Tuesday, June 4

30 Day Challenge & Tour de Living Room

I'm taking on a fun (and easy - yay!) little challenge this month with The Nester (you can read all about it here and link up here). It's 30 days without accessories. That's it. I just went through the house and boxed up everything sitting on my surfaces - little knick knacky things, books, vases, it all got packed away.


For the month of June, it's all stashed in a corner of the basement.


The goal is to let the house breathe for a while. I've been feeling lately like my house is too... full. Or maybe just to busy. I don't know. So when I found this challenge I thought it would be a perfect excuse to simplify everything. With all the little stuff gone I'll be able to kind of start over at the end of the month and be more selective putting things back... or maybe I'll find that the accessories aren't the problem at all and I'll be able to pinpoint what exactly it is that I'm not liking. And based on my pile of accessories - which is actually quite a bit smaller than I expected it to be - I'm thinking they're only a small part of the problem.


I even took down the gallery wall. Just to see. Maybe all those little frames were making it look so busy? I'm even thinking about moving that table to the basement for a while to see if we miss it (read about how we built it here).


Most of my accessories were in my living room, I had just a handful between the bedroom, bathrooms, and guest room. I'm took after pics of everything packed away, and realized I still don't have any real before pics of the living room! It's a room I actually try to avoid photographing most of the time. Partly because it's where we live 80% of the time so it is always messy. Toys all over the floor, food on the coffee table, blankets and pillows piled on the couches. But even more than that, this maybe be my least favorite room in the house. I'm not totally sure why. Anywho, this is probably the cleanest it will ever be, so this is your chance for a tour!


My grandpa built us this beautiful entertainment center as a wedding gift. (I forgot to take the wreath down - oops! And the lamps get to stay because we actually need them with no ceiling lights in here!)


It just feels full, huh? It's not a big room but it has a lot of big furniture. I would love to trade the two overstuffed couches for something less heavy. But seriously, they are super comfy. And we have spent many nights on them with a fussy/sick/wide awake little boy. We still love our DIY coffee table (you can build your own here)


The pile of shoes in our make shift "entry way" isn't really helping either. I'm working on a plan for this corner too.


Also, the rug. Pretty blah and the same color as the couch. Not to mention the stains. It should probably be burned when it retires. Oops. And please disregard the "na-na bed nack." Little boy's gotta eat!


Here's a shot from the front door.


And a shot from the opposite side by the stairs.


There are some things I really like about the room like the wall color and curtains. I also love this little yellow dresser (I cleared off quite a few accessories, but left the leaf bowls because we put our keys there).


I also like how it's kind of separated into a living area and dining area.


Hopefully by the time this month is over I'll have it figured out a little more.


And I have to say, I'm not sure if I'll make it the full month.As much as I liked clearing everything out to make a blank slate, I don't like having it so blank. It looks like we just moved in! But I'm going to hold off as long as I can and very carefully add things back in. 

*cue clever transition to pictures of B*

A certain little boy is getting quite an imagination. And we LOVE it. He likes to make his favorite monkey participate in everything. Here is monkey playing ipod games.


Now monkey has to turn it off.


And since I was taking pictures of him, B decided monkey should hold the camera and take pictures too. Which resulted in some of the best smiles ever.


And then this.


That's our boy. So, anyone else interested in taking on 30 days without accessories? It's not too late to join in! Do you think you could do it? Do you want to try? Or are you totally cool with your accessories? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

8 comments:

  1. Georgia! Yes, as I read your words I know you and I are moving in the same direction, after clearing out my cute little junk I 'see' my furniture and suddenly I see stains and wondering why a certain table is even in a certain place, in some ways it helps me see what IS there more clearly.
    xoxox

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  2. I'm interested to see what you have planned for your entryway. We have the same tiny corner space. You've reminded me that I meant to put away coats yesterday too.

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  3. Love paring down! I just did the same as a knee jerk reaction to hardwood floor installation. Your house is darling. And you know I always love your clever transitions to the real star of your blog.

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  4. The "na-na bed nack" is the best accessory!

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  5. So glad you transitioned to pictures of your sweet boy...awww those cheeks!! Happy Nekkid June!!

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  6. Greetings from your next door neighbor at the Linky Party! Enjoy the breath of fresh air this truly is!

    Linda

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  7. So far this has been a huge discovery of how little we actually need out on display. I think I have a fear: out of sight, out of mind. Maybe out of mind is a good thing!

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