As the name of my blog indicates, I spend a lot of time thinking about home. Of course, my Heavenly Home is the one that is eternal, so that’s where I need to lay up my treasures, and that’s the one I’m striving for. But in the meantime, I have been given this tiny piece of the here-and-now—this home on the edge of town, this family, this neighborhood—in which to serve Him. And, though this is in the earthly realm, I want the things that happen here to be investments in the Heavenly realm.




Tuesday, July 19, 2016

Pineapple House | Living Room and Dining Room {In Which I Probably Tell You More Than You Even Wanted to Know}


We moved into our new home at the end of April. As Miz Elle's beautiful things were moved out, and our own furniture was moved in, it began to feel more like "us."

Those of you who have moved more than we have (which would probably be almost all of you!) know what I'm talking about. It takes time for a place to feel like home. At first, it feels like you're living in someone else's house, or maybe like you're on vacation and staying in a furnished condo. 

But nothing has made Pineapple House feel more like our house than a coat of fresh paint! 


{BEFORE: lovely, but not quite "us"}


So, I'll take you on a little tour around the living room and chat with you all the way. (Note the subtitle of this post. ~smile~) 





We used Behr Premium Plus Ultra® paint. The walls are antique white, not a Behr color, but color-matched from the paint we used in The Farmhouse, in a flat finish. The trim and the fireplace wall is (more or less) Linen White in an eggshell finish. I say "more or less" because we originally color-matched this years ago from an Olde Century Paint color, but it has been tweaked a time or two. 





I truly loved all of the colonial colors that I had in The Farmhouse...

the barn red in the kitchen,
the "Duckety Mud" on the kitchen cabinets,
and the colonial green in the dining room


...but I felt like there needed to be a more neutral background in Pineapple House, so that's what we went with.





This is the wall that drew us to Pineapple House!

We decided to paint the paneled wall and the bookcases the color of the trim. I had searched Pinterest for ideas on fireplace walls, and I most liked the ones that were monochromatic.


We're still working on getting our books on the shelves. There are boxes of unpacked books in the school room. We're planning to add shelves to that room, but there's room for a few more books in here.




You may notice that we treated the covers for the hot water baseboard heat as baseboard, painting them the color of the trim.







So what's left to do in the living room?

~ First of all, I need to paint this little TV stand that I bought for a song the week we moved in. Ron will eventually design a taller cabinet with doors to house (and hide) the television and other electronics. But in the meantime, we are using this small stand that Kati found for $49! I didn't want to paint it until we painted the room so that I could judge how the colors would work together. But now the seafoam green has to go.



~ Secondly, I have to decide what to do with the windows! Ack!

Some decorating decisions are easy. Arranging the furniture was a breeze. We tried two arrangements and settled on one within days of moving in. Paint color was easy-peasy. But window treatments...not so much.

My conundrum lies in the fact that I love light and I adore the large picture window in the living room and I don't want to cover it up, but we now live in a neighborhood, not out in the country surrounded by farm fields, and there is a need for privacy. The half-curtains on the front windows is a temporary measure until I decide what I want need. (Another Pinterest board is dedicated to window treatments.)

My plan is to make fishtail swags for the front windows and Ron will make paneled shutters for the bottom sash. We may purchase cellular blinds to shade the morning light so that our furniture and rugs do not fade. These would hide behind the swags most of the day.

Here is the fabric that I am considering for the fishtails:



Choosing window treatments for the picture window is even more difficult!


The sun porch is behind this window. That helps. But once the leaves fall in autumn, we will lose some of our privacy, especially in the evening when the lights are on.

Is the window too wide for a fishtail swag? (That would be a l-o-n-g fishtail!) Could I make a couple of "dips" in the swag? We can't put the same paneled shutters on the back window, because the sofa sits in front of it and there is not room for shutters to open or close. Do I make a simple valance for the top of the window and hide cellular blinds behind it? (And do you know how much cellular blinds cost for a window that wide?!) Should we go way out of the box and put bamboo roll-up shades on the porch windows, eliminating the need for any window treatment on the picture window?




Let's move on to the dining room. 

(Before I begin, I must say that I am not happy with the quality of these photos. The dining room is an interior room with no windows, so my amateur photography skills aren't doing it justice. In my pictures, the room looks dark and almost yellow-ish, and in person it does not. Maybe this room will be the impetus I need to finally learn to shoot in manual!) 

I totally love that these two rooms flow together! That's what makes it perfect for our large family gatherings...everyone can be in one place.

This view of the dining room is looking in from the living room.


And now we'll move clockwise around the room...




The colors in the dining room are, of course, the same as in the living room. We decided to use the Linen White below the chair rail.





Having the lights on for photos means that you can't see the chandelier very well (remember, I'm photography-challenged), so here's a picture of the new chandy, unlit.






What's left to do in the dining room? 

~ Tweak! I am not yet satisfied with the wall arrangements. I'm not sure if I like the hanging cupboard on that wall. I may move the folk art girl to that wall and hang the botanicals (from The Farmhouse dining room) over the sideboard. I still have a mirror and the spoon rack with the family spoons that I really want to use in here. I think some rearranging is in order! Also, we need to buy a few more wooden outlet plates (the store only had four; we needed six) so that they can be painted to match the chair rail. We may go ahead and buy the matching switchplates at the same time.

