You CAN use what you have......a makeover.

First of all...thanks to everyone for all of the wonderful comments about my shelter room.  I appreciate you taking  time out of your busy days  to read my post, much less comment on them.  I am still feeling warm and fuzzy when I think of how I changed her space to feel more like a home.

A couple of weeks ago one of my readers emailed me about coming to her house and doing a re-design [one day makeover].  Now I used to do these all the time but I will admit that it has been a while since I have pulled one of these off.  We met with Kara to find out what she wanted to accomplish and if she had anything in her budget for a few accessories.  The room we decided to concentrate on was the LR and maybe a little fluffing of the DR.  Having 2 small children has limited her time to concentrate on decorating.

The first thing we do is get a tour of her home to see if anything stands out that we know we can use.  Upon entering her guest room we saw this wonderful rug she had purchased at Scott's a while back.  We knew right then that this puppy needed to be in the LR for all the world to see.  We decided to put the one from her DR in the guest and had her purchase a seagrass for the DR.

So lets cut the chit chat and get to good part.

Here is a before shot.  You can see she did have some beautiful pieces.

As you can see...no rug made the room feel unfinished.  
Here is an after picture.


Changes...brought in the chair from another room and added the pillow.  Re- purposed  the rug from the guest room.  Found the wicker end table and broke up the lamps that were on either side of the sofa.  Moved the large bookcase away from the corner to make it a focal point.  We had her change out the curtains from another room to a solid.

Re-accessorized the whole cabinet....took out kids books and made it more cohesive.  Here it was in the corner.


Here is the corner now.
Moved the mirror that was in the DR to here to brighten up the corner.
Below is the mantel before.

Now the mantel after
Again...working with what we had.
She was on the wall where the cabinet is now.  We think she needed a more prominent place in the room!
A before shot of the sofa.
Really tough room as the FP is off center in the room.  There is often the question as to where to place the sofa in a situation like this.  The room really felt way too crowded by the front door.  We decided to center it in front of one window as you can see in the next picture.
Here we added the 2 blue pillows that we bought.  We turned one table in a different direction.  Re hung a few pictures.
She really helped us by having some great art!


We did change out the lampshades to give some texture in the room.
We also opened up one of the tables to give it more presence.
By moving the sofa down a little and turning the table longways, we were able to balance the space a little better. .



Same coffee table just accessorized.  Can you see that beautiful rug!  

Some more small touches.
Once again...before...also notice we had all the curtains rehung as high as we could, in both rooms....hang em high people :)
And after.
One day...3  1/2 hours....3 new pillows and 2 new lampshades.  Everything else was hers.  I forgot how much fun this is....and the first thing she said was : Did I have all of this????

Just a little in the DR.  Before.
And after

Moved some art...picked some flowers from her yard and added a bowl of fruit.

Moral of the story....shop your own house.  When ever I go for a design consult and we start talking budget...the most important thing I can say is finish one room at a time.  If you spread your money out nothing will look finished and you will be mad at me.

So it is the weekend.....I am alone as my husband is flying.  Here is a little ditty of a conversation we had yesterday morning....I think you can relate.  Me:  Stripping the beds.  Husband:  Is Herman [my wonderful cleaning person who comes every other week] coming today?  Me: No why?  Husband:  Well you are taking the sheets off.  Me: Well honey...here's a news flash.... I do wash the sheets in between Herman.  If it was up to him...well I really don't want to think what it would be like if it was up to him :)
Husbands.  Gotta love em.






41 comments

A Perfect Gray said...

my favorite things: new mantel arrangement; higher hung curtains, and my very fave - the new art arrangement to the left of the sofa. It MAKES the room. good job..makes me wanna shop my house this weekend..

donna

Jessie said...

You did a great job! I love everything you did, from incorporating a new rug to ground the living room, the relocation of the cabinet, the new mantel arrangement and putting a wingback chair with the table lamp in the dark corner to brighten things up to hanging the curtains up high!

I always love a good redesign. My parents bought a new home while I was still living in US so I have no say with whatever furniture they buy and arrangement they decided upon. When I went back to Malaysia (my home country) for my wedding, I rearrange everything and everyone, including the relatives love it! Talk about shopping at your own home.

I love this post! Very inspiring!

Jessie

Privet and Holly said...

My favorite part
was the mantle re-do,
but really, it's all
just beautiful. Wonderful
job as always, Sherry!
xx Suzanne

Renae Moore said...

Sherry,
This is one of my favorite things to do! Most people have plenty of 'stuff' to re-style with! Just adding a few things and rearranging what one has makes a ton of difference!

Kim @ Savvy Southern Style said...

Looks great and she had some very nice pieces to work with.

Caroline @ The Feminist Housewife said...

Wow, it's amazing what a difference you made in the room. Such a beautiful home!

Haha...your convo with the husband cracked me up!

Karena said...

Sherry great job!! This is a great thing....re-purpose! I will now take a good look to see what changes I can make!

xoxo
Karena
Art by Karena

Kathysue said...

You did a marvelous job, she had to be so thrilled. You are a master!!!! Perfect choices were made to make this room have continuity and flow. Very good Miss Sherry!! xo Kathysue

Kara martin said...

What a thrill to have our living room featured on your blog! You were fantastic to work with and created a living room that we now love to use and are proud of -- and all with stuff we already had! Amazing. You are truly talented.
Thanks,
Kara and Scott

Unknown said...

