As I mentioned in my last post, I don’t have a nursery to work out my nesting energy on.  I’m hoping to make some progress on the living room, but Matt is more focused on trying to get someone in for our kitchen remodel and is trying to reel me in.  He may not succeed…

Lucky for me, my good friend E is in the process of buying house!  I happen to LOVE putting together mood boards, and it’s even better when I have a target.  So, like it or not, I’ve taken our furniture discussions and mocked up some spaces for her.  And E, don’t worry, there is zero pressure to follow any of my ideas.

E’s already selected a number of furniture pieces and some of the walls they’re not planning on re-painting. I still had a little bit of fun though.

Library

I think the current plan for this room is to reuse some existing furniture… but I had neither pictures nor a clear memory so I took some creative liberties, knowing the goal wall color was a bold teal. Plus, if they choose too, E & J can rework the space over the years.  Nothing says your house needs to be picture perfect as soon as you move it (lord knows our house still isn’t even after 4 years…).

The room has a brick fireplace that I think would look awesome against the teal if it were white-washed.  E and I have been discussing bookcase options, but for this layout I went with a fairly basic style raised on a base. Not only does the base add a bit of visual interest, it also raises the shelf off the floor to work around floor vents. This bookcase was pretty cool looking, but my only concern would be that the design of the shelf would get lost if you filled it up with a lot of books.The cute little cabinet gives a surface to add in some extra lighting and could be used to store games or booze.

It’s nearly impossible to choose paint colors based on online images (monitor differences, lighting, etc), so ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS look at swatches in the space you’ll be painting. I also suggest picking up some sample pots once you’ve narrowed down your selection since the scale can drastically change the look of the color.  Here are some other possible teal wall colors (ranging from a little brighter to a little moodier):

Living Room

Most of the furniture here was already picked out (which goes to show you that E doesn’t actually need my help 🙂 ) and the wall color is what’s currently existing so I just threw in a couple finishing touches for visualization. While I’m personally a fan of airy white curtains, these panel curtains from IKEA seemed like just the thing for this space.  They’ll provide privacy while still letting in light and the geometric pattern pairs beautifully with the MCM style.

Dining Room / Kitchen

So… there’s probably no plan to re-do the kitchen since the existing one is perfectly nice…but how cute is that backsplash tile??? The cabinet/countertop approximate what’s already there (at least what I could tell from the realtor photos), but the house currently has a much more contemporary tile as the backsplash.  The clean, white tile would both brighten the kitchen and help it blend more with the MCM furnishing dominating the space. I’m also all for replacing light fixtures, even though I realize a lot of people don’t want to bother with electrical (it’s pretty easy to do yourself though, and requires minimal tools).

I’m probably a glutton for punishment by liking area rugs under dining tables, but they can add a lot of softness is a room typically filled with hard furnishing. They can also add a nice pop of color.  I recommend a busier pattern since it will hide a variety a sins.  I have had very bad luck getting stains out of flat-woven rugs so I’d recommend scotch-guarding the shit out of them in any setting.

Bedroom

My only starting point for this room was rough idea for a paint color.  Sure, I could have asked if E had any bedding/furniture plans, but where’s the fun in that? This room had another ceiling that would be fun to replace (seriously, the right light fixtures can add soooo much). This bedframe is something else I’m kind of in love with (ok, and the floor mirror… I may be starting to project a bit). There are tons of great wood MCM options too, but because MCM is so dominated by wood finishes I thought it was nice to bring in a little softness, especially in a bedroom. Plus, upholstered headboards are great for anyone who likes reading (or just dinking around on their phone/tablet) in bed.