What would you do in this room.

[PinkBlossom13]

Hello, we've just bought an Edwardian semi and I'm keen to bring back some period features and give it a feel of the era that it was built in, with a modern twist

or

go completely for a New England / Hampshire kind of vibe.

I'm after thoughts or inspo.

What would you do in this room? Changing the kitchen and floor isn't an option as it's less than three years old. I would like to swap out the living flame gas fire for a log burner with a surround that is more in keeping with the era of the house as opposed to a simple wood sleeper mantle.

Thanks all xx

It’s a great space and once you get some good quality sofas and soft furnishings it’ll look fine. I’d get a big neutral rug, IKEA do a massive one. Think it’s called STOENSE and a big one is about £90. I’d buy two matching sofas and put them facing each other. Coffee table in the middle. I’d put a big mirror over the fireplace. I’d replace the gas fire with a log burner this winter. I’d get side tables either side of the sofas and put big lamps on them. You need to make it a focal point. I’d stick to neutral colour sofas and rugs, two chesterfields would look nice if you want a more traditional vibe (not leather though). Then I would add a colour and warmth with cushions and lamps. The bar stools are pretty gross. I’d get 4/6 wooden ones. A few big house plants would also look nice.

Whilst the floor is a bit iffy, you won’t notice it if you get a rug and sofas - at the moment it’s a massive expanse of grey laminate but you just need to fill it and make it homely.

I guarantee you will spend all your time in this room and will rarely use a separate sitting room. Once you’ve lived in the house for a good few years you’ll know what you love / hate about the kitchen and by then the floor will have taken a bit of a hammering and you’ll feel more justified in replacing it. When the time comes to get a new kitchen, it will look absolutely amazing. It’s a lovely big room. Congratulations on your new home.

It's very masculine, cold and dated. Your kitchen looks workable so I'd entirely concentrate on the living and dining area. I'd leave the fireplace. I'd paint the walls a warmer colour. I'd buy rugs to cover the floor. Fabric sofa with scatter cushions. Floor plants. Pictures on the wall. It just needs decorating rather than anything major. It's a good size with good windows so it has potential.

I'd not use the island as main dining space but put wooden table where sofa is now maybe with benches at the back . Bold wallpaper on that wall and a pendant lamp over sofa . Then I'd have a fabric sofa in nice colour facing the fireplace, and a comfy chair next to patio doors facing in. With a lovely rug and some big plants couple of lamps it'll look nice

Changed my mind about the fireplace. I only looked at the mantelpiece which is ok but the tiling and the actual fire are not nice. I'd take them out.

A log burner would not be Edwardian would it ?
surely in Edwardian times it would be a coal fire, so the gas coal fire is the nearest thing ?
as I guess you are not going to put a real coal fire and fireplace back in.

Thanks everyone. I'm ignoring the blunt comments. I honestly don't understand people's thought process at times.

Just to clear up some questions that have been asked and some ideas that have been suggested.

• The sofas and barstools are NOT ours. And they will not be replaced with anything remotely like that. I'm not a leather fan and certainly not black.
• The fire will be one of the first things we save up for and do and will def be a log burner.
• I'm honestly not that offended by the floor. The real floorboards would be lovely but it's not an expense I am desperate to shell out for in a hurry. For now, it's easily maintained and practical with a young family and pets and I love a rug so quite happy to have a large rug in there.
• I absolutely love the idea of pendant lights(s) above the island but I have no idea how big a job it would be to put them in. I'd love to have three hanging down and there are 3 spots directly above the island. Anyone know if replacing spots with an actual light fixture is easy or is it a massive job?
• No we def don't need 8 bar stools around the island. This is a five bedroom house and at present it has a big family who foster living there. There are 4 of us and at most there would be a need for 7 chairs if we had family over but day to day, just 4.
• This room isn't an extension. I see that it might look like one but it is the original kitchen and 2nd reception room knocked through to be one open plan space. The fireplace was the second reception room fireplace before it was knocked through so although modern, is a little dated now. This remodel was done three years ago.

And just a question to those that might know, what kind of curtains blinds am I able to have with bifold doors? I've never had bifold before so not sure on what works with them and doesn't interfere with the folding mechanism.

Thank you so much for such a lovely reply - I love all of these ideas and I am thinking the same that the other lounge won't get much look in once we have this one how we like it. I love the ideas of the sofas facing each other but where would you put the telly? xx

Yes - you are quite right. I did a lot of reading up on fires from another forum and the general consensus was that a log burner for that sized room would be more effective than an open fire. So whilst not in total keeping with the Edwardian theme that I had hoped I could go for, it was still more olde worlde than a living flame effect gas fire. We still have the other lounge which still has many features and I'm hoping eventually I will get he Edwardian open fire I have always wanted x

Crikey OP what a massive space - Londoner here with teeny house - v. jealous. If it was my house and I had the budget, I would definitely try to find a vintage fireplace to replace the existing one and link the tiles on the surround to the ones in the kitchen. I would then buy a huge rug and cover the floor, some muted William Morris wallpaper some squishy sofas, plants and Bob is your uncle. Have you seen Sophie Robinson's kitchen - it's v OTT but shows how a massive kitchen can look cosy and interesting. I also like the orange colour of your door and what looks like pale sage green tiles, so I would try to include those colours in my wallpaper choice. Do you actually need curtains, because they will cost a bomb.

