It’s been a while since I talked about our living room, which I last shared, looking like this:

I haven’t really blogged about this space since my initial post, pre-bookcases…when storage/display space was scarce and I didn’t yet have anything on the walls. The room felt (and looks in photos) so much smaller pre-bookcases.

Page built the bookcases in time for me to decorate this room for its second Christmas. I loved adding lots of bright red accents in here…

…but after the holidays when I went *crazy* with the red, I was ready to see something new and different. And fresh for the changing seasons.

I love the green we already have in here (and with tables and lamps in the color, we are a bit committed to it, for now), and it plays well off the accents of yellow in our kitchen (bar stools, the mixer, and the rugs). I wanted to find some colors that would work well bringing the two together – an aqua blue/green, a jade green, or even some teals. So of course, I went back to trusty color source Pantone, and upon looking at the Spring “hot colors”, I instantly saw the palette I wanted:

Ahhhh. So fresh and airy.

Between tax season and paying for a knee surgery this spring, I knew any “freshening” in this room had to be on a budget. So challenging myself to keep it under $100 for the face-lift, I picked up a sample can of paint for the canvases, a can of spray paint to re-gloss the bookends…

…ordered the camera pillow cover on Etsy for a pillow form I already had on hand, some half-off Hobby Lobby supplies to make the topiaries…

…and a $5 vase at TJ Maxx.

I also ordered the black/white cabana stripe fabric from Etsy, and used it to wrap a canvas and my recipe binder, for some bolder black/white pieces in the bookcases.

Other details like frames, pillows, etc we already owned and were recycled from other spots in the house.

Finally, a small order on Mpix and I had some fresh, more recent, photos to fill a couple frames in this room, as well as update our photo wall in the entry. (And as a final nod to my Pantone obsession, I framed a paint chip of what else but the Color of the Year!) It’s so nice to change things (even little things) up once in a while!

Love how fresh and new this space is feeling for the changing seasons!

While summer seems to be taking its sweet time getting here (grrr!), I’m doing everything I can to nudge it along, planting some flowers out front, and around back, we’ve been sprucing up the deck.

We started by sealing it this spring with a clear Thompson’s water sealer. You would think we’d have done this our first summer in the house, but like a lot of things with new construction, you can’t do much the first year in terms of maintenance. In this instance, the deck can’t be sealed until the fresh wood is completely dried out, which takes at least a year. We tested it by drilling into the underside in an inconspicuous spot, per the suggestion of our home warranty guy. Good to go, and just in time, as it has been a VERY wet start to the season.

With the sealing done, I strung some lights around the railing. Loooove me some white lights year-round.

I’ve never liked the standard light fixture that was installed back here. It was your standard coach light design, not bad, but the size in particular was what bugged me. It seemed too small and rinky-dink. So Page installed something a bit larger and with more coolness factor. Love it.

A couple new Target finds brought a little color back here. We added the door mat…

…and I’ve long wanted a beverage tub and stand for keeping cold drinks on hand during get-togethers. I love that the Target tubs have a built-in bottle opener on one end. I was on a role with my color scheme (inspired by the citronella lamp my mother-in-law gave us last year that we love!) so I grabbed a coordinating dish towel to have on hand when the beverages are a-flowin’.

Gotta run. There’s a hottie on my deck who’s offering to pour me a glass of wine!