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Front Room Changes

September 22, 2016 Rachel 16 Comments

This post was sponsored by Joss & Main. 

I’m so excited to spill all the details with you about changes we have made in our front room, pretty much revolving around our amazing new sofa!

Formal Living Room decorated for fall with pops of golden yellow

Let’s back up a bit though… a few months ago when I started de-cluttering and getting rid of some things in my home that I didn’t love and then move pieces around, I started realizing how much I preferred less furniture in a room. Being a furniture refinisher, I’ve had the opportunity to ‘test drive’ lots of different beautiful pieces in my home and ones that I couldn’t part with I would find a place for. Key phrase: “FIND A PLACE FOR”. This is hardly a mantra that I want to be known for as an interior designer. I want every piece to not only be loved, but be functional and practical for the room they are in! That is what got me moving things around in our front room. If you remember last Christmas, we used to have a white dresser on the wall with all the moulding, and the piano was on the short wall between the two entrances to the kitchen/dining room.

The piano was so dark– like a black hole almost– especially with our dark floors. So I painted it. 🙂 I used a mix of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in French Linen, lightened with white/light gray– I think about a 3:1 ratio… not sure 100% on that but close to something like that. I still haven’t sealed it but it doesn’t get used a lot right now, so it’s been fine. I will seal it with wax though!

Painted gray vintage piano in formal front room

Moving it to this wall meant I could center it on the wall and get some symmetry happening. Symmetry makes my heart happy.

So anyhow, once the piano was over there, all painted and pretty, I started thinking about some design advice I had read– that your home should have some cohesiveness in all the rooms. They shouldn’t match or be repetitive, but there should be a similar style, similar colors (with variation), and should still look like it ‘fits’. Every time I walked into our front room and saw the green victorian sofa, (as much as I loved that sofa) I had a little tugging feeling that it was time to say goodbye to it because that green color didn’t really fit in my aesthetic at that scale. It was older (hello, vintage!) and while the cushions were soft, they were showing some wear, weren’t very plush, and I didn’t want that bold green stealing the show every time I walked into the room. So, I started shopping for a new one. I knew immediately I wanted something lighter and tufted.

We chose the Josephine 88″ Tufted Sofa with the Curious Pearl fabric.

When I found the one I wanted, I made a design board for the room, so I could get a clear vision of how it would look:

formal front room design by Shades of Blue Interiors

Notice the coffee table is different in my design board… it will be the next thing I change out but I’m not sold on this design. The accent chairs– I have a feeling the floral ones I have in here won’t stay for another year, but right now their size is perfect and I DO love their fabric.

Fall formal front room with gray piano, white wall moulding, tufted couch, and brass floor lamp

Before I finalized my order on the sofa, I requested some fabric swatches because they were FREE! This is such a smart thing to do if you are ordering a sofa online. Computer screens make it very hard to get a clear idea of what the fabric will actually look like, so I ordered 6 swatches of light fabrics that I thought were pretty. Once they arrived I narrowed it down to two, but pulled the trigger on Curious Pearl because I knew the texture of the fabric would hide dirt a little better (it is a poly-linen blend and has very soft texture– almost chenille-feeling).

Curious Pearl fabric on Josephine 88" Tufted Sofa from Joss&Main

I love the tufting, the down-wrapped cushions that are SO plush, the size (it is long enough for me to lie down on it with extra room, but doesn’t have a high back), and the nailhead trim on the rolled arms:

Curious Pearl fabric on Josephine 88" Tufted Sofa from Joss&Main

This fabric has hints of beige-tan in it, which coordinates with the warmth of the brassy-gold accents I have in the room. From the distance though, it looks like it has some grayish tones in it also that look beautiful next to the gray piano.

Curious Pearl fabric on Josephine 88" Tufted Sofa from Joss&Main

I took me several days to stop doing a double take every time I walked into this room. It is everything I hoped for.

Tufted chesterfield sofa with subtle fall decor

Tufted chesterfield sofa with subtle fall decor

As I mentioned in my fall tour post on Monday, I also switched out the art on this wall with a free printable offered by Lucy that I had printed on canvas and framed. Aren’t the colors beautiful?

Fall watercolor painting

The soft colors of this room make it feel so much bigger and elegant, which was my goal.

Aqua, yellow, and creamy beige fall decor in an entry and living room

Aqua entry church pew bench, cable throw, fall decor on shelf with hooks

What do you think of the tufted beauty?

