102 Becky's Beautiful Dining/Living Room Makeover

Almost a year ago I was contacted by a blog reader, Becky, looking for me to help her with her living room and attached dining area.  So we partnered up and I did a couple of Style Tiles for the space! 

To get started, she popped over her room photos:

She mentioned they recently finished their lower level, so their main level furniture was being moved down, giving her a blank slate.

When thinking up a solution, it was important to keep in mind that Becky is a busy mommy of four and she also runs a home school.  Family friendly and cozy was the name of the game.  She also shared with me a couple of inspiration photos that she liked, which had a consistent cottage/coastal feeling to them.  Painting trim and cabinets white was out of scope for this project, so it was important for me to find ways to bring in that feeling with the existing finishes.

Here is what I came up with:

The walls would be painted a pretty blue with a gray undertone {Hirshfield's Millennium Line: Still Creek} and easy to clean white wood furniture would be brought in via a new TV stand, dining chairs and side table.  I recommended a slipcover sofa for easy maintenance with kidlets and a pair of slipper chairs in front of the large living room window.  The sea-grass ottoman would be a great place to pop up feet, or give a little ones a great place to make forts.  And adding a gallery wall of photos in the dining area paired a pretty chandelier would pull it all together.

Becky and I have been working together both virtually and in person!  That's right, she is located about an hour and a half away, so I have made a couple of trips with her to shop, plan and even install a gallery wall:

What you can't see in the photos is that the wrapping paper actually had a perfect grid on the back that helped us easily line up the frames and space them nice and evenly!

Did I mention Becky can bake?  Oh my, she sent me home that day with some Brownie Cheesecake Bars that were the most amazing treat I have ever tasted! 

And now for the super fun "after" photos!

The space is now so cheerful and warm!  It hugs you when you walk in and makes you feel comfortable to come in, curl up on the couch and make yourself at home!  We are still looking for the perfect sofa pillows, but once those are in, we can scream, "Mission Accomplished!"

I was having so much fun spending time with Becky, you can imagine my excitement when she asked me to help her out with her daughter's room as well!  Since I am a mommy to three busy boys, the thought of working on a girls room was a dream come true, so I snagged up the opportunity in a super speedy heartbeat!

This weekend the hubs and I did our "HGTV" style crash and makeover.  We painted, crafted and installed all sorts of elements to create a super sweet haven for a super special little girl.  Stay tuned, that story comes tomorrow!

Pssst... Right now I am not taking new Style Tile clients, however, it is a service I hope to be able to offer again soon.  Stay tuned to the blog for announcements pertaining to my services and shop updates.  Thanks friends!