Our next guest in our "At Home With" series is Sarah Sandidge! Sarah is here today to share her lovely living area with us. 
"My husband, our two sweet children (Lula – 4, Diesel – 2), and I bought a lovely little home built in the 1930s about three years ago and have been renovating voraciously since day one. I was five weeks pregnant with Diesel when we moved in and he was actually born in the room that is now his. So this house is pretty special to us for that reason alone. Not to mention all the blood, sweat, and tears (literally!) that we’ve put into this place. It was very ugly and very blue when we moved in, but now it’s the cozy, dreamy little place we call home. The living room is not very big, but it has great light and feels calm and peaceful. I have grand plans of taking out the ceiling to reveal the A-frame attic above and really make it something! But my husband’s eyes glaze over when I bring up my crazy plans! It’ll have to do for now!" 
"There isn’t much I would consider 'unusual' in the living room. People may say the big 'e' is unusual because it doesn’t stand for anything. But I think perhaps our 'private' door is the most unusual. I found it at a flea market after it had been removed from a high school renovation in town. I adore old doors, and I knew instantly that I had to have it when I first saw it. The door covers up the opening to the stairs that lead to our master suite. So the 'private' lettering was perfect. We turned it into a sliding door and added a handle, but other than, we haven’t touched it." 
"We’ve lived in this house for almost three years. Although it seems much longer than that considering how much we’ve done to it. The living room hasn’t changed too much except that it was completely blue when we moved in. I mean blue carpet, blue wallpaper, and heavy blue drapes. The very first 'renovation' was removing the carpet and wallpaper throughout the house. Then we painted everything white. I just wanted a clean, fresh start. A blank canvas to work from. But sometimes people come in and ask, 'What color are you going to paint your walls?' Ummm, well, they already are painted!
The furniture has changed a lot too, but I finally feel satisfied with all the pieces I have and with their location. A friend once said, 'I think every time I come here you have different furniture!' But when everything is thrifted or from a garage sale, it’s easier to change, since the investment isn’t that big." 
Thank you so much for sharing your space with us, Sarah! You can find more of Sarah over at her blog Lovely Chaos. xo. *All photos by Janae Hardy
79 Comments
Hannah, the rug is from a Pottery Barn outlet. I got a great deal on it and have loved it since I bought it! We sprayed it down with Scotch Guard when we first got it, and it’s held up pretty well even though we had a dog and have two small children!
We bought sliding door hardware fairly cheaply (maybe from Amazon?) to hang the private door.
Hope that helps! Thanks for all the lovely comments. It’s nice to have your hard work appreciated!
I LOVE this!
I love the tears in the fabric on the old love seat. That is so charming…I would have tried to fix it, but it looks perfect the way it is!
Such a lovely home!
The ‘private’ door is amazing and such a neat idea!
What a lovely space… I can’t wait till I get my own place, I’ll look back at these for decorating inspiration!
that rug is to die for!!!
That corner with the settee… I want to curl up there and read and never leave. So pretty!
I love how bright it is!
xo Lisa
http://www.makinglifeslemons.com/
Sweet, sunny and simple ~ LOVE it!
Just stopped over at Sarah’s blog to say hello 🙂 Happy to have found her through your blog 🙂
Lovely pics 🙂
What a sweet, cozy little home 🙂 (I’m totally obsessed with those knitted floor “poofle” things. Gotta figure out how to make one 🙂
Beautiful!!
Do you have a tutorial for how you installed the sliding door? I need to do something similar for the doorway between my living room and the kitchen. Thanks!!
What a cozy place! We love the living and the inviting window dressings. We can see that we would feel VERY at home! Thank you for sharing 🙂
Sampson and Lorrie
Puddles & Price
love the picture! I’m about to make a few changes in my room, thank you for the inspiration.
http://fashionissue-byzanetbel.blogspot.cz/
The more I look at design blogs etc, the more tempted I am to go for a totally (well, maybe mostly) white pallette for my next home with the furniture and accessrores adding the colour and interest, it looks amazing.Rx
http://sandersonsmithstory.blogspot.co.uk/
Looks cozy!
STUNNING space! Great style! 😀
I love the crisp white look! So inspiring!
<3 Sara
tinysugarbee.blogspot.com
Love the sliding door on the stairs!
xo Jennifer
http://seekingstyleblog.wordpress.com
Beautiful home!
Lulu xx
http://luluslittlewonderland.blogspot.com
Love what you have done with your home.
love this! it’s neutral yet colorful at the same time!
hashtagphoebe.blogspot.com
hashtagphoebe on bloglovin
I need to know where that rug is from!!!
Your “at home with” posts are my favorite! very inspiring, I’m moving into a new apartment on June 1st so I love looking at these posts for inspiration (:
THe pom pom trim on the curtains is a nice touch!
A beautiful home! I love the door and the yellow love seat, such nice unique touches. Can’t wait until I have a home of my own to decorate how I please!
What a beautiful home. I love decoration like this because it creates such a warm and inviting environment.
What a lovely room!
xx
http://thescreensiren.com
I love this house, and I’m pretty in love with the family who lives there too :). Great decor Sarah and beautiful pictures Janae!
