Shari and her family became our friends when we worked with them during the whirlwind CLEAN SLATE weekend. Soon after Shari called me with a desire to add some country charm to her neglected living room.
The room already had some rough cedar wood paneling that would tie in perfectly with a country concept.
Green vertical blinds and blank wall space was at the top of the “Must Change” list.
A fear of making the wrong choices kept Shari’s walls white and her ideas simple. But, all she needed was a little encouragement and a couple of changes to make her room the cozy country family space she wanted it to be.
I wanted to tone down the wood paneling and I knew white washing would do just the trick. So I started with the fireplace and was very pleased with the final look. Now Shari just has to complete the effect by whitewashing the big wood wall. Painting the fireplace mantel a matte black also helped to add more interest to the focal point of the room.
A warm wall color and canvas drapes soften the space and create a feeling the says, “Kick off your shoes and come on in.
The layout worked well for the family so it stayed the same for the most part. We lost the large ottoman for the sake of more space and added a large bookshelf/hutch to the far wall for balance and storage.
Shari who seemed scared of paint at the beginning blossomed into a bona fide furniture refinisher! With a few tips and a couple of answered questions she was able to fix-up not only this hutch but also the headboard in her bedroom!
In the future the shutters will be hung on the wall and used as a place to display snapshots of friends and family.
I think chicken wire is a wonderful product to use when decorating a country styled setting. It found a perfect place inside the doors of the hutch. Shari then painted the once oak colored hutch black and distressed it. GREAT JOB SHARI! I love empowering others and seeing the satisfaction they receive when they complete a project with their own two hands. So rewarding!
So, there is still a little to do in this lovely living room but its transformation is already quite amazing! I was tickled pink when I went over to the family’s house and was greeted by Shari’s son who very proudly declared, “Welcome to our ‘new’ house!”