Hey guys! June is officially here, and while usually it’s already sweltering hot at this time of year, we’ve had a really long and mild Spring. I don’t want to jinx it or anything, and I certainly don’t want to rush Summer along, but this week my kiddos will wrap up their school years, and it will unofficially be Summer in our house. Today I am joining several other bloggers on a week long hop and sharing my Seasonal Simplicity Summer living room tour. Thanks so much to Krista and April for hosting this hop; you can find the full list of participants at the bottom of this post. If you are hopping over from Debbie’s at Refresh Restyle, I am so glad to have you! Debbie and I share a love of aqua, as you will see. I chose to share my living room for this tour, because I’ve made some fun non-seasonal changes to it that I wanted to show you, and also because the seasonal touches that I did add to this space truly are simple… as in I took some scissors into my yard, brought some clippings back in the house, and voila… Summer! (This post contains affiliate links.)
West Elm Henry Sofa / Similar Indigo Pillow / Kilim, Cream Nubby, and Cream Lumbar Pillows; Aqua and Gray Rug, Moroccan Basket / Tropical Pillows / Similar Coffee Table / Similar Pouf / Black and Cream Rug / Similar Candlesticks / Fringe / Similar Navy Velvet Sofa / Abstract Art
If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you might notice some of the changes that will stay even after Summer passes. This rug from Antique Tex in India provides a stunning graphic pattern and a great dose of aqua to this space. (If you are a shop owner, Antique Tex is a direct manufacturer and open to people who wholesale, and can custom make designs… and they have awesome prices! If I still owned my store, I would be selling these rugs there.)
I’ve also added a little bit of color and texture to my center facing sofas. Since these couches are totally different in style and color from one another, I try to bring them together by balancing color and texture in the pillows. On the gray West Elm Henry sofa, I’ve got a couple of indigo pillows a friend gave me a few years ago, a shot of green from a lumbar pillow from Stuck on Hue, and a blue and cream kilim pillow from Antique Tex.
I am in love with the design and colors on this Kilim!
On the opposing navy vintage velvet sofa, I’ve used Shelby Dillon’s banana leaf pillows in a vibrant tropical green with hints of teal. I’ve paired them with a couple of textured cream and gray pillows from Antique Tex.
Cream and Lumbar Pillows; Aqua and Gray Rug, Moroccan Basket / Tropical Pillows / Similar Coffee Table / Similar Pouf / Black and Cream Rug / Similar Candlesticks / Fringe / Similar Navy Velvet Sofa / Abstract Art
The texture of this one has that boho summery vibe, but it will easily transition through every season.
The cream lumbar pillow from Antique Tex has an embroidered gray design and my favorite thing… pom pom corners!
You may have noticed the greenery on the coffee table. Have you ever planted sweet mint? If you do, do yourself a favor and plant it in a place where you want it to just go wild and cover all the things… do not plant it in, say, a pretty garden with lots of flowers you love. Whoops. Well, I put my overgrowth of mint to use and collected it in a large vase on the coffee table. Bonus- it smells amazing!
Aqua and Gray Rug, Moroccan Basket / Similar Coffee Table / Similar Pouf / Black and Cream Rug / Similar Candlesticks / Fringe / Scenic Route Print / Mexican Blanket / Similar Tote Basket
I also added my constellation Mova globe because it reminds me of one of our favorite summertime activities… stargazing! I always keep a few of my favorite design books in the living room because they look lovely and give people something fun to peruse. I found the coasters a couple of years ago at TJ Maxx, and the zebra dish was a gift from a friend.
I also clipped some blooms from our knockout rose which is flowering like crazy. I placed them in a small vase with some yellow rue on a side table. The rue is supposed to help keep bugs from eating the roses…. I am not sure how effective it is, but our roses are thriving, so maybe it has to do with them? The rue has grown enormous and needed some trimming, so I thought I’d put it to use and it’s quite fragrant as well.
It’s quite honestly not the prettiest of bouquets, but it’s simple, and this is the seasonal simplicity tour. 😉 And there’s really nothing better than being able to clip stems from your own garden.
Our mantle is always one of my favorite places to show signs of the season. Fittingly for this tour this year, I kept it super simple by just lining up some of my midcentury brass candlesticks with teal candles on the mantle.
Aqua and Gray Rug, Moroccan Basket / Black and Cream Rug / Similar Candlesticks / Fringe / Scenic Route Print / Mexican Blanket / Similar Tote Basket
The teal pops against the black, has a subtle beachy vibe, and works beautifully with the new rug which really brings the room together. The fringe is now going on two years strong on the mantle… Not over it yet! Somewhere in the “home blogger’s guidebook” there’s a rule about keeping a decoration up for that long, but rules were made to be broken and I like to live on the edge.
My snake plant has been sitting on the hearth for a bit now, and I’ve always HATED the black pot I had it in, but it’s hard to find inexpensive large pretty pots, isn’t it? This new moroccan basket from Antique Tex masks the plastic pot beautifully and brings in that modern bohemian style I love. I also added a little “Take the Scenic Route” Print as Summer is the perfect time to do that… slow down, take it easy, and enjoy the ride. We’ll certainly be road tripping a bit this Summer!
We’ve made one other change to this room … we removed the turquoise dresser that sat under the family photo! You” have to come back tomorrow to see where it landed, but for now I’ve added a vintage dog basket I found at an auction with a sheepskin (my dogs love laying on these).
Cream and Lumbar Pillows; Aqua and Gray Rug, Small Kilim Rug / Tropical Pillows / Similar Coffee Table / Similar Pouf / Black and Cream Rug / Similar Navy Velvet Sofa / Abstract Art
I love the more open feeling the living room has now, not as claustrophobic. Truly, the dresser was only there so we had somewhere to put our printer, but we were able to move that into the basement after our big yard sale last week
Under the dog bed, I added a Kilim throw rug from Antique Tex to protect the floor from scratching. It mirrors the pattern of the kilim pillow.
As promised, I kept it very simple with seasonal touches in my living room this year. Tomorrow I will be sharing my kitchen and dining room, which are a little more “Summery” at the moment, but decorated using only items I already owned. Come back and check it out then!
If you like what you saw today, you can shop this look at the very bottom of this post. Now head on over to Jaime’s blog, That’s My Letter, to see her Seasonal Simplicity Tour in her gorgeous old northern farmhouse, and make sure you visit all of the other Seasonal Simplicity tours today and throughout the week.
Monday
House by Hoff / House of Wood / Refresh Restyle / Cassie Bustamante / That’s My Letter
Tuesday
The Happy Housie / Simplicity in the South / at HOME with the barkers / Sincerely, Sara D.
Wednesday
Nina Hendrick Design Co. / The Wicker House / A Burst of Beautiful / Paint Me Pink / Town and Country Living
Thursday
At Charlotte’s House / Just a Girl and Her Blog / House 214 Design / Robb Restyle
Friday
My Fabuless Life / The Turquoise Home / Erin Spain / Place of My Taste / Cherished Bliss
