The Front Room: Moody Bookshelves and Pretty Lighting

I may have taken a break from blogging, but Micah and I didn't break from renovating. This Christmas will go down as the holiday we spent working. Literally. Micah worked all of Christmas Eve and half of Christmas day. We've vowed to not start a project that close to Christmas again, but we're done and couldn't be more in love with the results - even the guy who disliked much of it from the start!



See the process here, here, and here.

To remind you of where we started...

Last we talked we were here: mostly built and ready for paint. We added the rest of the picture frame moulding thanks for the encouragement :) and then it was time for paint prep. Also known as, the worst part of any reno. I spent a full day filling and sanding, and Micah did all the caulking. We spent most of Christmas Eve taping off all of the walls, ceiling, and floor and then Micah spray primed all of the raw wood on Christmas, including the 30 shelves. I actually love renovation but this part is the part I loathe. Paint prep is so crucial but so awful.

The 26th our friend Ron came and sprayed all of the woodwork. Christmas was over, but it felt like Christmas! I told you here I had picked HGTV Home for Lowe's Radicchio Leaf and we ended up doing it in Sherwin-Williams All Surface Enamel. Oil based paints aren't the easiest to work with, but when you want a high gloss, very durable finish, spraying on oil is your best bet. After letting the woodwork dry for 24 hours, we carefully removed all the tape and plastic and got to work painting the rest of the surfaces. The ceiling got primed and painted and the walls went this beautiful Mocha Mauve color from the HGTV Home line.

The following day Micah hooked up the sconces and chandelier, and we starting installing the shelves.

Chandelier | Sconces | Sconce Shades

We ended up rolling the color on the shelves, just for the simple fact that we didn't have enough room to spray them. I'm really glad we went adjustable, I know fixed shelves would have brought me some heartache with their lack of diversity.

One thing about colorful rooms especially high gloss - they're extremely hard to photograph. Getting the light to be even and the color to come across accurate on these bookshelves has given me quite the headache. I've actually shot the space several times with not much luck. I wish you all could just stop by and see it in person! Not one of these photos does it justice, but they'll have to do for now.

Paintable Plates | Touch Dimmer

Now that we're done with the bones of the space do you hear Micah shouting for joy? No? That's because he's too busy playing video games... it's on to the really fun stuff: the furnishings and decor! Clearly I don't have enough books and that big sofa you see smashed into the wood room has been place holding in here for now, but he's got to go. Seeing all this come together has my wheels spinning, and I'm off to the thrift store!


*Thank you to the wonderful partners who helped us complete this space. Lowe's, Rejuvenation, Legrand and Sherwin-Williams have been so supportive of my visions and Micah's hard work, and I thank you for supporting the brands that make The Makerista possible.