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nycmama1225

Need help updating living room

11 years ago
We are working on decorating our living room. Looking for the following pieces that will compliment the room and coordinate with our current furniture. The room size is 20'x13'. Wall color is light grey, accent wall (fireplace) is dark grey and floor is espresso.

1) Ottoman
2) End table
3) floor or table lamp
4) decorating ideas for fireplace

We are also open to ideas on re-arranging the furniture. We can remove the TV stand if needed as we don't necessarily need a TV there. We will also remove the tent from the living room to one of kids' rooms.

Any suggestion is appreciated! Thanks in advance. :)

Comments (248)

  • 11 years ago
    That's great! What a fun dilemma this is watching the room really come together nicely!!!!
    nycmama1225 thanked Ann
  • 11 years ago
    Oh, you're thinking of a TV in that corner. Hopefully, Carolins photoshop skills will help you figure out if that will work. I'd kind of forgotten about that and was enjoying the room as it is, with the chairs in the corners. TVs are always hard to place but I certainly have one in my living room, so I get that you want one in there.
    nycmama1225 thanked Ann
  • 11 years ago
    Can you give us the width of that niche where you want the TV?
    nycmama1225 thanked Carolina
  • 11 years ago
    Thank you all so much for all the advice and inspirations for helping me with my living room! I had actually hired a "decorator) but I feel that you guys are so much more helpful!
  • 11 years ago
    carolins: i believe it's about 55" between the FP and the wall for a TV stand. Let me know if you have any recommendations. Thanks!
  • 11 years ago
    Tried out some curtains. These charcoal are from overstock. I was aiming for about the same colour as your accent wall, but that's difficult to judge from this side of the screen. So I picked these to show you how dark solid curtains will look. http://www.overstock.com/Home-Garden/Extra-Wide-Thermal-Blackout-Grommet-Top-108-inch-Curtain-Panel/9315584/product.html?refccid=KM5S6DBQOKKKW5KCYGJNUJY4XM&searchidx=39
  • 11 years ago
    These are from Westelm
  • 11 years ago
    These are the dotted ones from Westelm
  • 11 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago
    I scrolled back looking for the sofa table nycmama has ordered but didn't find it. Could someone post a link or a photo of it so it's in the mix for any tv stand recommendations? I'll take another look too. Thanks!
  • 11 years ago
    Not sure either. Scrolled back too... :-)
  • 11 years ago
    I'm wondering about a craigslist buffet or dresser that you could paint the same color as your wall. In this photo, it looks like they used cabinets, but that's the effect: the tv stand and the tv itself almost disappearing against your dark wall.

    Bettendorf, Iowa - Jennifer Home (by Windmiller Design) · More Info
  • 11 years ago
    Sorry, removed that last comment, posted the wrong mock ups :-) It's late here. Will try again tomorrow.
  • 11 years ago
    Oh, I don't think a sofa table was ordered. I believe nycmama was referrring to a rug pad being on order. Carolins, I'm so glad you did a rendering with solid dark drapes. I was just wondering how the room would look with drapes in a color similar to the accent wall and there was your example:) I like that look. I also still like the small dot best of the patterned drapes. All the others seem to fight with the rug just a bit (IMO).
  • 11 years ago
    Ann is correct. I haven't ordered the sofa table yet. I've ordered the rug pad, silver mirror for FP and some pillows (spa blue ikat for the sofa and light grey for the chairs).

    Ciscimo, the picture you posted from houzz is the photo I used for paint color ideas!! :)

    As for the drapes, what do you think of something solid in neutral colors, ie oatmeal or flax??
  • 11 years ago
    I think that's fine for drapes. Something light and neutral that works with the sofa color and color of the rug pattern.
  • 11 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago
    Agree about the drapes. That look (beige-ish drapes, light gray walls) can be very pretty. As Ann said, work with your rug tones.
    Jennifer Brouwer Design Inc. · More Info


