A homes living room is where so much happens – this room is our central spot for our family, it is where we play with Kinsley our daughter and Laila our dog. We watch movies and LOTS of sports and it’s where we gather to talk about our day. It truly is where the Harris Family LIVES!
When we were looking at houses we knew we wanted a fixer-upper in a certain part of town. We went in SO many houses…sorry mom! – she was our real estate agent, but none of them felt like home. Until we walked into our house! And this room is what did it for me. I was instantly drawn to the classic, timeless details. I loved the mantel, wood detailing and fireplace. Of course, with me wanting everything to be WHITE I did NOT like the colors…but I knew that was an easy fix, just lots of nights painting. The 80’s builder grade oak HAD to go, but as I kept telling my husband “it has good bones!”
I spy a little puppy Laila! 🙂 Silly girl – but anyways…
We spent countless hours, liquid sanding, priming and painting the woodwork in our living room to create the bright and airy feeling we wanted. My husband, Lucas is extremely detailed when it comes to wood so he kept me on task of doing things the right way – even though I am impatient and wanted it done yesterday. I am SO GLAD he did as it has already withstood 2 years and has held up very well.
The next thing I knew we had to do was whitewash the brick fireplace. It was in decent shape so the process was not hard. The brick, which I thought was a huge eyesore before, is now the focal point of the room and my favorite part! This was a simple, inexpensive process to update up the drab 80’s fireplace.
The laundry list of details for this room is lengthy – we took down the popcorn ceilings and refinished them with knockdown, installed 2 can lights – instead of the old dingy brass fixtures that honestly looked like a fan base. We painted the walls, installed new blinds, added curtains, waxed the wood beams and mantel and added a large rug.
If you follow me on Instagram you will notice that the décor in here is CONSTANTLY changing! I love to decorate for seasons and I am always getting bored so make sure to check me out (@lailabelles) so you can see all the new items because it is like a revolving door…the classic staples in this room make it easy and fun to change up!
I feel so fortunate that it has turned out the way I had envisioned. We have already created so many memories in this living room & I am looking forward to all the future ones that will be made here as well!
What is your favorite part of your living room?
PS…in all the before pictures – notice all the candles and air fresheners? Ya…that is the not-so glamorous side of a fixer-upper 🙂 Thank goodness we painted nearly every inch of the house – it took a while to get the strange smells out.
