Farmhouse Chic Living Room

I am so completely grateful that I have the friends that I do!  My latest project was for one of my closest friends, and I was humbled that she asked me to help her decorate her living room.  I always thought she had a great sense of style, which she does, but she expressed that she just needed help pulling things together and making her living room look "finished."  I understood exactly what she meant.  I, too, have been trying to get my own home to look "finished."  From the time we moved in almost 4-years-ago, the house has been going through many transformations.  New paint, new flooring, new fixtures, and 2 new babies, to boot!  It's a mad house!  And I always have some excuse for not finishing things up and making my house look like a home.  

Rachel needed exactly that, to make her house feel like a home, and for it to reflect her current style.  It was time to get rid of the furniture she had after college and upgrade to something a bit more neutral and chic.  I remember when I first visited her apartment and saw her new red couch!  Oohhhh how I loved it!  She had lots of warm colors going on and it was so cozy.  We would sink into those cushions with a nice, hot cup of coffee and watch Food Network for hours.  The good old days!  Now, we are both married with kids and our lives look a lot different, except for the coffee part.  There's always coffee in hand when we are together...or apart.  Well, anytime really.  We just both love coffee.  Ha!  

The warm colors of Rachel's past had to go and make way for some cool, neutral tones with a splash of farmhouse chic.  She expressed a desire to keep a very monochromatic color palette, so I did my best to deliver!  But, I also wanted to throw in touches of soft blues and greens to tie in the existing wall color.  After going over all of her wants and needs for the space, it was time to put together the design board.  Annnddd voila!

I always get a little anxious after sending a client a design board.  Will they love it or hate it?  Did I meet or exceed their expectations?  Or did I totally miss the mark?  I awaited her response like a kid waiting to open presents on Christmas morning.  So, not calmly.  I tend to pace and ask my husband a million questions about the design I chose.  "Do you think they'll like it?  Does it need something?  Do you really like it or are you just saying that so I'll leave you alone?"  I usually get the response, "It will be fine.  I'm sure they'll like it.  Just sit down, woman!"  Thankfully, she didn't make me wait long at all and she loved everything about it.  The heavens opened up, angels started singing, and all was right with my life again.  *huge sigh of relief*  

When your client is also one of your best friends, it's just natural to shop together for all the decorations and make adjustments on the fly.  We made a whole day of it and shopped 'til we dropped!  As we went from store to store, I was noticing that Rachel was drawn to the rusticity of galvanized metal and natural woods, but gilded accents also caught her eye.  Instead of going with all silver accents, we decided to mix things up and throw in a touch of gold.  Like I said, you adjust on the fly!  Overall, it ties in seamlessly.  You'll see!  Keep scrolling...

Work day arrived and the first change we needed to make was painting the dark brown fireplace mantel a crisp, clean white.  What a difference it made?!  It completely brightened up the room!

...and after

Sooo purrty!

We found these really cool metal scoops at Hobby Lobby.  I thought they'd make great sconces to flank the map art!

I'll admit, I'm a bit nostalgic about the red couch and chaise.  However, I really love the new gray sofa and blue chair. 

We did not forget about having our daily cup of joe!  *slurp*

I feel like this is the perfect spot to curl up with a good book and coffee.

A huge thank you to Rachel and Ross for giving me this opportunity!  I really hope you enjoy your new living room!  Hug hug, kiss kiss, hug hug, big kiss, little hug, kiss kiss, little kiss!

~Kirstyn