Young House Love

Home Decorating & DIY Tutorials

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A Formal Blue And Tan Living Room Makeover

I just received these updated pictures of Janis’ living room and I almost fell out of my chair. Talk about a major transformation. As a reminder, here’s the before picture that she submitted along with her design dilemma:

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Here are a few snapshots of her updated space after she put our mood board makeover into action:

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And here’s her letter:

So here it is – the new look! I am still tweaking the accessories, but we got a ton of compliments over the holidays and even my kids approved! You told me that getting rid of that stencil would give height to the room, well there were 2 or 3 people who came by who have been in my house many many times and they asked if we had raised the roof! We are astounded at the difference and we love spending time in the room now. Thanks so much for your guidance. We really love the new look! I redid the dining room at the same time and am now moving on to the bathroom, which is the last of the dated rooms on the first floor. Thanks for getting the projects off to a great start! – Janis

Gotta love that fresh pop of color on the walls, that leggy glass coffee table, those two-toned silk curtains and every other aspect of the room that took it from dated to pretty darn fabulous. And we especially love that Janis achieved a totally new fireplace look with a coat of white paint on the bricks and some dark stain on the mantel. She eventually plans to incorporate the travertine tile that we suggested but painting the bricks was a quick fix for the time being- and it looks amazing. Hooray for white paint. And hooray for Janis and her gorgeous new living room. We’re so glad that she’s pleased with the result and we couldn’t be more excited to share the afters with you guys! What do you think?

And if you’re in need of some decorating advice of your very own, click here for a mood board makeover. You can also click here to see all the other rooms we’ve helped transform with custom mood boards and even in the flesh. Oh and if anyone out there is withholding their after pictures, please please please send them our way!

Update: We sadly can no longer find the time to take on client commissioned mood boards (we now whip up general inspiration boards instead) but if we ever reinstate them we’ll make a big announcement!

Comments

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Hey guys,

      So glad you’re enjoying the dramatic transformation!

      Janis had already ordered those chairs before she contacted us for help (although we did do our best to find similar versions for the mood board so she could generally see how things would come together). That being said, I don’t know where she found them other than that they hailed from a showroom in her hometown (Room Store? Haverty’s?). I’ll definitely shoot her an email to find out more. Stay tuned…

      xo,
      Sherry

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Email to Janis sent. I also asked for a confirmation on the paint color so all the details are hopefully on the way…

      xo,
      s

  17. Lauren says

    I really love this room! The transformation is amazing! What a difference in the room. I love how Janis added the table and lamps behind the sofa. I would have never thought to do that! And, I want that pair of modern chairs!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Consider it done. Just fired off another email to Janis about the art above the fireplace. Stay tuned…

      xo,
      s

  20. Lisa says

    It is a gorgous room! Janis did a fabulous job! It’s very inspiring. It goes to show that the mood boards are such a great starting point and a source of inspiration. Even though they didn’t do everything EXACTLY like the mood board, they definitely carried out the vision!

    Reply

  23. heather s. says

    The room is beautiful! I have to say that I’ve never seen a table behind a couch when the couch is against the wall – I’m trying to decide if I like it or not (I’d imagine vaccuming would be a chore).

    Reply

  25. meredith says

    looks great! only change i would make is to lower the mirror. maybe the midpoint should be closer to the midpoint of the lamp shades…

    Reply

  26. Denise T. says

    What a divine transformation! The room looks 35 years younger.
    Heather, I have a sofa with a table and lamps behind it against a wall and a window. It is a great way to illuminate that area at night because space is limited on either side of the sofa for end tables and lamps. I clean behind the sofa about as often as I would if it were pushed up against a wall. Not a problem.

    Reply

  28. kara says

    I LOVE this! I really am smitten with the shades too. I would never have thought to position the sofa and a shelf that way. Genius!

    Reply

  29. Janis says

    Hi Sherry,

    I thought our living room was one of the biggest transformations! So glad everyone’s enjoying it. The paint color was exactly what you suggested at 1/2 strength and the chairs were made by Best (I got them through Stanis Today in Chantilly VA). The lamps were from HomeGoods and the picture was from your referral store, Z Gallerie. We had never heard of it before and found that they have a store close to here which is where we found an aqua elephant vase there (matched the tall pottery bottles) and took it home to think about it. When we went to Home Goods, we found the same thing in a lamp version – that’s how we ended up with that lamp!

    We love spending time in the room now. I even had a workman who literally stopped in his tracks when he entered the room. “Wow, this is a great room!” Thanks again for your guidance!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Thanks so much for all the info Janis! Of course we’re super excited to hear that even workmen like you living room. It usually takes a lot to make a guy with a tool belt utter a decor complement!

      xo,
      Sherry

  33. CH says

    Everything is beautiful. Is it just a shelf or is it actually a console table behind the sofa? I can’t tell definitively. Great job!

    Reply

  39. harp says

    what at transformation, i think what really makes this room is that lovely, soothing wall color and that great art piece over the mantle. You provided her with great inspiration so kudos to both!

    Reply

  41. Barbara says

    The console table is a brilliant solution for a room that is too small for end tables. You also managed a lot of seating for a small room and it doesn’t look crowded.

    Reply

  42. Jan says

    Utterly incredible transformation! Truly breathtaking! Well done to the homeowner — and kudos to you both for your inspiration and help! — Jan at Rosemary Cottage

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Hey Courtney and Marge,

      So glad you’re loving the transformation! If you scroll up in the comments you can see where Janis commented with her sources on the chairs. And if you click the link to the mood board that we designed for Janis in the post above, you’ll see the direct link to that fab coffee table. Hope it helps!

      xo,
      Sherry

  47. Fran says

    Grand slam! Janis, do you feel any different when you’re in this room now? It literally went from “let’s knit while I wait for the Bengay to soak in” to “let’s sip martinis – and talk about my fab life”!

    Reply

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