Epic Room Makeover Entry

Hi Everyone!

While checking my favorite blogs yesterday, I saw that Mandi over at Vintage Revivals is doing her Epic Room Makeover Contest again this year and it's open to anyone living in the lower 48 states, so I've decided to enter our living room into the contest. To check out Mandi first Epic Room Makeover click here.

Now I know I have like no chance of winning, but our living room is a hot mess, so I figured what the heck! So here goes nothing...

Mandi,
Our living room is in desperate need of a makeover! It's a large room with a very awkward layout due to oddly placed windows and strange cut outs. See photos below.

Really odd placement of windows! It was built in the 1960's, so maybe that has something to do with it.

(That space under the windows is always empty, or filled with toys. What am I supposed to put there?!)

Here are the strange and very hard-to-work-with cut outs. There are three in this one little area! AHHH!!!! I hate them SO much! The cut out in the hallway has a mirror in it and it's awful. The cut out by the stairs is filled with pictures. (I only did that because that's what the former owner had done and I didn't really know what else to do.) And the third cut out up by the ceiling is large and I have no idea what to put up there!

(By the way, how ugly is this railing? It's so bad!)

And here is another pass through into the kitchen. This wall is hard to work with as well because it's not dry wall. It's some sort of wood paneling under the paint. I think it could look really cool if we could figure out what in the heck to do with it!

And it's really difficult finding a rug to fit the room. We actually had this one made from a carpet remnant that we had bound. We have no idea how to place the furniture! We bought new furniture when we moved in and decided on a couch and two chairs, but it's just not enough seating when we have company.

I've also had a hard time finding things that I like to put on the walls. They're SO bare and don't get me started on the window treatments or the lighting! And I really don't love having the couch up against the railing, but we don't know how else to do it because of the tv. 

It's all terrible, but really overwhelming!!

It's a large room with high ceilings and some great character, but there are so many odd things about it that we're not really sure where to start. We REALLY need your help! I'm so embarrassed of this space and it's where we spend ALL of our time together as a family and do our entertaining.

I just know that you could make it look AMAZING!

Help, Help, Help! I would love to have a happy living room for my family to spend time in!