My transformed shaker style fireplace reveal and living room updates!
I have another fun decor reveal for you today – our shaker style fireplace and a few other living room updates! Along with our kitchen renovation, we made a few changes in our adjoining living room. Now that our fireplace is done and our new roman shades are installed, I’m sharing the updated space with you today. Just in time before I switch out the decor a bit for fall!
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Our Living Room Before & After
Without further delay, here’s an image showing just how much has changed in here over the years! I took the first photo the first time we walked through the house back in the fall of 2012. And the second image is how the living room looks today!
Obviously this wasn’t an overnight transformation, but rather, a six-year renovation. Wall colors changed, I gray-washed then white-washed the stone fireplace in the interim, and then ultimately painted the walls, ceiling and trim white in here before the fireplace was transformed. This next image from my 2017 summer home tour shows a good example of the in-between stages. The walls were Behr Castle Path, the fireplace stone had been white-washed and we still had our old furniture that we had brought in from our last house.
Shaker Style Fireplace & Herringbone Marble Tile Surround
I knew I wanted a simple shaker style fireplace that coordinated well with our new kitchen cabinets. I also wanted to add some tile surround that was interesting but didn’t overpower the room. You can see more about our fireplace decisions in this post. We were happy with the existing upper section, so we had our carpenter keep that portion. We used Mapes-Hornig, the same guys that installed our kitchen windows. I also leveraged Erica to help finalize the overall look on this project as well!
And here’s that same view now! We’re in love! The walls and trim are now painted Benjamin Moore Simply White (in eggshell and semi-gloss finishes).
I ultimately went with this marble herringbone tile from Lowe’s. Not only was it the most affordable option of the ones I looked at, but I loved the mix of warm and gray marble tones. Although the mantle and surround footprint is exactly the same, I love how much taller and less squatty everything looks! The new shaker style pillars pair so much better with the board and batten and our kitchen cabinets.
Here’s a closer look at the tile. From the side it has a really pretty shine and the whole surround glows with the reflecting light! Side note: the cats are already obsessed with their new poufs. I can only imagine their excitement about them once it’s fireplace season again! Also, by this point in my photoshoot, I had to move the hydrangeas to the fireplace because Bearcat though they were his lunch…
Natural Roman Shades
And here’s a closer look at our new roman shades. The prior ones were attached right to the window trim, so once the trim was painted, I knew I wanted a custom fit. These shades are unlined so they still let some light through, but also add privacy and filter out all the direct sunlight. I ordered them through Erica, and they were actually more affordable than most options I had found online. I love the warmth they add to the room to help break up all the white!
Speaking of all the white. I think sometimes my photos make it look like everything is all white in our home. But in real life, the outdoor scenes add so much to the spaces and make everything feel so much more colorful (which I love). So, I’ve been trying to practice shots where the windows aren’t totally blown out and white (not as easy as it sounds!). Here’s my best attempt at the real view. You can see there is so much life outside, that it makes sense to keep things more neutral inside! All the exterior blues and greens work so well with everything inside!
It’s been a long time since I’ve shown these two rooms together, because it always felt like a work in progress! But now, it’s one of my favorite views in our entire home. I’m so happy with how the kitchen and living room look together now! We’re 95% of the way done in both spaces now and I couldn’t be happier with how far it’s come!
If you have any questions on the fireplace or other living room updates, feel free to leave me a comment! I hope you enjoyed this mini makeover!
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Lovely! Clean, colorful and inviting. Can’t wait to see a fire in the fire place!
Absolutely GORGEOUS Sarah! I always loved the ‘Castle Path,’ but now I’m thinking that the white color is where it’s at! 🙂
Looks beautiful! Question: do you recall where you purchased the pictured poufs from? Their height is what I’m looking for for by my fireplace. Thanks!
Beautiful! I always love your posts, one of the few I always read!
So beautiful, Sarah! You may me want to paint everything white!!!
Beautiful!!! Oh that fireplace…..gorgeous! I just love the shot you got of both rooms with the outdoors streaming in. You nailed it!!
It looks amazing. What a transformation. You did a fantastic job by choosing a shaker style.
Beautiful! The room invites you in for a coffee and munchies. Now, what does the other end look like? All the pictures seem to be taken from one side of the room.
Thank you! And that’s because the other view shows the dining room which is currently under construction 🙂 I hope to share that soon!
Sarah, I really like the wooden chain on your coffee table. When I clicked on the link you provided it has more links than yours. It looks like yours only have 5 links. Are they the same or did you get yours somewhere else?
Thanks Jackie! Mine was from Pottery Barn a year or two ago and I can’t find it anywhere (even on eBay)! This was the closet look I could find, and really anything I could find with similar scale and vibe. Unfortunately it’s about 4x more than what I paid for mine!
Thank you Sarah!
LOVE! Can’t wait to come back!
Is that carpet or rug in your living room? Like the kitchen looking into the living room now.
It’s carpet 🙂
What an incredible transformation! The new design is absolutely perfect and so beautiful!
Sarah, Your kitchen and living room are so beautiful! I love the way it looks so crisp and clean and still very inviting. Love every decision you’ve made!
Beautiful! Do you mind if I ask from where you purchased the four prints in the first picture? Thanks
They are just craft paper! I actually have more details about it in my post today 🙂 https://lifeonvirginiastreet.com/2018/09/simple-and-affordable-artwork-ideas/
Hi. Looks beautiful! Where are the four blue prints from? Thanks
They are just card stock! You can check out today’s post for even more info: https://lifeonvirginiastreet.com/2018/09/simple-and-affordable-artwork-ideas.
What a difference it makes – I love the detail of the shaker style. It is SO much brighter!
Do you have more info on the Roman shades Erica used? Even the installation them since you noted it’s different?
I don’t – sorry! She just showed me a few swatches and I pointed to one! But if you reach out to Erica should could probably get you more information on them 🙂
This is so gorgeous!! In love with all the neutrals and blues. May I ask where you got your coffee table from? Thanks!
Thank you! I got the coffee table from Nebraska Furniture Mart, but if you’re not local, you can also get it here: https://rstyle.me/n/cub4wq75re.
What an amazing transformation!
Your home is beautiful! I recently moved into a new (old) home and am having everything professionally painted to give it a fresh, clean look. I am planning to use Simply White on the walls and trim like you did. To keep things simple and cohesive, I was also considering doing the ceilings in Simply White as well. My painter said the only time he has seen that done is in institutions. HA! Do you have thoughts about using the same white everywhere?
Thank you! My painters had similar comments as well. I think they’re used to bold colors from the days of old 🙂 I actually love the white on white look. We did eggshell on our walls, flat on our ceiling and semi-gloss on the trim and it definitely doesn’t look boring or flat!
What size rugs do you have in your living room and dining room? Trying to decide if a 9×12 is too big for an 84 in table in our dining room and if a 10×14 for our living room is too big! Beautiful home!!
Thank you! Our living room is actually carpet. But it’s probably about 12×16. Our dining room rug is 8×10. I would prefer to go bigger, but then we would have to cover a floor vent. 🙂
Do you have a tutorial for the board and batten above the mantel? It’s amazing.
Sarah love the transformation!!! I really like the blue color you painted your island. Do you know what brand and name that blue paint is called? Kari
Thank you so much! It’s Benjamin Moore Providence Blue 🙂