771 A Living Room Update, Our New Sofa, and a GIVEAWAY!

Our living room is looking a bit different these days, and that is because of a very beautiful new piece of furniture! And you know what? One of your spaces could have a new plush friend as well because today I am partnering with Interior Define to giveaway $1000 to use towards a chair or sofa, as well as a generous discount code just for iHeart Organizing readers!

But before I dive right in, this story actually started quite some time ago. I will try to quickly summarize but there are definitely some key points I want to chit chat about.

We all know I had some struggles when we tackled this space for the One Room Challenge almost two years ago now. Removing a wall completely changes the way you can arrange and decorate a space. Walls are very good for arranging furniture and decorating but they can be very bad for good flow and use of space. I will tackle all of the pros and cons we have faced living with a new open concept space down the road, but the layout piece was definitely the most challenging aspect for me. When we first set up our living room, we attempted to create two rooms in one; an entryway and a living room. Across the way are the kitchen and dining room. So really, that equals four rooms in one space, which can ultimately feel busy and really create challenges in terms of creating proper flow and balance. The two rooms in one also pushed our sofa forward, cut off the room and squashed down our total living area.

After living with things for quite some time, we decided that it would be best for us to eliminate all of the extra entryway storage in order to gain a better balance and flow in our living room. The kids could easily keep their backpacks and school specific items in their bedrooms now, especially because they each have their own space and plenty of personalized storage.

So the plan was to create a new seating setup, elongating the room by moving the smaller sofa straight back and adding a second sofa in front of the window. Here is a quick look at the layout change....

Of course, the goal was to make the most of the items we already had from our first go at the space so we moved a few of the pieces to my office and our lower level family room (which I will be showing more of soon). The remainder of the items were reused within the plans for the new layout above.

So yay! A second sofa for our main living space! Bryan and I have found a pretty good formula for selecting a sofa we can both agree on; no pillow back, narrow arms, decorative legs, and comfort! A bonus feature we look for is a material that is easy to clean. We want people to feel welcome to sit on the furniture and the kids to feel comfortable lounging and reading and playing video games and watching movies. At the same time, I don't want to be stressed about fluffing cushions and straightening a sofa every time it is used (which is why no pillow back for us).

I looked at sofas for quite some time and we really weighed out all of the options that fit our specific criteria. It also had to compliment the existing sofa, but we didn't want for it to be too matchy, matchy. Quite a few of my friends in the blogging community had recommended Interior Define, and what really caught my attention was my love for the Rose sofa from The Everygirl collection. It fit all of our checkboxes and was also within our budget; almost half the price of similarly styled pieces we were also sourcing. Ordering a sofa online without having the opportunity to test it out first was the scariest part of the process. But I read enough reviews and even asked Interior Define about a couple concerns I had and ultimately decided I still wanted to pursue the option. I went to order a couple of swatches and was surprised to find over 40 choices to select from! And my favorite part was that every last swatch was available to preview in the specific sofa style we were interested in. That is so rare when furniture shopping online. So I ordered my first set of five swatches, and then I ordered some more. There were just so many options available that I loved and I really wanted to consider as many as possible prior to committing.

We narrowed it down to five favorites... Heavy Cloth Ivory, Mod Velvet Greige, Mod Velvet Saphire, Mod Velvet Oxford Blue and Heavy Cloth Natural.

Can you even? Each one is SO good and so pretty! Can I have one of each, please? I suddenly wanted to add three more living spaces onto our home and put a different colored sofa in each one.

But since we could only pick one, we landed on the Rose style and the Mod Velvet fabric in Saphire. It was just so ridiculously soft and lux feeling that I couldn't stop dreaming of cozy afternoon naps and bedtime snuggles. I also did some spot tests on the swatch and everything came right out with a microfiber rag and water. This was especially important for two reasons; one is that our living room is open to our kitchen and food and messy fingers find their way to the sofa, and two is that I watch my baby nieces two days per week and their bottles drip and sippy cups leak and I just didn't want any worry of stains. I don't like to use chemical stain repellents so finding a fabric that is easy-to-clean on its own was such a huge bonus. Of the three Mod Velvet choices at the top of our list, the Oxford Blue came off a bit too dark in our space, and the Greige was too close of a match to our rug and the other sofa. The Saphire was juuuuust right.

The sofa was offered in a couple of different sizes, one which worked out perfect for our space. But another Interior Define bonus is that is if you love a sofa but need something sized specifically to your needs, they offer customer concierges over the phone or in person at their flagship Chicago showroom. Using a coupon code from a fellow blogger's website, I placed my order and waited not-so-patiently for our new sofa to be delivered.

