She Hung WHAT On Her Wall?!

This is my first time participating in a blog party at Nester's fabulous Nesting Place blog. I'm a little intimidated because actual, like, designers read and link to her blog. So some silly "twenty-faux" year old housewife in Virginia is more likely to inspire snickers than appreciative smiles, but I'm okay with that. I don't have a degree in Interior Design, and it turns out that all the Chaucer I read in college doesn't exactly lend itself to choosing drapes. And yes, that is an actual musical instrument on my wall.

At any rate, I have a ton of pictures today, so I hope you'll enjoy having a good laugh at my expense. I should preface this post by saying that:

a) I was only 22 when we bought this home (our first) and I had absolutely no clue what I liked. I think I subconsciously channeled my mother's style (gasp!!!!). My tastes have changed in the past years, but most of my rooms don't really reflect that change. I think it's too country for me now, and I'm hoping to update bit by bit. So please keep that in mind.

b) I readily welcome your suggestions, just please don't be mean. I kind of cry easily.

c) It's super-fantastic to have a husband who manages the Burg's oldest mattress store. They have fabulous lines of bedroom furniture, and he has accounts with all sorts of great companies that regular furniture stores do. (He also had the records on the store computer of all our purchases!) Unfortunately, I was very impatient in those early days of home ownership, and I used our discount to purchase some items that I don't think fit with my style any more just because I *had* to have something. Now I'm kind of stuck with it until I can buy/transform/create what I want. Even though we were able to use T's discount, it will end up costing us some more, because I didn't take the time to find out what my style is. It's amazing what a few years of life experience (and a few kids) will do to your taste. I am more patient now with my purchases!

So without further ado, here's the first shot of

{The Family room}

You can click on the image to enlarge, but I'll go ahead and list the numbers for you too.

1. Molding on opening to Dining room:

Along with the nasty forest green carpet and sticky tack that was ground into the walls when we moved into our 1970s Colonial, there was really no architectural detail to speak of in our house. It was T's idea to finish off the opening with the molding, and he did it all on his own. If you look at the main photo, you can see he framed the entire opening, and he did the same on the other side in the Dining room.

Cost? Approximately $50 to $60 because we used leftover paint from the trim work.

2. Matching lamps: Now that I know in my wisdom of reading blogs life experience that's okay to mix and match lamps in a room, I kind of cringe when I see my 4 matching lamps in the Family room. I ordered them through an account with T's store, and we have two small ones and two large floor lamps. I love the detail on the bases, but I really don't care for the finish. Judging from the current color scheme I have going on, I'm thinking that they should maybe be spray painted white, but what do I know?

Retail Cost for 4 lamps? $260.00

What I paid: $130.00

Let's discuss the elephant in the room, shall we?

3. Banjo and wall stuff:

This banjo was hand-made by a craftsman in the mountains of Colorado in the 1970s. It has beautiful carvings, but they're hard to see because of the way I had T hang it. I like the details on the old leather belt that they used for a strap. An instrument like this runs several thousand dollars.

What did I pay?

Nothing!

It belonged to my dad, who received it as a college graduation gift from his parents. I think he was into the folk music movement in the 60s...Bob Dylan and the like. At any rate, after he passed away, the banjo just sat in my mom's basement for years. I don't play it, and I know it "countryfies" my room, but it's probably my most treasured accessory because it belonged to my dad and he loved it so much. In the years I've had it hanging on my wall, I've only had one "I can't believe you have a weird banjo on your wall" comment. It's surrounded by copies of old family photos from dad's side of the family. I LOVE family photos!

4. Couch:

This was another freebie, and a good thing for us. I know how expensive nice couches are! My mom gave it to us as an anniversary gift one year. If I had a do-over, I'd chose something neutral, but it is fairly kid friendly, and very comfortable.

