House Tour, Day 1

Inside the front door of house, to the left, is the living room. We hope, eventually, to make it into a library space. We're planning on putting built-in bookcases on either side of the fireplace with a gap for the windows. We haven't figured out the final plans for this, as the fireplace make supporting the shelves more challenging, but it's probably the next major project on our list. We got the desk from Wes's parents (who have been extremely generous in giving us furniture to use in the house). It's a beautiful piece, and I really like it. Unfortunately, it's too small for Wes -- something he forgot when we decided to get it from his parents. So we'll probably eventually replace that with something that fits him and is a little more contemporary, which seems to be more my style (though I like the odd, special classic or antique piece). The couch in the living room is more than four years old, and it's showing its use. I tried to steam clean it with some upholstery cleaner, and that helped some, but being the main piece of furniture (plus dog, plus baby) and being such light fabric is working against us. We did paint this room to match the hallways and upstairs. It was previously the color of the bedroom, which was a little too mottled for my taste next to the fireplace. The rocking chair and cute side table came from Wes's parents also. We tried out some variations of coffee tables in this room, but they all felt too crowded or out of place, so we're going with the more barren look for now. Hopefully we'll also add a rug when, well, the dog dies or something.

Inside the front door to the right is the sitting room or "parlor," as Wes prefers to call it. We have totally changed this room and, notably, spent the most room in here (not including the garage, which is "furnished" with two cars purchased in the last 6 months). We painted the room a color that I love. It's purpler during the sunny hours and more blue or periwinkle in darker hours. The chair was ours. The side tables are from Wes's parents. The bench has a storage area in it, which is being used for games, toys, and blankets. The couch we purchased, and I love my chaise lounge. I practically live there doing schoolwork. The couch, though still light, is a machine-washable slipcover, so we were a little less nervous about it. The large cabinet is actually a built-in television cabinet. The top opens on a hinge, and our 52" monstrosity is mounted on an articulating arm so it can pull all the way out if we want to angle it heavily for a group of people. There are two shelves that house or boxes and remotes. There's also two shelves on bottom for more storage, but they're empty. We still want to put a cushion and some pillows on the bench, get a good throw for throw (a Momma N. afghan, maybe?) for the couch, and put a rug down.

So those are the front rooms. Visit again tomorrow!