If you’ve been following along, you already know about the yellow sofa. And the pink-and-green stripe settee. But what you don’t know — what I’ve been dying to share in one big beautiful tell-all — is how those two pieces set off a full-blown living room makeover that’s been quietly, joyfully unfolding since last November.

I’m finally ready to show you everything.

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It Started with a Plan (and a Sofa)

Every real living room makeover has an origin story. Mine started when I ordered my new sofa last fall, knowing it was going to change the whole energy of my main living space. Up until then, my room was anchored by a black Chesterfield sofa — dramatic, moody, and honestly pretty fabulous in its own right. I had color everywhere, but it skewed darker. Richer. More jewel-toned than garden party.

The yellow sofa changed all of that.

Once I saw that warm, buttery stripe fabric, I knew: this room was about to get lighter, brighter, and a whole lot more me. And that’s when the planning really began.

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The Pieces That Made the Makeover

The New Sofa + Settee

You’ve already read about both of these in their own blog posts (yellow sofa post | settee post), but it’s worth saying again: these two pieces are the heartbeat of this whole transformation. The yellow stripe sofa brought warmth and a cottagecore softness that the Chesterfield never could.

The pink-and-white stripe settee, with its orange-painted frame, brought whimsy and pattern mixing that felt like me turned all the way up.

Everything else in this living room makeover flowed from those two anchors.

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The Game Table Corner

There used to be a blue armoire tucked in the corner where my game table now lives. It was fine. But fine is never the goal.

I moved that to the other side of the room (as seen above) and swapped it out for the most darling little game table — and here’s the detail that makes my heart sing — I painted it Tidewater by Sherwin Williams, the same soft blue I used on my coffee table and back doors. Carrying that color throughout the space was intentional. It creates a thread that ties everything together without screaming “I matched all my furniture.” It whispers it instead.

The chairs around the game table swivel (because they are so much more functional), and I kept them in a soft, creamy white linen — the perfect quiet contrast to all the patterns happening elsewhere in the room. But here’s the little detail that elevates the whole thing: I added a pink scalloped trim along the bottom of each chair. It’s tiny. It’s unexpected. And it is everything. Sometimes a living room makeover isn’t about the big purchases. It’s about the inch of pink rickrack that makes you gasp a little every time you walk by.

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The Gallery Wall

Where the armoire once stood, a gallery wall now sings. I wanted color, joy, personality — and I got all three. Bold painted frames in orange, pink, yellow, and red surround a mix of portraits and florals, anchored by the word COWGIRL in metal letters right in the center. Is it quirky? Absolutely. Is it very, very me? You already know the answer. See more about the gallery wall here.

The white game chairs were absolutely the right call here. With so much happening on that wall, the chairs needed to be a resting place for the eye.

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The Barstools (Hello, Orange and Pink!)

Oh, the barstools. I had them recovered in the cheeriest indoor/outdoor fabric — an orange and pink print with scalloped detailing along the bottom. My friends at Plush Fabric Home Interiors handled this project (along with the roman shades and sofa slipcover), and they knocked it out of the park. This is what a great workroom does: they take your vision and make it better than you imagined.

The barstools used to sit against that blue floral wallpaper in a dark fuchsia velvet. I loved them then. But this orange-and-pink version? It feels like a living room makeover moment. Against the blue hollyhock wallpaper, they’re almost electric.

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The Roman Shades

Can we talk about what was on those back doors before? Roller shades. Roller. Shades.

I finally replaced them with a Molly Mahon yellow dot fabric made into custom roman shades with a pink trim ribbon — also done by Plush Fabric Home Interiors — and the difference is staggering.

It’s the kind of change that makes you wonder why you waited so long. The woven shade fabric with that pop of pink trim at the bottom adds softness, warmth, and a little bit of fancy that the space was begging for.

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The Lampshade Makeover

I also remade a lampshade — and if you want to see exactly how I did it, I walked through the whole process over on Instagram (link to tutorial). It’s one of those projects that sounds intimidating but is genuinely approachable, and the result is a lamp that now looks custom and completely intentional. Because it is.

And how cute is this teacup art? My artist friends in San Miguel, DaNisha Sculpture, sent this to me as a gift and I knew it would be perfect in my living room.

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The Missing Piece: Art by Carolyn Shultz

Here’s the thing about a living room makeover: sometimes you do everything right and the room still feels like it’s waiting for something. That’s how I felt until I went down a Pinterest rabbit hole one afternoon and found the work of Carolyn Shultz.

Carolyn is a collage artist, and her work stopped me mid-scroll. The layered textures, the florals, the exuberant color — it was as if someone had made art specifically for this room. I reached out to her directly, because when you find the missing piece, you don’t wait.

Her large floral collage piece now hangs above the pink stripe settee, and I’m not exaggerating when I say it completed the entire wall. It’s the exclamation point the room needed.

And here’s the really exciting part: Carolyn is doing a giveaway of two of her most popular art prints, and I want you to be a part of it. These prints are the kind of thing that can do for your home what this piece did for mine — give it a soul, give it a story.

 

Head over to this link to enter the giveaway. You’ll be so glad you did. The winner will be announced on Saturday May 30.

If you want to shop Carolyn’s prints, head over to her Etsy shop here and use code WHIMSY15 for a 15% off discount May 22nd-31st…no limit on the number of uses or minimum purchase.  You can also shop her originals here.

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What I Learned from This Living Room Makeover

A full living room makeover doesn’t happen overnight — mine took from November to now — but the payoff is so worth the patience. Here’s what I want you to take away:

Start with one hero piece. For me, it was the yellow sofa. Let that anchor piece tell you what the rest of the room wants to be.

Carry a color thread. Tidewater blue on the coffee table, game table, and back doors creates cohesion without matching. It’s the connective tissue of the room.

Small details matter enormously. The scalloped trim on the game chairs, the skirted barstools, the ribbon trim on the roman shades — these are the details that make a room feel designed rather than decorated.

Find your art last. Art is the soul of a room. Don’t rush it. When the right piece finds you (yes, finds you), you’ll know.

Work with people you trust. Plush Fabric Home Interiors made several elements of this makeover possible, and having skilled hands bring your vision to life makes all the difference.

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The Result? A Room That Finally Feels Like Me

I walk into this living room now and I feel joy. Not just appreciation for pretty things, but actual, physical joy — the kind that makes you want to invite everyone over and sit in the middle of it all with a cup of coffee and a good magazine.

That’s the real goal of any living room makeover, isn’t it? Not a room that looks like a magazine. A room that makes you feel like yourself.

This one finally does.

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Ready to enter Carolyn Shultz’s art print giveaway? Click here to enter — trust me, you want these pieces in your home.