A new living room

The color is called conch shell, but while painting I decided the best description would be white lady's foundation, (or "pancake" as Ben likes to call it).

I even painted the ceiling (cringe). We'd had it repaired years ago and never painted over the patch. Tip: If you have to paint a ceiling, paint it before you finish the walls. It's harder to edge cleanly on the ceiling. And get ready for some serious paint spatters in the face.

I didn't remember to take any good before shots. But it was RED, my friends. We're talking a-primer-and-two-solid-coats-later kind of red. Or what I also like to call "It's 2001, y'all" red.

We're still recasting the room's details based on the new color. The two prints you see in the first photo are both maps of the city of Minneapolis. On the left: a remarkably detailed paper-cut by our friend Ochen Kaylan. On the right: an Ork neighborhood map.

We've had the yellow porcelain lamp in the basement for ages; I finally took it to our lighting store to find a shade and they gave us a finial to match. Our best Craigslist find to date is this rosewood credenza with tambour doors that we've transformed into a media cabinet.

Next up: The dining room! It's looking a little green against conch shell. Stay tuned.