Veronica Hughes: Adding some warm and cozy to the basement family room

You know what my favorite weekends consist of? Absolutely nothing. ;) I love when our whole family is home puttering around and we have zero plans other than just hanging out at home. It makes me SO happy. It's rare that we have a couple days like that and I cherish them.

I'm in between on a couple DIY projects right now (see the peel and stick wallpaper result if you missed it last week!) and it was nice to take a break and work on just decorating. I shared our basement family room with you a few months ago:

Basement family room set up with floating sectional

If you're interested in any sources, please check out that post!

It's been fun to find spots for our stuff in the new house. Thankfully what we had has filled in the rooms nicely. I always knew what I wanted to put along that wall behind the sofa, I just had to wait a bit.

I've had the (affiliate) Everett console table from World Market for years and sometimes I think every one of us bloggers has it now! It's a lovely piece that won't break the bank (especially if you wait till they have a sale). I have always known it would work perfectly here:

Decorating with wood and cozy colors in family room

It's just right for the feel of this room! Warm and cozy and the wood tone is perfect with the other pieces in there. You may remember it's been in our morning room since we moved in:

Dining area with white table and wood chairs

Our plan was always to find something else for that spot -- I wanted something that was a solid piece instead of this one with legs. There were a lot of legs in that space obviously, and I knew a solid console would work better. Plus, storage! I found a beautiful piece that I'll show you soon.

But I was so excited to get that Everett table down to the basement family room. I even took the lamps -- I've had those things forever (they were from HomeGoods). I thought I may try new ones, but it turned out I really loved their green color and how it tied in with the big IKEA map nearby:

Years back I added those label pulls to the front of this console and they make such a big difference. I love adding little details like that. I found them at Target but haven't seen them there in years. :(

So here's the thing. I find accessorizing surfaces equally fun and stressful. I think that is the hardest part of decorating a home -- filling in the spots. And I've said it a million times, but once I find the way I like it, it will stay forever. Years. 😂

I didn't buy anything for this spot so it was fun to use items I haven't seen much in eight months! I have found a few tips to be helpful when accessorizing a space:

Tips on how to decorate with accessories

You don't always need to hang art -- leaning gives a slightly relaxed feel that is nice. If you do hang a mirror or art, don't forget you can still layer with other pieces.
The key to decorating bookcases or shelves is to keep the eye moving up and down naturally. It gives it interest and is pleasing to (most) eyes. So if you layer, make sure the art is different heights. Accessories should go up and down as well.
You can't go wrong with at least one candle -- but have some fun with it. I put a timed LED candle inside a pretty glass container and then filled in around it with wine corks.
Books are ALWAYS an easy addition! Use them to add height to a candle or decorative piece. Take the covers off and use colors that you love. Stack and pile them against each other. You really can't go wrong!
Add light! I'm a sucker for two lamps on long pieces like this -- I just love symmetry. I try to go with one and then always revert back to two. ;) With two you'll have less space to decorate, which isn't always a bad thing.
I find less is more, but that's just what I prefer. I could have added tons more to the bottom and it would have been fine, but I kept it simpler with my DIY wood trough and filled it with books and some faux eucalyptus. (IKEA has the best!)

You can see a peek of the new gallery wall on the stairs here! I still LOVE it.

I painted that art for our master bedroom a few years ago. I almost sold it when we moved but like it here! You can see how I painted it in this post (this is a similar art piece). The artwork of our son is a prized possession of mine. It's him at about two standing in front of my husband's marching band and conducting. 💙 He did that often and it's a memory that we cherish. (He still fights the urge to do it at 11!) I worked with a small company years back that would take photos and turn them into this beautiful art. (They aren't in business any longer unfortunately.) I wish I could remember where I got the Indiana sign -- it must have been at one of the local sales I visit.

If you're looking for HUGE art to fill a wall, IKEA has great options for a great price. I later added a frame to this one that gives it more of a custom touch and some contrast. I don't think they sell this exact one anymore though:

It's fun to focus on fluffing instead of DIY sometimes. A combo of the two is a perfect balance for me! We spent nearly the whole weekend down here -- funny how a small change can make you want to enjoy the space even more.

Week by week, this home is becoming more and more us. It's felt like home since the day we moved in, but each little project really warms it up. Every addition brings me great joy -- making our house a home is my passion!