This is the hardest part of the entire process. It does take some time for the sofa to arrive because each one is custom made upon ordering. You select the sofa, the fabric, customize the legs and even the filling if you would like, and with that type of sofa purchasing experience comes some wait. But the good news for me is that while I waited, Interior Define reached out to me as a blogger to partner with! Why is that good? Besides the obvious reasons, they are not only great to work with but they are a company I had already selected on my own based on their offerings, service and the recommendation of my peers. And even better, they wanted to giveaway a very generous credit to one of YOU! This is a really wonderful way for me to be able to give back to all of you who have supported me and cheered me on over the years. I couldn't say no to that type of opportunity. It just made perfect sense.

The sofa was delivered back in November and the best early Christmas present ever! Delivery was quick and professional; a full white glove service meant that the sofa was brought in, unpackaged and the legs were assembled by two kind men wearing gloves and booties over their shoes.

We have slowly been making changes and updates to our living room as time and budget permit and when the right items come along. I really want this to be the last time we work on this room for many, many years. Time has been our best friend this round. So as I show the room today it is really fun to see how it has been evolving, but we still have a couple more items on our wish list to finish it off for good. The ottoman we DIY'd the night before the One Room Challenge photos were taken didn't last more than a few months before the fabric stretched and a leg snapped. So I quickly found an inexpensive table on Craigslist that has functioned really well in the meantime but will probably go back on Craigslist when we nail down our ideal partner to the stunning new sofa. You will also notice our cute little cane backed chair that was also found on Craigslist has received fabric that better compliments our wall color. I am surprised how often people go to sit in that specific spot, and the chair really doesn't offer much comfort for more than a couple minutes. A plush swivel option would be ideal but one day at time, right?

So although this post is truly about our love for our new sofa, it is also important for you all to see how it plays with the remainder of the space, with our flow and our colors and the new arrangement.

We are over four months in with this baby and I am feeling really confident in our selection. The fabric does, in fact, clean up beautifully. We have had spills and puppy hair and baby drool all come in contact with the cushions, but I wouldn't be able to point out any of those incidents today. The boys wrestle and have tickle fights, our nieces climb and nap, Bryan and I read, talk and watch movies, and there is no evidence of the daily abuse that it has endured. And it is even more comfortable than I could have dreamed.

Two more favorite features include fabric that has little risk of pilling (our nearby sofa has been pilling quite a bit) and cushions that not only velcro down in place but also have clips to hold them to the back, sides, and front to prevent sagging and shifting.

OK, more favorite details include the gorgeous rolled arms and caster adorned oak legs. Yes and yes!

As well as the piping and down filled cushions and the vibrant color and.... OK, I will stop. But just for now.

Above you can see how the room feels twice as big (because it sort of is), and also how our two sofas work together.

end tables | stripe pillow | floral pillow | tassel pillow | pink pillow | seagrass rug | gray rug

We already had the gray rug from a couple of years ago, but to marry the two seating areas we layered an oversized seagrass rug below.

The lamp is a recent HomeGoods find and I have already purchased another one for the opposite gold swoop end table. We had one swoop table prior to our renovation and added a second to flank the smaller sofa. The second lamp balanced things out even more and I especially like how they tie back to the center of the room; the true focal point.

I know the post is already getting lengthy, but before I sign off for today I am going to share a few more photos of the updated space as well as sources for some of the accessories we paired with the new blue beauty.

throw blanket | pink pillow | side table | planter | art | arm sconce | plaid pillow | window panels

diy fireplace tutorial

oversized vase

throw blanket | floral pillow | stripe pillow 

I have a few favorite spots in our home where I like to take a few minutes to myself with a magazine, cozy throw, the fire, and a glass of wine, and this spot is currently winning the first place award.

And now for the part you all have been waiting for! One of you lucky ducks will be winning a $1000 credit to use at Interior Define! That is $1000 to put towards one of their amazing and completely customizable chairs, loveseats, sofas or sectionals! IHeart Organizing readers will also receive $100 off of their Interior Define purchase with code IHEARTORG100 at checkout through 05/04/17!


G I V E A W A Y   R U L E S

// Giveaway is for $1000 credit to be applied toward a chair or sofa purchase at Interior Define

// Head to the Interior Define website, register your email address and leave a comment below letting me know what piece you would select if you win!

// Giveaway is open to continental US readers only

// Giveaway ends on 04/11/17

// Giveaway winner will be randomly selected from the comment section. The winner will be emailed directly and will also be announced at the bottom of this post.

// Credit must be used in a single purchase. Any returns will be refunded store credit minus any applicable restocking fee. Credit must be used by 07/31/17


Not sure where to begin? I shared some of my favorite pieces here! Best of luck everyone!


** ATTENTION **

This giveaway has ended. A supersized CONGRATULATIONS goes out to Tricia Weldy who was randomly selected as the winner of the $1000 Interior Define credit! Enjoy your new sectional Tricia! 

Tricia WeldyApril 4, 2017 at 9:06 AM

I would totally get the Maxwell Chaise sectional!!!! Beautiful! 

A supersized thank you to Interior Define for partnering with me on this post and for offering an amazing giveaway to iHeart Organizing readers!