Welcome out of lurkdom Brenda. I would love to help, but a picture is worth a thousand words, so if you can post a pix that would really help.

I think your sectional choice would look great if you keep the dark wood. If you are at all thinking you might want to paint the shelving to tie it into the fireplace more and lighten the space, then it may be a little dark and heavy. But if you darken the back of the shelves like the 3rd pic I posted, or leave them as is, then I think it would look perfect. Some people here seem to be anti-sectional, but I love them. I would take some blue painter's tape and draw the outline dimensions on your floor where you would want to place it, just to see if the scale is right for the room (since you say you are new to decorating). It will help you see if it's too big or too small or just right and where it will fit best. Also think about whether you will get an area rug and what kind you might choose and make sure the sectional would work with that, too.

Penny - I typically love some of the more outspoken opinions here. I'll see a post and be like "Ohh, wait til Sophie sees this!" usually because I agree with her opinions! I'm sure I would be really sensitive to hear it about my own room, but that wouldn't make it untrue. :) I was reading and considering everyone's input, but I've realized it can be difficult to reply to suggestions from multiple people at once! I really, really, appreciate all of your input. I definitely think you're right about no more furniture with drawers. It makes a lot of sense in many cases (and in the pics that people posted). Unfortunately, with 73" on each side of the fireplace, a standard chest would look miniscule, and that would leave me with putting a full-sized dresser there. With three dressers (counting the Hemnes my TV is on), it would just look like I had an elaborately furnished closet and not a family room! I actually had both chairs and the round table at the entrance for years. Since they both swivel, the table kept getting knocked down, and I grew tired of having to shimmy between the chair and the endtable all the time. Maybe I'll go back to that arrangement, but I'm liking them flanking the FP for now. cawaps - Ikea is definitely where my budget is currently - but I get the feeling I probably need to de-Ikea this room as I'm able to. :) I'll be on the lookout for consignment and thrifting bargains that might work. Anglophilia - You're so right, flat fireplace walls ARE a PITA! My last home had a diagnoal FP, and boy, I hated that, but this is still a pain! I think you're right, the ottoman has to go when we can replace it. We don't mind having a few toys here, since the bedrooms are upstairs. We hang out here frequently (and it's off the kitchen). He's a bit too big for a playpen at this point, so we choose which toys to keep in here, and we have a place to put them away, and we keep the rest in the playroom. It's a balancing act! Suezbell - Thank you for all the ideas! I will definitely be finding a home for the owl. Storage and a desk would be useful additions, I will consider those. The bookshelf is up for sale, since the height and color don't really work in here. I'll likely be replacing the TV dresser when I can to something with more interest or color. The Hemnes dresser was really only meant to be temporary - and here we are 5 years later!

I drink wine, so I would put several wine racks in either side of the lowest cubbies. I wouldn't get fancy about it -- in fact, I would want to make the room more of a mix of informal and welcoming and sophisticated -- so I'd put in a bunch of these or whatever else fits and doesn't break the bank and spend the savings on better wine. ;) Middle shelf above the double door cabinet I'd put in crystal canisters or European ceramic or tines filled with after dinner candies, rock sugar treats and cookies -- like, a lot of them Then I think I would simplify my life and put 3 framed artworks to cover the upper shelves, hanging them over the shelves so that some of the shelves were still visible. These come in big sizes , But I might stick with a dark old fashioned rug because of your light fixtures (which I like) and the cabinetry