In our home we have a lovely living room. It’s intended to be a formal living room space but, staying true to our lifestyle and casual California roots, we’ve made this room comfortable. It’s a space for adults and kids. There’s nothing worse than having a beautifully decorated room that you can’t live in because you worry about your children possibly breaking something. We already have plenty of reasons to say no to the kids, so why add another issue to keep tabs on, right? And especially in our home…their home.
Today I’m sharing our living spaces – the living room along with part of our kitchen. Still can’t believe I live in this huge southern home. But truly, no matter where I live – the decorating will be simple and comfortable.
Honestly, it’s sad, but we don’t spend that much time in our living room. Most of our time is spent in the playroom or kitchen, which has a small seating area as well as a sitting area. When the weather is nice, you can find us outside on the patio or in the backyard. But when we have company during bad weather months, for football games or other entertaining, the living room is a comfortable place for adults to hang out.
Here is the view from the entry of our home…
The room has high ceilings with beautiful wood beams…
If you can’t tell from the photos, or all of my blog posts in general, I’m not the most elaborate decorator. Actually, my decorating is downright bland and simple. Chalk it up to being a busy stay-at-home-mom for the last almost 8 years. As mentioned, I’ve worked hard to keep our house child-friendly all while keeping it up to date and comfortable enough for entertaining family and friends. so don’t pay any attention to the practically empty walls – haha!
All in time, friends. It’s that season of young parenting.
At some point I’d like to invest in an armoire for the tv. Right now the living room seems to scream “TV!!!” when you walk into the space. I don’t keep much inside the stand, but you can see the dvd organization project I worked on a few months ago…
We are all about comfort when it comes to seating. Nothing gets more comfortable than this deep Pottery Barn chair…
Don’t let the color of this couch scare you. Yes, I did say small children live here, but this couch cleans up beautifully. And trust me, we have had our fair share of spills. I can happily report they have all come out of the couch. It sits in this room in its nearly brand new condition…and it’s super comfy!…
You’ll remember my most recent home purchase this spring….a gorgeous wood table that was a floor sample. With an amazing price tag…
The kitchen tends to be our area of choice to hang out, snack, eat meals, color, do homework, read, and watch tv….
The kids (and Charlie – seen below) enjoy curling up in these chairs or laying on the carpet…
The tv cabinet has 2 doors that close (love that!) keeping it hidden away while we’re entertaining. The desk on the far end of the room is where I keep the kids arts & craft supplies, coloring books, cookbooks, small office supplies and the drawer dedicated to our 7 year old….
Your house is beautiful and you have done a lovely job of making it a home! I would never have thought to do contrasting kitchen cabinet colors, but I LOVE the effect! We are taking on a basement-finishing project right now and I am keeping this in mind for our wet bar. Thanks so much for sharing!
awe, thank you so much for the sweet comment!
yes, we LOVE the contrasting cabinet colors. it really makes the kitchen stand out from the rest of the house. i'm glad our home could offer you a little inspiration. come back to share your basement with me!
sam 🙂
Wow, your home is stunning!! Love the cozy seating area in the kitchen and the vaulted ceiling with beams in your living room.
hi tara,
thank you so much!!!
best,
samantha 🙂
What a beautiful space! I love seeing what others do in their family rooms & gathering ideas! Thanks for sharing.
hi debra!
thank you so much! i love to see what others do as well. but my problem is i love everyone else's ideas so much i am ready to make changes in our home. but i can't do it forever! 🙂
all the best,
sam 🙂
Absolutely gorgeous! I love the two tone cabinets in the kitchen and that high ceiling! Also love the nice big chandelier you have in the living room. Lately I've been working on a project with 9 matching pictures frames in a grid…I'm putting all pictures of hubby and our boys. You might like something like that on the wall you are updating. It fills a space but without looking cluttery. Thanks for sharing your pretty house.
hi stacey!
thank you so much for the sweet comment! i appreciate it so much.
i like your idea of huddling some photos together and making a wall collage. i was also thinking about incorporating some floating shelves or something…not sure. i've been pinning away ideas on pinterest and hope to get to work on the area soon. let me know when you post your wall on the blog so i can come by to see it! 🙂
sam
Beautiful home Samantha! I love all the high ceilings and hardwood floors through out. Such a stunning home! Thanks for sharing.
thank you so much, karen!!!
