Chuck the rug and get something either lighter or brighter colors Repainting the walls in something that is not gray/grey toned would also help. Where your sewing table is located is an accident waiting to happen with that shelf behind it. Jamming your head or shoulders into it will not be fun.

I would paint the walls a color you like. Check out Ben Moore Del Mar Blue, which is actually not really blue. When you remove items to paint, be very selective on what you add back. Here is the color in my guest bed.

HU a dark color on the walls normally makes a room darker. Surprised you are suggesting something darker than is already on the walls. Any reason other than you like that color?

It’s darker, but I think that room can handle it with all the light. The color is also great with natural wood and more traditional, historic homes. They didn’t say anything about wanting to brighten the room, just move it away from beige. Im just providing a suggestion, which no one else has or provided pics. With more info, I could give better advice. Stating anything but grey when they don’t want beige, isn’t really helpful.

Did you miss "It needs some vibrancy"? While I love the blue-greens I would never except for the very light bright shades consider them vibrant.

Well, it's a challenge, but I'll take a crack at it, assuming you have a budget for two new rugs, storage bookcase, and baskets, and nesting side tables, plus the determination to drastically reduce the number of small pieces and clutter in your room.

--Downsizing first: get rid of the rug, the chest you mentioned, the secretary, whatever table is now between sofa and chair, the folding TV table.

--Yes, absolutely turn your sofa to face the windows to form an entryway behind it (with secretary relocated.)

--Move your recliner to occupy the window side of the room but tilted to face the TV wall. Put the floor lamp behind the chair and your lovely round table next to your chair to use as a side table.

--TV wall. Buy long, low bookcases (Ikea/Wayfair/Overstock) with cubbies where you will store your craft supplies in attractive baskets, hide your cords, etc. The bookcases should fit entirely across the wall. (You can put two side by side.) Buy multiple wicker baskets the color of your floors for storing crafts, puzzles, board games, cords. The bookshelves should run the length of that wall.

Living Room Media Bookcase · More Info

--On the wall where you have the floating shelves: Add wheels to your dropleaf table and keep it against the wall except to do crafts or use for games. (I'm assuming you'll borrow chairs from a dining room or kitchen when you have company.) The dropleaf table will be perpendicular to the new storage bookcase.

Okay, decor, which always comes after downsizing extra furniture, decluttering like mad, and figuring layout.

--Paint the room a warm white that looks good with your wood floors.

--Hang straight white curtains or curtains you make in a color from a patterned rug you will buy that has a color in it. Hang the rod almost to the ceiling to give a sense of height.

--Since you will be moving around your existing table for crafts, games, etc. no coffee table. However, do get a set of nesting tables placed next to the sofa on the side that can be pulled out and used for a coffee table when you have company. Again, Wayfair and Overstock has them. Either the legs or top should be a maple color to echo your crafts/game table.

--You need two rugs, which should complement each other--an entryway runner and a good-sized rug for the main part of the room. Choose complementary patterns with a little bit of brown (from sofa and wood tones. You need pattern and color to balance out your bulky brown upholstered pieces. Here's a palette of blues, tans, ivory that goes well with brown--not necessarily these rugs, but patterned rugs that have some color you like and go with each other. Wool is still the nicest material for a rug, and you can filter that if you order online. That rug should be a good size and pretty much fill the room.

Whisper Beige/Blue Landscapes Rug, 7'9"x9'9" · More Info

Runner from door in your newly created entryway:

--Group your small art works instead of scattering them around as you have them now.

I think that's it.

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I’m sorry, what exactly is wrong with a bit of color on the walls? Why does everything have to be super light or white? How very boring.

Before you do anything else, figure out the furniture arrangement. I think in a room this small, it's a big mistake to use the sofa to block off the entrance to the room. Even though you don't have an actual entryway, I don't think it's needed. You can scoot your sofa out from the corner, closer to the door, and pull out and turn the recliner so it's facing more into the room. That leaves a better space in the back of the room for your table with 4 chairs to use for your games and puzzles. Use your square end table and the round end table under the TV on each end of the sofa. I think a light, fresh, color like SW Liveable Green would look nice with all your dark wood.

Let's start with the positives - you love to sew and would like to make a crafts nook. Here's a picture you saved in your idea books. I love it.

