This week’s Room Revamp feature takes us to the home of Jane and family of Finding Fabulous. Jane is a wife and SAHM of two whose passions are decorating for less and thinking outside the design box. (Hmmm, sounds familiar). Jane’s design philosophy is ‘take what you have (or a thrifty find) and revamp it, re-purpose it, or just plain renew it!’ We couldn’t agree more, so we were thrilled when Jane agreed to share her family room revamp with us.
1. What inspired your room revamp?
We had red curtains in our Family Room for many years, and then one day I went into red overload after we decorated for Christmas. I knew at that moment it was time for a change. Then it hit me that everything in the room was neutral except for the curtains, so creating a new look wouldn’t be so hard…it actually would be easy. So I decided to go for that Monochromatic new look…which was a look I’ve always loved in magazines but was afraid to pull off.
2. What paint colours, fabrics, etc. did you use?
The paint color in the room is very neutral, yet warm. I love it so much that most of the rooms in our house are painted this color. The fabric on our couch is a like a tapestry fabric. It has a paisley print and is several shades of brown…which with 2 kids and 2 dogs is perfect for our lifestyle. Translation…the dirt doesn’t show, and I love that! Our leather chair is also super family friendly. If you’ve got kids…you can’t go wrong with leather (just make sure it’s not too soft).
3. What was the cost breakdown (if you don’t mind sharing)?
When designing a space, I like to mix a few thrifty finds with a few quality pieces. Those Pottery Barn contrast band drapes that literally brought our monochromatic family room to life…I bought on Ebay for way less than half of what they would normally cost in the catalogue. Our leather chair we bought at a discount store for under $500. To be honest, I don’t even know if it’s real leather, but it looks very similar to the Pottery Barn chairs that go for around $2000. The wicker chair is from Pottery Barn also and is about 10 years old. I actually hadn’t even planned on using that chair, but we put it there temporarily…and I’ve since fallen in love with all the texture it adds to the space. The couch is the quality piece…and we bought it at Our Haus for way too much money. But in my opinion, some things are worth splurging for…case in point, the big comfortable brown couch that doesn’t show dirt and stands up to the daily abuse of two active kids and two dogs. And finally we have the blanket chest family heirloom back in the corner that once belonged to my Husbands sweet Grandmother. Nothing adds charm to a space like an old piece of vintage furniture.
4. What is your favourite part of the revamp?
My favorite part of the room are the dark hardwood oak floors. When we first bought our house, our family room and office had this awful, thick 80′s white carpeting…ugh! And believe it or not, due to the economy at the time, we had to live with it for a couple of years. So the day we finally ripped out that white carpeting and installed new, solid hardwood floors was very exciting! I also love the way the bookcases turned out after painting them a fresh white. It’s always amazing to me what a little paint can do.
5. What room would you like to revamp next?
The room I’d love to tackle next is our Master Bedroom! My husband and I have lived in 5 houses now…renovating most of them! And our Master Bedroom is always the last room that gets attention. I guess because it’s a room that guests often don’t see. Yes, this room will be getting a makeover soon.
If you’d like to see more of Jane’s design philosophy at work, be sure to visit her at Finding Fabulous. Thanks for sharing your home with us, Jane!