Beautiful!!! Can't wait to see how you decorate it for fall and Halloween! 🙂
hi brandie!
thank you! i am looking forward to fall decorating as well – and i will definitely share all of the pics in here!
thank you again!
sam 🙂
Very pretty and neat! I think we have the same couches! Ours are Microfiber … very, very, very child resistant (i.e. washable!).
We too have cut wall decor to the minimum. I too believe that when you have kids, fancy and/or expensive decoration must take a second place.
Thanks so very much sharing. I love your blog!
do we? i love our couch and yes there is something about the material that cleans up well. it's a suede of some kind…maybe a fabric mix?? it cleans up beautifully!
i'm so glad i'm not the only one that decorates our home around the kids…most people i know tell me to go ahead and decorate and that will teach the kids how to keep hands to themselves, but that has always backfired on us. always. haha!!
thank you again,
sam 🙂
*for* sharing … Aghh … Can't type very well these days!
Sam, Sam, Sam….. We can gladly trade homes. You can take mine with the big yard and pool and I'll take your home and gardens magazine house!
haha! you're too funny! 🙂 my kids would LOVE that pool!!! so we may have to go ahead and trade…
Such a beautiful space! It must be nice to wake up there everyday!
thank you so much!! it is nice…but mainly because i wake up to a wonderful husband and 3 precious kiddos. 🙂
wow, what great open spaces!
thank you so much!!!
Gorgeous room! The best part is all the natural light you have! So pretty.. I am your newest follower and look forward to seeing more of your beautiful home! If you ever have time come check out my blog!
-Peggy
hi peggy!
thank you so much for the sweet comment! thank you for following and i'll be heading your way in just a second to see your blog! 🙂
best,
sam
Absolutely gorgeous!! I have just recently started putting up photos and artwork on our walls. I was always waiting until we renovated, but that is still a few years away yet. I just love your couch and want one like it for our kitchen/living space! 🙂
hi ann!
thank you so much for stopping by and for leaving such a sweet comment. thank you!!! 🙂
you would love this couch, esp if you have children. it cleans up SO easily!
thank you again!
sam
Such a pretty house! Your decor is beautiful! I'm featuring you tomorrow. XO, Aimee
hi aimee!
thank you so much for letting me know about the feature on your blog! i headed over to thank you on your "space" too! thank you!!!!
best,
sam
Oops…on Saturday! XO, Aimee
Thanks for sharing your home with us. It's gorgeous!!
I too have those uber high vaulted ceilings that I will some day get beams for (wish me luck). I love how you've styled everything!! Great job!
Jeannine @ The Concrete Cottage
hi jeannine!
thank you so much for stopping by! and thank you for the sweet comment, too!
i hope you get your beamed ceilings – they are so fun to have. really makes us feel like we live in a cozy cabin. 🙂
all the best,
sam
You have such a beautiful home! I really love the openness and calm feeling. I'm sure you and your family really appreciate you creating such a beautiful home for them.
thank you SO much! we do love our home…and we are striving for that CALM feeling! 🙂
sam
Samantha: Your house is simply gorgeous! It looks warm and inviting. My I ask what the name of the paint color is in the living room area? Thanks! Melissa
Hi melissa!!
Thank you soooooo much for coming by and leaving a sweet comment! You're so nice! And thank you for the compliments on our home. Thank you!!!
Ok, I would love love to help you with the paint color but I only know the name of the color and not the brand name. When we chose the color, we painted the same color throughout the house so our painter custom mixed it in those huge 5 gallon tubs (our house is big so he needed a lot to do 2 coats). The color is called cardboard. Again, not sure of the manufacturer. Thankfully I haven't had to locate the manufacturer name since we still have gallons and gallons of the paint under the house 🙂 haha!!
So sorry I can't give you a better answer. If I find it, I will be sure to post it in here for you!
All the best,
Sam -)
Hi Samantha:
No wonder I love your paint color so much, Cardboard is what we used in several rooms of our home when we built. Cardboard is a Sherwin Williams color if you ever need more.
Have a Great Day!
Melissa
Just found your blog and wanted to let you know that I love your sense of decorating! The space looks so inviting