The progress of the library room

Our library room is coming together so nicely. I wrote in the summer about my plans to make it dark blue and moody. And so far, I’m on the right track! And today, I wanted to share with you the library's progress. It’s not complete yet, but it is on the right way. And as they say, good things take time, so I’m not rushing to buy everything but carefully sourcing each item.

So what’s new?

Wall color of the library

I finally painted the whole room, including the ceiling - a bold move that ultimately paid off. I love the color!!! The name of the color is English Channel by Behr, and I couldn’t be happier with it. It suits this room perfectly!

It was a bit of a hassle to paint it because the shelves and trim were prior painted with oil-based paint. Nothing is unfixable; I just had to go through an extra step and prime the whole thing, which was inconvenient but doable.

To make my job easier, I got a Graco spray painter. And oh my, I’m in love! You can read how to use it in my post here. It’s about all the mistakes I’ve learned during the process - an interesting read if you are planning to tackle a similar project.

Chandelier

I love the bubble chandelier that Chris Loves Julia uses in their office. Unfortunately, it’s out of my budget, so I found a more affordable alternative. And I love it!

It took a while to wait for an electrician, and when he came, we discovered that the wires and the box were so old that they had to be replaced. The problem is the old box is centered and not removable, so we had to move the box to the left. That caused the chandelier to hang and not be centered. Such a disappointment! It wouldn’t be visible if we didn’t have this plaster ornament on the ceiling, but we do, and the chandelier looks so off-center.

The electrician is coming back, so we (and by we, I mean he) can devise a creative solution and fix this issue.

I swear, I woke up one night thinking about the chandelier not being centered. Haha, I guess it would bother anyone.

Painting

This painting of a lady was a present from my dad for finishing musical school. It’s very dear to me, and it kind of works in the space but brings a different vibe that I want. So I’m planning to replace it with the moodier one.

This painting of the lady didn’t have a stretcher, so I had to make a new one, but that was easy.

The new painting also needs some work, but a different kind. I got it from the auction for $40 or $50 with an idea to fix the frame. This is still a work in progress, but hopefully, I can get to it soon.

I hung this picture light that I found on amazon - a cheap alternative to the light I want.

Curtains

I got this rod and curtain clips from Amazon. I think the rod fits perfectly. Curtains I had from the playroom, and they have to go when the actual curtains arrive. I was sure I wanted white curtains, but after hanging these, I realized that if I’m going for a moody vibe, I need dark and heavy curtains. Perhaps dark blue?

Any suggestions?

Furniture

As you saw on my mood board, I want two orange leather wing chairs. The ones on the photo are already gone (I think they were on 1st dibs for $4000 each), so I’m on the lookout for perfect leather chairs. Something tells me it might take a while to find them. But as I said before, all good things are worth waiting for. And I’d buy perfect chairs that I love rather than compromise on something I’ll hate to look at later.

Related: Tips on how to shop an online auction

I feel I can score some small decor items, but chairs will have to be—the right ones.

Can you see my vision yet?

This round table was one of the finds from the Facebook marketplace, and I love it - the details are stunning, and the unique legs bring an exciting element to it.

The lamp was also scored from the auction, and I like how the white shade pops up in the dark. The glass bubble base ties it to the chandelier creating a unified space.

There is still a lot to be done in this library room, like getting a rug and my perfect leather chairs and deciding on curtains, but I’m enjoying the process and making it happen one item at a time.

What do you think? Can you see my final vision, or is it hard to imagine yet?