Stylish and Family Friendly Living Rooms Can Exist!

I want to bring you into a tale from parenthood that many of you can probably relate to or write yourselves. There is a journey to finding the perfect living room, and let me tell you, we’ve been traveling quite a while through trial and error to find it. (Read: 10 years) Don’t worry, this has a happy ending!

Long ago, this family of 5 had white sofas. They were canvas. As a self-proclaimed stylish mother, the lightness they brought to the room made me happy. They eventually became utterly destroyed and since we occupy the family living room often, became an eyesore. I then decided to become artsy with our living room and try black velvet sofas. I wanted a cozy feel but keep a stylish vibe to the room. You know, something that said ‘we are parents but still adults that haven’t completely given up on the finer things in life and we refuse to have an ugly house’ kind of vibe. My husband Robert hated the black separate sofas because they weren’t comfortable. They did mask any kind of spills or stains, but they also wobbled when the kids jumped on them when playing ‘floor is lava.’ After a few years with them, even I felt like I couldn’t snuggle in and get comfortable. I knew I had to find something that combined every single thing our family needed in a sofa, and in addition, that would give us the living room that we wanted.

I mean, look at where we came from. It’s been a journey in trial and error!

I truly spent a year researching to find the best sofa match for us. I figured I would start with the sofa and then work the actual living space around that. I went in reddit forums for reviews and I asked quite a few friends, compiling all my information. We are still very much in the young family phase of life that with some things, you have to just let go and understand that your house does not stay clean or nice for very long, there’s going to be spills, there is going to be running around and flipping off furniture, and there will be fort making. There is going to be life being lived and I wanted it that way. Was it possible to have both? I only wanted it all lol.

I refused to think there was not something out there for this, but that also spoke to someone like me (and my City Peach community) that also enjoys not only looking put together, but feeling put together in their own home. So after all this research, the Ashley furniture brand kept coming up. I had my eye on their sectionals because that is truly what comfortably works for our family. It’s what everyone really wanted. And honestly, sectionals can be chic if done the right way. This is where Ashley comes in and does not disappoint. Ashley is known for their performance fabric and I knew this would be the perfect choice. Also being able to have a few options on pieces depending on size of the living room is so nice. I looked through all their sectional options and the Elissa Court style was what I kept coming back to. The cream color spoke to me as we have a lot of windows and so much natural light, that believe it or not, a dark colored sofa actually shows up worse. Every imperfection crumb, and dog hair is magnetized in natural sunlight. And if I feel like Daisy has created any stains from her romps in the puddles, I can unzip the covers and wash immediately. This is a game changer. And true to our lifestyle, the day after it was delivered before I even got any photos or we all got to lay all over it on a lazy weekend, Daisy threw up a sock right on it. Having soft washable covers takes a lot of stress away right off the bat, and then seeing the inner layer and how well it’s made was so justifying. I just love the chenille material, it’s so soft. This Ashley sectional has deep cushions, a down top layer, and is truly the coziest sofa. 

You might get overwhelmed at all the choices for your living spaces or not know what quality is worth your money. Ashley definitely meets you in the middle and you get a great product for a reasonable budget. What you might not realize, is how broad of an assortment their website is for home decor. And it’s earned a place in the stylish and fashion forward furniture space, you have to just get on their site and see what I mean. I ended up grabbing a few things that tied the whole room together like this buffet sideboard table, lamps because I love lamp lighting, and decor. Browse through all my living room details below, this is everything in my space. 

I scoured the site immediately falling in love with these matching coffee and side tables. I am not too versed in home style but I know what I like. I’m somewhere between traditional and modern, I love the contrasting of dark woods and blacks, with white walls, and a touch of brown like in this incredible rug that ties in our floors and gives a home-y feel. Actually, double tapping on this rug, I love this rug so much and this is really the only item I’m nervous about because I would like to not have someone spill chocolate or OJ on it. It’s wool, really well made, and the perfect rug. I would do my stair runner in this pattern if I could.

Here are some tips for a practical living room that is also beautiful… it is so easily possible with Ashley and you won’t be scared away by intimidating pricing. Get the comfortable sofa. Have it be performance fabric. This is literally the answer to everything. I absolutely do not stress about my living room at all. It’s a place we really live as I’ve always wanted to raise a ‘living room family’ where everyone feels comfortable just lounging around together. 

Our Ashley living room is where we are having Friday Night movie night, take all the pillows in front of the fireplace and make smores-night, dinner party late night chats, forts, the perfect sick day lounge… all of this while being aesthetic and ready for guests. 
Overall, we are living every day in a beautiful space that is also kid-friendly. We like to host, cook, eat, and let our kids run around our house, but we also appreciate nice spaces and a feeling of put-together. I will easily be turning to Ashley to do more spaces and my dining room is up next! Stay tuned!

Shop everything in our living room below!