Of Windows and Whimsy...

Still no camera.  However, I would like to share with you a magical time, from long ago, when we first moved into this house:  

The living room.

The kitchen/dining room.

In the living room, looking toward the stairs.

Oh, how things have changed!  Our living room has the same layout, but there is a peppering of toys hither and yon, stacks of papers and bills and magazines on the desk, more books than our three bookshelves can manage (there are only 2 pictured, but you can see the corner of shelf #3 between the big front window and the front door that's out of the frame), lending to random stacking on the shelves, and a craft desk covered in projects that are a mere 2 or 3 steps from completion.  Oh, and our TV suddenly quadrupled in size, which blocks about half of that beautiful window.  Facepalm.

However, joy of joys, we have plans to overhaul the whole mess.  It will take a few years to accomplish, as it will have to happen in stages from the ground up.  Our carpet, which was not the highest quality by a long shot, is done.  It will be the first to go, and dark laminate (cherry or espresso) will take its place.  Once that is in place, we're putting in built-in shelving around the window, complete with a storage-friendly window seat, like these:

(source unknown, the link from the pin is an error)

OR

source

We're debating the valance, but the mister seems to think it will tie the whole lot together.  And we're planning to do as much reclaimed wood as possible, for cost AND environmental reasons.  The shelf space will nearly double, giving our books an orderly home, and the little cabinets will likely house DVDs and schooling materials.  The storage in the bench will be used for kids' books and toys. 

That gigantic couch, which seems to swallow up the room, will be replaced with either slipper chairs or wingback chairs.  If another couch comes into this living room, it will be no bigger than a loveseat.  We won't need anything bigger because seating will have already doubled with the window seat alone.

Where the desk resides, the TV will be hung on the wall and floating shelves for knick-knacks, statues, sculptures, and framed pictures, to the tune of something like this.

The office desk will then be moved to the wall opposite from the built-ins, where the craft desk currently resides.  I'm hoping to pull off something like so:

source

It may double as a craft station.  I am anxious to toss the craft desk.  It's a behemoth.  I love it, but it's huge, it's covered in stuff, and I could easily store my sewing machine in the laundry closet and do my sewing at the dining table when the need and occasion arises.  Most of my fabric is in storage bins in the linen closet as it is.

And that's just the plan for the living room.  The kitchen, since it is separated from the living room by little more than a small closet and the 4 feet of wall where the craft desk is (the picture of the kitchen was taken from the couch, if that helps lend a visual), will also get the laminate flooring so that there is more flow.  The cabinets will be painted an antique white.  Drawer pulls and other hardware are being debated.  It might get a fun coat of paint on the walls, but we'll see. 

I am inspired today, in preparation for this work and in the anticipation of our anniversary movie "redo" this Saturday, to begin the 40 Days of Organization checklist.  I'm going to try and double-up on some of the tasks, since they won't be particularly time consuming.  Oh, and my mountain of laundry that needs to be folded and put away beckons as well.  Wheeeeeeeeee.