Hearth Room & Breakfast Area Reveal

I still walk around our new house in amazement. I still feel like I am dreaming- I can not believe that this house is OURS...that we finally have the space we need for living and entertaining. It's been 2 months since we closed on our new house and while there is still plenty on my to do list for decorating and fixing up I felt it was time to share some before and after photos with you all.

One of the biggest selling features to this house was the kitchen/hearth room/breakfast area. These rooms are all connected and I knew the minute I walked in they would be the center of our home and family time. I loved that in our old house we had a huge island- it was where the kids and I cooked and baked and I knew that I would never be able to have a home without one again! Lucky for me this home had one! Along with a huge kitchen that includes 4 ovens! Yes you heard me right there are 2 ovens built into the wall and then the previous owner added a double convection oven (although I am ashamed to say I have yet to self-clean or use the convection oven..yeah yeah it's on the to do list!!). I must admit I am a bit intimidated by it and afraid I will burn everything I cook in it! I have not done much as far as decorating goes in the kitchen so I will show you around the hearth room and breakfast area instead!

Ok.....Since I know you were dying to know what a kitchen with 4 ovens looks like- here is a picture of the kitchen before we moved in!

Before: The hearth room. The previous owners had these shades on all the windows throughout the downstairs. Notice the beautiful red curtain on the back door. It was so long you could not even open the door without it getting all tangled and drug underneath the door! I see lots of potential here!! After: We replaced the shades with 2" white faux blinds on all the windows and back door. Added the valances and viola! We have color!! I was so lucky that there was the same amount of windows as in our old house so I was able to just take down our old window valances and install them here instead! (Especially since I had just redecorated our old house 2 months before we wrote the offer on this one!) I still need something to go in that corner- something with height and shelves- I want something like this. Ashley Buffet

What do you all think? I need something that I can hide the DVDs, craft supplies, and Wii games in the bottom but then I would have shelves up top for decorative pieces.
Before: The view from the other side- looking into the breakfast area. Again those shades on the windows and the biggest window did not have anything on it!




After: Looking towards the breakfast room. The family tree photo wall came from Bed Bath & Beyond and is perfect for big walls that you don't want something boxy to frame in the wall. Since the branches on the tree are all open and flowing outward it makes it seem like it takes up more of the wall and gives it that open feeling. (note: the brown leather is all the same color- it's just the lighting on this photo, sorry) I still need some more decorative items in this room- maybe a tall floor vase with branches coming out of it..Target has some I love but just waiting for them to go on sale!


I love, love, love our new wall art! I ordered it from a daily discount site, Zulily from a company called Wall Quotes. I already have my list of more that I want to order, that is unless Santa is good and brings me a Silhoutte Cameo so I can make my own wall quotes!!


Well that is all for now- look for more before/afters as I finish up the rest of the house!
~Elizabeth