The Living Room: Getting It Just Right

(For a full living room tour, click the video link at the end).

This is my living room. Even though I see it in person every day, I still get feelings of happiness when I see these photos.

This room has been a work in progress since we moved into our home in 2009. Even before that. My husband and I always struggled with the decor, the furniture pieces, the comfort and the overall aesthetic.

Until now, we never successfully chose the right couch, and we've had many. Our first set was a matching couch and love seat with wide blue and tan stripes, velour fabric texture and removable back pillows. Looking back, it reflected the style of a muted circus tent. The room was completely dominated by the blaring pattern and harsh color scheme.

We purchased a new couch and loveseat when we moved into our next home. This time, I chose to play it safe by selecting a tan (read: brown) microfiber set. Even though the color was noticeably too dark, it may have worked out better had the seats not been so short.

This was my very first lesson in paying close attention to the length of the cushions from front to back. The backing was overstuffed so that, mixed with the short cushions, gave you the feeling that you were literally being pushed off the couch. Comfort, once again, evaded us.

Couch shopping became second nature to us when we moved into our third - and current - home. Our new living room had a different layout and it was time for us to replace the brown couch and loveseat with something lighter and more comfortable. Our third try was in the form of two full-length couches in a minty microfiber that leaned toward the green spectrum. Our third try also came with our first two (of three) pugs and this combination of pug and microfiber turned problematic. Pugs shed more than any other dog I've ever encountered. The fur is everywhere. Even when we installed a gated system to keep them out of the living room, their fur made its way in, floating through the air. No matter how hard we tried to avoid it, the microfiber fabric was a magnet for the tiny hairs.

Fast forward to our next solution...leather. Leather seemed to be the answer. We wanted something easy to clean and the smooth surface of the leather couch and two club chairs was simply a matter of wiping it down. Hair removal - easy-peezy. Once the pugs regained living room access, they too, discovered their love of leather. Our oldest dog decided to use the arms as a scratching post while we were at work and she made quick work of shredding it in long, severe slashes that didn't quite penetrate the leather, but rather made a scratched and scuffed mess of it.

It was then that we decided to live with it. We had the fabric repaired and it ended up being a good fix - the scratches were only noticeable if you were sitting on the couch, not from across the room any longer. We were sadly aware that living room furniture had become disposable to us - every purchase a bad choice. The brown set, the minty-green set and the leather had moved down into the furniture graveyard that was our basement. We had a hard time parting with any of it - yet it was a stiff reminder of wasted money and not well thought out mistakes.

Just last month, we decided to take back our living room and make it a well-cared-for place of comfort. We weren't using the room at all - not for ourselves and not when we had guests over. It had become wasted space. Instead of rushing out to purchase our next impulsive mistake, we thought it out. We drew the room on paper and changed the layout several times before deciding that a comfortable couch with deep-seated cushions and non-removable back pillows was what we really wanted. Instead of purchasing chairs or a matching loveseat, we went with a full-sized sofa with a pullout bed. This would serve a dual purpose should we have family stay with us.

The pictures below are the final product. We didn't purchase new tables, rather deciding to use what we already had and live with it for a while. Should we decide to purchase a new coffee table or end table, we'll do so down the road, after we give this combination a chance. Again - we were finished with impulse buying. I'm finally happy with the look and aesthetic, the comfort of the furniture pieces...and the plan to utilize the living room as it was meant to be. 

#loveyourhome

Coffee Table and Sectional - Ashley Furniture | Lantern and Tray - TJMaxx/HomeGoods | Decorative Spheres - The Green Notebook DIY on YouTube

Step Chest - South Korean Import | Basket - TJMaxx/HomeGoods | Pillows - Target, Walmart, Pier One

Sectional and Coffee Table - Ashley Furniture | Lantern and Tray - TJMaxx/HomeGoods | Faux Flowers - Dollar Tree

Rug - Ikea | Basket - TJMaxx/HomeGoods | Crystal-Based Lamp - TJMaxx/HomeGoods | Pillows - Target, Walmart, Pier One | End Table - Bombay Company | Faux Flowers and Vase - Hobby Lobby

Pull-Out Couch + Pillows - Ashely Furniture | Rug - Ikea | Mirrors - TJMaxx/HomeGoods

Basket - Target | Pillows - Pier One | Throw Blanket - Target | Candle - TJMaxx/HomeGoods | Mirror - TJMaxx/HomeGoods | Cabinet - Bombay Company

Rug - Ikea | Sectional, Pull-Out Couch and Coffee Table - Ashley Furniture | Faux Flowers - Dollar Tree | Cabinet - Bombay Company | Mirrors - TJMaxx/HomeGoods | Basket - Target
| Pillows - Pier One | Tray and Lantern - TJMaxx/HomeGoods

Sectional + Pillows, Coffee Table - Ashley Furniture | Sequined Spheres - The Green Notebook on YouTube Dollar Tree DIY (see channel for video) | Faux Flowers - Dollar Tree
 Tray and Lantern - TJMaxx/HomeGoods | Rug - Ikea