A Conversational Living Room

So many of us live in homes where we have a family room and a formal living room. Typically the formal living room is a space in the home that’s either under-used, decorated last if at all, and if it is decorated it’s usually higher end furniture that no one is allowed to touch for fear of it getting messed up. To be quite frank, I’m not even sure who came up with this idea to have 2 sometimes 3 living spaces (Family room, living room, basement, may be a sunroom), but what I am sure of is that our house in its entirety should work for us and be utilized.

My next home decor project with The Home Depot is transforming my dear friend Michelle McKinney’s formal living room space into a conversational room using accent furniture. Michelle’s lifestyle involves family round tables with her children, and also the gathering of women on various topics from entrepreneurship, to purpose, to dating, to marriage, to life events; she loves encouraging women to live out their dreams. So I knew I had to create a safe space that fostered conversation and collaboration. I immediately thought about the four chair layout placed around a round coffee table. She also has a TON of books, so we needed stylish storage. After understanding her lifestyle, here’s the mockup I came up with.

When thinking about the empty spaces in your home consider your lifestyle. Think outside the box. Just because someone labeled the room “formal living room” doesn’t mean you have to use it that way. Make your home work for you. Here’s a before of the blank space: 

So of course I headed to homedepot.com/decor and started searching for the bookcases first. I knew I wanted something that was tall, hefty since her space is large, and had glass doors. And I came across the perfect Ivory Wood Bookcase from the Home Decorators Collection. It was absolutely perfect, so I ordered 2 since the room is big. Remember to fill your room up with larger pieces to avoid your space looking too cluttered.

Then I started searching for the coffee table. I filtered my search to see all coffee tables from the Home Decorators Collection because I really love how well built their products are. Many people will use that table for playing games, placing their beverage, or writing and it needed to be furniture that lasts. I spotted this beautiful washed oak coffee table with brass nailheads that had a tabletop and more room for storage underneath. 

The Home Decorators Collection strikes again, with this natural linen arm chair that was hefty enough for the space and big enough to sit and put your feet up. And the ball front legs make it easy to swing in and out of the space.

For the longest time, I’ve been wanting to try out the “no electrical” library light fixture. Since Michelle doesn’t have any overhead light, or any sconces previously installed, I knew we had to get creative. So even though this metal brass wall sconce is supposed to be attached to an electrical box, we just attached the bracket to the wall, and added battery operated puck lights (with the remote). You can catch a step by step of this trick in my Instagram story highlight.

Right under the light I decided to get some wooden frames, and DIY my own artwork. Did you know The Home Depot carries wall frames…oh and realistic faux plants? To make the plants look more decorative, I added these beautiful bamboo baskets set to place the plants in. 

Accessories are so necessary in pulling a space together. A room still feels empty without decorative accents. I really loved these gray vases and this larger brownish gold vase that I found on Home Depot’s website. You can add wheatgrass to your vases or leave it empty. 

And let’s not forget these cute wooden dice. 

I also DIYed lots of accents: like the copper pipe blanket ladder, the glass and plastic bowls, I painted to look like concrete, decorative chain links and faux roman shades using 3 tension rods per window and tablecloth for fabric. Head over to my Instagram page (@rashida.banks) to see how I created the items.

Now I know I said that accessories pull a room together, but an area rug does the same by grounding the space. I went with a seagrass rug that smelled so good when taking out of the wrapper. The natural texture is exactly what the space needed to warm up the room.

We can’t forget textiles! The Home Depot has a wide selection of pillows and blankets to choose from. Throw pillows and blankets give the space a cozy feel but also are functional because they provide comfort. 

I really hope this post inspires you to think outside the box for your formal living room or empty space. Explore ideas that will best serve you and your lifestyle. Head over to homedepot.com/decor to find everything you need for your next room makeover. 

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