My wife Kristie and I made some changes to our apartment's living room in October, and I'm really happy with how it all turned out! It feels so fresh and tidy, especially in these pics, which I snapped a few weeks ago. (Of course, it's now basically the North Pole when it comes to Christmas decorations.) Check it out, and let me know what you think!
PS - Sources for (almost) everything at the bottom of this post.
One of the biggest changes we made was to get rid of our crappy (like, so crappy) second couch. It was constantly covered with a blanket because Samson had ripped up the cushions in his puppyhood, the bed no longer pulled out, and it was really just starting to fall apart. I had to pay a couple of teenagers $40 to come get it out of the house! Nobody even wanted it for free. (You can see it in some of these pictures.)
We replaced it with a credenza thrifted for $50 in my hometown. I was a little worried adding another dark wood piece would be too much (across from the remaining couch is a big, dark built-in you'll see later), but it actually feels really balanced.
Kristie picked out the two yellow chairs that flank the credenza. I was so surprised and thrilled by her choice! I really wanted something colorful to help with all the dark wood.
Here's a point we can't agree on, though: she likes the look of the record player on top of the credenza, but I'm a little bothered by the woods not matching. I want desperately to paint it turquoise!
Samson likes our colorful (and surprisingly affordable) new rug. The old one is now upstairs in our bedroom, enjoying a little less daily foot traffic.
We loved the removable wallpaper that used to be in the back of the built-in, but once the rug arrived, we realized it was a little too busy. Kristie's looking for another way to incorporate maps into the room.
I finally organized the books in the credenza based on general color family – it's subtle, but I love it!
A lot of the pottery on our shelves was made by my mama. She's so talented!
Samson's bed now slides really easily under the credenza, and it took him like 30 seconds to learn how to pull it out when he wants to lie down. Sometimes I think he misses having his own space on the aforementioned crappy couch, but he gets pretty comfortable curled up on those yellow chairs too!
I got rid of our old Venetian blinds, and replaced them with cheap roller shades. I felt super proud after doing the installation myself, and it really makes the room look cleaner and newer. The curtains I ordered were affordable, but too long and puddled on the floor, so I used Heat 'n Bond to "hem" them.
SOURCES
Custom wedding print: Tiny Buffalo
Credenza: Estate Treasures
Yellow chairs: IKEA
Rug: Urban Outfitters
Couch: Urban Outfitters via Craigslist (sold out)
Pillows: IKEA & Target
Record player: Amazon
Coffee table: IKEA (old)
White file boxes: IKEA
Dog bed: DIY
Curtains: IKEA
Walk the Line print: Concepcion Studios
Planter: IKEA
Table lamp: IKEA
Picasso dog print: Amazon
Floor lamp: IKEA
*This post includes affiliate links
