You won't believe the before and after of this dated living room brightened with white paint, stained hardwood floors and stylish modern farmhouse furniture and accessories.
MACTAVISH HOUSE | Published February 2, 2020
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Well, the day has finally come to share my living room reveal. It's been about 11 months since I first started the demo in this room that was supposed to be a fast and easy makeover. Between the multiple layers of wallpaper on the cracked plaster ceiling and in the stairway, seven different colors of paint on the staircase, and the almost impossible to remove finish on the floor and stair treads, there were times that I wondered if the room would ever get done. But I persisted and now the finished room is exactly as I envisioned it could be.
In case you need a reminder of where we started, here is the living room picture that appeared in the before tour of this house (and there are more in the post if you haven't been following along and would like a full look at the room):
And here is the after:
I think you can agree that a few "small" changes were made, right? Needless to say, the room is a bit easier to photograph now, too, with the orange being gone!
Honestly I still sometimes stand in awe looking into this room that I was able to do. And I don't mean for that to sound like I'm patting myself on the back. I'm just amazed that as someone who has never done anything like this before (demo, restoration, building), that I was able to have a vision, keep going through the frustration of things not working and taking forever, and see it turn out like this.
So for today's post, I'm going to keep my "talking" to a minimum and pretty much let the images speak for themselves. And then I'll do another post taking you into the details of how and why I designed the room the way I did. Sound good?
Also, sources for all the items in the room (if available) can be found at the end of the post in case you're interested in something specific.
FOLLOW ALONG ON THE FULL TRANSFORMATION OF THIS LIVING ROOM
DEMO IN THE LIVING ROOM
WORKING IN THE STAIRCASE AND ON THE CEILING
REFINISHING THE HARDWOOD FLOORS (scroll to the bottom of the post)
BUILDING A FAKE FIREPLACE
THE LIVING ROOM PRIOR TO ADDING FURNITURE AND DECOR
MODERN FARMHOUSE LIVING ROOM
As you enter the living room from the dining room, you can see how the furniture has been laid out to promote conversation and gathering together with plenty of room to move around. The round coffee table doesn't take up as much space and also makes it easy for people on either the sofa or the brown leather chairs to reach it.
I tried to create a warm and cozy space with plenty of throws and pillows (which can be tossed on the floor if necessary). I want this to be a room where people feel free to put their feet on the coffee table or curl up in a chair.
This is the view from the back corner of the room where the rustic ladder rests. I've added an antique leather footstool paired with this pretty comfy gray chair. I wanted somewhere to sit here that wouldn't take up a lot of space since this is one of the entries into the room. Even though it took awhile to find something that was both roomy to sit in, yet smaller in scale, I'm happy with this choice.
You can see the picture ledge shelves that I built and how they fill in this narrow wall without taking up space in the room.
This is what you see standing in the breakfast nook area. Since the dining room has been torn apart since last year and lately has been serving as a storage area for everything I'm purchasing and the kitchen has turned into my pseudo workshop, the old porch "breakfast nook" has been where I set up a table to eat when we're down here working. I love sitting at the table and looking into this room to see all the changes and light coming from the space.
And here is the fireplace I'm so proud of. You can find out how I built it here. I'm still attempting to figure out how to hang the mirror, a Christmas gift from my mom, in the center of the trimmed out section above the mantel. It is really heavy, but the studs don't line up with the center of the mirror or the two hooks that are already on the back. So for now, it works resting on the mantel!
Well, I hope that you've enjoyed this little tour and some of the details of my modern farmhouse living room makeover. Quite the transformation, I hope you would agree. I'd love to hear your thoughts on my design!
LIVING ROOM SOURCES
PAINT: Valspar Snowcap White (Satin for walls and semigloss for trim and fireplace) available at Lowes
FLOOR STAIN: Fusion Stain and Finishing Oil in Cappuccino available on Amazon
LOVESEAT: I bought mine locally, but it is available from Overstock
FAUX LEATHER CHAIRS: Wayfair or Home Depot
GRAY ACCENT CHAIR (also available in cream and teal): Target, Amazon or Bed, Bath & Beyond
COFFEE TABLE: anderson+grant's online collection
RUG: Boutique Rugs
CHARCOAL PATTERNED PILLOW: Target
CREAM TEXTURED PILLOW: Target
GRAY PILLOW: Target
CHARCOAL PILLOW: Target
THROW ON LEATHER CHAIR: Target
LAMP: Target
WOOD ACCENT TABLE: Prior purchase but a similar version is available at Cost Plus World Market
GLASS DEMIJOHN: Purchased from Antique Farmhouse, but a similar version is available at Pottery Barn or in store at Hobby Lobby
FAUX GREEN BRANCHES: Pottery Barn
FIREPLACE MIRROR: Purchased locally but a similar version is at Hobby Lobby or Pottery Barn
FIREPLACE LOGS: Currently unavailable but a similar version is on Amazon
CANDLESTICKS: Purchased locally
BOTANICAL PRINT: Purchased locally, but available in set of 4 different prints from Hayneedle
LEATHER FOOTSTOOL: Antique find
RUSTIC LADDER: Antique find
WHITE CROCHETED THROW: Family heirloom
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