Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Living Large

Our living room was the last room to be finished. I was sooo excited when we got all the trim painted and it was finally finished! I had dreamed of having wainscoting with a picture ledge and we finally had it. I didn't have much to put on the ledge at the time so it ended up displaying a few high school art class pieces and a small wedding photo.



The curtains came from Ikea and were $14.99 for the pair. I got the sheers from Ikea as well and they were $4.99 for the pair. I love Ikea! The adorable iron mail holder to the right of the door came from Hobby Lobby. I can't begin to describe how much I miss having a Hobby Lobby now that we have left Alabama! 


This was the view into the hallway before the remodel:


I love the new five panel doors we put in and the cross detail on the columns under the doorway. Dave did a great job building the arches going into the hall!


Our couch came from La-Z-Boy and was purchased when we lived in our apartment. The apartment had a huge living room and the couch is a little oversized for the cottage. It limited us to only this furniture arrangement. We got the chair at the JC Penney outlet for $200. The rug is from Lowe's.


Here is the before photo of the fireplace:


Our new mantel was inspired by The Lettered Cottage. Did I mention that I love that blog!


Before, the fireplace had some very uneven red tile in the bottom and it had sunk about an inch lower than the hardwoods on the right side. Dave broke up some of the tile, leveled the area, and we laid down Brazilian black slate tile. 


And once again, I love our pocket doors!


It took a long time and a lot of work to get here but it was totally worth it!










Stuff and Nonsense


Chic on a Shoestring Decorating


12 comments:

  1. Everything is just gorgeous! Serene, welcoming, and those pocket doors are to die for! You guys are really doing an amazing job transforming your home and yet keeping so much of the charm and character. :-)
    Vanessa

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  2. Love the pocket doors. Thinking about doing that with my closet. Were they hard to put in?

    Oh and to answer your question on the stairs - it depends. There were pine treads under my carpet but they didn't cut with any precision and there are large gaps on the sides. So, I will have to replace the treads. Thinking I'll just get pine since they only cost $10 a tread at Lowes. Oak is twice the amount. Plus, I like the distressing pine would bring me. You likely have pine or mdf under your carpet if it's a newer home.

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  3. The whole room is gorgeous! You must be really enjoying it!

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  4. Of course, pocket doors are easy if you put them in while your house is being built. They're pretty tough to do if you're remodeling. You'll need a door width of extra wall space for the door to slide into (this is intuitive, but it does eliminate the possibility sometimes). Pay special attention to any outlets/wiring/plumbing that you know or suspect might be in the wall. That's another deal-breaker. Expect the following (if all goes well):

    - Pulling off the sheetrock on both sides of the wall, floor to ceiling, for that extra door width
    - Bracing the ceiling as necessary
    - Removing studs and existing header beam above the door
    - Installing a new (probably larger) header beam that is just over two door-widths long and associated jack studs
    - Installing the pocket door hardware (we bought our kit from Johnson Hardware (http://johnsonhardware.com/pdindex.htm)
    - Hanging the door and replacing the sheetrock

    Read up on it a lot more to get a better feel. It's a great solution to a cramped space, but it is a lot of work to retrofit a pocket door, especially since you'll be tampering with the structure of the house. Definitely do it if it doesn't seem too daunting! Good luck!

    Dave

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  5. Absolutely gorgeous! I love everything you did, the wainscoting, ledges, mantel it just looks beautiful!

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  6. Your Home is Beautiful, so Peaceful.... Welcome Spring

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  7. What a transformation! You truly brought some great elements to what looked like an already quaint cottage- I love what you've done.

    -Jami
    An Oregon Cottage

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  8. Hey there! Just coming back over to say thank you for linking up your gorgeous living room to Inspiration Friday this week! :-)
    Vanessa

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  9. i don't need to tell you how much i miss having a hobby lobby nearby...you are a lucky girl...and the rooms looks amazing...light, airy, beautiful...thanks for sharing on fridays unfolded.

    blessings,

    alison

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  10. I just found the photos of your living room at My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia and I had to stop by your blog. Your room looks so wonderful! I'm trying to find inspiration for my family room updates, and I love the clean lines of your room. I also really like the wicker trunk and the pocket doors are incredible. I'm your newest follower.

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  11. Your living room is gorgeous! Saw it on Pinterest. I am looking to do board and batten in my living room and the height you did yours at is perfect. Would you mind telling me what height (or ratio) you did yours at? It kind of looks like half way up the wall, but then again maybe a little higher? Thanks! :)

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