From brassy to classy

The family room is slowly coming along. The walls are done (with a chair rail that we didn't really want in the original plan, but due to a technical difficulty (read: cheapest way to fix the problem) we put up a chair rail. We embraced it and decided to go chunky.

 The couches are here too. Not exactly my taste, I prefer modern, but we went with easy clean up and comfort above style. It is our family room after all and we use it to sit and watch TV. Comfort is of utmost importance. :)

The floor lamp in the corner was a steal at $15 on Craigslist and let me tell you, THAT THING IS HEAVY! It is solid brass. Yes, brass. It didn't always look as pretty as it does now.

Just yesterday it looked like this:





I had the spray paint on hand, so $15 for the lamp, $13 for a new shade = $28 for a lamp that looks similar to THIS one priced for $200 (+shipping)!
Mine may be a little different, but not $170 worth of difference if you ask me!

 If you remember awhile back, I painted another brass lamp for the front living room. I decided to use it in the family room and found a similar brass lamp for $3 at Helping Hands. Not an exact match, but I think it works.



The new is on the right, and these will be on end tables, just as soon as I find the right ones, for the right price. I want 3. One in the corner by the floor lamp, and one on each end of the couch. Finding 3 matching end tables on Craigslist is dang near impossible. I'll be lucky to find 2 that I like. So, I'm open to having the table in the corner being a larger mismatch. I found THE perfect one, but the lady is taking her sweet time getting back to me. :/ I'm going with a dark wood, or at least, that's the idea.

Oh, and since I stole the lamp from the living room, I picked up another brass lamp for $2 at Helping Hands and painted it yellow to match the cabinet :)

 
 (I really need to stop taking cell phone pics I know, but it's so much easier.)

So now, the basic bones of the family room are in place and I don't know if you noticed, but it is completely devoid of all color. The reasons being:
1. Remember how it used to look like a rainbow threw up in there? (CLICK and CLICK for a reminder) Well, I'm scared! Just when I think of a color (orange is right on the top of the list) I realize I can't just have orange, white, and brown, so I think maybe a green, and a pop of yellow or turquoise and well.. you see! Rainbow throw up. ugh
2. Every room in the house (aside from The Scientist's room) has flowers and a feminine touch. I want a room that fits EVERYONE. So, finding just the right mix is tough and intimidating.
3. We've discussed themes and it's getting me NO WHERE.
Ms. Thang wants a movie themed room- popcorn, movie reels, tickets, "enjoy the show" kind of thing. I like it, but most of that artwork is scaled very small and there isn't a lot of it that I really enjoy looking at. Plus once the red and white striped popcorn containers starts running rampant, we could get crazy and end up... yes.. rainbow throw up.
The Scientist and my Honey are leaning towards an old car theme. Think old Texaco signs, and rustic 57 Chevys. - I like the rustic...not so much the "car". Too masculine..maybe.
I personally want something a little rustic cowboy. Like cowhide rug, rusty stars, wrought iron and that kind of thing. I even considered a cow skull covered in turquoise and silver for a moment (I still believe I could pull it off without it looking trashy) but as soon as the words left my lips, my Honey and Ms. Thang shared a looong good laugh. bah.
I think rustic will be  in the mix. Leather couches just cry out for some old metal or chippy paint. I thought about Rodney White and I do think that the inspirational messages and rustic feel would be the perfect pairing for our family room, but EVERYONE and their mother and their dogs are into Rodney White right now. I want something different.

So for now.. I'm just working on the basics. Couches, lamps, and tables, until inspiration hits.