"In" is whatever you see in magazines, period. "Out" is whatever was in magazines a generation ago. Everything else is in between. Some people enjoy being "in". Whether it is the show off factor or flighty tastes or just enjoying the vicissitudes of fashion, they want to be in. That's fine, it comes with a price tag. The price tag depends on how genuinely "in" you want to be or if you are happy to fake it. Trying to be classic is extraordinarily difficult. The entire building and decorating industry is working full time trying to make every little facet of your home look "out". They carefully edit the colors and styles of what is available to buy, so that in subtle ways you are stamping everything you do with a date, whether you chose to or not. Your best hope is to buy things that are not made by US corporations. Buy abroad, by handmade, by antique. That can help keep you from being "out", but it won't make you in, either. If its trendy and inexpensive, i go with the flow and don't worry about it. If its trendy and costly, I try to buy things that I really like. But sometimes it is hard to tell if something really speaks to you or if you are still responding to a trend!

Mrykbee and pandtkendall, thank you for your replies. That's great you found what you wanted on Craig's List. Nothing better than getting what you like at a price you like. Pandtkendall that's great you enjoy your HM sofa and enjoyed working with Duane. Here's to many, many years of enjoyment. I am comfortable buying furniture from a distant company. Thanks for mentioning Duane. I will look him up. I'd love to travel to his store in the near future. I bought a Classic Leather sofa and recliner in 1987 from a company in Southern Pines owned by two fantastic brothers Miller and Cliff Barnes. I never met them and did everything over the phone The furniture has seen heavy use and three large dogs over the years. I love the leather but I'm tired of the style. The sofa still looks good but the recliner is aging. My husband and I used to sit in the recliner together and then our 90 pound dog would climb up on our laps. I took care of the furniture and faithfully cleaned it and moved the cushions around. Maybe around ten years or so I had new insides made for the cushions. The sofa sits right in front of a big window with lots of light. There isn't any sun damage. At some point I tried to kill the furniture using 409 or water and vinegar to clean it but didn't die. (Not cleaning products I'd ever suggest). I have no idea what type of leather but it's soft and indestructible. I realize today's leather will not be as good as the older leather we have but we want our next set to also be leather. Again, thanks for getting back to me..

Question - are the curio/bookcases under the loft area two units? If so, i think separating them and putting them where the ceiling is higher. Possibly put that buffet where the French curios are now where you could put a pair of lamps to help give warmer light to that area. The overhead recessed lights are harsh at best. Two of your chairs angled slightly toward each other with a lamp and table across from that area would create a nice reading area. A pair of other chairs could back up to that area and sofa facing TV. Big antlers on wall over sofa. Putting them over mantel makes for more brown on brown. You need some art there. What is size of mirror? I have a great chandelier installer that could handle moving that chandelier. There are tricks of the trade and equipment that can change that out with very little trouble. Takes some preplanning and depends on what you want to do with it, but might not cost what you fear. I have moved a very large Schonbek crystal chandelier, they made a wood crate for it, took down with pully system, put in crate and moved with some internal packing, put it in storage. When we were ready, they picked it up, brought it into our new home, lifted it out of crate and hung it. Not one crystal was lost or broken. The crate cost about $200 and the removal and rehanging another $275. So, it can be done, just depends on where you are and what your priorities are. Don’t make assumptions. Get estimates and talk to several area experienced providers. They will know.

I agree with Groveraxle that paint comes last, but am a huge proponent of whole home color pallets. You want your home to have a sense of harmony, so colors shouldn't be selected in isolation. When I plan on redecorating I always start by looking at the things I cannot change or will not change. I have to work with some items. My last home had pink under tone tile throughout. Limited a lot of other choices, but I couldn't afford to change 1800 sf of tile that was in perfectly good condition. My current house that I am renovating is getting a full reno except for a Purple/Red/Green slate floor in the entry and a brick fireplace that matches the brick on the outside of my home. These are here to stay, so everything has to work with these colors. You may have cabinets, countertops, backsplash, flooring, furniture or art that are on your must stay list. My second step is to think about the colors that make my heart sing. Everyone has favorite colors or color combinations that they love. Your home should reflect your personality. It should envelop you in colors that make you feel like a 10! If you look awful in yellow do you want your picture taken in a yellow room? If you hate gray should you paint your house gray just to keep with current trends? My next step is to lay out the colors in the things that must stay on a big white sheet. I lay the colors out in order as they would be seem from room to room. Then I decide on how and where I can incorporate the colors that I love. I keep playing with these colors until I have a flow that works. The colors that I selected for one room have to look good with the colors I have selected for the next room and have to match the energy that I want for each room. (My office is my highest energy room, kitchen next, then living room, which all have higher energy than my master suite.) My next step is to select a neutral that works with both the colors that have to stay and the colors that I love. My last step is to select a white that works with all the colors and the neutral. Now I can go about the business of buying things that work with my overall color scheme. If you pick colors for your family room in isolation, those colors may not work well with the kitchen, so then you change your kitchen to work with this room and it doesn't work with the colors in the dining room, so you change the dining room and those colors don't work with the formal living room . . . I choose the paint for each room last because my choices of fabrics and art are limited. Once I find the perfect furniture I can use the walls to add color or paint them with my neutral if I have found colorful fabrics.