We are ecstatic to reveal our stunning collaboration with our style partner, Miss Mustard Seed, as she completely transforms her living room and son’s bedroom with Ashley HomeStore furnishings—and with modern vintage flair no less! Miss Mustard Seed is the owner of Mustard Seed Interiors LLC, author of “Inspired You” and a blogger mom of two young boys. See the beauty below:
Update from Miss Mustard Seed
A few days ago, I shared the new arrangement in our family room as well as the progress on Calvin’s room. I said I would give all of the details on the new pieces of furniture and this post is making good on that promise!
Now, I admit, furniture stores have never been my thing. Give me a flea market, antique store, thrift shop or yard sale! That’s where most of my pieces have been found and I’m pretty proud of my resourcefulness and ability to make-do. But there are some pieces that can be difficult to find second-hand and it’s also nice to mix in the new with the old to make a home a little more comfortable, functional, or hard-wearing.
A Room Fit for the Family
A few months ago, I rearranged the furniture in my family room to a two-sofa setup in an “L” shape. One sofa was leather and another wore a white slipcover. The pieces fit well in the room, it was nice to have more seating, and it was comfortable, but it looked a little disjointed and awkward. What we really needed was a sectional.
I knew there were some stylish sectionals out there, but I cringed at even the thought of bringing a sectional into my house! Even the word evoked the idea of some monstrosity with cupholders and mauve upholstery that looked like it was ripped out of a Winnebago.
I combed through the new Ashley HomeStore catalog, angsting over which sectional was “the one”. I kept coming back to Salonne three-piece sectional. I was concerned about the light color and more modern styling, but I went with my gut and ordered that one.
We absolutely love it. It’s very comfortable, yet supportive, it’s neutral in color and style, and it fits the space like it was custom-made for it.
I like comfy sofas with deep seat cushions that you can sink into. This one definitely fits that bill, but it does have a nice spring to it as well, so you don’t feel like you’re going to be eaten by the seat cushions.
The thing I am particularly pleased with is the fabric. I was a little nervous about how it would look and feel in person, but it’s a lovely oatmeal color in a soft, durable weave. Even though it’s light, it doesn’t look like a fabric that’ll be grungy in six months. I did tell Jeff and Marshall that their salsa-eating needs to be a safe distance from the sofa, though!
The sofa came with seven pillows. The fabric is nice, but not really my taste, so I’m going to recover them. The great thing is that they are feather-filled pillows! It was like a little bonus gift. I am a bit of a feather pillow snob. (Again, I like to sink into things!)
I’m playing with some fabrics to make new covers, but I just used some pillows I had for right now. The oatmeal color of the upholstery works perfectly with the linen and hemp pillows I had.
I also found a TV console and coffee table for the space. If you remember, I sold the French provincial buffet we’ve been using as our TV stand for a few years at Lucketts. I was ready to let it go, but I didn’t have a replacement lined up for it. For a few months, we’ve been using an antique dresser that didn’t fit the space well.
I’ve been combing craigslist for an apothecary-style cabinet piece that would fit the space. I found one that was almost perfect, but the drawers were way too small for the components and it was about 3′ too long. I could hardly believe it when I found the Keeblen TV Stand from the Ashley HomeStore.
It was just what I was looking for and the fact that it wasn’t an antique piece meant the back was already made to accommodate cords and the size of the drawers was just right for an Xbox. In fact, all of the drawers are actually cabinets…
…so all of the “ugly stuff” can be behind closed doors.
I like the rustic look and feel of the finish even more than I thought I would. It adds just the right amount of warmth to the space.
And, then there is the Vennilux coffee table. It looks like an old Lineberry factory cart with the added functionality of having a bottom shelf. We’ve had an ottoman in front of the sofa for a few years, but the tufts caught all of the dust and fuzz and the fabric was really pilling. It’s looked grungy for a long time, so I had it covered with a quilt most of the time.
With the addition of the sectional, though, we lost the side table that was between the two sofas, so we needed a hard surface to put drinks and such. The coffee table provides a place for that and to prop up our feet, which we all like to do.
It’s nice that it’s on wheels, too, so we can move it out of the way if we need the space for a wrestling match or cushion fort.
I am just thrilled with how the family room looks now and I like it more and more each day. It’s just the right balance between pretty and practical.
Calvin’s New Space
We also made a few additions to Calvin’s room to make it look more masculine and boyish. I was originally thinking I would keep the white iron bed, but as I started working on his room, the shape and style of the bed were just too feminine.
I stepped out of my decorating comfort zone and ordered the Wesling Panel Bed. It definitely has a bit of a modern edge, but the distressed boards framed on the headboard and footboard make it work with my style. It’s also a much better fit for the room, since the footboard is low, even with the height of the mattress. It makes the tiny room look a little larger.
I kept the white bedding I had, but added the Alecio Quilt and shams in navy. They balance out the white, make it look more masculine, but it’s not too kiddish. It’ll still look great as a guest room when it needs to serve as that.
I also added the Beldier rug, a knotted cotton/wool rug that works with our black/gray/blue color scheme and is soft underfoot.
This room is an awkward size, so it doesn’t fit the “proper way” a rug is supposed to fit under a bed, but to an eight year old boy, it provides a soft play area and he loves that.
And what little boy room would be complete without a bean bag chair? I selected the Teardrop Shag Bean Bag Chair, which isn’t available online, but can be purchased at select Ashley HomeStore locations. Calvin loves running and diving on it.
I’m sure the time will come when he wants to actually curl up on it and read a book, but for now it’s a stunt accessory.
And Marshall wants one, too. I’m sure all sorts of antics could happen with two bean bag chairs.
I hemmed the curtains already, but I still have a few more things to do to the room, like swap out the curtain rod, add a light and valance above the desk, deal with the closet and dresser, add some book storage, etc. So far, though, I love how the room is coming together and, more importantly, Calvin loves it.
I’ll share more on his room progress and all of the rest of the sources in another post.
Another side note on working with Ashley HomeStore, as someone who moves a lot of furniture, I really appreciate it when people do it well and they do it well. Their team was professional and careful. They padded all of the doorways and stair railings with moving blankets and wore booties over their shoes, so they wouldn’t leave anything behind but the furniture. They also provided excellent customer service, following up with a phone call to make sure everything met my expectations. I haven’t ordered a lot of new furniture, but I’ve never had such stellar care.
Anyway, things have stayed pretty much the same for a year or two, which is a long time for me, so it’s been a lot of fun for me to spend some time on my house again.
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