While I'm in the posting mode, I figured I'd also do a quick post on the progress of our formal living room.  This is not the room where we hang around and watch TV; this is more of an entertaining space and to be used for cocktails before dinner parties, etc.  Assuming that people with twin infants ever actually entertain, that is.  Hahahaha!

At any rate...here are the BEFORE shots of the living room when we bought the house.  All of the stuff in these photos belonged to the former owner of the house.  It was dark, gloomy, filled with mismatched furniture (some of which was actually gorgeous, I must say), and just run-down.  Not to mention the faded and stained wallpaper, yucky sooty fireplace, disgusting bookcases made out of plywood, and so on.  I know the photos are dark, but that really is what it looked like!

And here it is today--not 100% finished yet, but we've come a long way.  The most obvious changes are refinished floors, totally re-plastered walls, new moldings (including removing a lot of corner moldings and other weirdly placed ones that chopped up the room), a ceiling light fixture for the first time (!), new bookcases, and, of course, draperies, paint and new furniture.  We're still missing two chairs that are apparently being built out of mahogany trees that haven't yet been cut down, but when they arrive the big pieces will all be in place.  Then we need some proper art for over the mantel, and we'll be just about done.  Until we decide to replace the rug...what can I say, it never ends!