The Evolution of a Living Room - Part V (2 of 2) - Build an Ottoman

If you are just joining us for the tour, check out these previous visits with the renovation and evolution of our living room.

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part I - Where we started

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part II - Where we are now

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part III (1 of 2) - The details

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part III (2 of 2) -  The details

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part IV - The 'wall of windows' transformation

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part V (1 of 2) - How to build your own ottoman

Today we continue and finish up building that ottoman. Honestly, I'm sure my tutorial is as hacked as the building process itself, so do ask questions if you want to try it yourself. I'll be happy to give some virtual guidance.

So there you have it. I know that if we fiddled our way around and got the results we did, you too can build your own ottoman. 

Still to come as we finish up our living room tour:

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part VI:  How we upcycled our sofa

Until  next time...

Mike

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part V (1 of 2) - Build an Ottoman

If you are just joining us for the tour, check out these previous visits with the renovation and evolution of our living room.

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part I - Where we started

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part II - Where we are now

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part III (1 of 2) - The details

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part III (2 of 2) -  The details

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part IV - The 'wall of windows' transformation

Today we begin a tutorial for how to build your own ottoman. We did it (with limited skills in building and in sewing) - so I'm absolutely convinced that you can to. 

See the full pictures of the ottoman in this earlier post.

Still to come as we finish up our living room tour:

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part V (2 of 2):  How to build your own ottoman

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part VI:  How we upcycled our sofa

I'll finish up the ottoman tutorial tomorrow so tune in if you've already started plans for your own. If not - make sure to check back anyway because I'll also be posting the usual recycled and repurposed inspiration to get your creative juices flowing.

Until next time...

Mike

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The Evolution of a Living Room - Part IV

The home tour continues with a little back story information in The Evolution of a Living Room - Part IV.

If you are just joining us for the tour, check out these previous visits with the renovation and evolution of our living room.

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part I

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part II

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part III (1 of 2)

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part III (2 of 2)

Let's continue. That wall of windows that lines one side of our living room in the photo above? It didn't always look like that. When we moved in to our 1971 flat-roof home, it looked like this:

 

It was a wall of windows over a wall of old radiators (behind that lower wall) and a wall of flourescent lights (under that upper wall). So, after our much needed kitchen remodel - which we'll tour soon - we set to work on the living room walls 1 1/2 years ago. There are some DIY projects that we are happy to tackle ourselves, and there are others, like huge walls of windows that support a home's roof, where we humbly bow to skilled contractors. We waited a few months for our 3-pane Swedish energy efficient windows to be manufactured and had to find another source for the wide sliding doors we wanted - and then in they came. First step was to ensure the entire roof of the house didn't come tumbling in.

 

There's something a little freaky about having an entire wall of your house missing.

You know it's serious when they bring in the heavy equipment!

 

And well worth it in the end.

 

You'd be surprised at how much you have to rethink or adapt your decor when you flood a room with light. My dark wood and heavy-on-the-accessories style just wasn't going to work in this space. So I had to figure out how to find a balance between using accessories that defined who I was and where I came from - and paring things down to let the view outside also share in the glory. 

Join me tomorrow when I tell you how to build your own ottoman. We wanted an oversized ottoman that was going to serve as table-extra seating-gymnastics equipment for the kids, and we got 3 out of 3 by DIYing it ourselves. 

Still to come as we finish up our living room tour:

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part V:  How to build your own ottoman

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part VI:  How we upcycled our sofa

Until next time...

Mike

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part III (2 of 2)

Don't miss Part 1 with the decor details of our living room that was posted just before this one.

As I mentioned when we began the tour of our living room evolution a few days ago, I like to describe my style as 'untraditionally traditional'. I don't stick with a recommended maximum of 3 colors - but instead I bring in items and pieces that speak to me and make me feel happy when I see them. I also have a pretty good mix of items bought from other artisans as well as things made by me. Throw in some thrift store and garage sale pieces and you'll get the drift of my style aesthetic. So, here's a closer look at the details (part 2 of 2).

If you are just joining us for the tour, check out these previous visits with the renovation and evolution of our living room.

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part I

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part II

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part III (1 of 2)

Until next time...

Mike

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part III (1 of 2)

As promised, today's living room tour continues with the details. I'm going to split this into 2 separate posts because I had some fun with Photoshop - and the images are a little larger than normal so I want to make sure it all loads okay. 

Enjoy your peek into my home life, and remember what they say - the love is in the details!

Don't miss more of the details coming up in the post right after this.

Did you miss the first two posts about our living room renovation? 

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part I

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part II

Until next time...

