How To Transform Your Space To Match Your Vibe

(UPDATE: I finally painted…see the new color on the walls at the end of this post!)

Was it really January since I last updated you guys on the progress of the living room makeover? My bad. Time is really escaping me!

I have so much to catch you guys up on. Here’s where we left off last on the living room makeover.

Now that you’re all caught up, let’s run down the list of the many things that have been transformed in this space shall we? But before we get started, let me say this…I was really intentional with this space being a reflection of me, but the evolved me and that meant that this space and the vision for the finished look was for it to be a true reflection of my Libra North Node.

I’ve been moving towards my Libra North Node heavy lately and if you’re not familiar with astrology or how the North Nodes play into a birth chart, it’s basically the path that your soul is meant to embark on for your enlightenment and typically is the complete opposite of your comfort zone aka South Node aka your past lives. I’m a Sun Cancer, Leo Moon and Scorpio rising and my south Node is in Aries which is ruled by Mars which is also the ruling planet of Scorpio (alongside Pluto). So to say that I’ve been slowing down and moving more towards the light because I love to hermit, but I have also learned that in order for me to thrive and transform towards my highest good, I need balance, I need to move towards my Libra North Node.

Libra is ruled by Venus ( do I have to say more ) so it loves the finer things in life, it embodies femininity, softness, balance, peace/harmony and their flower is the rose, just to name a few of its qualities.

More on this another time (stay tuned for a break down on how astrology and the chakras play into creating a space that speaks to your soul and ascension..it’s just fascinating I must say).

I felt that this preface was important to note before we move on.

Okay, now let’s proceed (links to shop the items are at the end)

New Living Room Light Fixture

The way I screamed, “JUST GIVE ME LIGHT!” when I flicked on the light switch after I hung the new chandelier! I’m still discovering new spots in my living room to this day…that’s how bright it feels up in here. I literally feel like I’m in a beach in the Caribbean soaking up all the sun. Real solar chakra vibes…for real! Hey Leo Moon.

Let’s back track just a bit for some context. I was intentional about the type of lighting that I wanted for the space and here was the criteria.

The light fixture I selected had to be big, multiple clear glass globes were a must (this one has five) since that would allow for the maximum amount of light to be reflected into the space (so no to smokey glass or ombre glass and no to any sort of globes that contained metal or any other type of material that would get in the way of light being spread throughout the space). Remember how I said here that the natural lighting in my space is trash?

This required so much focus because the distractions were real! It helped that I’m really connected to my space and know what is lacking at the moment so keeping this in mind kept me from taking the plunge and buying the beautiful light fixtures that kept getting thrown my way ( I just knew they wouldn’t work for my space ). I felt like my choice checked off all the boxes plus it wasn’t your typical mid-century clear bulb light fixture that is so common out there.

I did want to mention that my original choice for the living room light fixture was a larger version of what I selected for the entryway lighting. I didn’t pull the trigger since it made the space feel way too bougie for me. Now I am bougie, but not all the way bougie so I went with this one instead and I’m so happy that I did because it brings in such a beautiful balance between the coffee table and the paint color that I selected for the space.

New Coffee Table and Styling Pieces

What a damn debacle it was to get a coffee table up in this house! If you’ve been following my stories on IG, you know.

From placing the first order for a completely different coffee table and me getting a whole ass rug that I didn’t order instead (my order was mixed up with someone else’s order) and then canceling my order since the coffee table went on back order until the Summer to ordering this coffee table and receiving the side table version instead…I was over it and truly began to think that I wasn’t meant to have a coffee table in this space. Well things finally came together and I received my coffee table (got to keep the side table as an I’m sorry from the vendor, which I ended up using as a nightstand in the bedroom) so all worked out in the end.

In retrospect and in the moment (thank you awareness), I knew all this happened and was happening so that I could end up with the coffee table you see here. Hey Scorpio rising!

I always envisioned a black coffee table in my living room, but finding one that I loved was not easy and when I thought I found it the Universe was like nah, you need something that gives off luxurious grounded vibes and so in the end I decided to go with a tester coffee table because if you remember from my original post over here, I was really nervous about how the kids were going to treat a coffee table since they are not coaster kids plus they still wrestle a bit in the living room (I thought the phase was over, but as of a few days ago, it’s not).

