Before and After: Great Room

Our living room is 99% of the way to being done so I thought it was time to post some “Before and After” shots.  It’s more likely to be “After-ish” as I will likely swap things out and change things as time goes on.

Here is what the living room looked like before. 

Before Picture

Another Before Picture.  Dining area is in the rear of the photo.

Original Owner

The older gentleman you see in one of the pictures was actually the original owner. He and his late wife had the house custom designed and built in 1965 so I’m sure there was part of him that was sad to leave.  He was moving in with his “girlfriend”—or whatever you call your significant other when you are in your 80’s.  Lady friend?  They ended up getting married!!  Older people in love are just so cute. (We have gotten to know them a little because we meet them occasionally at neighborhood parties.)  Anyway, enough with the love lives of Octogenarians—back to decorating.

I hated that grass green carpet.  I knew that there were hardwoods underneath from when we toured the house initially.   About 2 seconds after closing I made my husband help me rip it all out (poor guy).  That wasn’t that bad but pulling up thousands of staples was a pain in the butt.  My hand hurt from gripping the needle nose pliers so hard.  And I  think I may have even developed a callous or two!  So sad for a women with a desk job:-)

But it was all so worth it—here is the reveal:

Looking towards the dining area.

Fireplace

Piano wall.

Bar cart found on craigslist.

Original sofa and coffee table.

Swanky:-)

Dining area.  Ikea rug.

Original furniture.  Authentic Saarinen table.

Buffet found on Craigslist.  Artwork by me.

Looking towards living area.  The screen porch is through the sliding glass doors.

Another view of dining area

As you can see, we bought some of the original furniture from the previous owner.  And we kept it in the same places in the room!  It just goes to show that good design and quality materials are timeless.  It fits perfectly and we love it.  We believe it has all been recovered once because the tags are missing from the sofa.  The upholstery is in great condition.

Here’s what we did:

1.       Tear out carpet to expose hardwoods
2.       Install shoe molding to cover the gap between the hardwood and the baseboard
3.       Paint—and repaint the room
4.       Scrape, glaze, and repaint the windows and trim
5.       Lubricate the sliding glass door

Still to do:
1.       Find art for piano wall

Sources: (most of this was owned, craigslist, or on a budget)
·         Ivory shag carpeting from local carpet dealer—custom sized and bound
·         Black and white carpet  and dining chairs are from IKEA
·         Living Room sofa, chairs, ottoman, and coffee table from  previous owner (vintage)
·         Bar cart—craigslist
·         Dining table--purchased at local furniture store
·         Piano—owned
·         Saarinen table--owned
·         Floor Lamp—Jonathan Adler from Interior Designer
·         Stereo—Geneva Sound L in Walnut
·         Lamp on Piano—Ralph Lauren (owned)
·         Buffet—Broyhill Brasilia—Craigslist (vintage)
·         Lamp on Buffet—vintage  found in retro furniture store
·         Artwork above Buffet—DIY
·         Metal Sculpture above fireplace—reproduction C. Jere
·         Owl Sculpture on fireplace—Jonathan Adler
·         Other art accessories—owned or found via estate sales or thrift stores
·         Throw pillows--etsy