My Apartment: Living & Dining Room Reveal

Thanks for allll the sweet words yesterday on my apartment tour! To see my bedroom and bathroom, check out yesterday's post. Today I'm showing you the rest of my place-- the living and dining room. For reference, here is the floor plan! I drew it up for you because I know how I always love seeing the layout of a place before I see the pictures of the actual space.

When I first moved in, one of the challenges I faced was being patient with myself and the decorating process. Being the Type A person I am, I was frustrated that my apartment didn’t come together over night. In an effort to move things along and be able to start watching TV from an actual sofa instead of a pouf (cute as they are– not so comfy!) I purchased a love seat from a local super store. I quickly realized that when my 6’3″ boyfriend came over to watch TV, the tiny love seat just wasn’t cutting it.

I needed a real couch, something more similar to a sectional, that would accommodate both of us. After selling my love seat, I purchased this Pottery Barn couch with a chaise and I love it! I learned a few lessons. First, good and functional design takes time. Don’t settle for a love seat that semi-works, but isn’t great in the long run. Second, you don’t have to fill a small space with tiny furniture. Funny enough, my current sofa is larger than the first one I had, but makes the room feel bigger!

 Other design elements in the living room are the gold curtains, hung high above the windows to accent the ceiling height, a desk I found that fit perfectly in the corner for my workspace, a media console I painted with chalk paint to make it fit my farmhouse style better, and a gallery wall hung above and around the TV to help take the focus off the TV.

 Open to the living room is the dining room and galley kitchen. In efforts to create the feeling of separate “zones”, I placed a tall bookshelf in the middle of the two spaces, along the wall with the windows. Without actually dividing the two spaces, it does provide a bit of a visual break. To provide continuity, I hung the same curtains in the dining room, found a beautiful thrifted buffet (great for entertaining storage!) and hung metal wall art above. I also changed out my dining room chandelier. Luckily, my property manager said it was fine, as long as I kept he old one to replace when I move out. The chandelier probably gave the room the biggest impact– it’s just my style, open and airy, and pairs nicely with the other pieces.

Photography: Ashley Slater Photography | Design & Styling: Michaela Noelle Designs | Bar Cart: World Market | I Choose Joy print: Parris Chic Boutique | Bookshelf: 55 Downing Street | Cake Plate:Anthropologie | Chalkboard: World Market | Chandelier: World Market | Coffee Table: Lulu & Georgia | Couch: Pottery Barn | Couch Pillows: Custom by Michaela Noelle Designs | Desk: Vintage | Dining Chairs: 55 Downing Street | Dining Room Buffet: Bluedoor Antiques | Dining Table: Custom  | EAT Letters: Anthropologie | Gallery Wall Art: Minted | Gold Curtains: Crate & Barrel | Gold Pouf: Lulu & Georgia | Gold Tray: World Market | Metal Plaques: Pottery Barn (similar) | Tea Time Print: Lily & Val | Wood Sign: House of Belonging

Finally, after over a year of living here, the place is done just the way I love it. And guess what? Because we’re getting married and moving in together this fall, we’ll be moving to a new, bigger place. Isn’t that how it always happens?! In this design journey, I’ve learned to take my time and really make sure I LOVE what I’m putting into my little home. That’s what makes a house a home anyways– filling it with treasures you adore.

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