I like the arrangement on your coffee table. Are those real tulips? Tulips are my favorite! Anyhow, the only things that stand out for me are that the pillows on the couch and chair don't seem to "go" as well as what you had there before. It's a tough call though, because I can't see the fabric detail on your furniture, so maybe it looks better IRL. My only other suggestion is to maybe pare down what's on your side tables. How would it look if you removed one item from each table? Do you have another spot where you can move them?

Mona, what a beautiful room! I thought the "before" was lovely, but when I scrolled down to the "after" - yep, you've got it right! The "after" is so fresh and welcoming, and does make the "before" seem a bit more staid. I don't think your room looks at all like a "mishmash"; rather, a space that has been filled with items that were lovingly collected over time. It has personality and character, and feels like it has a history. I like it very much.

No advice to offer. Just wanted you to know I feel your pain---or guilt! In my "hold on to everything, including grandfather's old WWI vet issued tombstone!" world, I think both look fine.
In dealing with our current move, I've assured DH I'll try to cull some of the memory things I hold on to. I'm not doing well. I keep searching for corners to 'hide' one more thing! Thank goodness we will still have the house we are moving from for a while. It gives me more time to search!;)

We have our share of guilt furnishings too! I love your room Mona! I'll cast the first vote for the "before" shot.

I think the solid shapes and colors of accessories are stunning!

I think both pics look good but the after is better because it is more simplified. I would just use the red pillows from pic one instead of the tropical print pillows in pic 2.

Lovely room. Looks very welcoming and homey.

Thanks ladies. It helps to have impartial eyes look at a room.

Any other thoughts?

I removed the 2 small striped pillows from the side chairs. I could also change out the lamps if you think the first ones are too tall and skinny. And I have these other pillows, but don't like them as well as the floral ones.
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Yes! Those new pillows are fab!

auntjen, do you like the larger lamps? The pillows go better with the red shades than the cream, don't you think?
or not?

The last photo with the red lamp and simple pillows is a real winner---stunning!

Mona, I really prefer the red lamps. The larger ones are ok, but the red ones are extremely striking with everything else in the space.

Thank you. And now on to other rooms.

mona: That is a lovely room. I wish my relatives had so much lovely stuff to pass along. Your choice of paint, rug, couch, chairs, and artwork are just perfect. That said, the only thing that seems off to me are your end tables and lamps. I'd prefer to see one without the tier since it tends to pull down the eye and be out of scale with the tall lamps that you've paired them with. I'd love to see some other vintage end tables there that are as tall as the arms of your lovely sofa. Also, I would move the two plates and group them together, one over the other, and put them on a different wall and then lower the picture that is shown on the left.

I love the feel of everything in your room. I like the larger lamps, the before red pillows, and I think you could put the red striped pillow back in your side chair. I love this part of "trying to get it just right". I can spend hours doing it. Is that an Imari plate on your left end table? And I too, love tulips.

Lovely room (the last picture was my favorite).

About that guilt....I had 'stuff' from my parents and my husband's parents & grandparents. Most of it with little monetary value.

What I finally did was photograph each item, write a little about why it was special, put in an album, and store the items.

I stored it for 6 months without 'missing' it. At the end of 6 months, after offering the 'stuff' to our children, it became a donation.

ML (who hasn't needed to look at the photos, either.)

The first room looked fine. Nothing horrible. But I do like how you tweaked it and the last photo looks great.

Can't wait to see the other rooms!

Mona, the room looks lovely. I would move the picture on the left (chair wall) down to the level of the other. That said, if you like the room, keep it as is. It doesn't appear hand-me-down at all to me. Of course I love used stuff and would much rather have that than new.
Diane

What a pretty room. I like the lamps with the red shades and the floral pillows but the gold and red are pretty, too. Maybe try them for a week or so and see if you like them. And the tulips are perfect!

I prefer the larger lamps with the pale shades, if you use them, I would remove the matching small jars next to each lamp. I would also remove the white bust ornament, the table tops need room to breathe.

It's a lovely room of course, I'm just tweaking; the white tulips are so fresh looking. The pillows in the before picture is what I would use.

Mitch, I got rid of the small jars. But I have nowhere else to put the bust. It happens to be one of the items that my grandmother was able to "take" out of Cuba as Castro came into power.

That piece, along with others, really don't fit into our decor but they are part of the decorating by guilt thing I'm dealing with.

Here are 2 other pieces and I suppose they may all end up in the storage closet upstairs if I get brave. They're all beautiful pieces, and fit well in my parent's home but not ours.

I join those who go for the 'after' look with the 'before' look's red pillows.

But concerning the lamps: When you sit in the room in the evenings with the lights on, don't the bulbs shine in your eyes at all? I know you're trying to get some height there, but maybe the lamps are too tall.

For the bust and the other two pieces, is there room for a small etagere? Or accent shelves for them?

I love your room, Mona, and it's best in the last picture. The room looks very cozy and inviting. The green makes it calming and the red give it a bit of spark.

That bust and the other two pieces are just lovely. I think they fit well with your room. I would love to see them on a pretty (but not too fussy) antique decorative wall shelf.

Mona, every time I see your couch I smile as I have the same fabric on my bergere chairs. I think your room is wonderful and I agree with Valinsv about the side tables and the round plates on the wall. My only other thing is a departure from what everyone else said above, I like the red shades and the base of the larger lamp.

The good thing about the fabric on the sofa is the fact that you can pull out a number of colors as accents since there is green, gold, red/rust tone and blue.

Mona, I too have been the recipient of many pieces of family furniture. Luckily, I have liked almost all of it---a small miracle!

With respect to your photos, I do think the tall thin lamps are too tall and too thin; they are really more of a buffet-type lamp. The heavier lamps look better (to me) but I do love the red lampshades. Therefore I would suggest you use the heftier lamps but replace the shades with a pretty red.

The picture frame on the right end table is just too big, imo, for the table, and I would replace it with a smaller photo.

The framed print on the left wall is too high by at least 10 inches. It can be hung so that the bottom edge is four or so inches above the height of the chair back (not above the chair, the placement is good, just at that height).

I would lower the print behind the sofa so that its lower edge is about six inches above the back of the sofa. It is lovely, but it is not big enough to carry the whole wall, so I would put sconces of some type on either side of the print. Alternatively, you could get four small prints of a similar nature, the same size and framed similarly, and hang them two on a side with one above the other.

I like all of the pillows in your photographs and would use all of them, rotating them occasionally.

Okay, I'm looking for larger lamps. I've cleared off the end tables and I reversed the patterned pillows to the solid color. Still have a ways to go, but I think this is a big improvement over the before picture.
Thank you all for the good suggestions...they worked.

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I see nothing wrong with the lamps and you've made an immense improvement. The first before picture and the final picture are like night and day. By the way, the vase you posted in the separate picture is exquisite. I do hope you can find a place for it somewhere. It definitely doesn't deserve to end up in the storage closet.

Great job, it's a lovely transformation!

Very pretty! Nice job! I agree with Threedgrad, the second look is less cluttered, which makes the room seem larger, more comfortable, and even more attractive.