We redecorated our sitting room this year. It started with fixing the ceiling, which had a hole in it from someone sticking their foot through it when we were renovating the bathroom upstairs. Isn’t it fascinating how one project can lead to the next one? Haha. Well, after living with a hole in our ceiling for an embarrassingly long time, we finally got to fixing it. Nothing is easy in this old house because there’s a layer of drywall over the original lath and plaster, so it’s always a really big mess. Additionally, nothing is straight, so that’s another adventure.
However, our ceiling went from this
to this
in a day and a half with three of us working on it (and two of us are not very experienced and one of us is over 70). Seriously, if you need to re-do your ceiling, this is definitely something to consider. (Here’s a link to a DIY blog that has more information.) So much time and back-breaking work saved on mudding and taping and sanding, not to mention how much easier cleanup was!
Since all the furniture was already out of the room and it’d been nearly 9 years since we’d painted that room, I decided I may as well paint the room, too. I went with a light neutral grey, but it took us a couple tries to get just the right colour. I put down 2 coats of primer because we had it and a wee little bit of the red was peeking through after the first coat. Primer is like 1/2 the price of paint, so you may as well use that to get full coverage. The first colour we chose ended up looking too cool in the room, so we went back to the store and had the second can of paint we had bought (that thankfully we didn’t need to open) and had them re-tint it to a warmer grey. It’s amazing how our eyes can trick us. As I was painting the second colour, I asked Mr Evangelist’s opinion and he said, “It looks brown” (he did not want brown). And to be fair, it looked much warmer than the first colour. But after the first wall was painted, I knew it was going to be ok. He was out at the time and I texted him, “You are going to be shocked at how not-brown this looks.”
So, now the room is grey. Here’s a photo of the wall and the finished mantle (another project I finished for this room this summer). It’s really hard to get a good picture of the colour of the room; as you can see in this photo, the light really affects how it looks. Anyway, I like it, it’s very neutral, it’s lighter in there, and we’ve added some pops of colour. While I’m still thinking about the love seat, I’ve also started thinking about the walls. And right now, wall hangings are pretty fun and trendy and I think it might just be the right thing for this room. Check out some of these patterns and let me know what you think I should put in the room.
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I could go simple and trendy with this diagonal fringe The Les Cayes Bobble Wall Hanging. It’s an easy/intermediate crochet pattern, so if you’re new to crochet, it would be a great project to try out your new skills!
I’m not sure this round crocheted wall hanging pattern with flowers is going to fit with the rest of the decor in the room, but I still think this one is really fun and it might be nice in a bedroom or hallway… Definitely something to keep in mind.
The Eleanor Wall Hanging crochet pattern can make 4 different styles of wall hangings, which makes this pattern super versatile. I love how it has a narrow and mini version so you could basically make a wall hanging for any little space in your house!
This one caught my eye because it has that beautiful mustard yellow in it. It really just got me thinking that maybe I could come up with my own simple design in the bobble stitch similar to this That’s Amore Wall Hanging pattern, which would look super sweet hanging in a nursery.
Now, macrame seems to have made a bit of a comeback. For me, this is definitely a throwback to my 1980’s Girl Guide days and I don’t think I’ve done macrame ever since. I did, however, have a solid year or two of complex friendship bracelet making, so I think it wouldn’t be so hard to pick up some macrame to make this macrame wall hanging pattern.
So far, I think this Adirondack Wall Hanging is leading the pack for me. The mustard colour is just perfect to go with the pops of colour we’ve put in the room and the natural colours and scene would fit in just perfectly with the rustic accents that we have in there. Time to go pick up some Thick & Quick!
Here’s another easy crochet pattern for a lovely boho wall hanging. I love the way this one is styled with the hats on the wall. It’s definitely a style I appreciate, but I think I would feel like a big phoney with a styling like this. Also, why is there a garlic braid hanging on this wall with the hats and tambourine? Who stores their things this way? Anyway, that pattern is pretty cool. Make that.
My friend Orsi is a beautiful crochet pattern designer and she has recently started designing tapestry crochet. This might be pushing my sensibilities a little bit, but I also enjoy a bit of whimsy in my house, something interesting that sparks some conversation. I think this Crochet Alpaca Wall Hanging definitely has the potential to be that point of interest in the room.
Are you considering a DIY wall hanging for one of your rooms? Which direction do you think I should head with my wall hanging? If you want to make one of these or think about it later, pick up one of these great patterns or pin it for later!