    Too funny about the "missing" sofa table, I'm glad you're keeping up, Ann and I'm sorry about my confusion. :)
  • 11 years ago
    Ciscomo: wow! I love that photo. How did you look up a photo so quickly that matches my thought?! Thanks!!
  • 11 years ago
    How about putting sofa table and lamp behind couch and move the grouping back a little bit to centre with the window.
  • 11 years ago
    :))
  • 11 years ago
    Here are some pictures w the mirror above FP. I feel that mantel is still missing something...thought?
  • 11 years ago
    Here are neutral coloured curtains :-)
    nycmama1225 thanked Carolina
  • nycmama1225 thanked Carolina
  • 11 years ago
    What if you out the couch against the window and the 2 chairs facing the couch with a coffee table between? You could move the TV stand to where the tent is. Add some colorful art in the walls, some candles on the mantle and a plant in the room. I think that would make it open and inviting as well as functional. :)
  • 11 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago
    The mirror is nice. I would definitely not add anything else to the mantel. I would place the 3 candlesticks in a tighter group a bit closer together - tallest one closest to and slightly overlapping the mirror, then the next one to the left, then the little one tucked in front of those two if there's room on the mantel or on the left if not. Then, I'd move the large frame in just a bit and overlap it slightly with the smaller frame. So, both sides of the decor move in a bit toward center and each of the two groupings tighten up a bit. Hope that makes sense.
    nycmama1225 thanked Ann
  • 11 years ago
    The mirror looks great! I would actually remove everything from the mantle and leave it bare.
  • 11 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago
    I love the mirror, and your standing lamp! Try Ann's suggestions but I would also try putting a taller candle in the tallest stand to get more height variation in that grouping. I'm sorry, I can't tell - do the photos have matching frames and matting? A switch to a more formal/ gallery style would be nice with that mirror.
    nycmama1225 thanked User
  • 11 years ago
    Very good point about moving the candles into different holders to create overall height variation. I do also like the idea of nothing on the mantel.
  • 11 years ago
    I'm not sure about keeping the small floor lamp in the area. It looks a little off now that you have the nice new floor lamp on the other side.
    nycmama1225 thanked Ann
  • 11 years ago
    Ann: I actually have another floor lamp (same as the new one) coming in. I leave the old one there temporarily because we need more light in the room. I'm only able to take pictures when the sun comes out that's why sometimes I don't post pictures right away because of that ;P
  • 11 years ago
    ciscomo: thank you for the suggestion about moving the floor lamp. Small move big change! Amazing!
  • 11 years ago
    carolins: thanks for the tv stand. I like the style. So I measured the space just now and I think the max length for a TV stand is about 52". And I'm thinking, to be practical, I'd like to have a "wheeled" TV stand. This way, when needed, we can easily wheel the TV to the center of the room instead of having everyone turn their head. But, the look of the room is more important...I can live without having those wheels. If you have any recommendations for a wheeled TV stand, please let me know. Thanks! :-)
  • 11 years ago
    I like the dark grey curtains the best. I think dark grey silk with a bit of shimmer would be very nice.
  • 11 years ago
    You might helpful information on my site. We offer many blog articles as well as FREE eBooks including 30 Luxury tips on our site. Please visit the RESOURCES PAGE. I am sure these will help you with your project. Here's a link!

    http://taliankodesigngroup.com/resource-library/
  • 11 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago
    You can put wheels under most furniture yourself. Remember to get at least two that have a break so it doesn't keep rolling around. When I say 'most', I mean a lot but not all :-) Depends on how it's constructed of course.
    http://www.homedepot.com/b/Tools-Hardware-Hardware-Cabinet-Furniture-Hardware-Furniture-Accessories-Casters/N-5yc1vZc29f
  • 11 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago
    This looks like the cubby hole cabinet Ikea has (but that won't fit) and this one would fit. You could probably put casters under this quite easily. Only it will be quite tall then. Hmm... worth measuring how high you'd like your TV to be. The bottom half of your TV should be at about eye level when you're sitting down.
    http://www.overstock.com/Home-Garden/Richdale-6-Cube-Dark-Espresso-Bookcase/8032251/product.html?refccid=MSOTHFJH24AYPSSPZTPZTPX7NU&searchidx=342
  • 11 years ago
    Carolins, where did you find the last two neutral color curtains?
  • 11 years ago
    You don't want to know ;-) Restoration Hardware :-)
  • 11 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago
    Although I do think they are on sale.
  • 11 years ago
    So for the tv stand, use a bookcase or cabinet type of furniture instead??
  • 11 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago
    I was also thinking you could just add casters to a piece of furniture. But since you asked, houzz answered you today...voila!! . (It comes in black, as well.). But wouldn't you have dragging cords and cables to deal with if you moved it off the wall?
    Kids Study Room to Hallway · More Info


    I think a stand that gves you some storage makes the most sense. I liked carolins pier1 pick. By any chance, would your white stand work if you painted it and spray frosted the glass?

    There are a ton of curtain options on the webz. These are from jcpenney. Sorry, can't grab the photo.
    http://s7d9.scene7.com/is/image/JCPenney/DP0824201202384787C.tif?wid=180&hei=180&op_usm=.4,.8,0,0&resmode=sharp2
  • 11 years ago
    Oh, they are cute with the button detail. The JCPenney curtains I mean.
    Not keen on the trolley.
  • 11 years ago
    OK, have enough memory for the photo of the curtains.

    carolins, I love your comment about the trolley, lol. It was in that houzz story on shelves this am.
  • 11 years ago
    Happy holidays! Here are find updated photos of the living room.

    While we are still figuring out what to do w the area behind the sofa, we decided to turn it into a little play area for now. We are also still working on getting a tv stand in the corner where the Xmas tree is after we put away the tree. Still not sure which kind/style/color to get so any suggestion is much appreciated!
  • 11 years ago
    Really looks nice! I love the new sofa pillows and think the rug and coffee table were both great choices!
  • 11 years ago
    I also changed the photo frames as suggested by Ciscomo and instantly they made a huge difference :)
  • 11 years ago
    Frames can make a big difference. I recently updated two of my worst frames in a group on my dresser and I love the two new frames. They made the whole group look better.
  • 11 years ago
    Happy Holidays to you too :-) The living room is looking good. How about the Hemnes media console? (Ikea) The white will go with your fireplace mantle. And the TV will disappear against the dark background.
  • 11 years ago
    @carolins, i see that it also has one in grey brown color. Do you think it will match?
  • 11 years ago
    I would either go for the white or for the black one.