A real marble coffee table has always had my heart, but not knowing how the kids would live with it, I was always hesitant since, one they are on the more expensive side, two real marble is pretty heavy and three, it’s really sensitive to stains plus I was nervous about one of them falling on it in their many “acting a damn fool” moments so I said let me go with a tester faux marble coffee table that if they fall on it, it won’t be the end of the world for them and I’m so glad I did!

I’m not going to front, at first I wasn’t completely sold on how the marble pattern would play along with the wallpaper pattern (remember this was my plan B since my original plain black coffee table fell through), but then I said you know what, it feels right and so I went with it and I’m so happy I did because it brings in a sexy moody vibe into the space without it being overkill plus the kids have learned that coasters are not just for decoration! lol. So I guess a real marble coffee table is in the cards for me after all!

Oh and these coasters are from Ikea, who by the way has really been stepping up their decor game lately (good job Ikea!).

Now the rose centerpiece is a complete 180 for me, but at the same time felt so much like me as soon as I crossed paths with it during my Marshall’s trip.

The roses came with long stems and in a bunch of 4 so I bought 3 packs and just trimmed them and stuck them in this plant pot that I used as a vase. Who knew how hard it would be to find a simple black vase…it was crazy. I specifically didn’t want anything with any type of texture, sheen or crazy shape since I didn’t want it to compete with the black marble pattern of the coffee table. So when I stumbled upon this black ceramic plant pot and immediately thought to myself, this is it, it checks off all the boxes plus ain’t no one have to know that it’s really a plant pot…except for you guys!

I added the incense burner I bought a while back from Dollar Tree and that completes the look for the coffee table. I made the decision early on that I didn’t want an overly styled coffee table, just the basics so there you have it a vase or should say plant pot, flowers, coasters and incense burner…dasssitt.

New Curtains and Rods

I really wanted velvet curtains for this space because I wanted it to feel sexy and a bit bougie up in here with a down to earth feel (you know like me), but I didn’t want to deal with having to dry clean curtains because to be honest, I don’t have time to dry clean anything and so I found these washable velvet curtains and let’s just say I love. I purchased four panels for the larger window to give the space a fuller feel and went with the typical two panels for the smaller window. I feel all of the Empress tarot card vibes and energy every time I look at them.

The curtain rods and finials that you see here aren’t my favorite to be honest since the ones that I originally bought and loved, didn’t work with my walls (I’m convinced that my walls are possessed) so I had to go with these since the mounting hardware actually cooperated with my walls. Have you ever returned 172” curtain rods before? Well I have and let’s just say that I wasn’t doing it again so I stuck with these.

What I’m not crazy about is the finish and how they function. I would’ve liked something that emulated brass more, these look like a spray on brass paint job to me (I swear my decorating eye can sometimes be a lot). Everyone else doesn’t seem to notice. The curtain also seems to get stuck on the rod at times when I pull the panels back - this sometimes extends the rod and makes it longer, which is a pain since I have to grab a stool to move it back. This is an example of when the look trumps the headache.

I also hung the new rod and finial set for the smaller window last night (you guys are getting the real life update here). Now that window is not centered on the wall and with the new artwork coming in, it was going to really look off balance plus the window looks tiny against the big sectional so to fix that issue and create more balance in the space, I went ahead and hung the curtain rod further away from the right side of window and voila…balance! When I tell you that 4-5 inches makes a HUGE difference…it really does!

I swear to you guys that I took pics, but somehow I can’t find them on my phone! I’ll take some and update you guys soon. If you want tips on how to hang curtains the right way, take a look over here.

New Shoe Cabinet

I’m so happy to report that Taz cannot get to the shoes anymore…praise all the Gods because this guy’s teeth are ruthless…Pitbulls! I was able to find this new item at Ikea that was narrow enough and fit perfectly in the small wall so it was a big win! I’m still going back and forth on if I want to add the brass handles that I originally brought for the media cabinet. We’ll see, but for now I’m really loving how airy the entryway feels.

