# Living Room Makeover



## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

We own a house that was built in the 1960s. My parents bought it in 1986 and my husband and I bought it from them in 2006. My parents did quite a bit when they owned it but it was to their own 1990s style and it had to go.  The living room is the first room we walk into when we enter the house, and numerous paint jobs still didn't get it to where I wanted it. The last "redo" was about 6 years ago and I've hated the color and decor ever since. I decided on a beach cottage theme since our street is named after a popular beach, my husband and I both love the ocean, and the color palette is soothing. 

Here are some before pictures from my pervious attempt at updating the room when I painted it an unfortunate shade of yellow (what was I thinking?!?!). You'll also see the sad shape of the furniture and trim thanks to the adoption of our two puppies that love to chew all.things.wood.


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

My brother is making custom built-in's to go along the back wall - similar to these...










The center shelves will be 6' across and 18" deep. The two sides will each be 3' across by 12" deep. There will be lighting on a remote and cabinets below just like the picture. They will also be white with white beadboard as the backing. It will take up the entire length of the wall but I chose not to go all the way to the ceiling. The center will be approx. 7' tall and the sides will be approx. 6' tall.


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

For the walls, I kept the tan color that was in the entryway and hall. It's Taupe 3 (Signature by Valspar) and goes with just about everything (except yellow hahaha). I did two accent walls in Gentle Wave (also by Valspar) - the wall where the shelves are going and the wall with the windows. We took down the existing crown - which was actually door casing - and put in 5.25" colonial crown. Finally, I painted all the trim and doors Ultra White (they were originally beige).


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

When painting I didn't worry about painting the baseboards since we planned on replacing the floors next year. Then things changed and I decided we should go ahead and get it over and done with. So, all the parquet had to be ripped out. I saved some of the wood for a craft project (perhaps a family photo frame).


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

To replace the stained area rug we had, I made this one using a drop cloth and paint samples. It was a lot more work than I had expected but I think it came out great.


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

I also made these using 1x2s, plywood, and plexiglass. My daughter took the center picture and I found the other two on the interwebs. Had them enlarged to 12"x12" at Costco, and voila, new art. I was inspired by some I found on the net but they wanted $200 for a set of 3. I did mine for under $50. This photo doesn't do them justice at all.


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

We ordered tile for the entryway and wood flooring for the living room/hallway. We are just waiting on the tile since it has to be installed first but it should be here in a couple of days. Then we'll install the flooring and new baseboards, and the shelving units will be installed early next week.


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## TrailerParadise (Jan 3, 2013)

Looking good so far. Im personally so glad you ripped out the parquet, i hate parquet floors. They look nice but theyre a pain, especially if water hits them


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

My parents had it refinished back in the early 90's but it was definitely worn out. And nothing dated the house like the floors. We are also on a slab and in the Virginia humidity, every summer another section would pop out and swell...which made it extra fun because the pieces had to be sanded down to fit back in the space. We hired a company to take it all up and with their machine it look less than an hour. We have parquet under the carpets in the bedrooms and that will be the next major flooring job. In our bedroom it has popped up under the carpet because of a leak we had in the hall bath.


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

Tile we are going with for the entryway (approx. 5'x7' area). Valtellina Glazed Porcelain in Alpine Pass.










Engineered Wood Floors: Armstrong Hickory in Eagle's Nest (5" hand-scraped planks)


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## TrailerParadise (Jan 3, 2013)

kimberland30 said:


> it has popped up under the carpet because of a leak we had in the hall bath.


This is precisely why i hate parquet. We had it in the kitchen of my current house and our fridge had a ice maker in the door, and one night the tube that carries water up to the ice maker popped off and water went EVERYWHERE. We got up the next morning to a flooded kitchen and living room, and even though we got the water out, it still soaked into the parquet and it bubbled up in entire rows. It seriously felt like walking across the dang rapids just to cross the kitchen. About four years ago we finally ripped it out and put down sticky tiles. No problems since.
Love your tile choices!


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## gma2rjc (Nov 21, 2008)

It's looking nice kimberland. Keep up the good work. I'm looking forward to seeing what it looks like when you're finished. 

Hey, you know what's worse than wood parquet flooring? 

Peel & stick tile parquet flooring, like the stuff I put in my entryway 10 or so years ago. :yes: It's going bye bye pretty soon though.