5. Big, huge, giant blue chair:

I actually love the comfiness of this chair, but again, I'd choose a neutral color if I had a choice today. T gave it to me as a Mother's Day gift one year, and I believe he paid around $300. It came with an enormous matching ottoman that sits in the addition. He was surprised to find it in the clearance section of a local furniture shop. It's not the greatest quality (hence the clearance section), but I love to sit and read there or catch up with my friend TiVo.

I was able to match some existing pillows with the chair. You may recognize the Waverly blue from Target. It's more than several years old. The little pillow was actually a steal from Target's Dollar Spot. I think I paid $2.50. The large pillow was probably about $15.00.

And because I had no idea what I was doing, I chose the valance and curtains that match the pillow. (Below) I loved them so much at the time that I also put them in the Kitchen. And our bedroom. I hate them, loathe them, despise them now. You would too if that's all you had to look at. I desperately need to break down and try some of Nester's mistreatment therapy! And because I can laugh at myself, I can also make mention of the odd curtain rod. What was I thinking?!

What color would you choose?

I'd estimate that I spent about $45.00 on the window treatments, and $30.00 on the rod.


Little gate on the wall. I sorta like this...maybe painted white? Same with the dried flower holder? Gate was $3.00 at a little boutiquey shop some years ago, and the flower arrangement was around $4.00 at an old farmhouse home show.

6. Coffee table and matching (of course!) end tables:

The tables make me want to bang my head against the oak and yell, "Why? Why?"

Let my Family room be a testament to you young new homeowners (SuSu! Alison!) that not everything has to match, and it's okay not buy the first thing you find just so you can have something, anything to take up the blank space. It is okay to shop thrift stores! I wish someone had told my 22 year old self that!

Retail cost of coffee table and end tables that just don't fit "me" anymore? $190.00

What I paid: $95.00

The baskets were around $2.oo each, and I'd like to spray paint them as well. Because stupid me didn't envision the future with children, I didn't choose tables with storage options. So the baskets are my solution to that area.

View from Dining room entry:

7. White trunk:

I really do love this piece. The inside is lined with beachy inspired fabric, and it has tons of room in there for storage!

Cost? I got it on clearance at Target for $30.00.

8. Entry way/Stairway to Heaven Hell:

(I don't like going up those stairs because it reminds me of my icky, uninspired bedroom. But I do like the walls here!)

I'm including this area because there is no real dividing point between our entry and the Family room. I paid around $5.oo for each of the tin ceiling tiles, and the white frames are all various 40% coupon purchases from Michaels, filled with family photos. I'd estimate this spot to cost around $45.00.

9. Mission style armoire:

This guy is pretty tall and solid. It houses our TV and I use the drawers to organize the girls' VHS movie collection (can you say yard sale?!). Watching a movie is a special treat for Natalie. I'm a bad mother for using TV as a reward I guess. Eh.


Retail cost of armoire? approximately $1000.00

What I paid: approximately $400.00

I really like the items I have on top of the armoire, but I'm not certain they all belong up there. The birdcage cost me $2.00, including the spray paint I bought to cover it with. The books were from the FREE box at Salvation Army!

This is what the birdhouse looked like before it had a date with my spray paint. I had forgotten all about it up in the attic, but the birdcage sparked my memory.

This is what I've got hanging on on the other side of the armoire. The tiny wooden trunk was a Christmas gift from my dad one year. I have all sorts of old mementos inside. I keep it up there because it is out of reach for sticky-fingered toddlers and preschoolers, and it doesn't really go anywhere else because it would just take up space on the floor.

I love the picture frames! The one that says "Natalie" was a gift from my friend L. I tried to copy her version to make one for Michaela Byrd, but L used actual chipboard and a nice quality frame. My letters are paper and they are glued up there. Probably cost me $4.00 for that project.

Total approximate cost of the Family room? $1169.50

I hope you enjoyed my tour! Were you close in guessing my prices?

Again, I always welcome your (kind) suggestions. My house is always a work in progress, and I am learning what step at a time that "it doesn't have to be perfect to be beautiful." (Thanks, Nester!)

It might not be perfect (yet), but it's home to us!