Thursday, March 25, 2010

The room who wants to be yellow

This post is about my living room. It isn't much, so don't get excited.  May I please remind you all (all four of you!) that this is a rented house with taupe walls throughout and whitish pile carpet and a few leftover 80's oak details--three elements which I despise and can do nothing about. I tried very hard to not care at all about "decorating" since this is a temporary house for us. However. . . however.

So, coming from New York where we lived in a one-living-room house, we only owned one set of living room furniture. This second living room space remained empty and made a terrific dancing studio for four-year old princesses. Eventually, my sister and her husband gave us this set of sofas to fill the space and my sister-in-law lent us the coffee table since she isn't using it at this time. All of these things are brown, which might be okay if the walls were not taupe! Long story short, I decided to insert some artwork and in effect, some color! I love white and usually focus on it so white frames were a given, but what to put in them. . .
This is a beautiful book of artwork by Lulu de Kwait Kowski. I had considered traditional botanical prints for the wall, but thought the room needed a little more in the way of bright colors, so I used eight pages from this book.


This is what I came up with. Now can you see how the room wants to be yellow? 


Here it is with the brown sofas and table. I usually keep fresh flowers in a pretty white vase on this table, but I was cleaning when I snapped these.  I'm officially accepting helpful suggestions on what to do with that corner between the sofas--I hate hate that metal table and may need a new lamp as well. Should this be a floor lamp or a round table with table lamp??? I'm refusing to care too much about this rental, but I do need to be be here for another 18 months. 

I'm asking myself, why did I just do a post about the least pretty room in my house? Honestly, for all it's faults, it's a pretty nice house and we are quite happy here (it's the best kitchen I've ever had!) Why didn't I show you a good room? I think it's because of the Lulu prints, I just love them and am happy with the way they have begun to brighten the room. Let me go and snap a detail shot for ya!

There. This is my favorite of the eight selections. It was the first one I chose and it was the one that made the room want to be yellow. Of course, the room really wants to look like one of these yellow rooms in this post  by Tracy over at Comfort and Luxury. Sigh. 

Next time, I'll show you Meg's room. I promise there will be not a lick of brown in that post!


3 comments:

  1. I think your "new corner table" will need a new lamp with a shade like this: http://www.younghouselove.com/2009/09/nursery-update-keep-it-light/
    Ignore that this is a nursery and that the base in unacceptable (I see chunky matte white ceramic), and look at the pretty pattern and how easy you could transform an inexpensive plain shade and the warm glow you get when the lamp is lit. More yellow in a pillow or throw and in a stack of books or boxes on your coffee table and voila your room is yellow. That's my first idea. Use it or toss it or ask me for another! LOVE those prints (and that book!) btw. Very pretty.

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  2. Traci,
    I love what you did with the frames and the artwork! It is so striking, clean looking and colorful...perfection! I agree with the above commenter about infusing yellow into the room.

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  3. Tracy, I loved that lamp you suggested, and wish I could just buy it as is but it looks like I'll have to make it myself! Another project. . . .ah well, another post!

    I did buy a yellow orchid today to live permanently in this room. To nudge a little more of a sunny disposition out of it :).

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