Need Your Opinions

October 12th, 2007

Dave and I have been struggling with the layout of our living room since getting the new furniture. Our challenges are many:

We want to keep the couch and chair as far away from each other as possible to create an open flow.
The coffee table is getting butchered by the cats. Since the first scratch, two more have gone on. And one is nearly a foot long. We decided to put the TV on it to keep it from getting damaged further.
Moving the coffee table from the middle of the room really opened things up, but now it’s too open. The carpets are also looking dingy from years of spills and cat accidents.
I put down this oriental rug to minimize the open space, cover stains and create a visual bridge between the chair and couch.

Now — we can buy another rug, but don’t know what color scheme would work well with the furniture. We don’t want to overdo blue. This rug is 10 years old and has been in storage since our now deceased cat, Calvin, started clawing at it. For now, it’ll do, and we almost don’t care if the cats destroy it. At least we can enjoy its beauty for the first time in a decade. Better to be on the floor than in a closet.

We really want some opinions now. If you’ve never commented on my blog before, now is the time to go nuts. The future of our living room depends on it.

Stumble it!

12 Responses to “Need Your Opinions”

JD Says:
October 12th, 2007 at 3:47 pm

I like the open space created by moving the coffee table and the area rug. It’s hard to say what kind of rug to get to replace the Oriental one. Can you get a solid color that’s a darker or lighter shade of the carpet? Maybe one that’s mainly neutral with a touch of blue and beige?

It’s a shame to have to use the coffee table for the TV. Even tho I do like the open space, I find not having a coffeetable awkward. Could you put some sort of fabric runner on it? Or put it on the other side of the room with some knick knacks? (or would those get destroyed?)

I’ll keep thinking…

Debbie Kramer Says:
October 12th, 2007 at 4:10 pm

How about electro shock collars for the cats? It worked so well on the dog, I’ve considered it for the kids! (Joking! I would never do that to an animal, but the kids? Maybe)

regan Says:
October 12th, 2007 at 7:28 pm

How about something red or silvery? Maybe something that matches the cats’ fur so you won’t notice when they shed?

Kathy Frederick Says:
October 12th, 2007 at 11:31 pm

@ Everybody —

We’re still on the fence about whether to use the coffee table as a TV stand. I like the openness that’s created when we do that.

We think we should get a beige carpet, the same size as this one, with just a touch of blue in it.

Since we’re so disgusted with the progress we’re making, we decided to run out and get new vertical blinds for the patio door. If that goes well, we’ll feel like we did something right for a change.

I cannot believe how hard this process has been. When we got the other furniture, we just plunked it down and sat back and admired it.

Maureen Says:
October 13th, 2007 at 12:13 am

I would take a pillow to the store and try to match up another color from them. Greens and peaches are triad colors on the color wheel from blue…check out color schemes online.

And the table? Why not get a piece of glass cut to size with the edges sanded smooth to cover the top of the table? The cats won’t scratch up a hard glass surface as easily as wood, and you can still enjoy the woodgrain underneath.

the frogster Says:
October 13th, 2007 at 2:31 am

I have never commented here. This may, in fact, be my first visit, other than this afternoon when I popped by and didn’t have time to comment. Gosh, there are so many blogs.

OK, here’s the deal in my opinion. I’m sort of in regan’s camp. you have your blue and your beige parts of the upholstery. I think an orangy thing will work- probably like a rust color. go to any site with a color wheel. opposites on the color wheel work. That’s why you see lots of yellow/purple or orange/blue or green/red athletic uniforms or holiday colors. I picked out the colors for my dad’s dining room- pink and green- and it looked really good. Let me know if it works- I may start a side business of interior decorating if you like my style.

PS- I love oriental rugs. My wife hates them. We don’t have one.

the frogster Says:
October 13th, 2007 at 2:32 am

I should read the other comments before I comment. Maureen is more or less in my corner too, so what more evidence do you need?

Kathy Frederick Says:
October 13th, 2007 at 10:56 am

@ Maureen and Frogster — Thanks for the suggestions. We are still mulling over the position of the furniture. We’re not loving having the TV on the coffee table, and it did just occur to us that putting glass on top of it might work. Then we can have it back out in the middle of the floor. We’re trying EVERYTHING, so the TV might eventually get its own stand after all.

Yes, we’ll have to check out a color wheel and take a pillow to a store. The cats are starting to claw at the red rug (no surprise), so we’ll have to buy a cheap deep-pile rug for the middle of the room. I like the idea of a rug in there, even if we wind up putting the coffee table back in front of the couch. It adds warmth.

Ugh. The vertical blinds we put up last night look terrible. They’re really cheap and don’t block sunlight. Our situation keeps going from bad to worse. Really unhappy right now.

Thanks for your suggestions, though. I’ll post back when we have an arrangement we’re happy with, assuming that day ever comes.

cardiogirl Says:
October 14th, 2007 at 12:34 pm

What if the coffee table went against the half wall under the stairs and the couch went diagonal where you were standing when you snapped the picture?

The chair could go where the couch was, sort of angled toward the TV. Would that keep things open?

Also maybe some art on the wall over the chair (where the couch is right now) or do you already have something there? I don’t want to lose my comment to go back to the post to look.

cardiogirl Says:
October 14th, 2007 at 12:36 pm

p.s. I love the cat, sitting pensively, on the rug.

Kathy Frederick Says:
October 14th, 2007 at 2:20 pm

@ Cardiogirl — Thanks for the feedback. We’re still on the fence about bringing the coffee table back to the middle of the room. It’s almost like we have TOO much opens space now. Not sure. Maybe having a better color on the rug will make a difference. The TV looks odd on a coffee table right now.

The couch can only be placed where it is now. We have such a small living room. That wall is the only place it’ll fit without the couch taking over the whole room.

I’d say we’re 80% happy with the layout IF we change the rug out, and get something else for the TV to sit on.

About the cat — that’d be Lucky, the trouble-maker. We do need to get a new rug regardless, because he’s clawing at the red one you see in the picture. No surprise there.