Lovely home 🙂
Carina xx
http://www.carstina.com/
Hi,
I’ve left an award for your blog 🙂
I’ve found this beautiful blog during a diy surfing on web 🙂
http://virginia82.blogspot.it/2013/05/a-very-inspiring-blogger-award-pt2.html
V.
Another lovely and charming home
Such a lovely home. The private door is really awesome! I love the home-series on ABM. 🙂
xx Kaisa
Ps. I blogged a bit about my love for A Beautiful Mess app this week: http://reindeertrails.blogspot.com.es
Love it. So sweet and charming and lived-in! It’s nice to know that books on an Expedit can look nice even if they’re not all perfectly sorted by color =p. The home looks so peaceful.
I find those kind of posts amazing!!! hahha “private door” !! 🙂 http://believeinforestmagic.blogspot.gr
I love it! Perfect decorating style 🙂
Very pretty home! 🙂
Such a lovely house, great furniture!
And I love the door!
xo
www.couturella.blogspot.com
Really amazing home
lots of personality everywhere!
Im swooning….this place is AMAZING!
xo
LesliMarie
www.linenandtulle.com
Lovely inpirations!
The curtains are very charmming!
Have a great day!
xoxo
What a lovely place and that door in front of the stairway is such a cool idea! xx
www.creativityandchocolate.com
loved this living room – may be my favorite I’ve seen on here thus far!
grace
http://herumbrella.com
What an inspiring home! My favourite part is the book selfs in the livingroom (:
xo,
MI MI MENDINE, Finnish fashion blogger
These posts always make me excited for the day I will buy my own house! This living room looks so bright and cosy 🙂
Oh my goodness that looks gorgeous. Like everyone else has been saying the “Private” door is definitely a key piece, and very fun too! I love the fact that you’re able to redecorate so easily because of thrift shopping. I should definitely look into that when I get my own place.
I love that gigantic ‘e’ and the ottoman/pouf! It’s a really cute house! Thanks for sharing.
beautiful living space!
– Janine
http://theeoptimist.blogspot.com
I love the statement letter ‘e’ on the bookcase. I’d love to find my own ‘m’ like that. Cute home, cute and comfortable.
M.
This is seriously my favourite series! I love to see how all these amazing women put their homes together! Such a lovely space!
Blessings!
Star
http://www.beautyandbows.com/
This room is absolutely gorgeous! I love all of the vintage touches and the textures! Beautiful!
Um… I am in love with everything in this house. Lovely and lived in. So beautiful!
So beautiful. I love how bright it is! Rosie xx
www.everywordhandwritten.blogspot.co.uk
Really lovely home, sort of has a shabby chic feel to it which I love :)xx
gottoloveee.blogspot.co.uk
Those pom pom curtains are wonderful. I also like how the curtains don’t completely match even though they are in the same room. Such nice details overall.
That house is perfect! I want to live in an old place as well when I’m older… I love the concept of using that door as a sliding door.
-Ashley
Sarah,
Wow! I love the “warmth” of your cozy home!
I want to curl up with my favorite book!
I love that your couches and chairs have natural wear on them and it seems so perfect and like a lived in home! Plus the private door, oh man is that great!
I love this house, my favourite thing is the sofa, it’s so nice!!
DIY CÉLINE INSPIRATION on my blog
http://thestelstyle.com/
I love the white walls, and the private door, the feathers, all of it! Wonderful!
xoxo
Juliette Laura
http://juliettelaura.blogspot.com
Looks really nice and like a great inspiration. Have a nice day.
http://www.fashiondenis.com/
I love your home… So nicely put together
Love this home – it is my fave combo of ‘vintagey’ and looking so like my fave store Anthropologie! I also love the way the light comes in the living room, very much like your home Elsie.
Love these posts!
what a wonderful hause! I really like the pillows and the curtains, and the light in it. I personally like the mix of antique/vintage and modern, in a very smart way.
LOVE the private door!
International Giveaway
What a lovely home!
http://sarahthearchitect.com/
I think I’m in love with that sliding “Private” door. Now I have Classic Noir films floating around in my mind…I’m thinking I’ll watch the Maltese Falcon tonight 🙂
Melinda
My favorite things about this room are the “private” door and the curtains. I love how the combination of pieces from other people’s cast-offs can create such a unique and personal space. Beautiful room!
what a beautiful living space
kw, ladies in navy
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I love that the sofas don’t match!
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My favorites are the big chunky white rug and the door over the stairway!
Jana @ 333 Days of Hand Lettering
I love these posts because I love swing people’s homes! Makes me want to redecorate mine but also makes me realize how much work I’m sure it is!
Cute!
That door is awesome! And the sofa looks like the perfect spot to sit. Yep, I’m inspired to do up my living room now!
What a lovely living room! It has definitely given me lots of ideas for when I finally get round to doing my own. I think the large ‘e’ and the private door are particuarly cool!
This is such a lovely home. So many cozy details.
Beautiful living space – I love the private door, so cool!
Martina
www.snapshotsandwhatnots.typepad.com
Wow! The “Private” door. All those fuzzy cute pillows. White curtains with the green tint. The feathers. So many great little details! Way to go Sarah Sandidge!