How to Transform your Living Room

Hellooo friends!!

If you have been following along on my living room makeover journey, you know its been a long one! I initially began to work on this space back in February when I wanted to make this over for the One Room Challenge. However, COVID happened and due to financial reasons we put a pause on this room.

Now, for the last week and a half, we have been working hard to get this project going and we are working on giving this space i.e. the heart of our home, some much needed love!

Here is a before of the space.

We added the barnwood accent wall as one of our first DIY’s and lets just say it was not so great! We have also outgrown the farmhouse style and moved towards a more modern, timeless look so this update

Given that this is a builder grade, cookie cutter home our main goal in the last 5 years has always been to add character to the space. The barnwood DIY was the beginning of that goal.

This new project also focuses on the same goal: add character to a builder grade home, and make it beautiful! I am sharing three tips that help me plan a project to give our builder grade home instant character and modern charm.

How to Transform Your Living Room Tip #1

Add a focal wall treatment

This is literally my best tip to add character to a builder grade home. In this room, the focus is obviously the fireplace. We have also now added some trim work around the edges, and filled in the “box” with Shiplap. The Shiplap was what we had leftover from our bathroom project, and is the same Primed Shiplap by Metrie Trim.

How to Transform Your Living Room Tip# 2

Don’t be Afraid of Colour

Yup! I am telling you – do NOT be afraid of colour, especially colours like blue and green that are more or less pretty neutral. These can be your best friend when you are trying to add character to a builder grade home. I think going dark on this fireplace was one of the best design decisions we made, and it really elevates the space 500%! The colour is Benjamin Moore’s Newbury Port Blue. It is a beautiful deep blue with a grey undertone that is neutral enough to go with any colour furniture and tones.

How to Transform Your Living Room Tip #3

Add a Vintage Rug to bring Character to the Space

Yup.. a vintage rug! I added this beautiful rug by Revival Rugs that is handmade in Keysari, Turkey. Now here is the thing: I have been to Turkey and been to workshops where they make these hand made rugs and the process is LONG. From making the fabric (wool or silk), to dyeing it with natural products, to hand weaving the rugs – it is a long process. So when a company like Revival Rugs takes these beautiful handmade rugs and restores them – I am all about that! It is such a beautiful way to preserve the work of art that these pieces truly are. Since the rug is vintage, it is a one-of-a-kind.. but not to worry! Revival Rugs has many more available on their website!

You can get 10% off with code MINTCANDY10

So there you have it! This is my design process and how I choose pieces for projects we are working on to add character to our builder grade home.

If you liked this post, I would love if you could pin it to your pinterest boards!