Our living room is about 14′ x 14′ with two doors, a doorway & stairs so it has very little actual living space. For the last two years I’ve wanted new furniture. Ok, we actually bought a new couch about a year ago. It was huge, brown & leather. I only liked the leather part. I had my heart set on a light gray {leather} sofa, less than 80 inches. I don’t think it exists. We’re not sure why, but it wasn’t very comfortable either. We think now it was just too soft; not enough support for our aging bones, ha.
So this Spring it was time to get it right. We ended up giving the brown leather 90+” couch to our son a few months ago. In the meanwhile, Junk Hunk Hubby had been using a cast-off recliner from my folks, I was sitting in a small chair from World Market & another older chair my Mom had reupholstered {but not very comfy} was an extra for company. That is until last Saturday…
I had looked online but didn’t decide on one style, we knew we needed to see things in person to make a good decision. Thinking ottomans were a good option, we decided on recliners instead, so a love seat and chair & 1/2 in a light gray, slightly nubby microfiber fabric came back home with us. Most everything was cleared out of the space, then we added things back in.
If you notice in the picture with the French bird framed poster, we don’t have the baseboards around the stairs painted yet. I’m considering painting the carpet on the stairs too. Do you know of anyone who has done this? JHH is refusing to let me remove the carpet & paint the wood that I know is under there. He’s afraid the wood might not be in great shape & since those stairs are directly above our basement stairs, it could prove to be a bigger project than we can handle so in the meanwhile: painted carpet?
Here are the pictures of our new living room; I’m excited to just sit around in here, I love it & so does the family. Things might change a bit after we get back from JunkStock since I’ve got my eye on a few vendors already 😉 If that happens, I’ll share.
Here is the magazine cabinet. I put some mini-flowers from Country Blessings in a candle cylinder, propped the bird picture against the door frame, added some books from Spring City Vintage & some misc. candles. The frames on the door {to the spare room} are from various vendors. More books on the walnut-colored table from Sister’s Garden & Bloom. The ceramic bird sits on a candle stand with {plastic} greenery {from Black Bird Primitive} and the Buddha head & plate are from Hobby Lobby. This is the small chair I used to use daily, it’s from World Market.The framed French bird poster is from Country Mouse, a vendor at The Barn {Wellman} & the vintage olive basket is from an etsy store years ago. The dark-finish night stand is from my Grandparents. Notice the hunter green carpet, ew, yes, you can say it, ew! And the baseboards aren’t painted white yet….The is the new love seat, what do you think? The door curtain is old IKEA {via eBay} but I’m going to change it to plain sheer white. Notice the basket on the wall, it’s an artillery basket from Junk Market {Ki Nassauer’s first business in Long Lake, MN}, circa 1980’s. You can see part of the coffee table to the left.More frames on the wall, my fairly new Mora clock from Brick & Mortar. As you can see the love seat & chair 1/2 take up a decent amount of space. The coffee table holds a vintage McCoy vase, Hobby Lobby frame & metal lantern, Pier 1 candle & more books from Spring City Vintage. The grannie quilt on the chair is from one of my fav vendors @ What Cheer Flea Market. Can’t wait to see what she has this year!Here’s a better view of the chair 1/2. My little end table was wood brown, Mom painted it white for me. It has an awesome dotty trim. The floor lamp used to be black. I spray painted it white, added a new shade & wah-lah. There are a couple Longaberger baskets too {from the 80’s} & a few magazines here & there.This collection is just to the left of the bay of three windows. The shelf is a great Goodwill find. Books again from SCV. Mason jar is a flea market find {love it when they have the metal on them}. The frame was brown w/gold trim on the inside before I painted it. The bird column is a Hobby Lobby clearance item. The bird nest is real, from outside my office window. I stuck some weeds in the tiny jam jar {go driving along gravel roads, you’ll find all kinds of fun shaped weeds}.Another view, I was trying to highlight the bank of windows to the left. I had them covered up for years with roller binds & valances. Then I took down the valances & decided I hated the roller blinds {custom from JCPenny years ago}. I decided I wanted light! I searched & found what I call window ‘cling’ in a roll on Amazon, make a template, cut the squares, followed the directions & simply love the outcome! No sunshine {keeping out the heat} but still loads of light floods in {love the full moonlight too}. Oh yes, new curtains for the front windows from IKEA via eBay in Matilda {same as our bedroom, but they are great in any room!}.Have you noticed, on most HGTV decorating shows, they rarely show a tv in the living room? Why is that? Sure, if I had an armoire I would probably put the tv in it but I think the scale would be too large for our current space. The stand is from Sauder in rainwater. My collection of mostly McCoy vintage vases fits neatly on one shelf. The pale yellow alarm clock is an etsy find. The turquoise metal wall medallion is Junk Hunk Hubby’s favorite thing, from Hobby Lobby.
Now that the living room has been zhuzhed up I’m really loving it. Like I said, we have a few more projects left to do but all in all, I really enjoy sitting in here much more. It’s got a cottage, vintage feel that has our stamp on it. It’s personalized with old, new, vintage & even some rust.
Has Spring given you the enthusiasm to get some of your home spaces new life? Again, trust your instincts, go with what makes you happy & do some experimenting. Be sure & let me know what you come up with!
As I’ve mentioned, I’m keen on the Scandinavian style of home decorating. This has given me reason to check out other aspects of this far away culture. Not sure when I came across this ‘trend’ but have you hear of Hygge, pronounced ‘hoo-ga’? It’s actually a Danish word that is not easily translated. It would be fair to say hygge is not a thing, it’s more like an atmosphere or experience & many describe as ‘coziness’ but that’s only part of it. No matter how you say or pronounce it, in the last 12 months it’s something that has caught on around the globe.
I wanted to check it out more so I bought ‘The Little Book of HYGGE’ by Meik Wiking on eBay. It’s fascinating to read how other cultures enjoy their leisure time & with the harsh winter months, Danes have got it figured out on how to endure this tough season. Many of the things that give them this sense of hygge, also appeal to me! For example, the first thing listed is candles. Simple as that sounds, it’s high on their list. Ironically, scented is not a priority. It’s the glow; the ambiance. More things that were equally important are blankets or throws, not just for the warmth, but for the overall feel. Wool socks are another. I happen to have a colorful pair by SmartWool. Danes also enjoy their sweets, as in pastries & baked goods. Being frugal is also high on the list, enjoying the simple things, like spending time with family & friends. Part of this frugal notion is that hygge gives a warm feeling of thankfulness & admiration for things that age, that were touched & owned by generations. Now that is beginning to sound a lot like a vintage good time!
No matter the trend, I found it interesting that some of same things that other countries enjoy, we do as well. We could learn a few things from them, mostly slowing down to savor the things that make us most happy. Here are some random images, all via Pinterest, I have found that put me in the mind of cozy:
Yep, this is the little book I read on how to live hygge.This would make it very hard to get out of bed every morning!Simple food, casual setting & quality time with others.Danish rhubarb tarts, yum!Danes ADORE Christmas time.Their clothing is comfy too.Crackling fire, warm beverage & toasty tootsies!Very inviting, don’t you think?I learned there are some very famous Danish lighting fixture inventors.Candles & candles….did I mention candles?
Junk Makes The Soul Happy 