my living room is blah! I have eggshell colored walls, no pictures up, except one of my son as an infant(he is

Question

now 15yrs old) my furnature is beige( Both couch and loveseat) I have two dark maple tables( one is a coffee table and the other is an end table) and I have a very large picture window taking up most of one wall, and last but not least, by carpet is an ugly very ugly grass green.

I need help sprucing up this room, right now funds are limited and I can't afford much(like changing the carpet) And advice will be greatly weclomed...BTW my budget is $600.00 to $800.00

Answer 1

My advice is to accessorize. Decide on a main and secondary color for your room. Then buy or make throw pillows. Throws to drape on furniture. Colored candles. Curtains to match. Maybe pretty throw rugs to cover the carpet a little. Some nice bedspreads or slipcovers to cover the furniture and brighten it up. Make cute shades for lamps. Paint a plain lamp shade then glue beads, fringe, or some kind of decorations onto it. Like along the edge. Also... you can paint a lampshade...then, when it is almost dry, scratch the paint with little criss-cross motions of a toothpick. This makes the shade look like leather. It all depends on the style you like. For ultra modern... use bold colors and sharp lines. Get a few odd shaped bold glass vases for the tables and modern paintings for the walls. Paint the tables a matching monotone. Or for more traditional... get old quilts and accent the decor with wicker and lace. I could go on forever, but you might try looking at some of the shows on HGTV.

Answer 2

Grass Green/Beige/ dark maple...okay..mostly neutral colors. First replacing the carpet completely is costly...and since you have no competing patterns in the room..go for a more affordable area rug...with some details that match or in the same color family as your basic room...Dark Green and beige etc...depending on the room size look for something that will take up the center of the room and leave the old carpet as a border...you can get some very nice machine made orientals...that will incorporate all the colors in the room and spice it up with darker greens or reds...don't spend more than 150.00 dollars on that. Pillows that match carpet or have spicy color for the sofa and love seat. Fish around for sales items and clearances.
Pier one..T.J. Max, Marshall's...even J.C.Penny and Sears all have discounted items. You should be able to come up with at least a few framed pictures...If you have a Family Dollar, then go poke around...they do have some nice little items very cheap.

A new area carpet...new tables...and some lamps...should be no more than a few hundred dollars..max...do something with the picture window...blinds and scarf...or change the drapes a bit..even if that is only to change the tie backs...which you can do for pennies with velvet ribbon.
Some thing to go on...you need a basic idea a theme, oriental, modern, a mixture, Turkish or greek...you have to have a basic idea of what you like and what your shooting for too. A trick for the carpet you have on the floor now..is stop by the paint dept in any store...and pick up paint swatch strips...find one that closely matches the carpet..trial and error..find one for the walls and even one for the tables you have...now with your home color swatches...when your picking out the coordinating items carpet, pillows etc...there is no guess work on if they will match or are close in the color family...you can hold it up and match it right there in the store...or see if its a good contrast to what you have.
Hope that helps...Take Care

Answer 3

1. rearrange that furniture, baby! I'd be willing to bet your couch is pushed up against the wall, right? Pull it out and use it to cleverly divide your room into sections. You'll feel like you have double the space cuz it visually breaks up the room.

2. Pick out your favorite design from sheets you already have, and throw it over your couch as a covering.

3. Google "Freecycle" and immediately sign up for it. You can find some really great pieces on there. I highly recommend it. Try to find a good sectional rug for one 1/2 of the room you just divided up w/ ur couch.

4. Change the direction of your lights. Do they all face the floor currently? If you have adjustable lamps, direct the light towards the ceiling. It focuses the eye upwards and makes the room more pleasant.

5. Find a color you really love and then paint your walls AND ceiling. Check out some books from the library/ internet sites and learn some basic tricks to painting. Find out what colors set what moods. Note that painting opposing walls slightly different shades of the same color generates the optical illusion of a larger room. There are some other basic tricks that can give you a nice effect. Also, if you paint ur ceiling a darker color, it'll again, provide the optical illusion of being higher up.
Buy the paint urself. Buy CHEAP paint, not some designer color. Apply it urself and have fun doing it.

6. If you have window treatments and they are more than a few years old, take them down. Odds are, they date your house and give it a stodgy feeling.

7. Declutter. Give away stuff you never use anymore. Reorganize things and find some creative ways of storing stuff so you have more space.

8. Get a nice [cheap] house plant. Brings life into the room, gives it a good feeling. If you want, you can even cut off a sapling from a friend's plant, and just put it in a bucket.

Have fun + good luck! If you want to contact me personally, I'd absolutely love to give you further advice. I love to think about this kinda shizz. You can feel free to send me pics of ur place, and I'd be delighted to give more specific tips.

Answer 4

taking into consideration the color of your furniture and carpet, i would suggest painting your walls a sage grey/green. At Home Depot, there is a great Ralph Lauren color called "cameroon green"--it would be perfect.I'd paint the trim either a dark chocolate brown or ivory--which ever you find more appealing. (the chocolate brown would really spice it up)

for your flooring, rather than replacing the carpet, which would be expensive, I suggest purchasing a large area mat made of flattened strips of bamboo. this adds a nice warm natural texture to the room and the color will harmonize beautifully.

