Hi! I'm new here, just found you guys today. I'm not a very experienced quilter (but I am a fairly experienced sewer), though I have dabbled and I love it, but I'm getting new couches this week (to be delivered friday) and I want to make new curtains and some pillows and stuff to go with it. I also want to paint the living room, but that may be too daunting. :shock: When we ordered the couches last week I was thinking I'd have the walls and curtains done before they got here, but I am thinking that's not going to happen.

Anyhow, I have never done any home dec sewing at all and I'm looking for inspiration. So far I've done a lot of oggling over at the modern home sewing group on flickr and there're a lot of gorgeous pieces. I wish I could see more *in a living room* though.

I just thought I'd stop in and say hi and ask if you all had any inspiration or great tutorials or special projects that you've loved.

Welcome from Southern Oregon.

Welcome from NE Ohio.

Thanks, you guys! :)

Hi Rubidoux and Welcome to the QB!

How exciting for you! A living room redo! :D
HGTV (Home & Garden Television) has a website chock full of inspiration and "how to" advice.

My advice would be to find one or some things you love and let the rest of the room be inspired by that. And to not be afraid to try color in your painting!

Welcome from Illinois!

Welcome from WV!!

Welcome from Alabama. Sorry can't help with curtains. I don't have any in my house but I'm 14 ft. up from the ground with a wraparound porch so no one can see in any way.

welcome from OK...I only have 1 window in my living room, so it only has the standard sheers with drawn drapes over them...boring, but it is all that room needs...very simple..

be sure to show us pix of what you do!

Welcome!

I have done a lot of home dec sewing, as in pillows and curtains. They are easy and you can have exactly what you want at a good price. I always buy true home dec fabric that has to be dry cleaned but it looks so much nicer when hanging.

Good luck!

Hello and welcome from Tennessee. I am in the process of making new curtains for the family room. This time I went with bright and bold colors. Will be using the grommets for the heading and not lining since I have bamboo blinds over the windows. Good luck with your remodel.

A big welcome form the eastern part of Texas.

I can't tell you how much I want to use some color on the walls! I'd love to do off white or a light, light tan with one robins egg blue wall. I'd be in heaven! But my husband is dead set against anything but pure white. :shock: We're trying to get our house looking better and more comfortable on a very tight budget and I think a bit of color would be a cheap way to add a lot of style. Gah!

I think I'll be going with bright and bold, too! The couches are brown leather (fabric couches go down hill fast with 2 dogs and 2 little boys) and I'm thinking my main fabric will be a natural colored linen and then I'll use raspberry, bright teal, and mustard as my main colors with a little bit of other stuff (purple, tan, pinks). This -- http://www.flickr.com/photos/maggiemakes/3980611163/in/faves-14054236@N02/ -- is the closest I can find to the colors I'm aiming for, but I'd like more mustard and maybe some buttery yellows, too.

My first real quilt may not be done for many years, lol, but I started it thinking it would be a living room throw. Here's a pic from way back in the beginning (although I've hardly progressed): http://www.flickr.com/photos/1405423...7626231318300/ It looks a lot brighter now. When i took that pic I had around 30 different fabrics, but now I've got more like 70 and there's a lot of bright aqua and other brights. It's funny to see how gloomy it looks there! I need to take pics of the pieces I've actually pieced.

Btw, I can hardly believe the pace this board moves at! Wow! :mrgreen:

Hi and welcome from Victoria,Australia.

I agree with the others who said to pick a pattern for a place to start. Doesn't matter where you find the pattern, mine came from a border used in the dining room. The dining room got one color drawn from that with the ceiling a lighter form of that shade, and the adjourning living got the reverse light ceiling color on the walls. Couldn't convince my husband that the ceiling in the lr didn't have to be white. So the ceiling and the ceiling medallion are flat white. All the old fashioned wide woodwork and moldings are semigloss white. Good luck, don't worry so much about paint, it can always be repainted in a year or so.

Welcome from WI! What fun to redo your living room. I would suggest you take one piece of something around your home that you love and let the creative process begin. Good Luck and again, welcome to our board.