Simplify… living room

I am excited about this series…it is the encouragement for me to get busy and actually work on simplifying my own home.  I explained all about this series and the rooms I will be working on here.

Ok, so today starts the first room to be cleaned out, organized, and simplified in our series – the living room.  This room one wasn’t that hard (although I still have a stack of papers to go through.)

Here’s my after-Christmas living room.  Mostly clean just cluttered.

This definitely needs some help and re-organization!

This is the hardest area for me to keep clean.  The paper just tries to take over!   I am very good about going through the mail as soon as I get it and throwing and filing away what needs to be filed.  But coupons, sale papers, things that need to be done on the computer, etc.  just seem to pile up and don’t have a place to go.

I have tried having a basket under the table to corral it all but it just ends up overflowing.

So first I removed everything from the room except furniture, pillows, and lamps.  Then I re-organized the TV stand (and cleaned out a stack of old PS games I hope to convince my husband to get rid of) and cleaned the entire room from top to bottom. Vacuumed the dust off the baseboards and cobwebs from the ceiling, vacuumed under the rug, under the couch, and in between the cushions, and the rest of the room.  Dusted and polished all the furniture and wiped down the couch with leather cleaner/conditioner.

Taking everything out of the room allows you to see what it would look like without it all!  And in fact, I rather liked it!

So I put things back one by one and made sure to stop and look after each piece to see if I was liking it or it was too cluttered. 

The TV stand is all organized and cleaned out and polished….

Here’s the whole room – all clean and clutter-free! 

Many things didn’t go back.  I am going to try not putting any baskets or anything under the coffee table so it won’t encourage me to pile papers.

I usually have a plant in the corner by the windows, but I can’t decide if it should stay or not be in the room anymore??

Here’s the window corner without the plant – what do you think?

Here is the after!  Much simpler and just what I am looking for!

How about you?  Have you done any cleaning, organizing or simplifying in your living room or family room this week? 

Feel free to link up any living room projects!  Linky will be open through Wednesday, January, 18th so you have plenty of time to clean this weekend and still participate.   You can grab the button up on the top of the post to link up.

{cj}