SFGate

sunny33 In the first post first picture is front door view. Third one is view from the kitchen. And I am attaching couple pictures from other perspectives.
The area with 2 chairs will be either breakfast area or/and my kind of office.

sunny33 This is a room with similar concept. ) I wasn't sure about making kids area in the living room until I saw this picture.
[houzz=Basement Family Room]
And now I will try to show some designs I liked for that wall
[houzz=Upper West Side Combo]
[houzz=NJ Residential]

But I am afraid they will make wall appear even longer.

I like this kind of bookshelves too, but what to do on the other side of the wall?
[houzz=Lexington Home Brands]

And I just like this
[houzz=Media Wall]

What direction should I go? Did I get it right from the start (zone breaking)? Thank you for the time you took to read my posts.

Regards,
Svetlana.

kmcdesigner Looks like a lovely sized room...however, you are correct, you need a little planning to make it sing! The first thing that I would advise is to get an area rug for the sofa and chair area...nothing defines a space better than an area rug. If that area is for TV watching, make it user friendly and position the chairs and sofa so that it actually faces the tv...add some end tables and lamps. Next, I would get the furniture away from the walls, you have too much space and it looks. I would also think about painting one wall a different color and making that the defining space focal point. You also need lighting in the chosen areas...for the area with the two chairs and trunk, make the area a cozy corner nook. Put a tree in the corner, a chair on either side, the trunk or ottoman in front of the chairs so that both can share it and a table in front of the tree with a taller lamp on it for a reading nook. Hope this helps! Karen. Owner, of Interiors by Design.

sunny33 Thank you Karen for your advises! The trunk between chairs is Rubbermaid plastic storage bin covered with a towel to pretend to be a table. ) Chairs are former dining chairs. I am afraid of buying new furniture before I would see/picture this room right, as a whole. I like current zoning but I still not certain.. (

Ok, this nook.. I am sorry, but I think I cannot understand some of your points because you could assume that this corner is bigger. Tree is the only thing that can fit in there with one chair next to it.. But you read my mind, I LOVE the idea of corner nook. I wanted to make one in the corner where kids area is now. With tree, bench with arms next to the window, some bookshelves, table, chairs, but I realized that kids staff next to the kitchen is messing up the whole room, so I switched those areas. It is more practical to have kids staff hidden in the big corner. I am not sure I can make nook I dreamed about in this corner without blocking pathway from the kitchen. (

Is there are some kind of mystic because you read my mind again. I LOVE one wall to be different from others, especially if that wall has not just of different color but different texture as well, like bricks, stones. The only wall that I am thinking of is that long wall. Isn't it too long wall for it? The second place for stone/brick/different color wall could be the part of the wall with big window in the TV area. But I think it will be confusing with tv on one side and different color around window on the other.. where is focal point?..

Area rug... It must be huge! Like 14x14.... What color if we like red walls and couches are of dark colors? Will it make sense to put light color rug on light color carpet? Couches are in the middle because we have surround sound system prewired from previous owner. They had TV mounted in the middle. What we do, we turn TV on swivel and this way we can enjoy tv and sound. But this area mostly used by kids for playing Wii.. And I like open floor plans and if I will place couches in front of TV I am afraid room will not have open feel...

Thank you again Karen, you gave me some good Ideas to think about but I still have questions.. )

standinginline I would start by painting the walls. Was that color in the room when you bought it? Right now there is way too much red on the walls to "feel" comfortable IMO. if you want to keep that color specifically, I would keep it to the tv wall only--all other walls neutral. If you are not attached to the red, I would pick out a color or colors that you do want to bring into the room and then post again here once you have colors narrowed down or chosen. Sometimes painting a room will give you a whole new perspective on the way you want it laid out.

Nazmiyal Collection I would suggest starting with the rug... it is going to be more expensive than paints and fabrics. It is also harder to find a rug you love than paints that work!

http://nazmiyalantiquerugs.com/

sunny33 The paint was from original owner. We lived for long time with almost white walls and this is something different.. And we like this red, it is not too bright. I am torn apart...

standinginline It's going to be personal preference here, but keeping that red color I would limit it to one wall. Not to say you can't have it on all your walls--I'm sure you can get the room at least looking better with it on all walls too...

And I would not add a rug, as I think adding rugs over carpet is overkill most of the time, unless you are trying to hide permanent stains in the carpet.

dada139 I would create a couple of seating areas with a long low bench situated in the middle so that you can sit facing either way. I hope you get the pic I am sending of my place that is very similar

dada139 The childrens stuff should be hidable so when you entertain it has a very sophisticated look.The wall where the T.V. is should have built-ins on that wall that would hold all your books and the craft stuff when you want it out of site. You will have to add some furniture for sure , some chairs and that bench I mentioned before . A table for the crafts that lowers into a coffee table would work really well. By the way I am an Interior Designer so hopefully some of these ideas will work for you.

sunny33 Thank you too, dada139, for your comments and I got your picture. You have beautiful place and probably you don't like my red walls either. )
Did you mean this kind of built-ins?
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/S99897669/#/S99897669

dada139 I think color is a thing that is decided by the house and the owner. I had a red kitchen in my other house, this house just said grey to me. Always do what you love with color it is who you are.

Macral design Corp I would like suggest you some ideas for the big tv wall. We have more than 40 differents models of entertaiment center like these photos. Please see my houzz profile for more options..

ideahuntress Hi

I love the size of your room and it should accomodate all your needs. Firstly the colour, as I'm a lover of strong colours I like the red and the room is big enough to take it . You can always lighten the room through your soft furnishing choices and/or the wood in your furniture .

Secondly the grouping or zoning of your room, I agree with the comment that rugs over carpet maybe overkill but by grouping different combinations of furniture together and tying them in with complimentary accent pieces the room should work as a whole . Maybe you could move your central pendant light over your sofa area and have another one installed over the area you mentioned was going to be a craft centre and have recessed lighting and standing and table lamps to further "zone " the different areas ?

As for your little breakfast/office area I think it would be perfect under that window but I'd go for a shorter window treatment. I suppose your next big problem area is your long wall. I would definitely have it built in but in a very open way with shelves etc kind of an ikea look to it but not as rustic . You could then put baskets the far side of the wall which would be near your craft area and yet again this would help with the zoning of the room but as it would be all the same wood/material it would help to anchor your room too.

Have fun decorating it whatever you decide !

sunny33 Thank you, ideahuntress, for all your comments!
What do you think, if I change dark blades of that ceiling fan to light colored ones, will it help to distract attention from it? May be match them to the color of future wall built-ins. And then add additional lights to different zones..

Natalie Rugs to define the spaces and to bring in other colors-the red is so LOUD it needs some balancing. Window panels should be more substantial with a slight pattern. Shelving/open bookcases to divide areas. Good Luck!
[houzz=][houzz=The home of Bram]http://www.rugsusa.com/rugsusa/rugs/mohawk-select-tropical-acres/ivory/1255811058013-8010.html
http://www.rugsusa.com/rugsusa/rugs/oriental-weavers-sphinx-2205a/multi/1322205A-110076.html[houzz=Beaufort, SC Home (Patterson][houzz=Bradshaw Unique Bookcase / Display Cabinet in White][houzz=Chevron Ikat Grommet Window Curtain Panel]

ideahuntress Hi Sunny33 ,

Glad you liked them . I would change to match whatever other wood will be in the room or you could consider painting them the same as the ceiling colour so that they blend it with that ?

sunny33 Ideahuntress, It is surely some mystic going on here. I am gaining confidence in what I am doing because everything I hear is so close to what was on my mind. ) I did think for a moment of painting ceiling fan in white but then I thought it might look weird and limited myself to white/light blades. Thank you for mentioning it like a normal thing.

Natalie, the Bradshaw bookcase is in my favorites! but I am not sure how I can use it. I was thinking of placing it horizontally next to kids area, not to close to breakfast/office/nook area. I tried to place screen between tv area and kids area and it did not look nice to me. I will try to put plants on kids bookcase behind couch to softly separate these areas.

On that site I like this rug. But putting it over carpet is still something that bothers me..
http://www.rugsusa.com/rugsusa/rugs/infinity-home-source-arcs-shapes/beige/37154782-230311.html

Thank you so much for all your comments!

I still need confidence in my current zoning of the room. I am so used to see TVs in the middle of the wall. I think I just need more time to get used to asymmetrical TV placement..

Natalie I like that rug too---I'm just a bit confused about the wrought iron chairs off of the kitchen---if you want more contemporary-such as that rug, they just look out of place. Try the divider, console table, fabric panels, etc.---certainly something will work. Good Luck! [houzz=
]

sunny33 I love those dividers! I will need to try one more time to find a place for those kind of things in the room. I think one can go between big windows next to the love seat. and another one between narrow windows but shifted closer to long tv/craft wall. or not?...
I am thinking of getting new chairs anyway, even without a rug.

sunny33 But as to the style.. I think yes, may be that rug is a little more modern then it needs for this room and the house. Other rooms have more traditional elements in built-in furniture.

Nazmiyal Collection While we might need to attache a few rugs together to get the desired size, what about going with a Moroccan rug?