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

TrailerParadise said:


> This is precisely why i hate parquet. We had it in the kitchen of my current house and our fridge had a ice maker in the door, and one night the tube that carries water up to the ice maker popped off and water went EVERYWHERE. We got up the next morning to a flooded kitchen and living room, and even though we got the water out, it still soaked into the parquet and it bubbled up in entire rows. It seriously felt like walking across the dang rapids just to cross the kitchen. About four years ago we finally ripped it out and put down sticky tiles. No problems since.
> Love your tile choices!


This is precisely why I do not want to put any type of wood flooring in our kitchen (DH wants to). Our dishwasher had a leak a couple years ago and we had to replace baseboards on our cabinets - thank goodness we have vinyl in the kitchen so nothing else was ruined. And he wants to put in wood? He will settle for tile but it's so harsh. Needless to say, our kitchen floor is still the old vinyl with Williamsburg Blue and mauve (the style in the early 90s) and it's not going anywhere until we can come to a compromise on what to put in there. 




gma2rjc said:


> It's looking nice kimberland. Keep up the good work. I'm looking forward to seeing what it looks like when you're finished.
> 
> Hey, you know what's worse than wood parquet flooring?
> 
> Peel & stick tile parquet flooring, like the stuff I put in my entryway 10 or so years ago. :yes: It's going bye bye pretty soon though.


That sounds....awful. But at least it stays in place and you don't have little pieces of wood popping up all over the place. :laughing:


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## Two Knots (Nov 12, 2011)

I like your flooring choices. Would you consider taking the tile all the back instead of just the square? 
It would create an actual foyer, instead
of a landing square for muddy shoes.

Your tile choice is gorgeous...would you consider continuing that 
same tile all the way into the kitchen? That would be an awesome look.


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

We thought about doing the entire length of the entryway (to the hallway), then also doing the hallway in tile...but we really didn't like the look of it (our neighbor did theirs that way). We also considered building half walls on each side of the entry to create a foyer, but I thought it would close off the space too much - and it wouldn't leave a lot of room with the bench there - and we use that bench/storage bins daily. 

I also don't want to put tile in the kitchen. Tile always wins and I'm too clumsy with dishes  We put DuraCeramic (composite tile) in the bathroom and I love it - it's not cold or as hard as ceramic tile. DH doesn't want to put that in the kitchen either. He's all for either wood or ceramic. I'm up for anything but those. Which is why we haven't changed it yet.


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## Two Knots (Nov 12, 2011)

I would do the hallway in the same wood. I think I'm a little late
with my advise, but I would have liked the entire floor in wood
without the ceramic tile in the living room. 

Wood floors are very durable if treated properly.
Our daughter has wood flooring in her foyer (with three kids
and a big dog) and they're beautiful. She has a round
oriental rug in front of the door.

I have a small wool oriental rug in front of our door and we
really use the heck out of it. I know you are going for the cottage
look, however, I suggested a wool throw rug cause they don't
soil easily, and clean up beautifully. I'm sure you can find a wool cottage-ey
look rug. 
You can easily do a half wall room divider later on.


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

Huh, we never considered not doing the tile, but I agree that the wood flooring would be fine in the entry instead of the tile. I'd bring it up to the husband because I'm sure he ordered enough to cover the tiled space, but I'm not sure about adding a rug there. Our dogs are pups and love all.things.rugs. If it isn't nailed down to the floor or has furniture on it keeping it in place, it will end up chewed up in their room. Just like all our bathroom and kitchen rugs that I have yet to replace.


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## Two Knots (Nov 12, 2011)

kimberland30 said:


> Huh, we never considered not doing the tile, but I agree that the wood flooring would be fine in the entry instead of the tile. I'd bring it up to the husband because I'm sure he ordered enough to cover the tiled space, but I'm not sure about adding a rug there. Our dogs are pups and love all.things.rugs. If it isn't nailed down to the floor or has furniture on it keeping it in place, it will end up chewed up in their room. Just like all our bathroom and kitchen rugs that I have yet to replace.


I meant a rug for wiping your feet, not for decorative use.
Is that your main entrance, or do you come in through a mud room, or kitchen?

