If you read the post I did about my entry , you've already had a glimpse of this room...it's right through those French doors I had installed about six years ago. Don't you love the intrigue of seeing a room through French doors? It's a little like walking through a garden and catching sight of another "room" just beyond a hedge or around the turn in the garden path. In my mind, gardening and decorating the rooms in our homes, are completely intertwined...but that's a post for another day.
I've had an inspiration pic tucked away inside my "Someday Book" for at least ten years...just waiting for the day the contents of my pocketbook matched the ideas in that pic and in my head. I'm a stubborn decorator...one who refuses to compromise. I get an idea in my head and if I can't make it work, I wait...and wait...and wait.
If you visited my home, you'd probably leave a bit perplexed, wondering why one room is fully decorated while another looks forgotten and unloved. Last weekend I moved one little step closer to showing some love for my living room. :-)
I came across this niche in A Classy Flea...
And, it had a twin...
They are approximately 85 years old...removed from a home built in the 1920's. Each was priced at $199...the dealer gave me a better price, $300 for both. :-) I love the way the shelves are different shapes...alternating the two designs.
These beauties are not for the faint of heart, though...no siree. They require a little construction/renovation to the room where they ultimately go to live. See the back shown in the pic below...yep, I see sheet rock dust in my future.
BTW, if you know of a great product for stripping off 90 years of paint, please leave it in a comment or e-mail it to me at betweennapsontheporch@gmail.com. I want to take these back down to the wood so they will look great once they are painted.
Ready to go into the forgotten room? I'm sorry to say, I've misplaced my inspiration pic from an old Colonial Homes magazine. When it eventually turns up, I'll post this again so you'll be able to see the catalyst for this room. I'll try to describe it for you, though.
Come on in...
Welcome to my "some day" dream...a Library for my home.
Ok, imagine a fireplace, but not the one you see leaning against the wall. I bought that mantel, complete with marble surround and marble hearth, a few years ago...it was being removed from a home. But, it turns out that it's a bit too wide and a bit too big for the niches. I may use the flat marble hearth that came with it, though.
So, try to imagine walking in and seeing...just over the back of the sofa, a beautiful, fire blazing away in the fireplace. A new wall will be created across the end of the room in which to sink the niches. The inspiration room in the Colonial Homes magazine showed a fireplace with niches on either side.
The inspiration room had a camel-back sofa, covered in a red, damask fabric. I bought this Hickory Chair sofa at A Classy Flea many years ago for only $135. It was covered in a very bland, faded fabric so it was perfect to be reupholstered.
The antique "bookshelf" Sessions clock was passed down through family. The old "Bulls-eye" Federal style, mirror was purchased at an antique fair at the Callanwolde estate (the home of Charles Howard Candler, oldest son of Asa Candler, the founder of Coca Cola) during a Christmas home tour one year.
I'll probably go with a direct-vent gas fireplace. The fireplace-to-be is on an outside wall with the gas line/meter just on the other side, so I think that will work pretty well. The vented fireplaces with gas logs have a fairly realistic fire, from what I've seen and read. They are also very inexpensive to operate.
Don't you love the one, lone flow blue plate? I couldn't resist putting something on one of the shelves. :-)
Now, about this long wall to the left of the fireplace/niches...it would become floor to ceiling, "built-in" bookshelves. They would look as if they had been there forever. I envision beautiful molding/trim along the top and vertically in-between each of the sections. ~~~SIGH~~~ I've gotten my quote to have those built and it wasn't as high as I feared it would be.
The view, standing in the corner in front of one of the niches...looking back across the room to the French doors.
View standing in the other corner, in front of the other niche.
This room has two, six foot windows....I see long draperies, something with a rich library feel.
I envision a nice table with a lamp...at this end of the sofa. I'll be brainstorming about what color to paint the bookshelves, niches and walls. Should I go with a "library green" color for the bookshelves, niches and trim...or should I paint all the shelving white, along with the niches...then maybe an accent color in the back of the niches? Maybe the walls would be pretty in some beautiful green color. I don't want a stained look in this room since I have a room like that right next door. (see Family Room)
So, do you see it? Do you see a glowing fire in the fireplace...the niches filled with beautiful Imari plates or red and white transferware? Do you see the gorgeous wreath above the mantel at Christmas time? Do you see the built-in bookshelves lining the wall to the left, filled with beautiful books and other assorted pretties? I don't have an "After" pic to show you, but I'm one step closer. :-)
Additional Info: You'll find a more recent post done on Feb. 14, 2010, HERE, showing a room that has a similar design to what I have in mind for my future library. This will be a great inspiration room to show my contractor/carpenter.
Looking forward to seeing your Before and After!
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