My house is in a constant state of chaos/change/flux/disarray/planning....&, as I've mentioned a million times, the house itself can be quite gloomy, due to the old-fashioned decor & lack of light in some rooms. .We have what I think is called a "through lounge", although that sounds odd to me, so I tend to say that we have two living rooms....they are divided by (the most hideous sliding doors), so this does make them separate spaces.We tend to spend most of our time in the "middle living room" - middle because it's between the front living room & the kitchen. Am I making sense?!
Anyway, after about six months of putting up with this dark space with its brown carpet & dark brown furniture, I realised that simply put putting some of our things in there wasn't enough.We needed a cosy, calm, warm & uplifting space that felt like home - and not like someone else's home, which is really what it was, with my in-laws furniture. I have learned that I can "make do" with a kitchen or a bathroom but not a living room, it's too important, too essential.
It didn't happen overnight, but we now have that space. The floor is sanded, we have our own cream sofa with its snuggly throws & cushions, the fireplace is painted white....I have added a large mirror, a gallery wall, bookshelves & painted almost all the furniture in French Grey paint.This room only has one narrow window which is positioned near the ceiling so it can feel very dark & I have done everything I can think of to avoid that.
I've wrote here about my painting projects & I know now that once you start painting & upcycling furniture, it becomes completely addictive, you want to paint everything!On one side of the sofa, I have a large-ish square solid wooden table which houses a lamp & piles of books, it's my coffee-table-in-the-corner, if you like.
My newest acquisition is a tray table, something which I've never owned before but which I'm completely smitten with.
I love the idea of being able to move the tray around the house, adding lunch, a cup of tea, books, pen & paper, whatever I need. Right now the table is home to another lamp, a pile of favorite books & a candle.I have noticed though, unlike my other side table which I like but tend to want to cover up, this table itself is so beautiful that I make a feature of it more.
The quality is excellent, it's a good solid piece & it's versatile = tick, tick, tick!
I read somewhere that you should endeavour to have an empty cupboard or drawer in your house just so although your home might feel like it's overflowing, in fact you still have one tiny bit of space...so the drawer is, for now, staying empty!!
....my table as seen on the Within websiteThis post was written in collaboration with Within, all words, content & opinions are 100% my own.