Entryway Mirror and Bowl

My friend gave me a wall mirror a couple years ago from her many estate sale finds and at the time, I didn’t have a place for it so I stored it in the attic until I found a spot for it (it’s cute so I couldn’t say no). Well it’s found a home beautifully nestled right above the new shoe cabinet. LOVE.

Another Marshall’s find…this beautiful black wooden bowl. As soon as I saw it, I knew it would look stunning in the entryway and so she came home with me along with the faux pothos plant.

I found these black metal plant stands on clearance for $3 at Ikea years ago and I bought about five of them since you can never have enough plant stands. I love how they are stackable and I’m able to use them in various ways (this pattern you see here is actually two plant stands stacked together).

New Entryway Lighting

Decorating journeys are NEVER linear…shit it be looking like a heart monitor screen if you ask me! Getting lighting for the entryway started off seemless, but quickly turned into a nightmare.

Where do I start?

I had originally wanted to go with the lights you see here since I wanted to incorporate some crystal into the space, but with a modern twist. I stumbled upon these, but went back and forth on them - one day they were perfect - another day, they felt like overkill.

Then one Sunday morning, I’m doing some online perusing and stumble upon some light fixtures that had me shook and so I drove my ass down to Capitol Lighting on East Hanover, NJ and made my purchase using my Designer Trade discount. Stay far away from this store because needless to say after having to reach out multiple times via email and phone for an update, the original lighting I purchased went on backorder twice and since ain’t nobody got time to wait two to three months for light fixtures, I cancelled the order and went with my original choice which you see here.

Shout out their online reps who were amazing and were finally able to get me my money back after almost a month of trying to reach my Designer Trade representative who was MIA - let’s just say the store reps are straight up a holes.

That’s what I get for not trusting my gut. In the end, I’m in love with my Crown Chakra inspired light fixtures that bring in so much needed light into my home. LOVE. LOVE.

New Faux Plants

Even with the new lighting in the space, going with real plants outside of the ones I keep by the windows, I’m still not comfortable with. This is because we don’t keep the lights on when we’re not home and to not kill any plants, I still go with faux plants for areas that aren’t near the window.

So you guessed it, I picked up a few during another Marshall’s run. I tend to hit up their clearance section and always seem to luck out and find faux plant gems and plant pots/stand so in total, I picked up about 5 new faux plants and placed one on my new nightstand, one on each side table in the living room, one in the half bath and the last one in the entryway.

You see how so much has happened since we last connected on here?! Btw, this entire space is giving heavy Cancer energy!

Shop the look below:

New Paint Color

I finally painted and I am in love with the color! I cannot wait to see the new rug and throw pillows against this color. Let’s just say that they’ll be bringing in grounding vibes!

So what’s left to do in this space?

Let’d do a quick run down:

paint the living room and entryway including doors, baseboards and maybe the ceiling ( oh I have an update! I finally bought the paint & supplies yesterday and actually patched up the holes on the wall so I say this to say that it’s looking really promising that the space will be painted this weekend - ya’ll will be the first to see the newly painted space…I cannot wait to share so stay tuned )
washable runners for the entryway (because well….Taz)
new bench for the entryway
new side table
throw pillows
deep clean the sectional
artwork
moving the large wall mirror to the bedroom
rug (still going back and forth on this one since I don’t know if I have the patience to move the coffee table and rug every time I have to sweep/vacuum and mop…just typing it makes me roll my eyes)
wallpaper for a wall in the entryway (this is a new addition to the list). So the wall where the shoe cabinet is houses a vent, alarm panel and two other small boxes that I have no idea what they are for and because I want to paint the entryway, it’s going to look off with the wall painted and all these mechanisms left in their original color…that shit is going to annoy me and so I thought that wallpaper would do a good job of disguising them and since I have leftover wallpaper…problem solved.
remove the weird ass wall that sits between the entryway/foyer and living room (why do contractors place walls in the weirdest of places…whyyyy?)

So there is the update.

Click here to see the reveal of the living room transformation.

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How I'm Transforming My Living Room To Match My Vibe Part 6