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Tag: living room

How do I fit a TV on the Fireplace Wall

16 min read(AKA: how to fit your flat screen TV in a mid-century living room)
Where ARE you supposed to fit your flat screen TV in a mid-century living room? Especially if you are one of the lucky folks who ALSO has a lovely brick or stone fireplace as a focal point. Let’s discuss the TV fireplace wall conundrum!

“What to do with a TV on a fireplace wall,” is a quintessential modern conundrum for mid century homeowners.

There’s an undeniable charm to an actual mid-century TV unit – a piece of wooden furniture with cute legs and the ability to roll out of a corner for “family viewing.” But where are you supposed to fit your flat screen TV in a mid-century living room? Especially if you are one of the lucky folks who ALSO have a lovely brick or stone fireplace as a focal point.

This came up in a recent Ready to Remodel Office Hours call because the homeowner was really struggling to find a good solution. Keep scrolling to see the video of that call and how we SOLVE the TV on a Fireplace wall conundrum for them!

Note: This was originally posted May, 2022. It has been updated and now includes a podcast episode for those who’d rather listen than read!

Listen Now On Apple | Google |  Spotify | Stitcher

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The swankiest sunken living room

3 min readWe upped the drama and function in this living room by adding an eye-catching hearth and introducing a sunken seating area.

Here’s what we were dealing with: a very underwhelming entry and living room that had been thoroughly HGTV-ed with white paint EVERYWHERE…even on the fireplace brick…and an adjacent shaker kitchen.

This 1955 split level was built in a development of about 60 houses, each a minor variation on the same basic design. It was originally dripping with cool, before the unfortunate redo. The owner’s love to host (especially game nights) and are looking to create a space that’s “one part atomic era design catalogue, one part ’60s Vegas speakeasy, and one part Bond villain lair.”

Our goal was to up the drama and function of the entry and living room by adding an eye-catching hearth and, possibly, introducing a sunken seating area. We also planned a transformation in the adjacent kitchen to make it a social hub and remove it’s unfortunate farmhouse flavor. 

Our Swanky Living Room Solutions

We designed three schemes to add atomic era cool by improving the eye catching factor of the hearth and, possibly, introducing a sunken seating area. We preserved the circulation pattern of entering straight from the front door or stepping off to the side to rest in the sitting area. The crawl space below would make it possible to “sink” the living area by as little as one step or as deeply as three.

SCHEME 1 – Swank Without the Sink

SCHEME 2 – High Drama, Low Seating

SCHEME 3 – Super Villain Inspired Sunken Seating

Looking for more living room inspiration?

Case Study: How to Fix a Bad Ranch Floor plan

7 min readThis 1958 ranch had good bones, a great location, and … a terrible layout that turned its back on the amazing yard. Today, how to fix a bad ranch floor plan!

In most cases, the basic layout of ranch is a pretty good fit for a modern family. However, sometimes you find a mid-century ranch that just isn’t working at all. When that happens, you need some out-of-the-box thinking to transform a bad ranch floor plan into one that fits your life.

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3 Scales for your Mid-century Living Room Update

10 min readAs the proud owner of a mid-century ranch you’re probably looking for ways to enhance the mid-mod character of your home. Today let’s tune up your Mid-Century Living Room.

No matter how big your mid-century living room make-over dreams are, ALWAYS create a master plan for your whole home before you get started. You’ll be so glad you did. Prioritizing what really matters to you will allow you to budget your money and time for the best possible home you can create, and one that perfectly fits your lifestyle.

Today let’s look at how you can tune up a Mid-Century Living Room at three levels. The mid-century living room isn’t just a show-piece, its the heart of the home.

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