My husband's childhood home is situated in the mountains of upstate Pennsylvania. The farmhouse and 80+ acres were sold to his father, by his grandfather. For Drew's mom and dad, it was quite the quintessential place to raise 4 children. Though I'm told, it didn't always look the way it does now. The farmhouse is ancient, complete with secret hideaways and a fresh water stream flowing right through the old cellar. Dead serious. To this day, ice cold spring water flows right under the home. It's that old.
The rustic home is just that, situated in the mountains, hours from the shopping mall, or Target, or anything else this world deems necessary. But the views are amazing, and you'll never see a prettier place. You literally can't get cell service, but you also don't really care.
Century-old mountain homes take a lifetime to revitalize, and that's exactly what Marmie and Pop have been up to. For the entirety of their marriage. Construction, bedroom additions, decks, a detached garage, and 2 ponds later, the homeplace is nothing short of a Mountain Retreat.
So when Marmie booked me and baby J a ticket for an extended weekend to re-design her main floor, I was ecstatic. A short 2 hour drive from the New York Airport, we arrived to white snow on the ground, a neighbors wood stove smoke-smell in the air, and Marmie's famous cinnamon buns covered in gooey caramel sauce and pecans. You see, Marmie is the best Italian cook I've ever met. Praise the Lord for marrying up! Her home is one of those homes, no matter what, you feel like a queen.
In the north, you take your boots off at the back door, every time. They're covered in snow and road salt, silly! Two sock-covered-steps into the house, you smell black coffee, dessert of some sort, and whatever the heck is in the oven that is making you drool. Her eggplant Parmesan has a 2 inch layer of mozzarella cheese on top, fresh basil sprigs are sunning themselves in the window, and the inside of the fridge looks like an Italian New York deli on steroids. There's never a shortage of food, Italian leather sofas, or silky sheets.
Yep. I married a keeper. I married a whole family of keepers.
So with Pop Pop's blessing, and two days of prep, I set to work bringing y'all one of our largest square footage 'BEFORE and AFTER tours' of all time!
And here it is. Part 1. The FAMILY ROOM BEFORE AND AFTER tour.
BEFORE-- The room lacks lighting. Only one lonely table lamp sits too low at the end of the sofa. The antique wooden chest is fabulous, but not large enough to accommodate all the family feet during football games. Marmie verbalized that she wanted a new color scheme as well.
BEFORE--The bookshelves seemed too full. The room again, feels too dark with no additional lighting.
Marmie and Pop decided to replace the massive sectional before I arrived. The 20+ year old burgundy leather was quite literally, shot. Years of family movie nights and Super Bowl parties had taken their toll.
Below, my loves, enjoy the 'AFTER' tour!
AFTER--we added 4 additional table lamps to bring the maximum amount of light into the room. A tall sofa table allows the lamps to cast even more light into the room.
AFTER--the new color scheme included grey, silver, and blue. Though the room seemed too dark for grey, and the couches too brown, grey was actually the perfect color selection. The room is already masculine, there was no sense in hiding it. Grey makes the brown leather feel more luxurious. Silky grey and bright silver was a great contrast against all the dark rustic wood tones. Making everything feel a bit more jazzy.
AFTER
AFTER-- three new mirrors are hung on the never-ending back wall to serve as a focal point. They also reflect more light from the windows, helping the room feel less gloomy.
AFTER--These adorable matching antique dressers are the new end-tables. They are taller then the original end-tables, which aids in casting soft lamp light into the room. I found them in a spare bedroom, so they were a $0 addition! The room is big. I layered a massive blanket-basket in front of the large dresser, and pulled a new arm chair and ottoman in close for a cozy conversational-feel. Big rooms desire big pieces. But remember, if you forget the small touches, you'll completely miss the homey-cozy feel.
AFTER--the bookshelves were too full. I cleaned them up a bit and added touches of silver, our new color scheme. What a pretty contrast! Pop-pop's antique binocular case enjoys a view of the living room as well.
AFTER--I brought in the ottoman from the formal living room. It seemed much happier in the family room space.
AFTER--Using a tray to house smaller accessories, helps the end-tables feel clean, and petite pieces don't seem lost.
AFTER
Stay tuned for part 2 of Marmie's main floor make over! Love you Pop and Marmie!
Ashley