Home Office Inspiration · More Info

One idea that you can use right away is that the craft/sewing area above is in the brightest corner of the room, and you fortunately also have a corner with 2 windows. Right now your sofa takes up this well-lit space. So move your table into the corner. The table can also be used for jigsaw puzzles, especially because it's great to have natural light for puzzles.

Move your curtain rod up and put your existing curtains on clip-on rings so you can easily open them completely or close them up. No sewing needed.

You need 2 comfortable chairs for a guest or two when that time comes. Nothing heavy or bulky. Marketplace or Craigslist are great places for these, and if they're in good shape but the wrong colour you can paint them. Yes, even the fabric can be painted (with latex paint).

A couple of the rooms in your idea books have this blue colour, so it may work for you. If you paint the room blue or blue/green then your neutral rug may be OK.

Other idea book pictures show bright afghans and rugs, with reds and yellows. If you add bright colour with rugs and afghans, your beige walls may not need repainting. Check out how the colour is balanced in the rooms that you like. You need to decide which direction to go.

I'm not sold on the idea of creating an entrance area using your sofa. What is the benefit of an entrance area to you? If it were me I'd want a more open spacious room. You can create the idea of an entrance by painting your door a fun colour, and adding a coordinating rug at the door. But you don't need to blocking off a part of the room to make an entrance way.

Another idea - maybe what needs to go is your sofa. It's big and dark and, sorry to say, not a thing of beauty. None of photos in your ideabooks have anything remotely like it. If you replace it with 2 comfortable chairs for guests, then you create a lot of space in your room. Maybe then you can keep the secretary to store craft and sewing supplies? Paint it a fun colour?

Hope you get some ideas from my ramble!

Get rid of the tiebacks and get wider curtain rods so you can pull the curtains all the way to the side to admit maximum light.

Turn the entire space into a sewing studio, with a cutting table, sewing machine table with lift, serger table and daylight lamps. Make one wall a quilt design wall by covering it with felt. Some shelves for fabric and a dog bed in the corner.

What could be better than that?

Me again. You can start some of the decluttering now as well as moving around your furniture to get the right layout. Maybe hire an hourly helper to move things around. Just put felt or rubber coasters on legs of pieces you are keeping so you can try different configurations. I do like your entryway idea but Partim and Callidesigners made good layout suggestions as well. Try different layouts. I don't know how attached you are to certain pieces. I've gotten things moved out of my house by offering them for free on Craigslist if I was only going to get fifty bucks for something anyway.

I'd like to answer HU-765755942 about white wall paint, which provides a neutral backdrop. White wall paint is often suggested when a room needs pattern and texture via a rug, art, patterned curtains, sofa pillows, throws, etc. Color comes into the space in all those multiple ways. Many very colorful rooms on Houzz and other shelter sites have white walls. So do museums.

Midcentury Living Room · More Info

The blue in your bedroom is very beautiful, but maybe the OP wants brighter light in the room at nighttime when she's watching TV or having friends over. I'm with you on avoiding gray if someone wants vibrancy and light in a room. It can also be a bit gloomy and cool at nighttime.

P.S. to the OP: A drop light over your crafts/game table--could be as simple as a white paper shade, which would balance out the floor lamp if you move it to your recliner by the window.

Ikea has a variety of affordable suspension shades and kits for the fixtures. Make sure a shade can accommodate a bright enough bulb for craft/game table activities.

Love the sewing nook idea. And that’s where I’d use color. Is that even a possibility?
I happen to like the current rug. But I think lighter furniture would compliment it better. So maybe move it to a different room...
I think the main thing is, after it’s painted, to carefully place things back into the room.
Also, excited to see you sew some cool things for this space... love that...

Just want to note that you have some beautiful antique pieces. The secretary, the drop leaf table, and the small round marquetry table are quite lovely. If this were my home, I would try and find a place for all of them. And replace the outsized upholstered pieces that take up far too much room.

Every single one of you has given me wonderful ideas. Both the secretary and drop leaf were wedding presents given to my grandmother in 1904, and I've dragged them back and forth from the midwest to the West Coast each time I've moved. Now I'm retired and looking at selling my house in the next 5 years and moving to an apartment so I just thought I would never be able to utilize them there. I'd really considered getting rid of the sofa b/c it isn't so comfortable and maybe that's the way to save my grandmother's secretary. I also hadn't thought of painting it....that could give it a whole new life.

