Living Room Decisions 2011

This feels like it has been an epic project and I haven't really done anything yet.  I bought the new blue velvety sofa and seagrass shades, finally.

I love them both.  But, I am having major decision paralysis when it comes to working on the rest of the room.  I am going to paint these side tables and lamps. (If the idea of painting wood upsets you, I hope you'll be comforted by the fact that the tables have damaged veneer, and the lamps are actually cheap metal made to look like wood.)

It was the shape of the tables that I fell in love with, anyway, and the $25 price tag.  I am thinking of painting the tables a darker color than the lamps, but I'm not sure. What do you think?  I am sure that I'm going to order some Annie Sloan Chalk Paint to get the job done.  Everyone in the home/diy blogosphere is talking about this stuff, because  it's so easy to use- no sanding or priming- and it distresses nicely.  You can thin it with water, or thicken it by leaving the lid off for a while.  There are 24 beautiful colors to choose from, but I am looking at these four. 

Coco

French Linen

Country Grey

Old White

Of course it's hard to tell what the colors really look like here.  The Country Grey is actually more beige-y than grey, which goes nicely with the seagrass shades, and the Old White doesn't have the pink tone it has on my computer screen.  It's a nice off-white.

That's Country Grey and Old White on top (Cream and Old Ochre below that).  I was going to use those two colors before I found out about French Linen and Coco, which are just coming out this month.  I have requested swatches, and have high hopes for Coco, described as "a warm greyed brown, the color found on old French woodwork."  Coco tables with Old White lamps?  Or Country Grey tables?  with darker lamps?

Because it's starting to feel a little crowded in the room, I am going to swap out this larger roadside-find table

with this smaller one, another roadside find that has been gathering dust in the basement for four years.

I am planning to give that a chalk paint treatment as well, maybe some Old White with a little Country Grey.

The next big decision is whether to keep these teak chairs

 

or swap them out for these free yard-sale chairs.

While the teak chairs are unique and fun, these "new" chairs are classic, and I'm thinking they might suit the room better.  If I use them here, I'm toying with the idea of using the same suzani fabric that I used on this little bench, but then I am a little worried it's too... feminine?

Or, maybe the suzani would be better on the free yard-sale antique rocker, which will go in a bedroom upstairs.

But then I will have to choose from a whole world of fabric for the pair of chairs, and where do I begin?

I intend to recover those wing chairs someday, too, but that's not a project I'm geared up for yet.  Maybe there will be Living Room Decisions 2012, or 2013.  Or 2014.  For now, they stay as they are.

And, I'm still on the lookout for a small armoire to replace the bureau, so we can hide away a TV inside. 

So, what do you think?  If you have opinions, thoughts or ideas about paint or fabric or anything else to do with this space, please let me know so we can all move on with our lives!  Okay, maybe it's just me.  So I can move on with my life. 

I wish you a beautiful weekend filled with easily made decisions.