natal: That's what I was thinking...take the other stuff out completely and just line them up. That's SUCH a pain b/c the hanger things are all uneven. Crap! tryin2grow: I agree with you. That's why I've put off this office for so long. My mom comes probably roughly once a month or so for a couple of days at a time so it's pretty often. But I never thought about putting gliders underneath. Duh! Great idea! I like the rotating pencil caddy and bought it for the functionality so I want that on the desk. My kids go in there for pencils, pens, highlighers, etc all the time. So do I. But I can put the other stuff in another place. I actually do use that calendar as a work calendar to reference and so DH knows what I've got going on for work dinners, etc. But I could get a desk one instead. I agree about the fringe lamp. My mom gave it to me b/c she replaced that one with something else. I should replace the shade. She likes having one right there for reading when she comes to stay. I like your feedback and the symmetry ideas. Thanks for the link as well!! barb5: 1. Hallway is not an option. We have one hallway in the house and that's the main hallway that all the bedrooms and bath are off of. I really don't want LSU posters down it. I'm a huge LSU fan but that's just too much for me. If we had a spare hallway, I'd be all for it! I really wanted them in the playroom b/c I thought they'd be fun in there but as I said above, I lost out on that! 2. I know what you're saying about the dark color. I'm in such a light and airy place right now I just don't know if I can do a dark color again. I had BM Moroccan red in the dining room prior to this blue and it made the room seem so cave-like. This office is the other small room in the house and I fear the same feeling. I don't want that same feeling of dread when I go in there...of course I do have that now... 3. I don't know if a new table is in the cards for me. We just bought ALL of our furniture post-Katrina in '05. So I don't think DH will go for replacing the table. Now the chairs...I got them from JC Penney b/c they were cute. But some of them are wobbly already. My hope (LOL!) is that we use the heck out of them and that will move me towards my banquette if they break. I'm disappointed in the quality of these chairs. But I don't think a round table would work in this room anyway b/c it's narrow. With the leaves out, yes. But if you put the leaves in, people wouldn't be able to squeeze in on the sides of the room. So here's what I did today (temporarily) to the dining room. I moved the rug and the table in more towards the back, right corner of the room. I feel like it opens up the room a bit and makes it a bit less crowded feeling. So it kind of helped me envision what it might feel like to have the table somewhat tucked over there if/when we do a banquette set-up. Of course, this is just temporary. It's a bit unconventional to have the table off-centered. But I think I like it. And you don't have to squeeze in between the table/chairs and the hutch like before. The gate is b/c we got a puppy a month and a half ago and he likes to use the dining room as his bathroom! When looking into the dining room from the living room: Looking in from kitchen:

Is another living room the greatest need you have in your house? Will it be for the kids to hang out in? Or a quieter adult retreat? We turned our dining room into a home office with matching desks facing each other placed in the middle of the room, so together they are about the same size as a dining table. It looks like it might be large enough to fit a modestly sized sofa in there, with a small round table with 2-4 chairs that you could use as a gaming table. Any musicians? What about a music room?

Do you like the red ceiling? Are you able to paint? As others have said, colour is often the unifying thread in a home. Perhaps you want to consider an on-site colour consultation. Our local BM stores offer this for an affordable amount and this way, you get recommendations based on your light and space. Screens aren't that reliable in rendering true colours. It's also difficult for most of us to get an idea of the space flow in your home through pictures. Looking at your pictures though, I agree that your dining room rug does not jibe style-wise with your dining furniture. Not a fan of the black island. It looks "heavy" to me. (Again, this is my impression based on a picture. Not as reliable as YOUR sense of it, in the actual space.) In the sitting area, off the kitchen, I'd be tempted to go with a round coffee table rather than the glass rectangular one. You have a lovely house with lovely furnishings. I'm sure, with a few tweaks, you'll make it "home" soon enough. Good luck and keep us posted!

it will be more of a full-time office, but he travels a lot & visits clients frequently working out of their office What I like about Beverly's last suggestion with the worktop extended along the wall is that also gives your husband more storage for things like files, etc. Without something like that, will he have enough storage in the room? Otherwise I would strongly consider a credenza for storing files, under the TV, rather than a media console. For curtains, given your color preferences, these would be nice, https://www.potterybarn.com/products/haylie-print-drape/?pkey=ccurtains-drapes&isx=0.0.6515 I would also re-hang the curtain rods above the casing and extend them several inches beyond the casing for "stack back". If you opt to buy a rug from PB, exercise caution because historically they've had problems with rugs that smell (generally a "burned latex" odor). Make sure you get a *woven* rug, rather than a tufted rug, esp tufted rugs from India. There's a long thread here somewhere, and also this, https://rugchick.com/pottery-barn-rugs-to-run-from/