Anyway...God really has given me so many opportunities this past month to do what I love to do. My neighbors staging, my parents living and dining room redo, and then my sweet friend from church asked me if I would come over to her house and help her change around her family room. All totally different types of tasks, one to help sell a house, one spending money and repurposing by painting for a whole new look, and then this one, just moving and removing items to make her room more user friendly. This is her room before (yeah!!!! Carol actually remembered to take a before).
I have to say, I have never been to her house before, so have never seen the room until the moment I walked in. It was kind of cool to experience that. My mind just started to process, think, wonder, plan...FUN!!! I started our time together, by first listening to her. What does she DO in this room, where is her favorite spot to be in it, what other functions does this room have. What are the trouble spots or things that just aren't working for her in the room. The biggest thing was there was just too much furniture in the room, making it feel smaller. But, her family gathers there, so we needed to leave much of it in the room. Another issue, there just isn't enough light. Also, a craft table that she uses, has become her "catch all" place. I assured her we ALL have one of these places in our homes, mine is my breakfast bar! We talked and I bounced some ideas off her and then told her I just need to start moving things - it's easier to see if an idea is going to work or not. You can see the before and then after pics to see what all we did.
A few things were: removing one of the bookshelves from the room. The other one, we removed the backing of it to let the taupe paint on the walls show through to really highlight her stuff and to update the look. We moved that bookshelf to the back wall and flanked the 2 chairs around it. The chair on the left is her "spot" to read, craft etc. So we shopped the house and brought in a great floor lamp to place behind her chair. We also placed a smaller antique table that was hiding in the corner before, by the othter chair with yet another lamp for that side of the room. We replaced her beautiful (but too big for the space) trunk she was using for a coffee table and again shopped the house and found a smaller one that we left on its side. This takes up less visual space in the room. We changed some artwork around, staged her items on the bookcase and temporarily hung curtain she bought on the existing rod. I think floor length panels actually make your room look bigger than just having a valence. They also make the room look more cozy and current. Well, I am rambling now. Here is the after pic. I had great fun doing this for her and she is happy with how the room turned out. Oh, yeah, about her craft table. I suggested she get her son to make her a fold down table that can mount to the wall with door hinges, it can fold up to do her crafts, but she can drop it down against the wall to hang so it can't be her Catch all place anymore :)It will also free up more space when her family comes over!
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