I really enjoyed reading this post ... doing these kinds of moving things around done-in-a-day project is my favorite thing to do. I love how even just moving that one piece of furniture (the cabinet) made a huge difference. Good job! Your photos are great too.

Diane said...

When a person sees their own home day in and day out, they get tunnel vision. It makes a world of difference to have someone else come in and open their eyes to the possibilities. You did a great job! Their home looks wonderful and I'm sure they are thrilled!

Colleen said...

ANOTHER....GREAT JOB!

Gloria Fox said...

I love this. Moving that cabinet made a huge difference. And the rug....gorgeous.

The enchanted home said...

Beauitful.....love the changes with the mantle, agreed that good art really makes a huge difference....and in this space the art defintintely makes a big impact on the room...so funny the conversation between you and your husband. Men, they crack me up! Have a wonderful Mothers Day weekend! Great job here:)

Katie said...

Thank you so much for this post, Sherry! Seriously, it's quite possibly the most inspiring post I've seen around in awhile. It makes me feel like I could move some stuff around and achieve the same finshed look.... key phrase "feel like".... didn't say it would for sure. :) But you only know if you try, right?

I absolutely love those gate leg tables. They are perfect! I've been looking for a long one that could be used as a sofa table. No luck as of yet.

Heidi @ Decor & More said...

What a great reminder to simply look at your own items with fresh eyes! With gas prices these days, I'm shopping my own house!
Have a fab weekend ~ it's an 11 on the Wizometer today. :)

Anonymous said...

This is beautiful and very inspiring!

Kim@Chattafabulous said...

Another wonderful makeover, Sherry. It's amazing to see how much impact small hits of color can have. And I must take your advice to heart, I seem to jump around from room to room at home and don't have any finished rooms yet and I am unhappy and mad about it! - Problem is, if I find a bargain I know will look good in a certain room, I can't pass it up - and so my unfinished spaces live on.. : (

Barbara Matson said...

Fanastic! Amazing how re-arranging items can create a whole new look. As for your advice for finishing one room at a time - I should listen to that!

Unknown said...

I love a good "use what you have" room make-over post. As usual, some fabulous Sherry touches!
Hope you are not too lonely this week-end, enjoy!
Cathy

Anonymous said...

love the one-day make over idea...
and gorgeous rug that's now in the living room...
that a lone is a big difference...love the added touches of pillows and lampshades to the room as well..it's all a little more relaxed and comfortable but still elegant...
maureen

Loretta Fontaine (EcoHappy Blog) said...

Sherry- Little changes make such a difference. And her art IS amazing!

Big question: is that you on page 67 of Better Homes and Gardens in the May 2011 issue?????

Loretta

p.s. giveaway on APPLESandRUBIES, come enter!

Brenda said...

A remarkable Before and After! Sometimes it just takes someone with some fresh perspective to come in and see potential where we don't. You've done a wonderful job using what was already there. :)

Dayka Robinson said...

such a great point, sherry, and beautifully illustrated! the room really has a different feel now that you've redesigned it, and i know she must've been very surprised to find that she already had everything that you used! i know you made her feel very happy that she purchased that rug.

Dayka Robinson said...

oooohh, and i met miss nancy on thursday!! she was such a proud sister about your bh&g feature--so cute.

Kacey @ Shes.No.Martha said...

wow.

so when are you coming to Columbus, Ohio?!

The Vintique Object said...

Sherry! I CANNOT get enough of these kinds of posts! Really. Just an amazing job you did. You HAVE to do more of these, ok?

She has some beautiful things to work with... especially the art, but what a pretty and classic couch. And the rug is gorgeous too.

Camille

Elsie said...

way to zhugh it, girlfriend. So beautiful! I think the mantel and the oranges are my fave. I find your designing honest, too :)

Kellie Collis said...

Lovely space! That cabinet looks wonderful. Enjoy he gorgeous day, Kellie xx

Mary Ann Pickett said...

This looks fantastic. I love one day makeovers. I did if for my friend's living room when I was visiting her in England a few weeks ago. Can you believe I did not take any before photos. Ah! I am a lousy blogger. This space reflects the homeowners personality beautifully now.

Kathy said...

You did a wonderful job with all of it, amazing! Looks fabulous now. I would so hire you in a heartbeat! Love it!

Capella Kincheloe Interior Design said...

Three thumbs up Sherri!

L.Duncan@Home23DuncanBoys said...

LOVE the outcome, Sherry! You are so right about shopping your house first. to be honest, it's something that I tell myself all of the time;) Oh and that rug, beautiful!

Gretchen O. said...

Love a "shop the house" room. Just goes to show, you don't have to buy alot of stuff! (maybe a couple pillows, right?) That rug is beautiful. I am sure the whole family is thrilled!

paula said...

brilliant! great work as always.

Carol@TheDesignPages said...

It's amazing how walking the rooms of a house can build a brand new room. I love the transformation.

Mary said...

All of the changes you made look fantastic! I agree - HANG EM HIGH when it comes to drapes. Works every time!! I'm enjoying your blog, thanks for stopping by mine :)

René said...

Sherry, one question - when can you come to my house?

Unknown said...

Oh my gosh - you are so amazing! I wish I was your neighbor so I could pick your genius decor brain :) I'm having such a hard time choosing a backsplash for my kitchen!

Tricia said...

Love these before and afters!!! I'm adding you to my blogroll so I can keep up with you.
xo~
T

Anonymous said...

I love this!

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