Bringing light to the sunroom

We call it the sunroom, because that's what it looked like to us when we moved in (a once-upon-a-time porch, now enclosed to be a room). But we ought to call it the living room, not in the formal don't-go-in-unless-there's-company sense, but because it's the room where we live. There, the children and I gather on the couch to read for hours, and their moms gather to chat in the mornings before heading off to work. Babies learn to crawl on the rug there, and pull up to stand at the coffee table, which is a constantly-changing landscape of play in process: blocks, puzzles, animal cities, shell designs, etc, etc, etc. We collapse in exhaustion there at the end of the day, and more often than I care to admit, meals are eaten right there, too.

But to me, the life has gone out of it recently. The furniture is showing its age (it's all free stuff covered with slipcovers or bedspreads). The pillows are dull and bought to enhance a previous couch. The rug is looking flat and matted. I've been wanting to inject some new life, but haven't had the right inspiration (or time) yet.

The other night, I could take it no longer. I took 15 minutes to transform 2 placemats and some vintage buttons into a new cover for a wintery-looking throw pillow, to inject some summer energy into the room.

Before:


After:


Next up: a change for the couch. Here's the before:

Stay tuned for the after. Maybe posting that I plan to do it will be the motivation I need.