~ The china closet that we had in The Farmhouse kitchen was way too big for this dining room. (It had been a computer cabinet in a prior life and it was quite deep.) It went down to the basement, but now we have an empty space. We're keeping our eyes open for a stepback hutch at a good price...which might take a while. Actually, Ron has plans somewhere for a stepback cupboard designed by Adam Peck (ordered years ago from Country Living magazine). He has lots of projects right now that are more pressing, but if we haven't found the right thing by the time he finishes what's on his plate, we may just dig up those plans.




Fresh paint has made our home-sweet-home even sweeter! Now we're looking at every room with paint-colored glasses!

And if you've gotten to the end of this l-o-n-g post, then I believe that you love house-y things as much as I do!


17 comments:

  1. Thanks the "tour". Love what you have done so far. I knew it would be beautiful. You have such a gift in decorating. Blessings, Sharon D.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Ah! Love the Pineapple house!

    I love the shutters and fishtail swags, that was going to be my suggestion based on your Pinterest board. The fabric is wonderful!

    As you were discussing the picture window options, I thought about the idea of blinds in the sunroom and leaving the picture window bare!

    What fun this is!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Love the paint choices and your pineapple house. I'm for the last option you stated for the bamboo roll up shades because I love the window just as it is. Whatever you decide will probably look great!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Ha Ha you're funny:) Yup I must..
    I love the paint you chose..I am a fan of monochromatic scheme..and I have to say when I first saw the pic of your big window I thought..wow I love that she has no curtains on there..:) than I read on..In my humble opinion it looks really nice bare, but I get the privacy thing..I guess I am afan o simple window treatments. Enjoy your lovely home..Lucy.

    ReplyDelete
  5. The 'pineapple house' has really taken on your aesthetic. Lovely!

    I'm also inclined to think that putting the bamboo shades on the sunroom would work well.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I enjoyed seeing what you have done with these two rooms, the colors are lovely. I love all of your antiques too. While you don't still live in the farmhouse, you've brought your lovely farmhouse style with you.

    It will be interesting to see what you come up with for window treatments. I also love the idea of using the roll-up bamboo shades in the sunroom so that you can leave that lovely large window bare. Whatever you decide will be nice.

    Have a wonderful day ~ FlowerLady

    ReplyDelete
  7. What a lovely calm and relaxing home you have. I am wrestling with ideas for a sunroom window at the moment, maybe soft voile curtains, or even simple roll down blinds.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Oh your right....I LOVE housey things, lol. And I REALLY love what you have done so far with pineapple house! Sooo cozy, warm, and charming. Love the paint! I think if it were me I'd leave that window bare...part of the charm, and cover the screen porch windows with the roll up bamboo. All I know is everything about this home makes me want to come in, sit down, and spend time. And that's about as good as it gets. Have as wonderful day!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Oh dear, are you taking votes? You really do have to follow your heart but I was thinking as I strolled through your post how much I loved the windows as they are! I think it's because of the contrasting darker trim that makes them look already treated! I love what you've done. We also live in a neighborhood without drapes on our front windows. But I do have shades I can pull down if the time comes that I want it. But we don't sit in our front rooms so much in the evening. I mostly pull it down for the sun in the heat of summer, but miss being able to look out! I actually kind of like what you've done with the cafe curtains. Shutters would look good too. I like the fabric you have chosen and love the paint colors!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Oh Cheryl, I feel like I'm looking at your lovely farmhouse again with a twist! The Pineapple House is beautiful and is so YOU. I love the paint colors you have chosen for your home. I'm with a lot of the others, I thought your front window looks lovely without window treatment. I so love the fabric you are thinking about. So bold and lovely. Your home is always so warm and inviting, dear one. Have fun making your choices that are so unique to you! ♥

    ReplyDelete
  11. everything looks so pretty ! also love the name of the house! Jade

    ReplyDelete
  12. Everything looks so very fresh and pretty. I really like that the entire fireplace wall was done in the accent color instead of using both the wall and accent color. It looks sharp that way! I would opt for thinking way out of the box for a window privacy treatment...I do like a plain window...so the bamboo covering outside on the sunporch sounds perfect for what I like. (I have Pella windows with the screens inside, but your option is a uniquely special one.) Whatever you do will make it your own and be perfect for your family!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Well Cheryl, I should just cut and paste ellen b's comment because it was exactly what I was thinking. I love what you've done to the living room with paint, hardwood floors, and no curtains! I'll have to look up cellular blinds, but anything that could keep that window uncovered most of the time would get my vote. Your Pineapple House is lovely. You've done such a great job decorating it. I love your choice of paint. I'm glad the house is starting to feel more like your own. Xo

    ReplyDelete
  14. love love love your new home! Looks as if you have plenty of room for your growing family. Have you considered plantation shutters for your windows? They are so easy to dust and keep clean. Whatever you choose I know it will be beautiful. Love reading your blog also. God bless!
    ~Nancy (in Georgia)

    ReplyDelete
  15. Thanks for inviting us into your new living room arrangement. We have a neutral trim in our family room - very similar to the one you chose. I like the "you" of your new house. The country-feel of the wood floors, fireplace, and the love-knot upholstery on your camel back sofa are especially appealing. I've had my eye on curtain fabric called "Hatfield" and it looks like it might be the same beautiful blue fabric that is in this post.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Your colors are absolutely beautiful and peaceful. I would definitely not cover the windows . . . they open up the room and add a country charm! I think my only suggestion would be to change the color, in the future, of your fireplace doors to black and also paint the brick or maybe just changing the doors to black would add just the rich touch to that area. I see where you have a lot of black accents (which I love) but my eye was drawn to the red of the brick first and the brass before I started looking at how lovely the room was appointed. Great choices and blending of colors from the living room to the dining room.

    ReplyDelete

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...