There is no shortage of space at the old gray house. With almost 3200 square feet, we have room to do most anything you can think of indoors. This is not me bragging, because with all of this glorious space comes the task of figuring out what to do with it (and cleaning it). You see, there are multiple additions to the original structure, and there's not much evidence suggesting there were a whole lot of professionals consulted on any of those jobs. You know, like an architect, interior designer, carpenter, etc... It's almost like they got the idea one day to add on and just started doing it without thinking about the floor plans or how they would finish or use the space. Perfect example below: using crown for baseboard!!

So, ever since we moved in we often find ourselves asking "what are we supposed to do with this space"? One of those spaces in particular is in the family room. The room is huge, but there are several focal points (two fireplaces, a wall that juts out into the middle of the room, and a wall of windows), and those things leave several little built ins and hidden closets in odd configurations. Here's an example. This is the nook right as you walk into the room, which is about 5' wide and 30" deep, and had two cabinets mounted at the ceiling (which would require me to get on a ladder to access). We've never been sure what to put in this space that would make sense under the cabinetry... until this weekend. Joe surprised me with my very own desk that fits just right! Here's the before as Joe began to dismantle the cabinets:

 Here's the after:       

We painted the back wall with this chalk paint in Jet Black. The coverage was amazing, it only took one coat and dried incredibly fast. Eventually we're going to paint all the paneling in that room to brighten it up, so this was a good test run-I like the paneling so much more once it's painted! The desk itself was this pre-cut piece of lumber we got at Home Depot that Joe cut down to fit and used the remnant to add a 1" lip on the front. He made two supports for the top to sit on by screwing those into the wall:

We left the wood its natural color and just did a light coat of Tung oil to protect it from stains. I'm thinking about adding some open shelving above the work space for my books etc, and I'll be on the look out for a cute new desk chair too. I'm thinking something modern, like this copper wire chair. The rug is the Kenzi rug by Dash & Albert and is super comfy under my feet! The sconce is a vintage piece I already had.

It was so nice to actually have an easy project for once that only took us an afternoon to complete! Meanwhile, we are still sanding away at the concrete counters after a brief concrete shortage and are hopeful to have those done this week!

-Caroline