It’s amazing how much better you can think in a clean environment. We miraculously stayed on schedule, using every weekend and evening to make as much progress as we could, and though it was a bit chaotic and stressful at the very end, it all came together beautifully and to plan. For now, it’s just a really lovely focal point. After having a friend’s eye on it, I found that my first floor plan was definitely the best arrangement. I saw an old nail hole already in the wall, so I screwed in an anchor in that same place and hung the Matador there. I struggled at first with figuring out what to hang and where, but I knew I wanted to use the large brown Matador piece. When we do, I prefer that it be in this room rather than in the main living room. I finally have a place to work, and it’s not the dining room table or my bed. And then there’s this table project that I had thought would be a good DIY. It looks expensive, but I only spent $50 maybe in all the materials. I couldn’t have done it this quickly without the guidance, and so happy you could follow me along the way. I was able to use accessories I already had so I didn’t have to spend any money on those final touches. The next project is the bathroom, which you can read more about on my own blog, The Made Home. I had wanted to get my furniture in on Monday, but we were still painting, so that didn’t happen until Wednesday, leaving me 24 hours to go from an empty room to a finished space. The desk I have is sort of a monster—big and ugly—something I picked up for $15, and this corner may not be entirely ideal, but it definitely works and I’m happy with it for now. Once I brought my sofas into the room, I tried some other configurations from my initial floor plan just to see if there was a better solution. The map on the far left might look better with a frame and another piece below it; what do you think? The only thing is the color is a bit more blue than I think I want. Trim. Walls. But, yeah, I totally made that. By the way, you can also see a little brass tray table on the end of the sofa, just like I wanted, and that was also something I sort of put together myself using a tray I already had and a base I found on Craigslist. Truth be told, it’s not actually done yet and it is a miracle that it doesn’t look half bad. There are so many elements in this new space that make me extremely happy, but just the fact that I can edit the photos for this post while sitting at a real desk in front of cheerful windows is enough to send me over the moon. We haven’t had a TV for seven or eight years as we’re just not big TV watchers, but I think we do want to get one eventually. Source List:
Wall paint: Valspar «Soft Wool»
Trim paint: Benjamin Moore «Simply White»
Sofa: Atomic Furnishings and Design in Asheville
Rug: Unknown; Craigslist purchase
Accent Chair: Custom; Craigslist purchase
1968 Mid-century dresser: Craigslist purchase
Pillows: West Elm, lumbar pillows from Omerfarukaksoy on Etsy, and chair pillow made by me, available at my Etsy shop Fourth Floor Home
Tabletop frames: Nate Berkus for Target
Table lamp: Threshold for Target
All wood bowls made by my husband, available at Fourth Floor Home on Etsy
Storage bins: IKEA
(Image credits: Tamara Gavin) But man, I spent WAY too much time on this. I still have to figure out an office chair as this little work stool my husband made is just a temporary solution for now. All this neat and clean workspace is so refreshing. Ultimately I’d like to build in some office storage along the wall so that it can accommodate most of the stuff that I don’t want on or around the desk. All I have to say is good riddance. The grass in the large vase is from the backyard. We went from a gloomy, unused, unfinished sunroom to a bright, open, and warm lounge area and office. This bookcase is also somewhat of a temporary piece. As soon as I had it set up, I sat down, opened the blinds, and opened the laptop, and experienced a real moment of mental clarity. Thank you Style Cure for giving me my favorite room back! Doors.
