Our new living room has had quite a gradual transformation over the past six months. We started painting it on our second night living here - we couldn't bear the dark blue walls and gold chimney breasts a moment longer! (if you want to see a 'before' shot scroll to the bottom of this post!) Then we needed electrics fixing, the artex ceiling needed plastering over and the awful carpet had to go. (more about our new floor in another post!) So it all took a bit of time to bring together, but it's finally at a stage where I am happy to share it here, so first up I thought I'd tell you a little bit about our furniture choices...
A new sofa is such a big commitment both financially and in the style stakes, so I wanted to take my time over my choice. We had our previous one for over seven years and I'd long ago fallen out of love with it. But, I didn't want to rush in to replacing it, and I actually found myself holding back on choosing a new one and instead decided to source other pieces for the room first. Rather than the sofa dictating the look of the room, I wanted it to compliment the rest of my furniture choices.
You may remember my Armchair Edit post? Well above are the two chairs I opted for in the end. The top one is from Florrie and Bill and the other is from Atkin and Thyme. Both of the chairs are mid-century in style, so I wanted to choose a sofa that tied in with this, but also allowed the armchairs to make the statement. I'd spied the DFS French Connection Zinc 3 seater sofa on Instagram quite a lot and thought it was understated enough to compliment the chairs but also had bags of style all of it's own.
We opted for the 3 seater Zinc in the Grey & Charcoal combination which fits perfectly in the space. I must admit, I was tempted by the velvet version of this sofa, but with the existing velvet armchair I had to accept that it would've been a bit much! If I had another room with space for a sofa I'd definitely consider it in pink or teal velvet...!
I decided that bringing in a touch of velvet via some cushions was the more subtle option and I found the perfect covers at H&M Home, which are super affordable and lovely quality. If you read my previous post about my trip to the Salone del Mobile event in Milan, then you might have twigged that this is the first of the trends I spotted there that has crept into my own home!
The next trend that was EVERYWHERE in Milan was marble. I was already pretty keen on it before the trip, but seeing it there cemented my need to have an element of marble in the room! Again, I recently did a round up of marble side tables - and in the end I opted for this one from Rose and Grey. I originally wanted the taller version, but they'd sold out, so I went for the lower one instead and I'm really happy with it. It's the perfect size for my Oliver Bonas lamp, with enough room to set your cuppa or glass of wine while you recline in the armchair next to it.
The other dominant trend in Milan was of course greenery - both plants themselves and the colour. I seem to have unintentionally chosen lots of green elements for the room, in different shades which compliment each other so well (as they do in nature!) and my plant collection is steadily expanding in this room too!
There is so much more to tell you about this room that I am going to save it for some further posts! The floor and details such as the radiators, tiles, paint etc will come soon, along with the other half of the room which I haven't even showed you yet! It'll be Ruby's play area which I shared some inspiration for here.
Oh and if you've been dying to see the 'before' shot - here it is below - this is the only one I have! I'm rubbish at remembering to take them, but this was taken on our first day in the house! It shows more of the other end of the room, but you can see our old sofa behind the door. Incidentally, I should mention that DFS have a partnership with the British Heart Foundation, who will take your old sofa away for free. It can be a real pain selling a sofa yourself, and I wasn't prepared to just dump it, so this is a great option and means that the sofa will be sold in one of their shops, generating money for the charity. In fact, DFS customers have helped raise over £10million for the BHF through the scheme!
Anyway, I hope you've enjoyed this first peek at our living room! There are links to some of the sources below (although some items are no longer available).
Disclaimer: The grey Zinc sofa was gifted to me by DFS. Do check out my previous post for more of their lovely new sofa designs!
SOURCES: Zinc sofa, DFS / Square cushion covers, H&M Home / Blue armchair, Florrie and Bill / Green velvet armchair, Atkin and Thyme / Dog cushion, Donna Wilson / Knitted blanket (on chair), knitted by me using We are Knitters Nick Blanket kit / Footstool, Swoon Editions / Cream side table (by sofa), Habitat / Marble side table, Rose and Grey / Table lamp, Oliver Bonas / Large basket with pom poms, Nubie / Pendant light shades, Cox and Cox / Rug, TK Maxx.