Great Room Makeover: Before and After

I think the thing I loved most about this house and what sold me on it was the Great Room. From the entry, it opens up into a 15 feet Great Room that is filled with northern facing light (which means, well lit with no direct sunlight). After living with a cramped family room space for over 20 years in different homes, I knew I wanted something more expansive to host family dinners and hopefully grandkids in the future. And while I loved the openness of the space, I knew it needed some updating. Read more about our Great Room Remodel below.

Great Room Before:

This space had been beautifully decorated and was spot on for late 90's decor. Brown, rag-rolled walls. Brown carpet. Brown accents. Brown, brown, brown! Here are a few of the photos of the house from when we bought it. It's always fun to see how other people decorated or designed around the space and how their tastes differ from yours.

The first thing to go was the brown carpet. It had a mystery smell coming from it that gave my daughter allergies every time she stepped through the doors. Since we want our daughter to live with us (even though she was a teenager-sorry, sweetie), we knew we had to update that right up front. So even before moving in, we started on the flooring changes. What was supposed to be a one-week job, turned into a three week living without a kitchen, avoiding nails and debris, dust-filled experience. You can read more about that HERE. But it was worth it as we changed the entire first and second floor carpeting. The entire first floor except for the bathrooms and laundry room was changed to a dark wood laminate (hardwood is not recommended in our region for the extreme changes in temperature).

The next thing we tacked was covering up the fireplace niche. I got to this point (basically framing in and covering in the niche) and then I froze on the design. It would take me over six months to settle on a design I believed worked best with the space. I guess I'm not good at snap decisions on the bigger stuff. But I love how it turned out (keep reading). You can also read more about the fireplace redesign HERE.

Then in a twist of luck, we won an auction for a paint job. So we brought in Painter 1 (whom I highly recommend) and added to the job painting our entire main first floor and the upstairs a lovely gray shade called Revere Pewter, which pulls both a light tan and a light grey. I love this color and have used it in two houses now. It's very light and looks good with everything. The painters made quick work of the rag-rolled wall, and my soul breathed a sigh of relief once it was gone.

I started decorating while I finished up the fireplace design plans. I brought in all kinds of things I had both been collecting, as well, as new items that I had one day dreamed of owning. (20 years of collecting things makes decorating a whole easier. Plus I liked the "collected over time" look. You can accomplish this same look by buying things at different places so they don't all match.)

Great Room After:

Now after nearly three years of living in this house, we have completed the Great Room Remodel. Read more below to see where I found some of my favorite things in this space.

(A glimpse into the Great Room from the kitchen. Brown Expedit or Kallax shelves from Ikea, blue and white lamps from Target, blue candlesticks from TJ Maxx, basket fillers inside black shelf from Walmart).

(Fireplace redesign. Mirror from Homegoods, candlesticks from Tuesday Morning, sea glass vase from Pier 1, and silver dollar eucalyptus).

 (Another glimpse from the dining room including the dining table and chairs.)

(White shelves from Ikea, couch from Downeast Basics, chairs from Provo Craft, green pillows and inserts from Ikea, lamp from Lowe's, blue pillows from Homegoods, rugs from at Home, chevron rug from fabric store, baskets in white shelves from at Home.)

(Coffee table is antique. Variety of decor from Homegoods, Hobby Lobby, Antique Stores, thrift stores, TJ Maxx, and more. Please let me know if you have questions in the comments below.)

(Couch from Downeast, Coffee Table, Black Shelf, Green Chest are antiques; Framed Ikat Images from Hobby Lobby, Items on Coffee table from Hobby Lobby and TJ Maxx.)

The one thing I would still like to change is the light fixture. But I want something truly special so I'm still waiting and looking on this one.

Shop This Great Room:

(Click images to shop items. Similar items have been suggested. Affiliate links have been used where possible.)