Mike

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part II

Welcome to Part II of 'The Evolution of a Living Room' series this week. After yesterday's view of what our living room looked like when we bought our house 3 1/2 years ago, today's view shows what she looks like now. She's not 100% complete - thus the reference to 'evolution' instead of a 'before and after reveal'. And besides, I have a terrible habit of changing around my furniture every 6 months or so, not to mention rugs, pillows, artwork, etc. It's all stuff that I already have in the house - but it tends to get shifted from room to room and space to space. So I don't think my home ever really has an 'after'. But I'm happy with evolution.

Since we changed out our 'wall of windows' in the living room, I've been forced to rethink my passion for dark heavy pieces and let her settle into her brighter environment. And while the space almost cries out for a vibe from the 60s or 70s, I continue to commit the crime of decorating for myself and what feels right for me - vs. what is considered right for the architecture.

Now let's just stand in various areas of the room and have a look around.

So there we have it. Still evolving, but serving us well every step of the way. As I described it yesterday, I have come to refer to my style as 'Untraditionally Traditional'. As you can see, I don't follow any particular design rules. Things are not perfectly matched and I don't stick to a maximum three color rule. I don't have perfect vignettes, but I'm surrounded by things that I love and things that speak to who I am and where I've been. I'm quite lucky that my Swedish man lets me decorate as I wish - and he never complains when I ask him to help me move the sofa one more time to see if it works better 'over there'.

What else can you expect to see in the coming days?

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part III:  The love is in the details.
The Evolution of a Living Room - Part IV:  The 'Wall of Windows' transformation
The Evolution of a Living Room - Part V:  How to build your own ottoman
The Evolution of a Living Room - Part VI:  How we upcycled our sofa

Until next time...

Mike

The Evolution of a Living Room - Part I

OK...today I'm taking the plunge into home tours - beginning with our living room. It's not so much a before & after reveal, but the evolution of a living room.

I don't want to bog down the systems with massive photos so I'll be posting segments of the tour over these coming days.

Untraditionally traditional.  That's what I call my design style. It's a tad bit traditional with the squared seating arrangement, and I like a small amount of balance in a room - the two shelf units against the wall take care of that. But that's where traditional ends. I don't do matchy-matchy. I have a hodge podge of styles, designs, thrifted pieces, handmade pieces, purchased art, and DIY stuff (like our newly finished ottoman that we made ourselves). My favorite colors fall within various shades of blue and teal, and I try to incorporate them into every space in our home without them taking over or being too obvious.

But where did we begin? 3 1/2 years ago we bought our 1971-flat-roofed-brick-house on a wing and a prayer. We weren't the highest bidders, but I wrote a letter to the owners explaining why we wanted the house and what it would mean to our family (I hinted at our family challenges early last year when I started the Blue Velvet Chair blog if you want to have a peek). It worked, and they chose us. We knew the entire house was due a proper renovation and a chance for a new life - it had a super solid foundation to work with - fabulous space both inside and out. Let's have a look at what it was like when we moved in.

Before there was a full wall separating the living room from the rest of the house. Now we have a half wall that allows us to keep the flow and contact moving freely from one space to the next. The view coming in from our front door today is the photo shown at the top of this blog post.

We were given white walls when we moved in, but immediately painted them a neutral shade. Too bad it was just a shade wrong and turned a puke color at certain times of the day depending on the light. So, a couple of months ago when the half wall was built and the wood panel in the entry was replaced we decided to repaint the entire space from the living room all the way through to our back door - it's nearly the same shade...but no more puke yellow tones popping up. Thank goodness. I'm sure my husband would have objected to a third re-paint in as many years. I find wall paint a very finicky business to get the 'perfect shade'. Don't you?

Now you have some ground information about our living room evolution. Stop in tomorrow to see more of how she looks today and what's still on the books to be done. After that, we'll take a closer look at some of the objects that fill our space - and my soul, like these below.

See you again tomorrow!

Until next time...
Mike

Would You Try This? Pallet Floors

If we could hear the fluttering wings of a butterfly that just discovered a sea of lavender fields in Provence, that's what it would sound like in the room with me today. My heart just fluttered when I saw this pallet floor feature at Jetson Green - a blog that showcases sustainable living. And I MUST share this with you - that's not even an option.

And now, to borrow the term from Rachel Zoe...I DIE!

Artic Plank in Iceland is making floors from recycled pallets and scrap wood. Of course it will be much more rustic than your traditional new-wood flooring, but that's the beauty! Just look at all the color variations. Mmmm...I love the dark stains. 

So, my question for you is...would you try it in your own home? I don't know if the character of my house would be able to carry this floor...but I would certainly consider building a little studio out back JUST to get that floor!

Until next time...

Mike

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