Our Living Room Design Plans | Bookcases and a Cozy Reading Nook

Hello, friends! Decorating our living room is all I can think about lately so I thought I’d share with you more about our design plans. We made all of the major decisions about the space like furniture layout, mood and color scheme (blue, green and white with natural textures thrown in), you can read about that HERE. All in all, I feel like things are progressing. Slowly, but progressing. This is a sketch of how we’d like the space to look like when we’re done.

I budgeted the work and created a timeline for our project and that gives me peace of mind. The fact that I can’t seem to find the right side tables at just the right price does not. I found a gorgeous antique English tavern table on Craigslist. It had beautiful barley twist legs, patina and amazing hardware but someone else got there before me… It looked similar to this one, except that this one retails for $3,750…

My table was a little dusty and needed some cleaning, but it was also $80!!!! No wonder it vanished!

Anyway, one of the first things we need to take care of are our bookcases. We want something pretty and traditional in style, with Greek Revival details (think Oscar de la Renta’s Punta Cana bookcases  🙂 ), so we needed to get creative. I found ones I liked but they are over a thousand a piece so that wasn’t going to work. However, we do have a pair of brand new Ikea Billy’s 🙂 (I’m sure you don’t hear Oscar de la Renta and Ikea in the same phrase very often!) and decided to start with those and dress them up with pretty moldings and trim. Over the Labor Day weekend I spent a happy few hours at Home Depot looking at different types of trim and I found some I like and brought them home.

I picked this one for the top…

…and this one for the base.

We’re done with one out of the two and as soon Ivan has more free time we’ll finish the pair and I’ll try to snap a glamorous picture to share. They still need painting but I’m so happy with how they turned out! It wasn’t easy but it was easier than expected. We’re not big on DIY but that’s where the budget’s at right now so, after watching enough Youtube tutorials to feel confident about what we were doing, we took out the nail gun and the mitter saw.

All I can say is that it was great fun to do something creative together, something that was outside of our comfort zone. The major problem was the lack of a workshop, and we nearly cut our dining table in half, but if you have the space and the right tools, I highly recommend upgrading those Billy’s! 

Also, here’s a moodboard I put together for the reading corner next to the window. It’s our daughter’s favorite spot so it needs to be cozy for her, and pretty for her mama. We already have the wing chair but I’m planning to have it reupholstered with an additional summer slipcover made. I’m thinking a thick blue and white stripe cotton/ linen blend. I’m also on the hunt for artwork sourced locally. Tucked away from the main street in downtown Amherst is a quaint little antique shop and I pop in weekly for the latest finds. The shop owner is such a lovely old lady. She’s in her 80s running her own business, and she’s extremely helpful and knowledgeable about everything in her shop. It’s always a joy to visit! 

That about wraps up today’s post… I’ll  be back next week with updates and more pictures!

xo,

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