We come in through our front door, that's why I have a throw rug. 
From spring through fall we have a little one,
(about 15" x 20" maybe smaller?) In the winter we have a bigger one. 
In our house we have a Living Room about the same size as your LR.
We tiled the small foyer and kitchen and bathroom in the 
same cream color ceramic. The rest of the house is hardwood.
Although it looks nice, I'm thinking of ripping
out the ceramic in the foyer and putting down hardwood. It would definately
make the LR look bigger, as it would in your case as well. 

I just like the same floors throughout. With your home I would definately
go with the wood in front of the door.

How old are these pups? They chew for at least a year. I've had my fair
share of chewed up rugs! Dogs are a PITA, but we can't live without them 
can we?


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

Our pups are 2.5 years old LOL. I think we will forever call them "the pups" because they are littermates and we adopted them together. They go through stages where they don't chew anything, then I'll find evidence that they still are - like chewed up door casings. We just painted the outside of our house this year and replaced some of the wood siding they chewed, and yesterday I found two places where they've chewed it up again. I hope they'll be out of this stage once and for all...they've ruined tables, chairs, walls, trim, rugs, pillows...etc. But I wouldn't give them up for anything. 

If we put down any type of rug near the door, the pups will chew it up. I've gone through several of them - even using the carpet tape didn't help. We have a gate that will close them off from the living room because I have built-in cabinets going in and there is no way in hell I'm going to let the pups chew on those! We could possibly put a rug there but DH really wants the tile, so we are going to go ahead and sticking with that. We use our front door as the main point of entry. When we eventually do our kitchen we are going to move the door to the laundry room so that we can create a mud room. We had our driveway extended this summer and now it goes up the side yard to the back fence and makes the side door more accessible. But a kitchen renovation is a long way away.


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

The tile is down and grouted. Floors going in today. The couch cover was also delivered today and I'm going to pick up a TV stand after work. The built-ins will be installed on Thursday or Friday so I hope to get everything in place before then. My DD and her friends are here for the weekend so I need to get it together so they can use the guest room - which is now a hot mess of furniture and boxes. 

I'll post pictures later - the tile is gorgeous and I'm sure the floors will be too. Getting closer!


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## Two Knots (Nov 12, 2011)

Well, good luck with everything. The floors are going to make a dramatic difference.


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

We were so busy last week! Tile is done and the floors were installed on Wednesday - took the installers only 5 hours to get it all done and most of the time was spent on the doorway transitions in the hall and kitchen. 

Built-ins were installed on Thursday morning then we had to clean everything up since DD and her friends were in town for the weekend. Baseboards are up but still need to be caulked/painted. I'll probably get to it next weekend.

The couch cover I ordered was the wrong one and the new one will be delivered tomorrow...so that side of the room isn't done yet. But I at least have the curtains up.


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## gma2rjc (Nov 21, 2008)

I went back and looked at the 'before' pictures and, wow!, what a difference. It looks great! Your brother did a beautiful job on the built-ins. The floor looks wonderful too. :thumbup:

I'm glad you're posting pictures of your progress. So many times we get threads where the OP doesn't show their final work. 

Barb


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

Thank you! I can't help but show it off.  This has been the only room in the house where I've actually planned every detail...and I'm so excited that it's coming together the way I had it pictured in my head. 

My brother has been doing custom cabinetry for a long time and just recently went out on his own. His work is amazing and I'm proud to show it off. He might get quite a few calls from our friends and neighbors after seeing this.


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## Two Knots (Nov 12, 2011)

It looks gorgeous, I bet you're anxious to fill it up.:thumbup:

congrats to your brother.


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

The shelves are already filled  It didn't take long and I had a lot more things to put on them than I thought I did. We are looking to get a new coffee table for the den so I can use the one we have in the living room. I still need to caulk and touch up paint the baseboards but we were about 4' too short so I'm going to wait until we get that little piece up before doing all that (no sense in doing it twice). I hope to have it all done over the weekend.


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## Two Knots (Nov 12, 2011)

Well then, how about showing some pic's of the decorated cabinet...
I'm interested in seeing it.


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

I will post some pictures tonight. The couch cover came in yesterday (finally) so that is all set up too.


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

I haven't had time to organize it much...I basically threw everything up there in some resemblance of order but I need to pare it down some so it doesn't look too crowded. The pink ceramic at the top of the middle unit is going to be painted a different color, I just haven't done it yet.


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

The right cover for the couch came in so it's put together and ready (should have ironed the slipcover but I didn't...maybe the wrinkles will work themselves out). I got the IKEA Ektorp in white - I've been coveting it for months now and I'm so happy it's finally in our room!










Just broke down all the boxes and got the room cleared. DIY rug is down but the pictures aren't hung yet. When we go to the box store to get the remaining baseboard (only place that sells it by the LF that is close by) we are going to pick up a couple tropical plants. I'll post pictures as the finishing touches are done. Still need to make throw pillows for the couch and a padded cover for the entry bench.


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## Two Knots (Nov 12, 2011)

Nice, better keep those pooches off that sofa. :yes:

Have you thought about putting some books on your wall unit?


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

I have a dog cover for the sofa, I took it off to take a picture. But I don't mind dog hair being on it...it's a quick fix with a lint roller.  They aren't allowed in the room unless I'm in there with them because I'm so afraid they will chew the cabinets.

I don't really have books because I only buy paperback ones and donate them after I read them. DH has a kindle so no books from him. Funny huh, I get nice bookshelves and nary a book on them.


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## Two Knots (Nov 12, 2011)

My daughter has a large bookcase/wall unit 
flanking her FP in the family room. It has lots of 
books and some framed photos. If you want books,
try the good-will stores, yard sales, and the public library
often has free books they want to get moved out. 
If you don't want books, that's ok too.

As far as the dogs, they will ruin that sofa in a very short time.
My Grandpuppies visit often...just yesterday I noticed one cushion
on the living room sofa is dirty from the dogs running in from outside
and landing on the sofa in the LR to look out the front window. 
We plan on re-upholstering that sofa this winter, so I'm not too
upset. 
My old beagle was afraid of bubble wrap, all I had to do
was lay a small strip of bubble wrap (6" x 24") on the cushion
and he wouldn't go up there when I wasn't home. 
They are allowed on the leather sofa in the FR, as well as the other
two leather chairs in the same room. 
I love dogs, but they sure can ruin a fabric sofa or chair in short order.


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

Yeah, the pups did a lot of damage on the furniture that we used to have in the living room. They chewed all the corners off our tables, chewed the bottom of the tv hutch, started nibbling on the entry bench but only managed to scrape the stain off of one corner, and they've chewed on some trim pieces (door casing and baseboards). They also got two of our couch cushions off the sofa and obliterated them. I bought new foam and padding and mended the cushions and locked them out of the room with a gate that extends between the hallway and living room. That's one of the reason why I wanted to makeover this room so badly - it looked like crap and it's the room we first see when we walk into the house. 

The pups are not allowed in this room unless one of us is with them. They were in there last night when I was breaking down boxes, Lexi laid on the couch and Harley laid on the floor. When they started to wrestle (jumping off the couch and back on), the were banned from the room. They have free roam of all other rooms in our house so I don't feel bad for their exile from the living room.  

Another good thing about the sofa is that it's completely washable. Everything is a slip cover so if it gets stained, I can just pull it off and wash it. I bought some fabric spray and a gel stain stick to be on the safe side. I'm also going to buy a replacement cover should I ever need it. But I think we'll be okay since we have one of those Sure Fit dog blankets that pretty much covers the entire couch and arms.


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## Two Knots (Nov 12, 2011)

You only have one opening to the hall from your LR, right?
You could install a 15 pane glass French Door closing off the
LR from the rest of the house; this will keep the dogs out
of the LR without dealing with the hassle of pet gates, that
look unsightly, besides the dogs will most likely chew their
way through the gates. 

I have two separate French doors to close the pups in the kitchen when
we go out...one from the foyer into the kitchen and from the kitchen
to the family room, it keeps the dogs from roaming free when we're
not home. 

Our daughter has a series of French doors closing off rooms in her
house. She also confines her dog to her kitchen and family room
when she's not at home.
Think about it...in bad weather when they come in from the outside
wet and muddy who needs them running all over. You could also
put one in the hallway so that if their dirty -- you can clean them up before
letting them roam free...it's just an idea.


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

Yes, we only have the one opening that goes from the living room to the hall and to the kitchen. We block that off with a 55" gate that isn't the most eye-appealing thing but I don't know about putting in french doors. We thought about putting in knee walls (is that what they are called) and creating an opening into the living room only - creating a formal foyer - and putting in a high pocket door to keep the pups out of the living room only. But I think it would block off the room too much and foyer would only be 5' across. I like wide open spaces without a lot of doors/walls in my way.  We've had plastic baby gates in the kitchen to block access to the den, or to keep them contained in the kitchen only. They don't chew on the gates, they chew on the door trim instead.


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## Two Knots (Nov 12, 2011)

kimberland30 said:


> Yes, we only have the one opening that goes from the living room to the hall and to the kitchen. We block that off with a 55" gate that isn't the most eye-appealing thing but I don't know about putting in french doors. We thought about putting in knee walls (is that what they are called) and creating an opening into the living room only - creating a formal foyer - and putting in a high pocket door to keep the pups out of the living room only. But I think it would block off the room too much and foyer would only be 5' across. I like wide open spaces without a lot of doors/walls in my way.  We've had plastic baby gates in the kitchen to block access to the den, or to keep them contained in the kitchen only. They don't chew on the gates, they chew on the door trim instead.


How big is the opening on that doorway from the kitchen to the hall? 
I'll get pics of my doors and my daughters doors. She has a golden
lab and a white couch in her LR.


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## Two Knots (Nov 12, 2011)

What's a high pocket door? I am assuming that your doorway to
the hall is 36" (that's standard)
We bought two 15" pane doors --They were labeled outdoor doors,
I'm telling you this because friends copied our idea to close off their
kitchen and bought interior door --which were thin, light and one big
piece of glass with a wood grill in the center. 
Our doors are all seperate panes of glass. The door frame was constructed by the head knot. 

Keep in mind that glass lets the light through, it's not confining
and also it keeps the sound out. I can be in the kitchen cooking and watching TV on the kitchen TV, 
while the head knot is in the den watching TV and it's sound proof.
But, best of all it keeps the dogs in the kitchen when we go out.

This is from the kitchen looking into the den...


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## Two Knots (Nov 12, 2011)

This is the same door looking from the den into the little
area off the kitchen.
There is another French door in the eating area of the kitchen
but, it's the same door so you get the idea.


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## Two Knots (Nov 12, 2011)

oops, forgot the pics.


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## Two Knots (Nov 12, 2011)

oops again..i'm in a big hurry...the head knots wants me to get
in the kitchen and rattle those pots and pans! :laughing:
this is the door from the den view.


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

The doors are gorgeous!

Here is the layout of the front of the house. We thought about building a half wall adjacent to Wall D - but putting in a 4' opening in the middle to access the living room. Within that half wall we would have put in pocket doors the same height, so we could block off the entire living room. 

The space from Wall D to Wall B is 55". We could possibly put in a french door there but DH would be against that. We have a baby gate there now and it keeps the pups out of the living room. The bedroom shown is actually our pups bedroom. It has a futon for them to lay on and all their toys. Our den is on the other side of the kitchen in the back of the house. It has a standard opening and use a baby gate there to keep the dogs contained in the kitchen, hallway and their bedroom during the day.


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## Two Knots (Nov 12, 2011)

Ok, The opening is 55" from the LR into the hallway. 
It doesn't look that wide?

option one...On your 55" opening, You could add a 36" french 
door in the middle, and close
off both side with a piece of wall that would be 9 1/2"
on each side. By the time you put 2 1/2" molding down the side
you would have a wall on each side about 7" wide.
Then you could have your Brother make you a nice mantle
top to match your wall unit. Paint the whole door and moldings to match your wall unit. 

option two... on the 55" opening...you could look for two 24" French doors --that would be 48" total doors.
By the time it was framed out and 2 1/2" molding on each side, you
would only have about 1" of wall on each side...again your Brother
could make you a nice top.

option three...Between the foyer and the LR (it looks to be about 11 FT?)you could create a foyer by adding two 36" French Doors in the middle
--that would be 72" -- between the foyer and living room you would have to build a wall on each side of the doors...2 1/2 foot (that looks like
11 foot total wall you have there?) But, I think it would make the LR look small and confining, and the real purpose is just to keep the dogs out of the LR, isnt it?
I think I prefer option two.
If you want I can show you my daughters LR with French doors closing off her LR from her kitchen.


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

We would probably go with one door if we were to close it off. We have a bench that was built by my brother on Wall D between the closet door (behind the front door) and the entrance to the hall. Having two doors there would mean that we'd only be able to use one (unless they opened into the hallway). I've thought about putting in a door there but DH doesn't want to. He hates anything that blocks access to a room.

For your option 3, that's what I was thinking but instead of building walls and putting in a french door, we'd build half walls to close off the room. We'd build pocket doors into the half walls so we can close off the opening to the LR thereby keeping the dogs out. But the husband is against that idea since that only leaves the 55" foyer - and again with the bench it will close off the space. Plus as soon as you walk in the door you'd hit a wall and we both like the idea of open space there.

And yes, it's exactly 11 feet from Wall B to the front door. The room width is 13' but there is a 2' nook at the corner of the room by the door.

Eventually when we do a kitchen remodel, we're going to knock down most of Wall B to open up the kitchen. But that project is a million years away or a lottery winning.


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

A door would look great if we had space on either side of it. If we put a door across the entrance to the hall, we'd have a 4' hallway closed off by a door/mini-wall. If we put it in across the front of the living room, we are creating a 55" entryway that will be closed off from the living room. Neither option will get DH's approval.


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

This is what I was thinking of (if I could ever convince DH)

Pocket door like this...









But between something like this (obviously the walls would be longer)...


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## Two Knots (Nov 12, 2011)

Ok, I see, but I still think it looks like a child gate or a doggie
gate. Full doors all the up would look better. Since you can roll the
doors into the walls, why not go all the way?
Our friends put French pocket doors in between the dining room and
family room, it looks awesome.
I think 5' is plenty wide enough for the foyer, and you could do even 
do wider than two 36" doors on each side.


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

I don't mind it looking like a baby gate or doggie door. By time the dogs get older and stop chewing, I'd probably be a grandmother.


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## Two Knots (Nov 12, 2011)

You're the one that has to like it. keep in mind that the double
wall has to be pretty thick. I think it would look better on the
opening to the hall. But, from what you say hubby is reluctant 
to do either. 
Maybe just concentrate on finishing the LR, and leaving the
kiddie gate as is for now. 
Another idea I just got, is what about a small half wall
on either side of the 55" opening, lets say each side a 14-15"
wide stationary half wall. Then in the middle a small half
hinged door which would be about 25 -26" wide hinged door.

This would be economical to do. I have two half walls separating my
family room from my dining room...the bottom has a molding that is screwed 
to the floor... the sides are also screwed to the side walls.
It can be easily detached by removing the screws.


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

If I'm picturing what you are saying...the 55" opening to the hallway would actually be smaller because of the half walls? That won't work because we bring in a lot of big things to the house (last night it was a huge coffee table for the den). We just remove the gate entirely so things fit but we wouldn't be able to do that with a small half wall on each side.

I'm slowly working on finishing the room. I have a full time job and go to school so I haven't had any free time to finish things up. I don't have that much to do but I need to get it completed so that I can finally put all the tools and paint stuff put away and start moving stuff to the storage shelves of the built-in unit. 

I can't walk into my home office/storage space/lay down area without bumping into something. Can't wait to get that room back in order either.


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## kimberland30 (Jan 22, 2008)

The living room has been done for a while now but time got away from me. Here are the before and afters. 





































































(the chair in the corner isn't staying..we are just holding it for my daugther.)










Pillows I made for the couch (envelope covers on pre-made forms....super easy!) I also made the three pictures hanging above the couch. Couch is from IKEA (Ektrop), long shelf is from IKEA, built-in shelves were done by my brother, TV stand was an awesome deal found on a local yard sale website. We already had the tables in another room.

The only thing left is to get a few plants to put in the room (a palm in the corner by the door, something else next to the couch near the entrance to the kitchen). I love walking into our home now and being met with the beach. I'm in the market for a 42" smart TV to put in here with wireless headphones so that I can actually USE the room. 

The "before" pictures were taken in the middle of the afternoon. The 'after' pictures were taken when it was dark outside. Even though the flooring is MUCH darker than what was in the room, changing the paint and curtains really lightened up the room. We have a covered porch which blocks direct sunlight and the room always looked dreary. I think it was just screaming for a makeover.


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## gma2rjc (Nov 21, 2008)

Thanks for the update kimberland30. You did a fantastic job on this. It looks like a very inviting and relaxing room to be in. 

Barb


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## csmurray1 (Feb 23, 2014)

coming along nicely!


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## Windows on Wash (Aug 30, 2011)

+1

Looking good!!


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