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I realized that I never actually posted pictures of most of the rooms in this house after we unpacked our things.  Well, it’s been so long that I’ve already done and redone at least 3.5 of the spaces on our main level.  Oops!  I’ve been very frustrated/upset about a lot of things lately (for instance, my computer has already crashed 4 times while attempting to write this post), so I decided to take a little time for myself this weekend.  To let off some steam, I did what I do best…rearrange furniture.

Entry Hall (Before)

Entry Hall – After

This current arrangement needs some tweaking, but it features our Halloween “decorations” (aka candy).  The intermediate stage looked exactly the way it did in our old apartment.

Stairhall (After) – These are family wedding photos we used a table decorations at our wedding.  For awhile, I had them arranged on a bookcase in the living room.  I love them in a gallery wall format.

Living Room (Before)

Living Room (After) – The green furniture and curtains we are borrowing from the homeowners, as well as bookcases at the end of the room.  Most of the other items are ours.  The furniture layout took a little creativity, given the narrow shape of the room.  To better define the conversational area, a cabinet flanks the back of the green loveseat (which you can’t see very well in this picture) separating the end of the room.

The succulents on the mantel and the larger frame are a recent purchase.  The artwork in the larger frame is temporary, but I think it’s decent for a 5 minute pen sketch.  The arrangement above the chair includes 4 $0.75 frames from Target that I bought in college, with Charlie Harper prints that I cut out of my calendar.  Before this, I had a large mirror on top of the fireplace which I didn’t love, since the mantel is so high.

Over the couch, I hung a grouping of frames that we had in our last apartment.  The lamps we’re borrowing, as well as the chair.  We ended up putting our media stand in front of a window, but it works (the room is long and narrow, it was really our only option without buying a wall-mount to put it over the fireplace).

Two (borrowed) bookcases flank french doors at the back of the room.  They are different widths and different heights, so I oriented them differently.  This one is flush against the end wall next to the french doors and features various items — gifts from Nepal, family items, architecture books, and carefully arranged accessories.

This larger bookcase is turned to flank the pass-through to the dining room.  I didn’t have much to put on this one, so I made it a card display.

Dining Room (Before)

Dining Room (Before)

Dining Room (After) – I went shopping at Target with my sister and bought some orange Thanksgiving-spirited decor.  We’re hosting Thanksgiving for both our families for the first time so I figured I could splurge on a runner and a candleholder :).

The dining room has an interesting layout.  The chandelier isn’t actually centered in the room so there’s quite a bit of extra space on the sliding glass door side of the table.  I ended up adding a couple of furniture pieces to the space to make it feel a bit more finished.  I took my grandfather’s antique trunk out of one of the upstairs bedrooms, moved it down, and hung a mirror that was previously living on the mantle.  I bought this candelabra from West Elm on clearance last year and though I love it, it’s a little big to keep on the table when we’re actually eating there.  This seemed like a good place for it.  I have candles on order (the ones I made last year for it didn’t hold up so well) and when lit, I think they’ll have a nice effect with the mirror.

I also had the idea of making a little sidebar out of one of the homeowner’s end tables that we had in storage.  I took things we already owned from around the house (minus the yellow napkins which I bought this weekend) and arranged them on the shelves.  The frames above we already had as well; I just added more Charlie Harper artwork from a calendar I cut up.

On the opposite side of the room, I DIYed some artwork based on an online print I found.  I used an old frame that I had bought for Alex when we were dating and drew on some paper I had leftover from Architecture school.  I don’t know if I’m in love with it yet but it works for now.

In the hutch we’re borrowing from the homeowners, I ended up arranging some glass pieces that we had in our collection.  We never actually registered for fine china (we never used my parents’ set growing up so I didn’t really see the point) so I decided just to put a random assortment of glasses, vases, and bowls in there.  It’s pretty sparkly when it’s all lit up.

To add a little more color, I added some yellow and orange tea lights that I bought on clearance several years ago.

Overall, I think the rooms look much more cohesive.  This week, when I’ve had trouble staying motivated, I’ve just walked around the main floor to soak everything in.  It’s amazing how much better it all makes me feel.  Anyone else been redecorating lately?