Thursday, April 21, 2011

Helping a Friend Decorate a Livingroom

I love being asked for decorating help by family and friends. It's rare but being able to pitch in an opinion when someone is doing a room is so much fun.  It's important to keep their style and their needs in mind but having an open mind is essential in creating a room they're going to love.  

My friend is elderly so she has certain comfort/medical requirements and her apartment is small.  She chose a leather loveseat that can accommodate her need to recline and put up her feet, easy to clean and care for. It's similar to the one shown below with dark leather and nailhead trim, but it does have a center console for holding her drinks.
Loveseat Sofa Nail Head Trim Dark Burgundy Leather
She also has a leather lift chair...as you can guess, style is limited but we were lucky to find one with similar color and shape to go with the loveseat. 

Apartment walls are newly painted white but work well with the dark furniture, she wanted to add a little bit of femininity to soften up the masculine vibe of the leather and a fun color to lighten things up.  She loved the suggestion of blue color paired with the dark brown.

Here are a few accents we found locally where she could see before buying...

area rug and pillows from KMart:
Jaclyn Smith Traditions-Medallion Rug Collection

Curtains and rods (Target).
The drapery isn't shown below (only the pretty medallion sheers) but they're a pretty blue/gray-beige pattern that matches the pillows above.

The tv console is perfect height and has a lot of storage (so helpful in a small apartment).
APA Alvamar 62" TV Console
(source:  BonTon)

End tables and coffee tables seem to be the hardest part of furnishing a room. I'm so indecisive.  Here are some beautiful accent table options. Which would you choose or is there something completely different you would suggest?

A lift top coffee table might be very functional for her, bringing things within easy reach.
Jofran 280 Series Wood Lift-Top Coffee Table in Merlot

Thinner-style end tables would be perfect for the limited space on either side of a love seat in a small apartment living room...
Jofran 251 Series Wood Chairside Table in Milton Cherry

Something along the lines of wooden trunk coffee table would also be a great solution for much needed storage...
Southern Enterprises Pyramid Coffee Table and End Table Set
(images source: Cymax)

Any suggestions?  What do you think so far? It's hard to tell without seeing the room, but this is a start.  I'm sure I can get her to share the completed reveal once we're done. Next up:  Art and accent pieces!