Thursday, February 6, 2014

Library Reading Room Project

I'm finally about to tackle my front living room.
You may have heard me mention before that the room is incredibly small. It's sort of a joke to call it a living room. It is more like a parlor. But I'm going to make the small dimensions work to my advantage. I'm about to completely change this bland, beige and dark corner of my house to a little jewel box.
It is the first room you see off of the main entry and it is dismal. 
But that is all about to change.
If you follow me on Instagram, you know I have eclectic taste...you may have also noticed a bit of back and forth between Sherwin Williams and myself. I am so excited to be given the opportunity to partner with them to BAN THE BEIGE in my home!!
So thanks to Sherwin Williams and their MY COLOR RESOLUTION campaign, I'm about to get busy!




I have been wanting to add Schumacher's Chiang Mai Dragon in Aquamarine to this front room.
Using this fabric as an inspiration I'm pulling together classic pieces that I already have, some major color pops of aqua, emerald green and poppy orange, and some other soothing elements that still have enough weight to not be washed out by all that is going on.

Chiang Mai Dragon aquamarine

I'm leaning towards two blue wall colors, testing them as we speak:

Swimming by Sherwin Williams
Sherwin Williams "SWIMMING"

Sherwin Williams Meander Blue
Sherwin Williams "BUBBLE"

These two colors are light, you may even have trouble really getting a feel for them on your computer screen. This front room is East facing. There are only two East windows which look out onto a covered porch area. That's it for natural light. It is a very dark room with no over head lighting. The dark beige and chocolate brown tones that are in the room right now just shrink the space and make it feel like a hole.  Lightening up the wall colors will automatically make this room seem fresh and airy. That's what I'm going for.
brass lotus lamp, yes please
{via}
Another major inspiration pic that I came across was this one above. I love the lotus lamp and will continue to keep my eye out for a thrifted option instead of the $200-$600 versions that are on the market these days. But I love the gold accents in lighting, side tables and in particular, the bookshelf. I will be working on a DIY low budget version of this type of bookshelf for my Library Reading Room!

I have pieces that I already own that I'd like to include in this room:
#188 Pie-crust Table
Antique Pie Crust Table
secretary painted BOLDER EMERALD GLOSS
Secretary Desk 
Mine isn't green, YET.
One of my absolute fave furniture/accessories sources is Wisteria
Cane Chair
Mine isn't this nice...mine is vintage and was pretty much thrown off the back of a moving truck during this past move, so it's not in excellent shape like the one above. But I'm planning on giving it a little excitement with some fab CHIANG MAI or a deep color from the CHIANG MAI pallette. 

Add in a few other fun but classic accessories and I just may have a Library to rival my Dad's (well, maybe not since he has a purple velvet Camelback sofa in his...). But I'll be adding quite a large amount of character to my home and creating a bit of a sanctuary on a pretty small budget. 

So...the only other element I haven't narrowed down is a small area rug...

Go BOLD with geomentrics?
Go CLASSIC with an Oriental?

Go UNDERSTATED with a Sisal?
What would you do?

Be sure to stop over to my Library Reading Room Pin Board for all of my design inspiration pins and a few more elements that will be included in the finished room!
XXXOOO,

4 comments:

  1. Love the inspiration board and I can't wait to see this room!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks so much, Sarah! Recognize the curtain panel fabric??!! XO!

      Delete
  2. Gorgeous inspiration!

    Angela @ Number Fifty-Three

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Angela! Thank you so much! It is a real leap for me to not re-do with gray...BLUE is my favorite color and I'm really looking to make this be fun and special little room! Most of the main pieces are things I already have so the major elements are just paint, Chiang Mai pillow and the new book shelf...which is going to be a super low budget DIY! I'm painting away and can't wait to show the completed room within the next few weeks! Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete