Melinda didn’t like her sunroom.  She removed all the excess stuff she could and it was better, but still didn’t feel right.  I looked at her photo and saw her gorgeous floors and charming arched doorway.  She also has a lot of handmade SOLID wood furniture that she doesn’t want to paint.  The pieces were made by her father who passed away and they are real treasures.  She has a nice neutral wall color that looks fresh and bright.

I noticed her pillow on the sofa in the adjoining room.  It reminded me of these drapes from Target, so I popped them in.  The important step is hanging the drapes at the ceiling instead of just above the window and wide enough that they don’t actually block the glass. There should be enough fabric on the sides that it could actually cover the window even though you probably never will.  If the fabric is too narrow, it won’t look right.  Hanging drapes this way  makes everything feel taller and grander. Because the angle of the room wasn’t easy, I only did the curtains on the front window.  Can you imagine them continued onto the side?   I added woven bamboo shades to bring the warmth of her floor and furniture up. 

Also, I popped a slipcover onto her chair, just to update it and neutralize it.  If you can sew along a line, you can make a slip cover.  Here’s my favorite video to show how.  If you can’t sew along a line but want to learn, take all the thread out of the machine and practice along the lines of notebook paper.  It won’t damage your machine to sew on paper, but you’ll want to use an old needle and then change to a fresh needle before sewing on fabric.   Melinda has a big heart and a lot of pets, so slip covers are ideal for her.  She should make 2, so she can wash one and use one and always have one at the ready.

To hang curtains at the ceiling, you need at least 95″ panels.  My favorite sources for 95+ panels are Target.com (not available in store); Homegoods; and Ikea.  BUT you don’t have to limit your selection to items labeled curtains.  Twin flat sheets are the perfect length and come in a huge variety of colors.  Walmart carries a basic flat sheet for just $4.97.  Also, tablecloths!  I wanted to get black buffalo check curtains for my dining room for the winter, but couldn’t find anything affordable.  Then my friend told me about these tablecloths.  All I have to do is sew a rod pocket across the top.   If you don’t sew, ring clips or fusible hem tape work just as well.

Here’s a photoshop idea.  I’m headed to Ikea today to get the brackets to hang them :).

You don’t have to spend a fortune on hanging hardware.  My favorite curtain rods are electrical conduit pipe from the hardware store.  They come in 5 ft or 10 ft lengths and in different thicknesses.  I can buy a 3/4″ 10 foot pipe for around $3, then spray paint it black.  They are easy to cut to length with a hacksaw, or to use threaded connectors to make a longer rod. I hang mine with these $1.49 brackets from Ikea. Since this is a really wide area, I’m going to use 3 for a center support.

Would you like your room photoshopped and featured on Makeover Monday?  Send a few photos from your space to angela@groceryshrink.com and tell me your hopes and dreams for the room.

Get a full service virtual makeover complete with 3D room layout plan, 2 photoshop views, step by step work list, and within your budget source list. Find out more.

Learn how to use Photoshop for your own designs with the Room Makeover class

Priscilla is drawn to the light and bright Modern Farmhouse rooms from Fixer Upper, but her furniture is full of color. Without a budget to buy new, she wasn’t sure what to do. She wrote: Need help with giant sectional. I’d like to lighten it up a bit, but so far I don’t like the contrast of light pillows. And how do you know how many pillows?  

Anyone else notice her beautiful wood and glass door?  I LOVE that color of wood. And that mirror! It’s huge and such a great shape.  Her coffee table is the perfect size and shape for her sectional. Even her light fixture has great character.

Here’s what she says about her sectional:  It’s super comfy, almost all of us fit on it, but it definitely makes a statement. My head is turned by all the lovely, neutral, pale farmhouse/cottages. But, alas, my true love is color. Trying to dip a toe in the shallow end with some cream pillows. They didn’t play nicely with the red beast. Maybe more of a burlap color?

The angle of this photo and the full view of the space was so perfect for photoshop that I couldn’t help playing a little.  She’s right that pillows can really help to lighten a dark sofa, but in this room she’d get an even bigger impact from changing the wall color.   Painting can sound like a daunting task, but all you need is a gallon or two of paint and two 2 hour sessions to do it.

