Help with Family Room Makeover
We moved into our new home 3 months ago. We love the bones of the house, but the decor needs some brightening up. Our immediate focus is on our family room, where we spend most of our time.
There are two main problems: 1) the room is decent size but every wall is punctuated by doors or windows, making a furniture layout challenging. No matter how we arrange, it interrupts traffic to the porch. 2) the house is surrounded by trees which are lovely however the rooms are very dark. The family room windows on the west side are shaded by an attached screened porch and the north side are, well, north. We get no direct sunlight and even a bright day doesn't light up the room very well.
The only built in lighting are two can lights above the fireplace. The walls are painted a khaki green, which is pretty in the photos but just makes the room darker. The carpet is a dark tan (short shag?). The trim is medium toned oak and in good condition - my husband would rather not paint any of it at this point. There are wood beams on the 8 ft. ceiling.
Our plan is to redo the entire room - hopefully making it brighter. In addition to new furniture and window coverings, we plan to add a 60" TV and some sort of console - not sure where to put it though. I don't think over the fireplace is an option because of the height of the mantle. The layout needs to be conducive to watching TV and enjoying the fireplace.
General room dimensions:
Fireplace wall - 12 ft with 5 ft. on each side of fireplace
French door wall - 5 ft. on each side of French doors (only center door opens in)
Kitchen wall - 19 ft. (8 ft. 4" space to left of kitchen door)
Fourth wall - 12 ft. with 36" opening in corner
My style of choice would probably be cottage, comfortable, and would like to bring color in through artwork, window coverings, and painted furniture, sticking with simple/classic upholstery.
I enjoy reading the discussion board on Houzz and look foward to seeing responses.
We need help!
Jennifer Ross
There are two main problems: 1) the room is decent size but every wall is punctuated by doors or windows, making a furniture layout challenging. No matter how we arrange, it interrupts traffic to the porch. 2) the house is surrounded by trees which are lovely however the rooms are very dark. The family room windows on the west side are shaded by an attached screened porch and the north side are, well, north. We get no direct sunlight and even a bright day doesn't light up the room very well.
The only built in lighting are two can lights above the fireplace. The walls are painted a khaki green, which is pretty in the photos but just makes the room darker. The carpet is a dark tan (short shag?). The trim is medium toned oak and in good condition - my husband would rather not paint any of it at this point. There are wood beams on the 8 ft. ceiling.
Our plan is to redo the entire room - hopefully making it brighter. In addition to new furniture and window coverings, we plan to add a 60" TV and some sort of console - not sure where to put it though. I don't think over the fireplace is an option because of the height of the mantle. The layout needs to be conducive to watching TV and enjoying the fireplace.
General room dimensions:
Fireplace wall - 12 ft with 5 ft. on each side of fireplace
French door wall - 5 ft. on each side of French doors (only center door opens in)
Kitchen wall - 19 ft. (8 ft. 4" space to left of kitchen door)
Fourth wall - 12 ft. with 36" opening in corner
My style of choice would probably be cottage, comfortable, and would like to bring color in through artwork, window coverings, and painted furniture, sticking with simple/classic upholstery.
I enjoy reading the discussion board on Houzz and look foward to seeing responses.
We need help!
Jennifer Ross
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Here is a pix with some really good ideas, so that when you do paint these pieces and colors will work with almost any color walls. Notice the fabric has the wall, sofa and leather colors.
Attached an example of how a similar room was designed with light colors. The problem with the attached design is that the fireplace would be behind the sofa. Perhaps a couple of chairs in front of the fireplace with small table for games would work.
If you are open to some construction , I'd suggest that you put a flat screen TV over the fireplace, put the long couch where the short couch is, and put the short couch where the TV is. A couple of considerations with this plan. 1) Try the couches in this position to see how they work before you move too far ahead. 2) You'll want to remove the mantel or move it down. Depending on how handy you and / or your spouse is, you may need to hire some help on this. Additional things to consider with a TV over the fireplace are how much heat comes through the brick when (if) you have a fire, and local code may dictate how far the mantel needs to be from the fire box.
Recessed lighting would be great in this room. Again, depending on how handy you are, that may require hiring someone. You could probably find a skilled handy man that can do the wiring and the drywall repair. If this is a ranch house, you don't have to worry about the drywall repair since the wiring can be done from the attic.
I'd consider painting the beams white. They'll blend into the ceiling and it will open the room up.
Another idea (if you're willing to sacrifice a window) would be some sort of a vertically oriented entertainment center / armoire to house the TV to the left of the fireplace and then putting one of the couches where the TV currently is.
I could see some cool black & white art or family pictures on the back wall.
Are you unwilling to paint the walls or just the woodwork?