Dining Room Updates

I shared my dining room a couple of months ago, but I wasn't quite happy about it. For one, it was SO blue, and felt really dark unless it was the middle of the day. I also was never quite happy with the rug. We actually had a lady come and measure for the rug when we bought our table and chairs, and she insisted that the size we bought would be perfect for the space. Well, not quite - whenever you pulled the chairs back from the table they went off of the rug, and then would get caught on it if you tried to scoot your chair. No bueno.

So, we bought a new rug! The one we had was actually on the cheaper side so we decided to just move it downstairs into Jeff's office. I stalked tons and tons of rugs online, and ended up finding this one at Target.com. BUT then I googled the name of the rug, and found the exact same one for fifty bucks less at Walmart. So yes, the rug in my dining room is from WALMART hahaha. I can hardly believe it. I've actually found that if you're buying any furniture/rugs/decor online (especially from Overstock/Wayfair) it's smart to google the product name - usually it's available at another store for a little less. I love the way the rug brightens up this corner of the house, and even though the pattern has blue in it, the rug somehow makes this part of the room feel less blue. It also makes the room feel a little bit less masculine. We were going for the loft feel, but it ended up feeling a little too bachelor pad, so I'm trying to fix that now.

The other thing that brightens up the room and makes it a little less masculine is this painting I made! Pink for the win. I've literally been looking since we moved in for something for this space but had no luck. The wall is huge so we needed something fairly large, and all of the framed prints I wanted were $500+, and after buying the place less than a year ago I wasn't really willing to drop major cash on artwork. So I finally decided to run to Michael's, grab some paint and the biggest canvas I could carry, and get painting. It wasn't that hard to make, but I actually painted over the entire canvas at least five times before I got to something I liked! I just poured out a crap ton of white paint, and slowly added more red and orange to it as I went to get the ombre effect. I'm really happy with how it turned out, which is unusual because I usually hate everything I DIY! It makes the room feel a lot more peppy and bright. I'm thinking I'll get another pink/coral piece for another wall in the room, and also some coral pillows for the couch to tie the color in. 

So I think we're done with this area now! Next up - the bedroom. I'm still looking for lamps, a floor mirror, some art, and a chair. We've only lived here, for what, nine months? I figure I'll get the house done juuuuuust in time for us to move out ;)

Table & Chairs - Walter E. Smithe
Rug - Mohawk Home via Walmart
Bookcase & Table Runner (similar fabric / similar pattern) - Crate & Barrel
Bowl, Lemons, Fish Plates, Bottles - Target

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