The Living Room- Before and After...

I finished painting and bedecking the living room. Come on in and see what's new!
Actually, let's revisit the "old" living room pictures first.
(I wish I could figure out how to post my before and after shots side by side for a more intense viewing experience.)

Here we have the outer crust of the room as seen from the front entry of the house. Note the wood-colored trim.

Other side of the wall adjacent to the hall that leads to Cora's door. Got it? =)


The curtains left by the previous homeowners.




Murky brown walls combined with an unappealing pumpkin hue in the kitchen= no thanks!



Yeah, this is the same angle from the first photo. Above is before...


Below is after...

It's all green now! I love it. It's amazing how much difference paint colors make in the whole feel of an area.
I painted the walls surrounding the outside of the room a slightly darker shade (asparagus) than the walls inside the room (celery sprig). I knew I wanted a cheery color, and since the day we moved in I was envisioning green.

I had to paint the other side of the hall a cream color since the existing taupe wall didn't flow very well with the greens. Trust me, it didn't.

I'm bummed my camera doesn't do the actual color justice! I tried in all kinds of light, and none of it yielded what my eyes see in person. Oh well.

I painted the mantel and the woodwork around the half walls white. It all looks so bright and happy now.


After I painted, I found the two floral canvases that looked like they were destined for my living room. They have all the right colors and I really like them. It's difficult to tell, but the leaves on the corners of the art are almost the same as the color of my walls! Also, flowers are the BEST!

I've since taken down the spherical brown vase and put that black flower ball on the right in its place. It looks a little less cluttered that way. I've arranged and rearranged the stuff on the mantel over and over, and I can't decide what looks "right". I guess that's the beauty of mantel decor. It can be changed easily and as often as necessary.

See how much better it looks without the curtains?

I got the table on the left at a consignment store for $30, but it was a worn out wood color, so I spray painted it. It wasn't a super bargain, but it was a good deal to me because it's unique. It has two drop leaves. When they're folded down, the top of the table is a triangle - perfect for holding a very large slice of pizza.

The table on the right had been left for dead in the backyard by the previous owners. I dragged it into the garage some time after we moved in to freshen it up a bit. It was already white, but it had rust on the wrought iron top and the paint was chipped heavily. All I did was sand it down and apply more white.

The coffee table was a freebie, cast off by Ryan's sister.

I repainted the lamps I already had, and got new shades for them.


The walls really don't look yellow in person. It's just my silly camera playing tricks.



I used this idea from a blog. I like the crisp orderliness of a grid. I bought frames from Honk's Only $1 (which I'm certain was NOT the blog author's intention!) , then had to spray paint them black. The mats were included with the frames. =) Then I got an array of coordinating scrapbook paper to fill them with. Very inexpensive, and I like the way the arrangement looks.

That's it! I'm nearly done with the kitchen, then I think I'll take a summer hiatus from all my home decor endeavors!