our collected living room

After nearly 3 years of tweaking, rearranging, shuffling chairs, plants and window treatments, I can honestly say that I’m thrilled with where we’ve landed in our living room. While the kitchen is usually the center of the home figuratively, this living room is literally the center of ours. It is a large room with multiple doorways, windows and traffic paths so getting the floor plan just right was really important. Originally this room was two small rooms that a previous owner opened up. I’m glad they did.

Form, function and scale were also very important for us. Our house is small and although the rooms are relatively large, there are few of them so each space has to work just right for our needs. The corner by our sliding door always stumped me and I knew it could do better for us.

After months of searching, I found a fantastic antique Victorian secretary desk on Craig’s List. Last winter we brought this stately piece home to finally give purpose to that corner. It was immediately evident that this was what the room needed. It pulls triple duty for us as china cabinet storage, bar and work space. The secretary opens to reveal the perfect little desk that Ryan works at almost daily.

Another game changer was finally pulling the trigger and purchasing just the right sofa which made its debut back around the holidays. The white tufted chesterfield puts a smile on my face everyday and it brightens up the middle of the room. I tend to wonder why I waited so long on this purchase. Probably because it is the only thing, aside from the gifted yellow rug, that is brand new. Nearly everything else in this space was “found, free or flea” which epitomizes my vintage style.

Near the entrance, we were in desperate need of a freestanding closet to function for coat storage. Again, after months of sourcing, I came across just the right scale antique piece. Persistence pays off! We drove about 3 hours to pick this one up and it was well worth the trip. I painted the closet in MMS milk paint Farmhouse White. The old finish resisted the paint just right revealing the perfect chippy texture. Form and function wins again!

Those rugs are possibly my favorite find of all time. That’s a bold statement to make in this room because it’s loaded with favorite finds. They are authentic vintage kilim rugs that I picked up for a song. I will never let them go.

Along with the pair of vintage mohair chairs that I’ve sung the praises of here plenty of times before. I doubt I’ll ever tire of those either.

This room has looked like this for nearly 6 months and I have no immediate plans to change it aside from the occasional accessory or vignette. Famous last words but I think we’ve finally found a happy eclectic mix of vintage/collected/bohemian/farmhouse/jungalow/beachy style. Did I miss anything in that style classification?

Updating this room certainly didn’t happen overnight. First there was the wallpaper which came down immediately and up went creamy off-white paint. Cornerstone by Behr. I’m still happy with this choice years later. Then there was the wood stove installation and slate surround. Next was the flooring which Ryan installed every square foot of. Finally, the furniture finds and accessories which make the house a home.

I’ll leave you with some before and after pictures for good measure. Updates have come in phases but it’s always fun to look back at where we started when we bought this house, frilly curtains included.