Now the hard work of considering options and trying things out....I will definitely reposition new curtains I can make. And I have a couple of strong high schoolers that live next door that I can hire to help me try out all these ideas.

Thank you so much....and I will try to repost what I end up with. Large item pickup from the trash people is May 1st, so I'm hoping to get this underway by then. Thanks again.

Sorry to come so late to the party but:

Is that secretary made up of 2 pieces that can be separated?

If so, please consider moving the bottom part of the secretary to under the TV and re-purposing the top half to be a cabinet for your sewing projects that sits on the floor. You gift need to ask a carpenter to build a base for it or attach legs.

Whatever you do, please don’t paint it!

I think if you painted the ceiling white you will lighten the space.

The antique secretary is beautiful, and can give you some nice height somewhere in the room. Please don't paint it.

I agree don't paint the secretary, its a wonderful character piece for your room and calidesign made a good point about it being a nice piece with some height.

I suggest that your very next step could be to get rid of the sofa, for a couple of reasons.

- It's your least attractive piece of furniture (sorry, sofa!!)

- It's your least useful piece of furniture. You say it's uncomfortable and you don't sit on it. And your dog will be just as happy on a nice dog bed or a new chair.

- It has no "story" for you

- It's your biggest piece of furniture so it's unlikely to work out in your upcoming apartment move. And when it's gone you will have so much more room to move things around. It looks to be still in reasonable shape so if you offer it for free on Marketplace or Craigslist etc, you'll get takers. No need to wait for May 1. And it is good to keep things out of landfill.

Eclectic Living Room · More Info

A couple of the pictures in your idea books show quite a bit of orange. I like it too! (Gray begone LOL!). When you look at this room, much of it is pretty neutral (walls, rug) so maybe you don't need to do all that much buying of new things or repainting.

To liven up your secretary, add backing to the upper open shelves. Basically take something like heavy cardboard or foam board, and cut pieces to fit the back of the open shelves. Cover the pieces with paper or fabric, and just wedge them at the back of the unit. No need to paint your secretary to get a new look. Be sure that the items that you put on the shelves contrast nicely with the background.

You mentioned in another idea book that you need storage for quilting materials. Could the chest and the secretary be used for storage? Is the chest a non-valuable item that could/should be painted?

Your existing curtains could be dyed too, to repurpose them. A rusty orange would liven up the whole room.

Again, I have to say these are terrific ideas. I am convinced that the big brown sofa has to go! I do have another sofa in the porch that my mom gave me years ago. It has an ottoman---you can tell my dog claims lots of my furniture---it snowed here today and he was snuggled into his blanket on the ottoman. I read out here b/c the light is so good. Should I use this in the LR?

I like the light-colored sofa. I like the dog! I think the dog might like a luxury dog bed, and then he might give you back your sofas. They make nice dog beds with sherpa or fur lining, or ones with legs up off the floor, which is maybe what he really likes

Samuel Mid Century Small Plush Pet Bed, Dark Gray/Natural · More Info

In case he doesn’t get the message, you can also find sofa protectors that can add some vibrancy as well as protect or cover up if the dog claims the seats

Greenland Andorra Loveseat Furniture Protector · More Info

Polyester Loveseat Protector with Tribal Print, Multicolor · More Info

Greenland Home Fashions Atlantis Furniture Protector Slipcover Sofa Jade · More Info

They come in other prints and solids

One other question:

Can you recline the recliner where it is? Or is it the kind that can be up against a wall and recline? Or maybe you don’t care. But if you need to move it make it recline, think about floating it with its back to the door and putting the TV where the shelves are now. Then you could put the light-fabric sofa where the TV is, and use the window area for sewing space.

There are nice lightweight chairs you can get that would be comfortable enough for guest seating and sewing seating.

Did you mean to post this in buying & selling homes? (Maybe you’re selling and I missed that.. just surprised to see it here.)

I just had a thought. How tall is your sewing machine? Does it fit beneath the barrel top of the secretary? Perhaps this could be its new storage area? Fabrics and patterns stored up top in the book shelf area. Notions stored in the cupboard below. If you have bobbins and spools of threads, perhaps they can be stored in the small drawers; elastic and packets of buttons can be placed in the mail slots. Turn the secretary into your sewing center!

