Living Room REVEAL

Do you remember that I’ve been making over my Living Room?   Well, like most projects, I got it to the 90% complete stage and then fizzled out – I needed a push to take the room to “complete”.  To refresh the bones of what I had done.  And so when the BHG Room Refresh Challenge came, I was all over that.  And BAM, I am in love with my new, COMPLETE Living Room!

Remember when we bought our house (5 years ago next month) I thought it was a “grown-up” house and I needed a more “grown-up” color pallette – I painted the living room pale tanish yellow and hunter green – and didn’t love it.  I lived with it until this makeover when I realized I wanted our house to be FUN.  And I’m so glad I changed things up.  Here’s a before and after:

Such a change, right!?!

It’s been evolving over time (my favorite part being the Gallery Wall), but it’s never been complete until now – with a few key pieces from Better Homes & Garden, I went from step 3 to step 4 and done:

Let’s talk about the changes and the Room Refresh:

–The Lamp!!  I am giddy over this lamp – it is PERFECT because it’s the same pattern that’s in the dining room, which is connect to the living room.  I found it at Walmart online and used “site-to-store” where I could pick it up at my store, no shipping cost.  So easy!  I also added the finishing touches of the frames – the circle one is a BHG one I found at my Walmart for only $3 – score!  Love the unexpected shape – I dry-brushed some color onto it because the side table needed a little pop of color.

(random picture of my dining room, so you can know how perfect the lamp is…)

–The Ottoman!  This is a dream – it matches my couch perfectly, and is the exact size I need.  (Remember when I made the penny tile coffetable?  I’ve had it until now, but it always felt small and was never working in the space).  The rug was previously in my entryway, but for the Room Refresh I pulled it in and LOVE how it defines the area.  My Walmart store only has one of these left – I think they must be popular.

What I love most about it is the ottoman is the versatility.  There are trays as I showed above, to give space for additional decor – but there’s more.  Under the trays are 2 large storage cubes – everyone needs storage space, so I love that.

And even more, the trays flip over into cushions – this is the room that I entertain in (I’m hosting a baby shower next week even) and it seems like we always need just a little extra seating.  So this will convert to a seating bench – awesome, right?!

–The Curtain Rods! (and curtains) – I am in love with my curtains that I bought at IKEA last month while at SNAP, but they were just sitting in the package all this time.  So for part of the Room Refresh I purchased a couple of BHG Curtain Rods – they had tons of options, and I loved how several came in the large size that I needed.  Trevor installed the rods for me, hanging one set of curtains at the ceiling and one at the top of the window.  Adding curtains changed the whole feel of the room – made it complete.

The debate is whether or not to tie them back – let me know if you have an opinion on that:

–Decor Items! These finishing touches are where I struggle a little, but I think I’m good to go this time.  I mentioned that round $3 frame that I have by the lamp – I have another on the piano.  I just loved it and needed more than one.  One I painted and one I left as-is.

Also on the piano I have some other things from before or around the house – I sprayed the dollar store owl and the little mini living terrarium I made at the blogger conference.  You can find the tutorial for my Pallet Clock HERE.

The ottoman gives some extra space for decor – I had the metal round thing, but spray painted it white so it would “pop” a little more on the dark tray.  I love being able to display the cute little “love” bird.

Oh, and FYI, the ottoman trays also make a great zu zu pet battle arena:

DONE!!  I love my refreshed living room!  My kids said “this is like a whole new room” – it’s amazing what a few decor changes can do.  The new ottoman, lamp, decor pieces, and curtains/curtain rods really changed the space and brought it to the perfect point.

I was really impressed with the selection of Better Homes and Gardens items at Walmart.  They are quality items with dead-on style.  I know I will be turning to them again when I’m wanting to revamp a room.

And that before-and-after one more time – – I can’t believe my living room was that “before” boring for so long!!  If you want a room changed, now’s the time.  Start with a refresh – you’ll be suprised at the change it can make.

Here are some other items I considered incorporating into the room – and I still might… see, there are so many awesome things to choose from!

In accordance with the FTC Guidelines, I am disclosing that I received compensation from Better Homes & Garden for my time and participation in the Better Homes & Garden Refresh Challenge.  Although we have a material connection, any publicly stated opinions of Better Homes & Garden and their products remain our own.