I have attached two images of rugs we put together for other projects (as inspiration only since these are all Vintage / one-of-a-kind rugs)

http://nazmiyalantiquerugs.com/antique-rugs/moroccan-rugs-vintage-carpets/

Nazmiyal Collection BTW... Here is one more piece that I thought would be interested to work with.

And here is a link to the vintage rug collection:

http://nazmiyalantiquerugs.com/antique-rugs/vintage-rugs/

whitsendranch I'd add a vent free fire place on one wall or corner, and a built in style bar on another using ideas from ikea, I'd keep the red if you like it but warm the room visually by choosing black stained wood. once you pick spot for a fireplace and shelving unit you can hide kids toys in part of the unit. the rest of the furniture and bar stools will fill the space where they are the most comfortable for using them. arearug too! i like red!

sunny33 Nazmiyal, you have such a beautiful and unique rugs. I love your Moroccan collection. I am afraid I wan't be able to afford it for the size I might need. But thank you for taking your time and showing them to me.
Whitsendranch, it is interesting that you suggest to get a bar area instead of craft zone and hide kids staff somewhere else. ) Do you have kids?) Is it just me who takes kids so serious?. ) I like fireplaces and I think it will be nice to have one in the living room. I think I need to draw a room plan on the paper and start all over. May be ideal furniture placement is still to be discovered.....

Nazmiyal Collection Sunny, that could be but they are not as expensive as you would think. If you let me know the size you would need and approx budget, I will let you know if we are in the ballpark :)

sunny33 Right now it is 12x16 for the tv area. Can I send you a message to discuss details If I will decide to get a rug and I'll like something on your site?

sunny33 Thank you to all of you who took time to post here thoughts and suggestions about my living room!!! The most important thing I learned was that nobody was excited about current layout and that all those great ideas were just not sticking to the room. And with built ins I needed to find a layout that will work for many years to come not just with small kids.
Well, here is my new and I hope good solution. Please, please tell me if I need keep trying or this is the layout I can stick with.
Tv goes in the middle, kids pool table and aquarium are imitating see thru bookcases -wall dividers . I want actually an aquarium to be built in one of the dividers (?). Or, if I will be able to make those dividers with cut tree trunk... I do not know which one will better for this room.
Behind loveseat and chair combo will be bookcase like the one with abstract shelves, Bradshaw Unique but in wood.
Curtains I will hang up high to the molding on the big windows and on smaller windows from the same fabric may be roman shades.

sunny33 I found some pictures of this room when it was empty. May be someone will get completely different vision on this room. I am open to any ideas. In my new current layout almost everything found its place. ) I even found out that blades on the fan are reversible and I already turned them over with lighter side down. )
And yes... on on my phone walls look too bright. They are not as bright.. We'll see later.

sunny33 Here is my long wall project. Stone like thing in the middle with built in tv and fire place. Tv I will try to conceive behind some kind of art. I don't really like the big black thing to be the focal point..

The area with 2 chairs next to tv area is reminding me about french cafe especially when they facing each other. ) I was thinking to add some long sconces with like old kind of street light. Will it be off the place? And breakfast area as in the other corner with not as great window view... Please help me with this dilema too.

Another question I have is where to place aquarium? I would like it to be see thru like in between breakfast area and kids office (upgrade to 48" long), but no fancy dividers this way( OR I want it to be even bigger (60") and places it next to the kitchen wall. We have turtles in it and some fishes. It is fascinating to watch turtles swimming in the water..


And I want to express again how appreciated I am to all of you!!!!! All your ideas are really valuable for me. Look forward to hear more. ) Thank you!!

Regards,
Svetana

sunny33 Oh, one more thing.. Will there be any place in this room for this table? It is unassembled now.

sunny33 I forgot to add one more view to get a full picture of the new layout.

whitsendranch I'd switch out glass top table for cool wood piece and add some interest on the walls, via maybe grapevine wreath large with some flowers in! change flowers with seasons touch of tiny butter yellow flowers at all times will pull the accent into balance! You can pull grapevine from trees or just buy a big one! i like free stuff lol

sunny33 Thank you whitsendranch, for liking wood table. I like it a lot, but since my husband likes modern style so we picked glass table to be the main table. But probably I need to give wood table a shot.
Where I can put wreaths? Problem is that my husband likes modern/contemporary style and I like natural and homie feel. I like transitional and something from rustic, eclectic but not country. Two chairs next to big window gave me an inspiration for Paris cafe next the town square (tv area), and a fireplace... I am lost in styles a little.. I think I need to find a theme and then figure out what style is close to that. I don't know. Thinking, looking, searching, drawing. )

But don't you think now room is more balanced then before? ) Am I on the right path?