So… the living room. It has gone through a few iterations. At first it looked very different, then it shifted again, and now it finally feels like a room we can relax in.
Although the salmon-pink walls, orange-brown brick, and dark wood trim and paneling are far from the long-term vision we have for this space, it already feels much cozier. We keep changing our minds about the final look, but for the brick we’re inspired by vintage painted brick styles, for the ceiling we like the idea of coffered details, and for the paneling we imagine a more refined, painted look someday. For now, simply having a real couch to sit on instead of a pile of non-sit-on-able furniture makes a big difference.
Also, a quick aside: salmon looks surprisingly good on Burger. He’s one photogenic chihuahua—hard to be objective when you’re the owner, but that color suits him.
We downsized our seating a bit, which felt like a deliberate choice rather than a compromise. In our previous house we had a colossal living room that demanded an enormous sectional—thirteen feet long and almost as deep—so we grew used to giant furniture. By comparison, a typical sofa is around seven feet long. While large rooms and giant sofas have their appeal, we often missed the intimacy of our first house’s cozy den.
When we toured this new house, the living room immediately reminded us of that smaller, snug space. It felt like a return to familiarity, so we decided to adapt our existing furniture accordingly. Our Karlstad sectional from Ikea arrives in four modular pieces, which made resizing straightforward. We kept the sofa and the chaise, and removed the loveseat and corner piece that turned the set into a large U-shaped couch. It only took about fifteen minutes to reconfigure by reconnecting the arm that once sat at the end to the sofa section and removing the center pieces.
We stored the unused loveseat and corner section in the unfinished storage room, covered with a plastic drop cloth. Selling partial sectional pieces is often more hassle than it’s worth—someone would need to find matching pieces to make a complete set—so for now it makes sense to hang on to them in case we repurpose the modular pieces in another room down the line.
Behind the sofa we have a console we built a couple of years ago in three interlocking sections. By removing the middle piece, the console nearly fits behind the shortened sofa. It’s about six inches too long on the fireplace side, so we plan to trim it down so it seats perfectly in its spot. For now it works well enough and adds useful surface area for things like tea at night.
We’ve found that a combination of a console behind the sofa and a padded ottoman in front is the most functional arrangement for our family. The ottoman hides toys and gives Clara a place to lounge during the day, while the console provides storage and a place to rest drinks in the evening.
The fireplace wall had a second hole—originally designed to hold firewood—which created a dark void when viewed from the sofa. Since the fireplace is no longer functional (we’d love to add a gas insert someday), we covered that opening with a leaning frame so it doesn’t distract from movie nights or intense TV moments.
On the opposite side of the room, we’re keeping the 1980s wet bar closed off with its doors for now. We might expand the doorway into that area later since we don’t currently use the bar, but for the moment it’s a quirky, closed-off feature that we aren’t ready to tackle. In the corner built-ins, I had some fun arranging books and small ceramics—an easy way to make moving-day chaos feel a bit more settled.
In fact, even while the rest of the house was still disorganized after the move, this little corner came together within 24 hours. Small wins like that make the whole process feel more manageable.
We also removed several interior doors on the first floor to improve sightlines and flow. Taking down the doors that separated the foyer, kitchen, and living room lets us keep an eye on Clara from the kitchen and gives the entry a brighter, more open feeling. The view now includes the kitchen’s bay windows instead of two heavy doors blocking the sightline.
Removing the doors between the kitchen and dining room made the whole area feel breezier, despite the house’s mix of bold colors, dark blue trim, wood paneling, and multiple wallpapers. There are at least five different wallpaper patterns throughout the house, and addressing those walls is high on my renovation list. I’m planning to experiment with several wallpaper removal and updating techniques to find the best approaches to share. That kind of project gets me excited—small improvements add up quickly and make the house feel more like home.
Overall, the living room is already more livable and comfortable, and it’s heading in a direction we’re excited about. We’re enjoying the process of adapting what we have and making thoughtful changes as we go.
