The Big Empty

I must say I have been holding off on showing you the interior of my home for the longest because its embarrassing as a designer! Its big and empty. It has no life, no personality, no color, and no rhythm which are all the things that I am not. It was built as a builder spec home, so everything is blah, boring, and builder grade (what I call the "Tripple B Threat"). But I do have all these big plans that I have been dreaming up since I have been here. I will share them with you as I journey down the long road of decorating our house and making it our home. First off let me just show you some photos of the main living area that just got painted.

Top left: View of dining room from entry foyer
Middle left: Dining room view
Top right: View of dining room and entry foyer
2nd row left: View of family room into casual dining room
2nd row middle: View of hallway into master suite
2nd row right: View of casual dining room from family room
3rd row left: View of sitting room from entry
3rd row middle: View of hallway down into kids bedrooms
3rd row right: View of divider wall into entry from family room
Bottom row left: View of breakfast bar into kitchen from casual dining
Bottom row right: View of kitchen from kitchen entry

I love the taupe paint color (read more about it here), but hate everything else. I plan to eventually:

In the kitchen...

• paint the cabinets and replace the hardware
• add a couple of glass doors to either side of the sink cabinets
• add a back splash
• add under cabinet lighting
• add window treatments
• double the size of the island and add a butcher block counter top (its so small and not functional at all for such a big kitchen)
• add a pot rack above the island (always wanted one)

In the main living areas...

• replace the carpet and tile in the foyer with wood (in the meantime I am planning on taking up the carpet and painting the concrete floor. Any feedback on this idea will be helpful)
• add window treatments
• replace all light fixtures
• move TV cable to divider wall
• add trim to the top of the divider wall to make it look finished
• add lighting to plant shelf

Here is what I am using as a guide right now: I created a flow chart showing our traffic patterns of navigation. I also added arrows showing certain focal points that I would like to highlight when I am decorating.

The flow chart helped me with my furniture plan to use as a guide when I am looking to purchase large furniture items. I played with the family room for the longest about how to place the furniture.
The only thing that I have that is staying is my dining room table and chairs. I actually bought it in my mind before I even knew I was buying a house. I love the idea a 72" round ding table. There is no head of the table, so everyone is important. We entertain alot and we always get comments on our dining table. It's definitely a conversation piece.