An option for your coffee tables would be to cover the tops in a good quality faux leather or a terra cotta ceramic tile. either would look great and can be easily glued on. this is a cheap alternative to purchasing new tables.

Purchasing a dark leather ottoman that doubles as a coffee table is another option. it would add a rich complimentary color to the room and also another natural texture.

get a couple of large floor standing potted plants with some bold leaves--yucca or cactus would be great if you have bright light. if you have low light then a snake plant or palm would work.

for accents, some rustic, earth toned pottery would really give the space some visual interest. bronze colored lamps with faux leather shades would tie in beautifully with everything I think you should have a couple of pieces of artwork with some bold, rich color just to add a bit of punch to the room--maybe something mexican or southwestern. A navajo throw for the sofa would be a splash of color with its bright geometric patterns (try to incorporate reds, browns, greens, and cream).

For the window treatment I think roman shades would be the way to go. try to get away from the out-dated frilly, flowery patterns and poofy valances of the 80's.

all these changes should fall well within your budget range, and have a huge impact on the room. The most expensive purchases would be the leather (imitation is ok) ottoman and the roman shades.

Answer 5

wow this can be done very inexpensively and you don't even have to paint if you like the color of your furniture good if not buy some throws for them you would be surprised the difference that makes
get a nice size area rug for the floor something light as the carpet seems to be kinda dark a few throw pillows for the furniture with different shades of green that will complement the rug throw a doilie on the end table and a runner on the coffee table maybe a new lamp for the end table if you like the sunlight some nice new shears for the window just a shade lighter than the furniture or covers a nice mirror on the wall and a couple of sconces on either side to complement it now pictures and paintings can be expensive if you don't already have them I love to take old photos and blow them up a bit and frame and hang I prefer every day photos not the professional ones a big difference all in a days work and very easy on the budget

Answer 6

Paint isn't expensive but does wonders. With the existing furniture and carpet, you can go with yellows, reds, or even greens. Get a bunch of paint chips, bring them home and see how it works. The colors are never the same in the store as they are in your own home. Go with your gut instinct, but I recommend a shade darker. Just a personal preference, but I feel it adds warmth. Also, you didn't mention window coverings. Choose something that will tie in the carpet with the furniture. It might be hard to find, but there are a lot of ready made options out there. Also, to clarify, by tie in with, that means it can have the same colors as the furniture, walls and carpet, or it can be something totaly different. Just try to repeat your colors at least 3 different ways. (pillows, art, accessories). As for art on the walls, make your own. But, the big mistake people make is to hang them at the wrong height. Art should be eye level according to the purpose of the room. i.e. in a hallway would be higher than a living room or dining room where the function is to sit rather than stand.

Answer 7

I am in the same situation, except when we moved into our apartment a few months ago, the entire place was bright primer white. We had also moved so many times since graduating from college and getting married, that we never bothered to buy anything to hang on the walls or decorate any of our prior places, so we were clueless. We are finally a bit settled in and decided to start making our place more "homey" without spending an arm and a leg. We have made a few inexpensive changes that have paid off big so far. We have painted two "accent" walls in our living room. One on the wall where the TV sits and the other on the wall with our large bay window. We choose a nice Moss green color and it gave our living room the immediate feeling of being "decorated." If you choose a rich color, it could nicely contract your beige furniture. Our living room is set up with a couch on one wall and the TV on the opposite wall. We hung a nice large, dark wood framed mirror over the TV, which nicely reflects three 11x14" framed photos that we just hung over our sofa. It adds dimension to the room and we picked three photos we enjoyed from our travels. We bought the frames from a department store on sale and the poster-sized prints only cost $5 each. We then found a nice wool rug that went well with our walls, two accent pillows for the sofa that tied the rug, sofa, and accent walls together. Our final touch was placing round "Asian-style" placemats on top of our dark wood living room tables. Our most expensive purchase was our rug. These small changes made a huge difference and was well within your living room budget. We love the way painting only one or two walls contrasts with the accent color. We plan on doing our dining room and bathroom next. (BTW, we painted the walls ourselves. If you choose to hire a pro, that would be more costly. Neither of us had ever painted and it was very easy.)

Answer 8

Since you are on a budget I would recommend changing the carpet. It will be cheaper if you and your son lay the new carpet yourselves. This could be a great learning project for your son. Also, before you change the carpet you might buy a couple cans of paint. You would be amazed at how paint colors can change a room. You want to paint before putting in the new carpet because you don't want to spill on the new carpet. Also, before you buy the paint go to a home improvement store and grab a bunch of paint swatches to make sure the color will go well with the new carpet, sofa's, and the rest of your house. It may take a few days to choose the color and I would suggest getting several people's opinions. Once the big stuff is done you can go to some discount store and shop for pictures and other accent items.

Answer 9

i would change the carpet, it sounds like you are not very crazy about it!

lowes has great carpet, very reasonable. we built a new home last year and got our carpet from them. it is very nice carpet, and they had the best price. they have sales often too if you watch or ask them.

and i would guess you could do a room under $300!

from there i would decide what other colors you love. i personally love tans/browns and blues. pottery barn has some great ideas if you look at their website or request a catalog.

also, i am not a big art, picture person. but right now you can find alot of the metal work everywhere. target has a bunch of great stuff as well as kirklands! oh and hobby lobby too!

you just need a visual inspiration to get you going!