I would do the same thing in a heartbeat but dh would have a cow. Our living room is just for show, too. We never use it. I share my sewing room with the guest room so when we have guests, maybe once a year, everything has to be picked up and put away, which is a real pain. Our living room is on the southeast side of the house and has large windows and is very sunny and pleasant and would make a perfect sewing room.