Tufted chesterfield sofa with subtle fall decor

Lastly… should I buy or make the coffee table? 😉

Design, Interior Design Plans

Comments

  1. Cassie Bustamante says

    September 22, 2016 at 5:13 am

    i love the new additions! as for the table, i would buy it. when it comes to brass you just can’t reproduce the authentic look without it looking weird in my opinion. that being said if you are patient, i bet you can hold out and find a vintage thrifted one!

    Reply
  2. Amy says

    September 27, 2016 at 2:19 pm

    I have been looking for ideas for our living room for awhile now and love everything about your transformation! Our living rooms look almost identical in size and layout, except we have a fireplace where your piano is. Thank you for this inspiration!!!

    One question for you; where did you find that bench?

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      September 28, 2016 at 1:16 pm

      The church pew/bench? It was a vintage find from Craigslist! I see church pews all the time at vintage fairs and on CL and so I measured the max size that I would need for that wall– 6 feet, and got lucky when I found one the perfect size! Then I just painted it the color I wanted!

      Reply
  3. Salena says

    September 27, 2016 at 3:02 pm

    Hi! Do you have anything behind your sofa? Our living room is almost the same layout (we have built ins and a fireplace on your piano wall) and we actually have the same sofa in a darker color! I have been wanting to pull the sofa away from the wall, but I’m unsure how to keep the space from looking awkward. Thank you!

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      September 28, 2016 at 1:15 pm

      There is nothing behind the sofa and I actually prefer it that way. It doesn’t look or feel awkward since the furniture sits on the edges of the rug (which has grippers underneath so nothing moves) which is centered to the piano (or in your case the fireplace). It also makes it easier to open and close the curtains, since I can walk all the way around the sofa.

      Reply
      • Salena says

        September 29, 2016 at 12:44 pm

        Thank you so much for your reply! I will try pulling the sofa (and rug) out tonight!!

        Reply
  4. Sara says

    October 6, 2016 at 11:11 am

    I have a linen couch very similar to the one you have. I was not wise and did not pick a great color or fabric in general for a home with three little ones. I have been playing around with the idea of using chalk paint to refresh it. I have never done that but found your blog through a YouTube video about it. Would you paint your main family sofa with chalk paint?

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      October 7, 2016 at 3:35 pm

      If it wasn’t a velour/velvet type material, then sure I would. It is cheaper than reupholstering– just keep it mind it changes the texture of the fabric. Painted and waxed fabric feels slicker- almost like outdoor fabric. It also won’t be cheap– you will need quite a bit of paint and wax, but that is still cheaper than reupholstery. Have you tried looking into custom slipcovers? I would try that option first because with 3 kids, I would love that washability option.

      Reply
  5. Sara says

    October 10, 2016 at 10:57 am

    I haven’t looked into the slipcover option because it’s a Chesterfield style sofa so it would lose that charm. We just finished painting last night and will sand/wax tonight. You are absolutely right about that texture. It’s not so soft anymore but it sure is pretty to look at again.

    Reply
  6. angela a says

    October 12, 2016 at 9:18 am

    Hi there! I love the free printable. Do you mind sharing what size you printed? Want to be sure I don’t lose the quality by printing something larger than say a 5×7. Thank you!

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      October 12, 2016 at 4:58 pm

      Are you talking about Lucy’s free printable? I printed it to a large size– like 19″ x 15″ or something like that. Anything with a 300 DPI will give you a good quality for a fairly large print. My prints are the same– the quality still looks good I would say up to 24″ wide.

      Reply
  7. Diana Young Hall says

    October 14, 2016 at 11:32 am

    Love the room but I’m drawn to your front door. What color is that? Contemplating paint color change for mine. Thanks!

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      October 16, 2016 at 7:27 am

      It’s Annie Sloan duck egg!

      Reply
  8. Terri Buckmaster says

    June 23, 2017 at 8:54 am

    Hi!! Love this room!!! I think we all strive for cozy cute homes and you got it!! 🙂 Funny question, where did you get the faux fur blanket on the piano bench?? My girls would love to sit on something cozy like that when they play! Thanks!!keep up the adorable decorating!! 🙂

    Reply
  9. Jenny says

    January 14, 2018 at 3:19 pm

    Hi love the color of your front door. What color is it?

    Reply
  10. Heather says

    August 8, 2018 at 1:10 pm

    Hello. I am moving to a much lighter palette and my floors are the same as yours. I’m shopping for a new loveseat and am wondering what make and model your sofa is and if it is still as wonderful as you thought when first purchasing. If so, I’ll go check out the manufacturer and see if they make a collection. Thank you.

    Reply

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