Notice the impact big TALL drapes make?  These are from Kohls, but if budget is tight you can grab $4.88 twin flat sheets from Wal-mart, and fusing on the stripes.  Hang your drapes to the floor even if your furniture is in front of them.  Just pull the sofa far enough forward that the drapes can hang freely.  P.S.  The Kohls drapes are only 84 inches and that won’t look good in ANYBODY’s house.  We need 95 inches or longer, even with 8 foot ceilings. The sheet option is looking better and better.

I created friends to the wood in her door by adding wood shades and frame around the chalkboard.  She can write whatever she wants on the board, such as laurels, or she could use washi tape to adhere feathers.

That’s still her same chair in the front left corner.  I just added a slipcover so she could enjoy different prints and patterns in the room.  Don’t be afraid of light colored slip covers.  Baby wipes and a lint roller keep them looking nice in between washings.  And guys, I only wash mine once a year or when we’ve had a big enough oopsie that a baby wipe won’t work.  I have 6 kids and 5 kittens.  We know how to get stuff dirty.

I used all her same furniture, lamps, wall art, but with lighter wall paint it looks like a completely different room.  The rug is a splurge from Joanna Gaine’s new line.   It also comes in dark black, but I thought it would be too bold against the already bold curtains.  That’s the secret to matching patterns:  Let ONE be the big bold leader of the pack, large and in charge.  Then layer in your different scales of pattern in similar color tones.  With the different scales of graphic prints in the space your eye goes to the curtains first, but has resting places on the pillows and rug too.  Also the rug is a size bigger than her old one.  Having a big enough rug really helps.  Save up until you can get one where all the furniture can at least have their front legs on the rug.

Her reaction: That is great. I would have to redo the whole house, and that lovely cream chair would last about five minutes. I’m just gonna enjoy the fantasy for a moment. I do think I will add those three ferns to the sofa table. 

Would you like your room photoshopped and featured on Makeover Monday?  Send a few photos from your space to angela@groceryshrink.com and tell me your hopes and dreams for the room.

Get a full service virtual makeover complete with 3D room layout plan, 2 photoshop views, step by step work list, and within your budget source list. Find out more.

Learn how to use Photoshop for your own designs with the Room Makeover class.

I started on my built ins for my living room in August.  They have been half finished for 3 months, because I made a few little mistakes. I attached something crooked, and drilled a few holes too deep. Darren had to fix it.  Now I’m paralyzed by the fear that I’m not skilled enough to finish it without him. It will be a long time before he can carve out a few hours to help me again.

If I kept building alone what’s the worse that could happen? I might mess up and need to buy more wood.  It might, gasp, cost $20 or something.  When I really looked at the risks, I felt a little silly. I’ve decided not to let $20 frighten me.

The Cozy Minimalist course opened up a few weeks ago, and while it’s closed again :'( you can get on the waiting list so you don’t miss it next time.  There are 1,000+ ladies in the group and it’s so much fun.  It’s a private place where we can share our questions and get feedback on our spaces.  When I saw a few of the rooms, they inspired me to open up photoshop and play.

Here’s Pam’s living room after she rearranged the furniture for a cozy seating area that makes her fireplace the star. The best part of her arrangement is that her furniture isn’t all shoved against the walls.  My eyes were immediately drawn to the roses.  What a great color!  Plus, check out her crown molding and how the curved sofas make her rug look like a giant sheepskin.  There’s so much good going on here.

Then I thought, what if she had more of the rose color in her room?  I found some inexpensive fuschia drapes and pillow at Amazon and photoshopped them in.

What if there were just a touch more pink in some art?   I found these watercolor paintings from Etsy that were super affordable and popped them in.

Then the internet reacted.  Here’s a smidge of what people said:

Hot pink is super scary and not to everyone’s taste. I knew Pam loved pink, because it was the only color that she kept in the room.  If she did decide to try such a bold color, what’s the worst that could happen?  She might decide to take it back and find something different.  She might have to watch her husband react when he saw it for the first time.  She might have to find a different place to display the art that used to live in this room.  She might change her mind in a couple of years.  Whatever she decides, I hope she doesn’t decide out of fear.

Would you like your room photoshopped and featured on Makeover Monday?  Send a few photos from your space to angela@groceryshrink.com and tell me your hopes and dreams for the room.

Get a full service virtual makeover complete with 3D room layout plan, 2 photoshop views, step by step work list, and within your budget source list. Find out more.

Learn how to use Photoshop for your own designs with the Room Makeover class.