Thanks for the responses. They made us think a bit more about the space and have decided to add another foot or so of width so I can put some shelves on the non-window wall. We mocked that up & it works just fine. Ohhh, inglenook! I want one of those so much, but I think it will have to wait until we finish the lower level. Gosh, after I posted, I was afraid of how the comment about DH singing, humming & talking to himself would sound, so I'm glad it gave y'all a laugh. He has always been an auditory learner/thinker, but I believe it has become more pronounced since he retired. I don't want him to change, but I know that it sometimes just gets too much for me. I kinda feel like our dogs must - we have a couple of small dogs beds tucked into some nooks in the living areas. They go there to sleep when they just want to get away. (Like the two of us intrude so much on their little doggie lives. LOL!) The "full service" turret sounds grand! Our sitting area will carry down to the lower level, so that might be a nice place to put a small fridge, sink and coffee maker for the guest suite. We want that to have a feeling of being a self contained enclave where a house guest will feel comfortable and not as if they are intruding. (Hint: Want DD and future SIL to be willing to stay with the old folks for longer than they might be inclined if they were stuffed into a tiny guest room.) Thanks again for the responses. I'm glad to know that so many of you like your cozy MBR sitting areas. - Jo Ann

Most welcome. I love, love, love my wood slat blinds. Be prepared to spend a bundle, though! Esp. Hunter Douglas - very expensive, but they're well made. I didn't go with HD because of the cost, and I'm kind of regretting it. One bit of advice: know the white you have on your would trim, i.e.: Benjamin Moore White Dove, whatever it is. Go to a hardware store that sells that paint, get a chip of the color, and take it w/u to the blind store so you can match the white as best as possible. They do come in dramatically different whites, and presumably you'll want the blinds to match the wood trim and window grids as best as possible, if you go with the wood blinds. The way the film goes on is you spray the window with a water/detergent blend (you can make it yourself or you can buy the bottles of it that 3M and Gila make for it, but all it is is water and I think a blob of dish detergent. I looked it up online and made my own). Then you peel a little bit of the backing away, with the backing facing the window, press a starting point of the film to the window, then with a squeegee, start smoothly pressing the film to the window slowly as you slowly peel the backing downward, in tandem with squeegeeing the film to the window as you go. If it creases, no big deal. Just pull it back off the window past the crease point and continue on. It's not very hard. just takes patience. The kind you'll want, though, the mirrored backing (since it's the clearest from inside looking out) is also the most difficult to work with. Naturally! And do NOT do it on a breezy or windy day!

I would like to add a sitting area (loveseat?) to this youth bedroom but I'm at a loss in what color to go for. Unfortunately the beige carpet has to stay. The rest of the furniture on the other side of the room is white. Most couches/chairs are in single colors which is ok since I would struggle with matching the bedding to it which it has an abstract pattern of colors like coral, grey, blue, and white mostly. Would a rug help? Thank you!

Start with bedding; find something you love that will set the theme color wise. You can always match window treatments to the wall color for a simple fix there. You have the space for a mini living area, so I suggest you look into getting a very large area rug to anchor everything. If you keep the bedding simple, classic white, you can go for more interest in the rug. Would you consider an electric fireplace on the wall where the bookcase is? Looks like there's a corner outlet set up for TV. Do you want one in the bedroom? Bedrooms can be family gathering spaces too. Here are some inspopix.