In our new house we have a great big family room downstairs that we LOVE!
On one side of the room we have this...
We needed an entertainment center with A LOT of storage for all our books, games, and yes VHS movies (I know, I know, I'm a little behind on the technology front).
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgemE4cmWvdd8_3iHMm76CukZUU9tMbWPTm5gmYq4AyJ_3K1tv9DLZTzCJfYlnVMdm1EzLY59VrZ76IEMgtMq47ttbNnh6H2_zjbpuBS36T9BChKWPMqi3XdvJxa68L9ti4_5DM900L8CY/s400/DSC_3868+copy.jpg)
As much as I would love a huge wall of built-ins or a ginormous Potter Barn entertainment center these 5 bookshelves from Target have been a great solution for a really reasonable price.
See the old window frame on top? My sweet friend recovered it from her home renovation.
It was one of the original windows in her 130+ year old house
and it is one of my favorite things in my house. Thanks again Tiff!
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrucPhh1F9RwXPNr6WT69uP2o1CbFdIOMj07FFOXqqQmz3qipix-bOWJV4v28Tv0QTsSWm1qUALcupom_YhjSs_LTBo8cj5_fLNGW9ViPHZfXlnZDLfpOuKS_XXCr59dmEFQh9Sk020iE/s400/DSC_3861copy.jpg)
On the opposite side of the room we had a few chairs and a huge blank wall so the room looked very heavy on one side and bare on the other.
Sorry, no pictures of the huge, blank, beige wall.
Just use your imagination. ;0
I knew I wanted to use the wall to display our family photos and I framed each 8x10 in a beefy matted frame like so...
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFnYm1B0X6me6u7QUW3TvTjzJqt-WrZVTTWhUSJO9MXoDnCz4svkTN0y73bsNUyfVMnYzWEKuWfvIc0x8Hcp37kSFum88T1X78dK95xownsppue4W7iyY0kvhoSth77Cy40RinELWkR_k/s400/DSC_3969.JPG)
But it wasn't enough.
So, I added these "
buttons" and some ribbon above the frames ...
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfH0AL4gyKV5LoZdyehEIdf56nktK0NyKBgnM3SsotcIJOrRA9_wHLJzfQShplESbSLhUicflJ5f6gx16E64UpupPVSnv1xRBP36xSOIHbJucij5uTP84Ea-rD3UNLJ_Fy9xEcPepTs4Q/s400/DSC_3637.JPG)
and then some vinyl lettering below the group of pictures like so...
The wall is 9ft high and 16ft wide and by the time I finished the display of family photos with the lettering it measured 9ft wide by 3ft high and made a huge difference.
But it still felt out of balance with the other side of the room and since I wanted to keep things very clean and open feeling I decided against adding more furniture/ accessories to the wall and instead picked up my paint brush.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9Xhe0bUope39ztF_uXXVKCUdaveYGL0k_qI1T0JipaOYNCG8HzNblsNFBGeW5eYfXoshnvaZ3itCPi1-TD_M6weAyFKnBmmXH78RxCNGNFyCiIYwE2YlRtkuUJVXqCVaPQRWG4lRVEis/s400/DSC_3629.JPG)
I taped off the wall for 18 inch stripes (making sure I didn't need to paint where I had the vinyl lettering) and took the original beige paint and added white (just like with my
painted wallpaper) to create a bit of a contrast without making it too "bold".
I wanted it to visually draw your eye but not smack you in the face.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUx1MSvYTGrn2MEsxcWwyCXMVIyMGbO1lnHRK-vnFzhNktbkHMPElp938R0z_lZwG6LEHC_tnqgYBS7X7h1_GAkNBHPC1-FMjYOiy0lXH4D8BjhtrYOVRlR473DbbZ_fSx1iIPG9uUhKo/s400/DSC_3629+copy.jpg)
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVMqzVl79Ohyphenhyphen1ZQ5vYcqDioexBEY9mJXJQRVhyphenhyphen_dr5TX2X7IG3wjgjY7Fwv3DQj_gXGdwG8CyvXXGB7zvATpLL1oZZrijXag_8sVBNQeDnDbjo4GRvWQChJeTYitG4tqebe5JqKRtZtYc/s400/DSC_3654.JPG)
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiceQyNTmTtUpHGptlb1coEmO9tSzt6Iq1F6gKenpqI01Xe5zD-5J6o41WHgmUmsIQMVcmdOErRoBfL8yaD0-zEjybjr0TO6PPXVtOdO94MmXWJG1rpWaU13_Q8CADY7ZgERatW0TP6MSs/s400/DSC_3660.JPG)
And here it is all finished...
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb3Xxje1dVhonwZbMxKv3z-7d2avqxZ-oDLV50w9zoAqOJgniXFci3e5BAEqYIhZkQPMNRRFy-uSvxBvI4xX9IKEie3VUxb8DIdhyphenhyphenGTDuXjoNS0kLIcfmgkVKl1ptLQlOrgKVw1_xg0-Y/s400/DSC_3684.JPG)
I LOVE it!
If I had really big muscles I would have moved the elliptical out of this picture but... well, I don't... which is why we bought the elliptical.
Next up for this room- DRAPES!
I already ordered the fabric... can't wait!!!
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_tgOQSivRqXVX_Gbg0cZBiIalUwebcwddqoAcrrCY6Bk3tt4jHiiRppe_Da7wYKw3NbhyoHIIoeBv6jTXWaQSc9Mm3HuWJYB22XOonNO8vUzFrO2-MaY7iI9OL3AYkNnPAmxocogTbH2rk=s0-d)