Living Room : Before and After

Okay. Here is the before when we looked at the house:

And here it is today:

We started from scratch with the big ticket items: furniture, curtains, etc. We set our budget for furniture at $1,000. I ordered a sofa with custom fabric and pillows for $920 and was hoping to pick up some chairs in my thrifting somewhere along the way, since I had lots of the filler stuff from our last house to complete the room.

Then we all went to the dentist this spring. We didn’t have dental insurance while my husband was getting his PhD in Texas. Yikes. Our bill was much bigger than we had planned, and I was so wishing I didn’t order that sofa. I think the Lord stepped in, because the very next day we got a phone call from the furniture store that the fabric I wanted for my sofa was discontinued. They said they were sorry and would like to give me a $100 credit towards another one. thank you thank you thank you!!

We went back to the store to look and they were just unloading this one at their Memorial Day tent sale. I loved it, my husband tested the comfortable-ness, he loved it and it was $497 that weekend! It reminded me a little of this WS beauty, but I wasn’t sure about blue with kids. So I sent my sisters pictures, and they told me to get my hiney back to the store and get it. So, with my $100 credit, we got it for $397. We’ve had it for 6 months and we’ve loved it. I scotch-guard all of our furniture (and pillows) with the stuff in the can from Target and the raspberry jam-graham crackers-peanut butter-halloween-candy-cheez its-markers-brownies-pumpkin cookies-applesauce  have all wiped off, thankfully.

Okay, and I know you love the cost breakdown, so here we go:sofa: Carlton by March Furniture $397

Scotch Guard in a can: $8

ikat pillows from Etsy: $40/pr

striped linen pillow from Coldwater Creek: $11  (sorry, they don’t have them anymore)

   picture frames and mats from Target clearance this year and 2 yrs ago: $3.24 each = $20

B&W 5X7 and 8X10 prints from Walmart taken with my camera(that desperately need to be updated!) $5

lamps from TJ Maxx: 14.99 ea = $30

Accessories: tray from Target Easter clearance last year: $4

Sticks, candle, plates, etc. Some were gifts..let’s say $10

number tins: $3.99 at TJ Maxx (x2)

wheat: from Texas! I think it was $7 a bundle at the store. Lasts forever.

Curtains: made them from fabric…more in a later post. $43 (no, I didn’t sew them)

Curtain rod from Target clearance: $4.98

Curtain rings from Walmart: $12

Pair of lamps from Kmart when they were clearing out all of their Martha Stewart stuff: $12 for the pair

Lampshades from Walmart Better Homes & Gardens: $30 for the pair

Scrolly metal thing: $2 Goodwill

Paint: $22 Sherwin Williams Kilim Beige, had it matched in Behr paint.

Piano: nothing really (We sold ours in Texas for $150, bought this one on Craigslist here for $150)

Blue Chair from Craigslist: $10

White side table: $10 at Goodwill

Big brown chair & ottoman from neighbor’s yard sale: $20

I realize the balance is all off on the chairs and they probably don’t “fit” together, but until I find something else, they are comfy and the price is right….

Brown pillow: $5 Lowes summer patio clearance

Blue pillow: $8 Tai Pan in Salt Lake

Blue Throw: $1 at yard sale in Texas

Books: most are gifts and collection from over the years.

Stick greenery thing: $3.50

Mirrors turned picture frames: 12.48 for mirror, plus $12 for print = $25 X2 (Same thing on other side of piano)

Cream frames: $10 each from Rod Works in Utah X2

Blue scrolly frame: $1 (Dollar Tree) X2

Plate: Yard sale…50 cents. (I’ll show you more in an upcoming post)

PB shelves from yard sale in Idaho long ago: $10

This whole ensemble ^: $35

Did I get everything? Do you think I have a disease that I can remember everything..where I got it and how much I paid??

Grand Total for every single little thing in the whole darn room: $842

I’m still on the hunt for a fantastic rug. Seen any that you think would look good in here?

Okay, Melissa stop. Longest living room post ever. Thanks for sticking with me.

Happy Wednesday~