Over the last couple of months, our family room has become a fun decorating obsession for me. I’ve been going back and forth in my mind with some of the decorating decisions regarding the space and thought it might give me much needed clarity, and maybe even amuse some of you, to lay down in writing the tangle of thoughts in my head. So, behold our family room (former spare bedroom)…
This is how it looked like when we bought the house last summer (pic above). It is the cutest little room, almost perfectly square, with a ton of potential. We closed the existing hallway entrance (visible below, on the right) and had French doors installed last Fall.
While the rest of the house is quite communal, now this little room feels more like a destination, tucked away from the main bustle of people, Alexa and what other noisy activities are going down on any given day at our house. It is our favorite spot for work and play and it’s where I go when I want a few moments of calm and quiet.
(I’ve been needing those moments more and more lately which explains why I am getting restless to have it finished.) Because it is diminutive in size (only 11’-4” x 11’-5”) but must do some serious multi-tasking when completed, I have known for quite some time that designing it efficiently will take some serious number-crunching, both in inches and cash, and am now in the process of reconciling the two.
What I have so far:
Mood
Cozy, colorful, fun, cottage feel
Design Elements I’m 60% (-ish) sure on:
1. Bead board paneling on all walls for a country, cottage-y look
2. Bookshelves wrapping around the walls – working out the exact dimensions – OH SO FUN!
3. A comfortable sofa-bed, easy on the eyes and wallet, that will be perfect for out-of-town guests but small enough to fit snuggly between two corner bookcases. Does such a remarkable thing even exist?
4. The washer and drier will move to the basement and the closet will become a built-in work station we can close and forget about at the end of the day.
5. Wall-to-wall seagrass installed with a cushy padding underneath. The floors in this room are hardwood and original to the house but we’re not so crazy about them. They are squeaky and noisy under foot. We don’t want the bother & expense of replacing them right now so I think a good compromise will be a soft carpet padding + wall-to-wall seagrass that will absorb some of the noise.
As for a color palette, I am now into warm neutrals (Benjamin Moore’s Linen White in semi-gloss is what I’ve landed on) with happy colors mixed in the textiles – pillows, upholstery and lamp shades. Ask me tomorrow and I will have probably changed my mind 🙂 I also loved the idea of having everything painted a soft, light blue-gray that will amp up the coziness-factor… Why, oh why is it so difficult to design for oneself, yet so much easier for clients and friends?
Right now I am working out the dimensions of the shelving units (how wide, how many shelves, how tall, etc ) and have been gathering a bunch of lovely bookcase inspiration pics to guide my choices. We’ll also be replacing the off-center window on the West elevation with a centered pair. But more about that some other time…
I do love drafting software and all the amazing things computers can do in terms of design but at the end of the day, when outfitting a space from scratch, I love getting back to the drawing board. Pen, paper and a pair of scissors have been my aid in figuring out the scale of things… Gil Schafer, Russell Versaci and Patrick Ahearn (who are all architects specializing in the New Old American House) have been my go-to source for classic, timeless lines and proportions, while Jeffrey Bilhuber’s stunning country home library in Locust Valley is really at the top of my list for charm and efficiency.
Another thing I’m deciding on regarding our bookcases is whether or not to go with corner shelves (maximizing every inch of space available or, to make shelves meet at corners (and have dead space in every nook)? Anyway, our carpenter will be available next week which leaves me just enough time to finalize the design!! Eeek!! I will be back with updates as we (hopefully) progress. Take care!
What fun designing a library! Ours is our favorite room in our house. We painted the shelves and trim here and everywhere in our house Benjamin Moore Linen White and have always loved it. Instead of classic sharp corners, our carpenter had the wraparound shelves meet in three corners of the room to form a smaller row of shelves around 17″ wide. I wasn’t sure about it when he proposed it, but those three smaller rows of shelves look great. We have deeper shelves on the bottoms for taller books and there’s a ledge on top of them that connect to the upper shelves. It’s the perfect place to put down a drink or a book or display something meaningful. I could send you a photo.
