One Room Challenge, Living Room Edition, The Reveal!

If you are stopping by for the first time, welcome! I'm Andrea, and I live in a tiny 1926 Tudor Revival Cottage in a historic neighborhood in Dallas, Texas, along with my husband Maurie and three sweet kitties. Occasionally our daughter comes up from Austin and hangs out with us too :)  You can see my previous One Room Challenge makeovers here, here and here.

This time around, I jumped into the challenge at the last minute with no real design plan. A couple of things were in the works in our living room, but had stalled out due to indecision on my part. #hellokryptonite  At my hubby's urging, I took a deep breath and committed to giving this room a serious refresh, and am I ever happy that I did!

Four years ago I told our daughter that she would come home from college one day to find white walls with bright art and a whole new look. It has taken me several years to embrace this new design aesthetic, but I finally got here (more on this later). Say goodbye to dark and dated, and hello to light, bright and happy! (Click on photos to make them larger.)

 

 

Painting the walls my favorite Behr Ultra Pure White made the world of difference in this room! It didn't come without challenges though. More on this later, also :) 

For the first time ever, I finally bought a rug that is the proper size for our room. The rug is large enough to anchor the furniture and actually helps the small room feel a little larger. You can find it here, and I bought it during one of their 30% off sales. They have sales quite frequently, so it's worth it to hold out if you can wait for a sale.

 

Finding the luscious pink velvety fabric in the red tag clearance at JoAnn Fabrics was easily one of the best scores I have had in a while. It took a bit of cutting and plenty of stitching, but so worth it to have the exact color I wanted. For $33 I was able to cut 8 strips of drapery panel trim, with some leftover to trim out coordinating dining room draperies in the future. I simply sewed strips of the fabric onto these Ritva panels from Ikea, using clear thread.  And again, how lucky am I to have a husband who tolerates, and even likes, pink?!

 

I have been wanting to jump on the blush train, and this pretty fur throw has just enough blushy-pink to play nicely with the vibrant hues of the pillows. I snapped this up at HomeGoods. Fur pillows and white fur throw are from Ross. The plaid silk is vintage, and is bold but strangely seems crazy bright in every photo. 

 

Our Lila girl feels right at home on the pretty fur :)

 

This ginger jar art is my original photo, edited in the Waterlogue app.

 

Here's a copy for you all to save and print :)

 

Fresh, bright white lamp shades have really brightened our room, also! I wish I had done this ages ago. 

 

Once again I have such mixed feelings about the One Room Challenge being over. While it's nice to have our room mostly completed, especially in time for the holidays, the camaraderie that develops while ORC is going on will really be missed. It's certainly one of the greatest experiences I have had as a blogger. Linda, I just can't thank you enough for creating this amazing event!

One of the things I appreciate most about these challenges is the design growth that comes with the process. While this room was just a simple refresh, I pushed myself out of my comfort zone, just like with our Master Bedroom last spring. And also, just like last spring, I can't believe this beautiful room is mine! I feel like the luckiest girl ever. 

In the past I would have been fearful of ordering such a bold rug, and would have agonized for weeks before committing to the drapery trim. Being a part of the energy that is ORC has certainly given me confidence in making new, brave design choices! Working alongside hundreds of bloggers taking design chances, learning new techniques, and pushing themselves to physical limits is both exhilarating and exhausting. And so so worthwhile. 

This wouldn't be complete without major kudos to my husband, the tolerant, open-mind guy who supports my crazy design ideas, stands in line at the fabric store to pick up more of what I should have gotten in the first place, strolls the aisles of flea markets and thrift stores, and just generally loves me no matter what. We make an unstoppable team! 

Thank you all so much for coming by to see my room! It means so much to me to have everyone's support. I so appreciate that you take time out of your day to visit. Mwah!!

Week 7 Designer Reveals are here and Guest Participants here.

Rug from RugsUSA.com; pink faux fur throw from HomeGoods; all blue and white pottery, decorative trays and boxes, garden stool, palm candle sticks from Ross; most other items are vintage/thrifted. 

 

 Joining:

Make It Pretty Monday at The Dedicated House

Inspire Me Tuesday at A Stroll Thru Life

Wow Us Wednesday at Savvy Southern Style

 

Comments

[JaneEllen]

Your room turned out so bright and refreshing, everything looks so pretty and new. Hope you didn't have to wait for 8 yrs. as we did to finally refresh your living room. I had gotten so I really disliked our house til we painted living room and freshened furniture and art. Getting a new to me couch at Habitat didn't hurt either.
The white in your l/r is so fresh and homey, love it all. Love pink accents on curtains, great idea.
We have a small single wide mfg.home so know how living in smaller home feels. When we moved here to western CO was all we could afford but is out in rural area on 1/2 acre. Not city dwellers any more after living on 20 acres in MT and 1 1/2 acres in KY. We like some space around us.
It's so sweet how you talk about your husband, how many years have you been married? Our 49th.anniversary will be end of this month.
You did so well in your ORC. Happy week

[Betty]

I love what you have done. It looks great.

[Stacey]

Andrea, it's beautiful!! I knew it would be. You are THE BEST at mixing colors. The rug is gorgeous and I have considered it myself. The silk pillows add so much to the vibe. Love your art! You did it again. :)

[Jaybird]

Hi Andrea, Well, you knocked another one out of the park!!! This is so fresh and bright and beautiful!! I have to admit that my favorite picture is Miss Lila...she looks sweet and comfy!!
Hope you have a wonderfully blessed Thanksgiving!! I will wait to see what perfection you shower on this room for Christmas :^)
Blessings,
J