Living room help!

11 years ago

Yes I know most of the decor in this room needs to go. These are pictures of the room as is. This is an old historic home and I'd like to keep as many of the details as possible. I'd like to know your ideas on furniture arrangement. What type of furniture. I'd like to make the benches on each side of the fire place stand out as well. And opinions on what to do with the tile around the fireplace. The fireplace is no longer in use. Any advice is appreciated! Thank you!

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miacometlady

11 years ago

FYI: Houz is great and all suggestions are valuable... however...there are other sites/blogs out there that deal exclusively with renovating older homes with people all about preserving what an older home has to offer and yet creating a comfortable, livable home; sharing the trials, tribulations and successes of this goal... and probably not so much about painting 100 year old woodwork Ben Monroe's Dove White and the walls Revere Pewter! Just a thought...

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Comments (10)

glschisler
11 years ago
I suggest you go to an Ethan Allen furniture store and they will be happy to help you.
sandradclark
11 years ago
Gorgeous box beam ceiling. Choose an upholstery fabric in a stripe from within the colors in the room & have a long cushion made for each bench seat next to FP. Photo needs to show the tiles on FP better. They looked like they were a dark ceramic with a wavy texture. Am I right? I don't think I would change them. Edit your items on the mantle, please.
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sandradclark
11 years ago
What a great old classic Arts & crafts house. Has pocket doors into adjoining room, too. splendid. If I got your house style wrong, please correct me.
decoenthusiaste
11 years ago
Beautiful coffered ceiling but it seems quite low and is sitting right on top of the door and window frames. Since you've already painted the trim white, I would try to lighten and "lift" the ceiling with more white. You can add color to keep it interesting. Clutter is taking over, so remove any item that can be held in one hand - it is probably too small to stand up to all the massive woodwork.

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User
11 years ago
oh no, dont paint that wood..........sorry deco but id hate to see that go!

lets start here:

remove all the extra items in the room, and everything you no longer want.

I dont think the curtains fit the era well, nor the furniture, but not sure what you can do budget wise. The curtains over the benches, might be better as shades, right now they are closing in the area, if you could see the window trim with the bench and mantel, they would all become one and feature.

really start by getting back to the bones.
miacometlady
11 years ago
I'm with @ flair. Leave those beams as they were intended, they've somehow avoided a paint brush so far and are an integral part of the character of the home. Lucky you!
decoenthusiaste
11 years ago
last modified: 11 years ago
Flair -dark trim, if not the coffer, is in the other rooms and is weighing this one down. I think the room will benefit from the unified look. The dark trim can be left in adjoining spaces. I suggest OP search the box under Photo for coffered ceiling to get lots of fresh ideas.
User
11 years ago
What is in the other room and weighing down this one? I think that with lighter walls, colors of furniture and better lighting, those beams would be amazing unpainted! The furniture seems to be weighing the room down, along with the heavy fixture. I agree with flair that removing everything that can be moved out will help to make more considered decisions.
decoenthusiaste
11 years ago
I see dark trim in the adjoining room, and I think the heavy look of the coffer which is appears to be resting on the window and door frames will be "lifted" if painted. The test of the theory is to remove all the furniture and see how the room feels.