Living Room Makeover Update PLUS: Pics from our Chris Loves Julia Visit

With the chaos of the holidays and school breaks behind us, we’re finally ready to sink our teeth into an update about our visit from Chris and Julia Marcum for our Chris Loves Julia x Charlotte House Revival Living Room Makeover – pictures included!

Where We’ve Been

If you’re new around here, Jim and I were thrilled last year to be voted the winners of a Room Makeover Giveaway from Chris Loves Julia. After some delays and reconfigurations to the original giveaway plan, we welcomed Chris and Julia to Charlotte House in Lancaster back in the fall so they could take an in-person look at the space and discuss some of our pain points with the layout. Because pained, we are — the architecture may be cute, but all these living room doorways and window bays do not care if we don’t have enough seats for movie night and 5 five kids.

^{Photos by Melissa Engle Hess}

Anyway, the Marcums clearly have a higher tolerance for air travel than I do, because they were able to swoop in and out of Lancaster and back to North Carolina all in one day. Though the vist was short, it felt like we’d known each other for much longer and could chat forever about all the fun things that house geeks love to talk about.

We had a really great time talking shop, showing them the whole house, and sorting through the aesthetics and function we are hoping to achieve in the living room. And for less apparent reasons, we talked about spicy pickled green beans, the best arm length to take a selfie for a duo of different heights, and smuggling pork roll and paint swatch booklets through airport security.

^{Photos by Melissa Engle Hess}

After all the conversation and charcuterie we could squeeze in, we took a quick jaunt a few blocks up the road to Fern°ish to say hello and peruse some beautiful home goods. Julia loved the store’s aesthetic and neutral artwork they were featuring, and of course we all wished we had even more time to hang and shop. But time ain’t cheap, and before long, Chris and Julia were back in the car and off to the airport for their second flight instruction video of the day.

Where We Are Now

A few weeks after our visit, we got a beautiful personalized mood board from Julia for the living room, and could finally imagine how this space could look —and FEEL—like an actual part of the home we’ve spent so much time and love on.

Now we’re into the fun part, which is when Jim and I get to take our mood board and run with it. We can choose any pieces we’d like to use in the room, and go as close to, or far from, the design as works for our family.

^{Photos by Melissa Engle Hess}

Since we were about to enter the holiday season when we first got our mood board, we had decided not to make any big design decisions until after we had gotten through the joy, chaos, and exhaustion of the holidays. But Mama sure loves a good deal, so we did take advantage of Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales to pick up a few items we knew wanted, including the TV and a couple of decor items.

We also started to research some furniture pieces that could work within our space and budget. I could quilt a blanket out of all the upholstery samples I’ve ordered, and think we’ve got some really great options lined up.

Now that we’re firmly into the new year and back into a routine with the kids, we’re finally ready to take a closer look at which pieces are really going to work for us, and design the rest of the space around what we choose.

Where We’re Headed

First up will be the sofa, as that’s by far the largest and most significant item that we’ll have in the living room. I started sharing some of the upholstery options and the brands we’re looking at on our social media stories, so be sure you’re following us on Instagram or Facebook for the play-by-play. There’s also a new Highlight on Instagram with all our past stories about the Living Room Makeover Giveaway.

And of course, I’ll circle back later here on the blog with a deeper dive into the obstacles we’re facing with the sofa and how we hope to address them.