When we moved to New York, my husband and I downsized from a two bedroom apartment to a one bedroom apartment. As you can imagine, I had to get rid of a lot of stuff. I love our new place though and don’t miss the extra space.
Our living room is still a work in progress (check out my original plan). Although it’s not complete, I thought it would be fun to give a you a peek into our space.
We had visitors this past weekend, and I really hate having people over when my apartment is a mess. The little details make a big difference, so one of the things I worked on was organizing our bookcase.
I like to arrange books vertically and horizontally, interspersed with personal objects, like pictures or collections.
We purchased a new couch when we moved. It’s actually a love seat, since a full-sized sofa would take up the whole room. I did pack my favorite lamps and accessories though.
Can you tell that I love blue?
One of my favorite features of the room is the exposed brick wall. I love the contract between this ornate frame and the somewhat crumbling brick.
There’s still a lot to accomplish in this room. I was inspired by Anne at Wit Wisdom and Food to create a to do list. She has a list for her whole house, but I’m starting small! Hopefully, this will keep me on track.
- Install additional shelves. What you don’t see above is a picture of the wall/corner full of boxes. Our plan to buy another bookcase or two for our living room was foiled by an oversized radiator. This mounted shelving unit is the inspiration for my new plan.
- Purchase a small cabinet for files and office supplies. Our desk is tiny, which works well for the space, but we need more storage (picture more unpacked boxes ).
- Find a new fireplace screen. We lucked out: our apartment has a working fireplace! The fireplace screen is huge and ugly though, and it has to go.
- Organize and hide electrical cords (enough said).
- Hang pictures. I’ve hung a grand total of three pictures in our whole apartment. Most of our art and accessories is in those boxes mentioned in #1 above.
- Buy a rug for the “office area.” I’m picturing something natural (sisal or jute).
If I can get these items checked off my list by the end of the year, I’ll be very happy!
Are you a list maker, or do you prefer to wing it?
I love seeing the little details of your living room. (And your book collection! We have some common interests. :)) My home is a work in progress, too. Although I love making lists in general, I haven’t really done so when it comes to decorating and home improvement. I tend to start with one thing, and just see how things flow from there… which may explain why it takes me so long to make progress.
Thanks, Shannon:) I definitely have a small cookbook collection going!
Glad I could be inspiration! Do you think you will find a traditional fireplace screen or find something salvaged like and old window? Oh now I want a fireplace screen for our fireplace! Adding it to the list.
I had not even thought of that – I love the idea of using a window! Now the wheels in my head are spinning;)