Have fun with this. You’re going to love with room.
Author
Hi, Francine! Thank you so much for your sweet comment, I’d love to see photo of your bookshelves if it’s not too much trouble. My email is evacontrerasdesign@gmail.com
xo, Eva
What a great space, Eva. I know you will get the shelves just right! While our renovation gets started and the ac is replaced, we are staying in an Airbnb that has the most lovely closets/storage on either side of the bed, with a pull out shelf for charging phone or setting aside glasses and a book. Also, really wonderful reading lamps mounted on the side. The room is about the size you described, so I thought you might want to take a look at my Insta today. If you like I would be happy to dm you some detail shots. It is very well done.
Author
Hi, Paula! Thanks so much for your sweet comment and for offering to send me your Airbnb bookshelf pics, I appreciate it! Thank you, I could use all the inspiration I can get! My email is evacontrerasdesign@gmail.com
Best of luck with your renovation, you’re doing it the right way 😉 xo, Eva
I can just picture what a lovely, cozy addition this will be to your already welcoming cottage. And the planning is so fun. Love your inspiration images.
Author
Thank you so much, Linda!! I’m praying for patience as this will be a long-term project 🙂 Love what you’ve done with your sweet cottage!! xo, Eva
I love the posts about your home. Keep them coming! No matter what you decide, it’s going to look great!
Author
Thank you so much, Lena!! xo
I suggest that some of the shelves be deeper (12 inches) to accomodate your art/decorating books and photo albums. Other shelves can be less deep (8-9 inches) for normal-sized books. This would give you more open space in the room and prevent regular books from looking lost at the back of a deep shelf. Spending extra money to have cupboards built below some of the deeper shelves might be a good idea. You would then have a place to tuck away office supplies and extra blankets for your houseguests.
You are a very talented designer. I know it is going to be great. I love the Gil Schafer room with the natural beams on the ceiling, the brown velvet sofas, seagrass rug & the fireplace on the right. The color of the books seem to have influenced the colors of the entire room. It is one of the best Gil Schafer rooms I have ever seen, and the others are amazing. Such a warm and restful room. Thank you for the inspiration for my family room!
Author
Thank you for making my day with your sweet comment, Cindy! xo, Eva
Hi Eva,
I cant wait to see everything finished!! Its going to look great! Can you share your resource for the seagrass rug?
What is the care for seagrass wall to wall? I always struggle when it comes to carpet and love the natural look.
I live in an older home and the previous owner has blue carpeting thru out 3/4 of the house… we plan to sell and the floors are hardwood under the carpet.. we dont want to invest in refinishing the floors at this time. Do you have any suggestions on a neutral carpet for living and dining area that are joined? Thank you!!
Author
Hi Rose,
Thanks for stopping by! We do have some experience with natural fiber rugs and we love sisal and seagrass. They hide many sins, are relatively inexpensive compared to other rugs on the market and can be customized easily. They are not soft under foot, but they feel actually pretty good. Our latest ones are Safavieh from Overstock, they are not “perfect” but work really well for us. I have yet to zoom in on a natural fiber wall-to-wall carpet source near us but I can let you know when I find something I like. xo, Eva
Love the color of the walls and great ceiling rafters. Truly love what you have done to the room. I do have a bit of advice as far as paint. I once had a professional painter tell me to always paint my rooms in FLAT paint as flat paint hides blemishes in the wall. I have followed his advice and agree. If I feel I have to digress to something more “washable”, I will go with an eggshell paint. Passing this info on to you, especially as you have an older home and might have walls with ‘blemishes’.
Author
Thank you so much, Judith! You are so kind, and absolutely right about FLAT paint! It is a life-saver, especially in older homes like ours where the walls are, let’s just say, less then perfect 🙂 xo, Eva