The lighter sofa is better than the one you have now, but if you don't need a sofa in the room then don't add one. I would focus on making 2 functions work well - the craft area and the TV viewing. For a smallish room I think that's enough to start with. If it seems empty then add the sofa but I don't think that will be the case.

How about these curtains on the windows and this rug on the floor to make sure the room isn’t boring?

Canyon View Striped Curtain Drapes · More Info

Hand-Woven Kilim Brian Blue Beige Wool Rug - 6'9 x 9'7 · More Info

And this on the light colored sofa you bring in from the porch

Polyester Loveseat Protector with Tribal Print, Multicolor · More Info

Then I would move the secretary to where the recliner ano mirror are now. Move the recliner to face the back wall and put the TV there. Move in the light-colored sofa to where the TV used to be, and add some end tables and lamps.

Create a sewing workspace in the area of the windows with good lighting from floor lamps. Add some comfortable chairs that swivel for working and for guests.

Spire Swivel Upholstered Office Chair, Gray · More Info

Mid-Century Leatherette Adjustable Swivel High Back Office Chair, Cream White · More Info

How about this for your sewing area in the windows (it also comes in other colors, but I didn’t want to shock you! I’d pick yellow)

60'' Flower Grey Thermal Laminate Activity Table - Height Adjustable Short Legs · More Info

Or maybe a trapezoid shape works better in the windows for both sewing and activities with guests?

Flash Furniture 30''W X 60''L Trapezoid Activity Table · More Info

There is this shape as well, in not-boring yellow, but I think with your gray walls and other furniture — the secretary and the recliner — the red would be best. Or (I guess) the gray

48"x96" Kidney Yellow Thermal Laminate Activity Table-Adjustable Legs · More Info

I vote to get rid of the brown sofa, a 2 person love seat instead; I would paint the walls a pale peach color (not quite cream/white, but just a hint of color). New rug, runner at front door. If you get rid of the large recliner and get something 'smaller' (more petite) you would probably have room for one side chair also, thus seating for four. I live in a 900 sq ft apt and I have a 2 person love seat, a club chair with ottoman, a cabinet my Dad made for me, a (custom build) cabinet (computer/monitor/electronics storage) a dining table that seats 4 (but normally is pushed up against a wall), a buffet all within my living/dining/kitchen space (probably about 400 sq ft of the apt).

My friends the brown sofa was listed on Marketplace last night and is gone today. I was so inspired by how free the space felt that I rolled up the holey sissal rug & pad. Took me forever to vaccuum up all the shedding fibers.

My little dog is disoriented and wonders where his sofa went.

I'm getting there with your help. I'm going to look for a teal/green/red kind of rug. With all the old stuff cleared out (and my neighbor is going to take the chest next week), I have a much better sense of what size rug should be in there.

The old rug was 8x10 and it was so awkward b/c I couldn't group things close enough to have just their front legs on the rug....and it wasn't small enough to just have it in the middle. But, after much tugging and dragging, I folded it 1/2 and the 8x5 looked pretty good if I want it centered but not under furniture.

Progress is so wonderful and freeing. Thank you again to everyone.

OK! Looks so much nicer already. You do have nice floors. My sympathies to the dog because a favorite sofa is hard to find.

Have fun rug shopping. Standard advice for shopping for rugs online is to buy the smallest one you can to see the true colors, which you can return and buy the size you need if you like it, or keep on shopping — but it is easier to return a small rug you don’t like than a big one.

Here’s one in the colors you mentioned — but of course there are zillions in all different styles. I posted this one because a 5’3”x’6” is really cheap!

Maxville Updated Bohemian Farmhouse 5'3" X 7'4" Area Rug · More Info

Take all the small pieces out of the room, and put your light colored sofa on the wall with the largest window, with the recliner facing into the room with it's back to the entryway. Then set up your table in the far corner of the room. Don't get a rug until you've placed all your furniture so you can see how much space you need to cover.

Sounds like you're planning to put a 8' x 5' rug in the middle of the room but not have any furniture on it. I don't think that will look good. None of your idea book photos show a rug like that.

Follow the advice of @calidesign above and arrange your furniture first.

Since the table is being used for sewing placing it in the far corner of the room would reduce the amount of light that it would receive. Ever try to cut out a pattern with little light especially when the lines are not very dark? That could be used in a corner but overhead lighting of some type would need to be added. Sewing tables in corners can lead to bad accidents if not well lit.