How to Make Your Family Room Family-Friendly

The time has come to replace our family room furniture. I would like to blame it on my kids, but this time the redesign is a result of shoddy material and a cheap 'leather' couch that was actually just leather-looking. For the last several months I resorted to covering the couch with blankets and encouraging the kids not to pick pieces off, but now that I'm embarrassed for people to even see the sofa, it's time.

Redesigning a room is always fun, but especially when you have a qualified colleague who can help you! Not only was the sofa and matching chair too big for the room, the dark color combined with the dark side of the house made this main living area downright depressing. I tried rearranging and adding lighter area rugs but nothing seemed to brighten things up the way I hoped. I'm anxious to get Barbara in there to transform the space!

All the furniture in this photo will stay, but also take note of the mantle and built-in book cases that need some attention. Like many families, toys tend to take over most of our spaces, which is OK, as long as they all have a home at the end of the day.

This is the other side of the room. As you can see it's quite a big space, but behind the kitchen and family room is a retaining wall which makes this room the darkest in the house. Our cabinets aren't terribly dark, but they aren't light either, so I almost always have accent lights on in the kitchen.

Budget:

I would like to keep the budget under $2000. While I realize this is ambitious, I'm confident and excited to try some new DIY projects and explore some affordable furniture options. In that budget I would like to include: a sofa, a chair and ottoman, curtains, at least one additional piece of lighting, a new rug and some decorative additions to bring it all together.

Light

My theme is obviously functionality, but because we spend the most time in this room and it's in the back of the house, I would love insight on how to make the room as light as possible. I had a couple electricians give me estimates on four new can lights but it was over $1000 which would blow the budget, so we'll look at some DIY options first.

Durable and safe

With an 11, 7, 3, and 1 year old our furniture needs to be durable, but not so expensive that I will spend time being concerned that they or their friends will damage or destroy it. Of course I want the room to look good, but its first job will be to offer seating and a friendly and usable area for my family and friends. Safety is also a concern so we will avoid sharp edges, glass, poisonous plants, and things that are not child-proofed.

Aesthetically Pleasing

One of the challenges I have in every room of our home is putting the room together so that the whole house flows well, but so that it's also functional and not too much of a 'hodge-podge' of things arranged 'just because.' I will ask Barbara to help me arrange the framed photos, books and accessories so that the wall looks clean and organized, but also allows us to change pictures and accessories with the seasons. I am also looking for some creative ideas for the green wall... I am not a fan of photo collages on walls but I would really like to incorporate my kids in some way on that wall. We will also need to replace the family photo above the fireplace because it's missing our new little guy, James.

I would love to hear your ideas! Please comment or e-mail us with what you love about your family room and what you would change. Post a photo of your family room on our fan page, maybe we'll feature it in a future post! Look for updates on our Instagram account too: @YesSpaces.

Amanda