The room I made: designing my green living room (with voiceover)
How I turned a cold north-facing room into a warm, cosy space to unwind in
One day after getting the keys to my house, the paintbrush was out. I’d already been to the paint counter at B&Q and picked up the first of what would be many, many samples. The quest: find the perfect green.
Some might say I was impatient, but what transpired was that I was incredibly indecisive. I had a vision for my new living room, yes, but translating what was in my head to the walls was quite another story.
Here’s what I wanted: dark green walls, a big natural-coloured sofa, lots of textures, a large high-pile berber rug, black fixtures and pops of a contrasting colour. I wanted the living room to feel grown up, cosy, elegant and inviting – somewhere that looks stylish but where you can lounge after a busy day. A grown-up space away from the mass of toys elsewhere in the house (case and point).
Aside from raiding the Valspar mixing counter with swatches and sample pots, I also created a mood/product board online to get my thoughts ‘down on paper’ (screen). On it were all the things listed above and some items that I already had my eye on, or actually already had. Isn’t shopping the best bit of moving somewhere new?
When I say I went a bit OTT with samples, I’m not lying. I think I topped five trips to said paint counter and racked up no less than 12 different greens – all dark but boy, all different (or so I quickly found out). I’ll leave you to do the maths on that because I cringe slightly thinking about it.
New house keys in hand, samples went on the walls and I drove back to the rented house we were still in until returning for moving day to reassess the green situ. But what was the room like before?
Blue. The living room was decorated in an icy shade of pale blue with five plaster ‘shell’ wall lights painted the same hue. There was no main ceiling light (i.e the big light) and the windows were fitted with blinds in exactly the same blue. So yes, it was very blue. It’s a north-facing room so aside from the décor not being to my taste, the shade made an already cold room feel colder, plus it made the natural light in there seem uninviting. I was eager to change it.
As with many house moves, the old furniture went in as a stop-gap to new deliveries (hello long lead times) and so we lived with patchwork walls for a month or two. This actually wasn’t such a bad thing as it meant plenty of time to ponder the green swatches (now on every wall) to make sure the winning one was indeed the paint we could look at for the next few years, at least.
The main thing I found was that the dark greens that looked right in the shop, looked almost black once they were on these north-facing walls, so I had to go a good few shades lighter than expected to find the right warm but moody paint that did (eventually) become The One. Its name: Warm Eucalyptus. At one point, I opened the pot of a different colour (I can’t remember which now) and wanted the colour of the wet paint, not what it looked like once dried. Try telling that to the mixologist.
I did really learn the value of testing samples, though, as a previous me would have happily slapped a pot of paint all over the walls without spending time on this stage. Some patience is key, I admit.
Getting the green right was a major breakthrough for the living room and meant the rest of the work (and shopping, wahey!) could get going.
The five shell wall lights were removed and reduced to two outlets on just one wall, while the others were made safe and the holes plastered over, plus a big light was introduced. Bizarrely, the electrician said that there had once been a ceiling light in place, but a previous owner had removed it. I did a little poll on my Instagram to see whether a big light is a necessity and the results were an overriding ‘of course’...right? It felt weird without one and although not too often used, it’s definitely a practical addition. Plus, it somehow makes the room feel more ‘whole’. The light fittings are all matt black designs with a matching two-circuit dimmer switch to be able to control the different lights for the mood and time of day.
Lighting sorted, the ceiling and walls were prepped and painted, followed by the skirting and radiators, which I pondered doing green too for an all-over colour look, but the white does add a nice crisp contrast I think. To warm up the scheme, oak Venetian blinds were installed – a finish I’d pick up with the coffee table and baskets.
And then there was a wait. As well as rushing to the paint counter on completion day, sofa shopping happened quickly too. With lead times long and this being well documented, the aim was to get ahead of the curve (as much as possible anyway). A 12-week lead for the chosen big, two-by-two corner design luckily ended up being ‘just’ eight, but it halted progress on the living room somewhat. Needless to say, when delivery day rolled around, I was extremely excited. Admittedly, this waned quickly as I tested positive for Covid the same weekend so that sofa got a lot of use right off the bat.
I already had the black and white Berber rug and the armchair and footstool came from the old house too. The coffee table creates a practical place to put things, of course, but also helps to fill what would otherwise be a bit of a dead space in the room. I like how it anchors this area and then there’s a spot for the armchair in the opposite corner. I wanted to create seating zones so that there is plenty of space for guests, but also so that there’s a spot to perch with a coffee and a book should the mood take. I’ve added a small side table from TKMaxx, which is actually meant to be a plant stand, that’s just big enough for a mug (and a biscuit).
Storage was a must for toys, tealights, wax melts and other paraphernalia such as chargers and the like. There was a ladder shelf previously, but with little hands pulling off everything within reach, a new solution was a must – and it had to have cupboards with doors. I was worried a bulky black piece of furniture would dominate the room and make it feel too dark, but actually the Ikea Billy bookcase (classic) works beautifully. The top half satisfies my love for styling (read: faffing) and the bottom is neat and the little one hasn’t worked out how to open the doors (yet, I hasten to add).
The only thing left to do is have the TV mounted onto the wall and cables chased – the next thing on the list of to-dos. You don’t often see TVs shown in living room shoots for magazines and online and I have to admit I do find that slightly odd. I guess a large black rectangle isn’t the most photogenic. But we all love TV, don’t we? Come the evening, you’ll find me happily lounging in the corner of the corner sofa (the best spot) and watching whatever series is on the go. And probably compiling a dream shopping list for the next room to get a makeover.
Oh and about the green…more than a year on, I still love it. Good job really.
The shopping list:
Paint: Warm Eucalyptus, Valspar at B&Q
Wall lights: Dunelm
Ceiling light: lights.co.uk
Sofa: DFS
Coffee table & rug: La Redoute
Cushions: Dunelm, Ikea
Armchair & footstool: Made
Bookcase: Ikea
Blinds: Homebase
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