Show and Tell! All the Little Changes Around the House

It hit me last week that we needed to move the piano out of the study. We have been working in the study so much and at all hours throughout the day! It just felt like there might come a time when we want a bigger desk, or multiple chairs, and it was clear the piano was not a priority in this room. So we decided to move it out and into its own space!

The new study layout

Mural | Chandelier | Desk |  Chair | Lamp | Buffet Lamps | Mirror | Bowl | Planter | Floor Lamp

I'll never be done zhushing the rooms in our home, but this is feeling more spacious and comfortable to us!

Piano in the landing

Bench | Lamp

I was originally planning to put the piano in the blue family room, but then I had this idea to put it in the landing. It was actually a follower who said something like, "imagine hosting parties and there's music radiating from the balcony." This landing at the top of our entry stairs is actually the heart of the home, which feels fitting for a music space. We hired movers because we couldn't imagine muscling that ourselves and it took 3 guys, plus a lot of grunting. If you're looking for someone to move a large piece of furniture, we recommend using the dolly app! Now we have plans to build out a cased opening for the landing to make space for a semi-private posh piano room.

Cabinet in the living room

Cabinet | Lamp | Art | Couch | Rug | Chairs

When I originally wanted to move the piano in the blue family room, I got excited about swapping out the black cabinet to make room for it. Even though we decided to move the piano to the landing, I still wanted to to move out the cabinet. I never loved it in the bonus room, so we gave the movers one more task before the left and I love it! I think brings some contrast to the room and compliments the arched windows around the fireplace. Plus there's a window on the left side of the couch, and the cabinet on the right side really balance each other nicely. Side note: it is partially in front of an air return, so we're going to try it out and see how that goes.

Four chairs in the living room

Sofa | Rug | Swivel Chairs | Coffee Table | Bowl | Vase | Lamp | Art | Mirror | Chandelier

Two swivel chairs on one side of the room, and the other pair nestled near the fireplace. We had two of these white chairs in our bedroom, bay window nook and moved them out during the phase two reno. It was such an aha moment because I thought the living room needed some symmetry, but rather than getting symmetry from the couches, the chairs are doing the job! Plus I think they help the room feel springy and light, so much so that after the bedroom was painted, I didn't want to move them back in. So we had to put something else in their spot...

Leather thrifted chairs and roller shades in our bedroom

These are the chairs I bought for the study! They didn't quite work for the study, but it hit me on Saturday... OMG those chairs! They are the perfect color and size for this bay window nook. It's another reminder to buy things that you love and that fit your house and sometimes they find their way into unexpected spaces. I would dare say they're even better than the white swivel chairs, with the amount of leg they're showing.

We ordered these blackout roller, motorized shades for our bedroom, knowing we would also hang curtains. We wanted these newly painted black windows to be the star, and the curtains would soften the room a bit. I didn't want to have to be opening and closing curtains all day, so adding a blackout shade that would just blend into the window trim was an easy yes. Plus, who doesn't sleep better in a blackout room? We installed them ourselves and it took about 3 hours of troubleshooting with customer service to figure out why the motor wasn't working! They're up and running now, but every time it's like, "is it going to work?" It sounds like we might need a new motor which is frustrating since these are brand new! Ideally I'd like to be able to have the option to open them independently, or open and shut all together.

Chest in the dining room

Chest | Lamp | Shade | Vase

With the cabinet now in living room, I moved this chest into the dining room (which is where the black cabinet was originally!). We wanted to have some storage in our dining room, and although there's plenty of room to seat our family plus some, there's not space to put a full credenza. This is the perfect size for this room, and it's perfect for storing extra linens, tapered candles, candle holders, and extra faux stems.

Olive tree in the family room

Sectional | Tree

This circles back all the way to Christmas! I loved having our Christmas tree here in this family room corner so much that I was stressing when the black cabinet was there! It's really true that when you have a faux tree, it's good to keep it near some natural light (ya know to keep them guessing). When I moved the black cabinet into the living room, I just swapped in this faux olive tree! It's so pretty in this corner, but also makes a great placeholder for our Christmas tree.

Brass rails in the kitchen

Bar Stools

On the backside of the island where our stools are, on either end are two openings. Looking at the kitchen plans, there were supposed to be brass rods like on the hutch! We told our contractor (since he ordered them), and they finally arrived! They got installed last week and I'm still figuring out what is going to go in here. I did pull out these cake stands for now because they're just too pretty to keep behind closed doors!

And that's pretty much a wrap on all the recent updates around the house!