This is another no cost home makeover.
It all started with this Aidan Gray ottoman. It was on sale, and I fell in love with it. I ended up using it in the guest apartment below. But then I had an idea, why not move it to the farm?
I didn’t plan to use it at the farm, but knew it would be perfect with the Swedish bench. I rearranged the furniture and swapped out a few things. Below is the before.
And here is the after. The sofa is still there, I just switched it with the Swedish bench. The sofa now faces the wall. The room looks less cluttered and more clean and fresh. The chair was really too big for the room, and blocked one of the doors. So I sold it. Just like that.
I also thought it was time to change out the drawing on the chalkboard.
The only new purchases were the ottoman (technically I already had it.) and the white side table I found at a thrift store for $40. I had to paint it, but I think it looks great now. Since I sold the big chair and the ottoman, I made more than enough money to pay for the new things. I’m amazed at how different the room looks.
I painted the chair, fabric and all here. PAINTING FABRIC.
The lamp came from my bedroom vanity.
Just rearranging things can do wonders for your room. The old tables were moved to newlocations. The table in the corner has new life, shown below.
The old lamps were given to a friend. I hope she is enjoying them.
At the end of the day, the change was free, since I was able to sell the chair and ottoman to pay for the new things.
I am so happy with how the room turned out, and it was such a simple fix. I can’t believe I didn’t do this years ago.
So if there is a room you aren’t crazy about
1. Pull everything out of the room.
2. Add in only the pieces you like.
3. Try different furniture arrangements.
4. Add things you love from other rooms.
5. Consider painting something you don’t like.
6. If you end up with something that doesn’t work anywhere in your house, try selling it or just giving it away.
7. With the money you make selling old furniture, see if it is enough to buy something new that you do love.
I hope that has inspired you to try something new with that room that you aren’t so crazy about. Maybe it won’t even cost anything.
The corner table was painted with chawk paint provided by Southern Honey. Color Mini Pearl.
She is enjoying those lamps along with all the many other things/blessings you have bestowed upon her! Looks great – must get out there early next year!
I love the new look! It’s wonderful to have the Swedish bench as a focal point because it’s so light and pretty and everything else just follows from there. Love the lighter table, as well. I’m also a big Aidan Gray fan… 🙂 I thought of you the other night when hubby came home and said he never knows if the house has been broken into and ransacked, since I’m always moving furniture and things around… lol. I think there should be a support group for bloggers spouses!
Great tips. I have so much to work on and so many questions!
Fabulous ideas, Anita! LOVE that bench… and YOU PAINTED A CHAIR FABRIC AND ALL! You go girl!
A few months after my husband passed away this past February I began the project of redecorating the living/dining room and kitchen of my small cottage. It was time to move away from the heavy furniture and antique Tuscan Yellow walls. The decision to embark on this endeavor has been a godsend for me!
After a miss on my first color choice for the living room I settled on Sherwin Williams Emerald paint with primer, SW 6210. It covered the dark walls in one coat; which was good since I hate painting. The trim was painted bright white. New furniture in shades of seafoam green, light and medium teal, pale khaki and soft yellow (large spaced floral on a white background) provided just enough contrast to make the room interesting. I hung grommet top dark khaki drapes over white mini blinds. There is a brown 38″ tall bookshelf, a brown wicker trunk (used as a coffee table, and a large faded navy colored trunk in the room, along with two lamps (one is glass/metal with a white linen shade; the other a dollar store find, brushed nickel with a white shade with a scroll design.)
I was quite happy with the transformation until I found Cedar Hill Farmhouse. Your booklet of 8 ways to bring French country charm into the home has inspired me to take my transformation to the next level! The dark khaki and brown are on their way out to be replaced by more white and soft yellow and teal. Today I am working on milk painting some small display pieces.
At this point in life, as I face new beginnings in many things, the changes I have made give me joy. You have given me inspiration to not stop; rather to continue to allow my home to evolve just as I am evolving. I will send photos soon.
Keep up the good work!
Thanks Maggie. What a story. I am so glad you are excited about the future. You have been through so much. God bless you.
Something weird going on…. the right side of the pages is missing. What I’m getting is only the left half of the pages, running down the middle of the screen. Except now that I’m commenting, the page is switching between the left half and the right half so i can keep right on typing as i get to the middle of the page(which is actually the right margin as I look at the screen, which changes to the left margin as i keep typing along). Hope this makes sense. I’d like to see both sides of the page so the text makes sense, which it doesn’t when the right half of the page is missing. If you have a fix for this, or can tell me if my Mac is doing something strange, please let me know at mjhooper@indylink.org. Thanks
I am checking with my tech person to see what is going on MJ. Thank you for the heads up. I will email you when I find out something about this issue.