we are working on is quickly gaining my favor! We have 3 weeks left on that renovation and let me just share that a kitchen renovation puts the rest of your home in turmoil!!

Just look! Oi vey…

I snapped that Sunday after church. Yep, that’s my youngest eating his lunch on the floor while watching The Wizard of Oz. We have toys scattered, food in boxes, a coffee maker in our living room and supplies EVERYWHERE.

We’ve had 5 weeks of shipments collecting and kitchen furniture arriving all while we need the space empty for the contractor to work during the week. I haven’t cooked a meal or washed a dish. I’m actually missing it! I am going a bit nuts with the clutter, but when I look at the progress so far in the kitchen, I know that a few weeks of crazy will all be worth it to have another space we will use and love…and just in time for the holidays too!

(Every Friday, I post a kitchen renovation update here on B@H if you want to see the progress.)

I’m so glad I could share all the details of our living room with you today. A lot of time and thought went into that space.

Now, who’s ready for a GIVEAWAY!?!