I live in an Edwardian semi with the kitchen/dining room knocked into one to make a lovely, light, spacious living space. You're going to love it once you put your stamp on it and I think you should definitely go New England style.

Nothing wrong with the kitchen and the floor is practical and will look good with a couple of rugs. And some gorgeous F&B colours for the walls. Also agree with adding texture.

Don't underestimate how much you'll use your front sitting room - especially when the kids are older. Ours is a nice cosy retreat in winter.

Enjoy your Edwardian home - lots of inspiration on Instagram. Just one thing - whilst doing your research on fires, have you come across the health warnings about log burners?

If you look up Julie Jones on Facebook, she's an American interior designer. She does lots of videos about space planning, where she shows a client's floor plan, talks through their requirements and shows her solution. Yours is just the sort of thing she tackles - not suggesting you employer her or anything but her videos may be useful to get a feel for how to solve the questions people have been posing on this thread - i.e. where to site the sofa(s) w.r.t. the tv and fireplace, space requirements around the island so you have room for the chairs, paths of travel out to the bi-folds, zoning the room etc. Just a suggestion. (Also agree it's a lovely room, ignore the green-eyed commenters who don't know when to keep their traps shut )

😂

Edwardian colours are pale and pastel ( but not white) so New England would work well.

I’d get rid of the dark worktops, you can get them wrapped which is nowhere near as costly as replacing them.

New, sleek door handles for the kitchen cabinets.

Pendant lights above the ceiling.

A wood burner will look miles better and more homely.

Paint the walls a warmer shade of white, and I second the poster who suggested feature wallpaper for the wall facing the garden. A huge rug, fabulous sofa and statement light fitting. I’d go really bold in the sitting area in terms of colour, texture and soft furnishings as the kitchen is so white.

I think going with a Hamptons beachy look, whites, creams, blues, would look great OP.

I agree.

Don't get a wood burner though, please! They're awful for the environment and the health of other people in a built up area.

I don't think it would fit with the look anyway if that helps.

I think I'd replace the top of the island with a nice wooden top instead. It would be more rustic and more like a table than a breakfast bar.

Big large coir rug (with a Labrador sleeping on it) in front of the fire.

Fire place I'd change to something more rustic but still modern. Maybe a log burner, not sure. Have a look.

Maybe some library shelving area and soft cream sofas...

Leather sofa ❌leather chairs ❌which are not yours anyway.

Avoid hard, shiny , insta wag pieces.

Soften with large rug. Wood stools. Fabric Sofas. Hanging lights over counter ( not a massive job )
Paint pine door black to tie in with sliding door frames. It jars at the moment.
The glossy fire surround also jars though I don't mind the actual mantel. I think a woodburner would work.

Google Nancy Myers house. I can see that look ( softer with a nod to heritage ) working.

Some of the replies on here , we know which ones, are so rude and ridiculous. Congrats on the new house.

It's a great space to work with, but don't underestimate how much a log burner will limit your furniture placement - you won't be able to put anything close to it, which will limit your options a lot. They also come into their own in the evening, which you might find you want to 'retire' to the front room anyway - any chance of putting one there?

Do you currently eat round an island? Do you often have other people round to eat? I wouldn't rule out putting a dining table in, unless it's how you eat currently and know it's what you'll definitely do. Whilst it's a big island, they're not conducive to social eating, as it's just not that comfortable to sit on high chairs for that long, and you might not want to have people sitting round what is essentially a kitchen unit. We often spend whole evenings with friends/family around the dining table - dinner segues into drinks and then into games etc. An island just doesn't lend itself to that kind of thing. But they are great for breakfasts/lunches and quick weekday meals.

If you're bringing a table with you from your current house (or have one now) then I'd definitely put it in the new space for a while to see how things work for you. And getting a marketplace sofa is a great idea too - could tide you over/let you see how the space will work for you.

I'd change the bar stools 6 would be enough. Get rid of the sofa, put the tv on the wall and get rid of that unit. Large rug and fabric sofas by the fire place. Hard to tell if the space would work or chairs.
By the window where the tv was a nice fabric sofa, so you can look out of the window in the winter. Bring some colour into the room.

Congratulations!
It needs warming up a bit. Too many hard reflective surfaces. You need some vintage furniture for character, texture, wood, plants, artwork, rug on the floor.
I wonder if you'd be better with a couple of armchairs rather than a sofa, that way you might get a table in there. I'd change the handles on the cupboards.
We inherited a similar floor in our shower room - I used Limestone and Pompeian Ash Frpm Little Greene on the walls and it really mellowed the floor.
I have a Wood burner in my kitchen (I love it !) - there's a law about extractor fans and wood burners, you might want to check that before pinning your hopes.