Creating a Vintage Modern Farmhouse Style Living Room
Decorating is something I can not get enough of. And there is nothing I love more than a vintage modern farmhouse style.
What exactly is that? It’s what I like to call my curated collection of thrifted and new that creates a cozy, organized, yet functional home.
Today, I’m sharing living room inspiration with tons of before and after remodeling pictures of my living room decor and furniture.
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Just a quick heads-up: Everything in this post reflects my genuine opinions and recommendations, but it’s not a substitute for professional advice. To keep this content free, I use ads and include affiliate links, which means I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
“Formal” Vintage Living Room
When I bought this house, one feature I loved was the two separate living rooms. As a mom of young boys who loooove to make a mess, including tearing apart the couch daily to make a fort, having a second living room where I could come and sit down to relax without having to put everything back together was amazing!
This living room is not really formal, but for lack of better words, I’ll call it that just to distinguish between the two living room spaces I’m sharing.
Before and After Makeover


Can you even believe all the orange?! Wild, right? The first thing I did was remove this orange shag carpet, and underneath, I discovered gorgeous hardwood floors.
Unfortunately, I ended up replacing these, but if you look at these after pics, you’ll agree that the decision worked out pretty ok!

In addition to replacing the floors, I painted everything: the tongue and groove paneling, the bookshelves, the radiator, the trim, and the fireplace hearth tile. I used the paint color Alabaster by Sherwin Williams in an eggshell finish.
Another project that I did was to address the fireplace. I loved a brick fireplace, but not this one because it was so dark and the wrong red for my taste. To fix this, I did a German Schmear, and wow! This DIY project completely transformed this room.


In this post, I share the super simple German Schmear DIY technique I used to get this look. It’s all of 3 steps and a few hours. I was nervous, but I’m so happy I went for it because of how good this turned out.
Board and Batten Accent Wall
The larger wall across from the bay window was so boring. It was also covered in wallpaper that I wasn’t looking forward to removing. I had this idea to try an accent wall over the wallpaper.


I used brown board sheets from Home Depot to cover the wallpaper. And since these boards suck in so much paint, I used my paint sprayer. Here is my tutorial on how to make a board and batten wall.
These pictures don’t do the beauty of this accent wall justice. The white on white is a little tricky to see in these pictures. But it gives the perfect amount of texture and interest on this large wall.


I also did a board and batten accent wall at the back of this living room, on the staircase wall. Oh, and painted the stairs white!!


The white paint and vertical battens on the stair wall made this space feel so bright and airy! I have eight-foot ceilings, and this combination made them feel much taller.
Decor

This living room is a mix of vintage and thrifted with modern new decor. What was most fun about decorating this living room was that this was my space. This room is not the family living room where we hang out often; it’s for grown-ups and pretty to look at the living room.
Here is some inspiration for decorating your living room with vintage thrifted items, mixed with modern new novelties. Enjoy!


The bookshelves provided a ton of space for me to decorate. I got my hands on tons of old books (free) and then used my sprayer to paint them white! I mixed up the display by arranging some with the binding facing out and others with the pages out.
Also, the wall space here was perfect for living room wall decor, such as these baskets and the most incredible vintage wood door.


This door is an antique with solid wood construction, cracking leaded paint, and unique hardware and size. Can you believe I scored this thing at a barn sale for $5?!

I picked up these hanging wall baskets from AC Moore, which I don’t know about near you, but the one here in VT is closed. I frequently find similar hanging baskets at various thrift stores, and here is a link to a similar-style wall basket from Walmart.
Furniture
Having done a full remodel on this house, I didn’t have much extra money for a second couch. I had always loved the look of deconstructed furniture, so when I came across this free vintage couch, I took it as a sign that now was the time to try my hand at deconstructing!

The process was not easy, mostly because I didn’t have a good handle on what I was working with or fully understand how to tell when something was real wood vs veneer.
I’ve learned a lot since, and I share my tips on knowing if something is real or fake wood or veneer in this post. Check it out; it’s a good one!

Also, you can see the deconstructed process on my IG, which is saved in the highlights, and I’ll link part one right here.

The chairs I used to place across from the couch are from Target. And although they are not the most comfortable chairs, they are gorgeous to look at! They are perfect for what this room is intended for: a drink with friends, a tidy spot for me to sit and admire, and a room to have fun decorating.


“Family” Living Room
Our daily hang-out living room is a more modern farmhouse than the other living room, with more collected, vintage vibes.
Before and After Remodel
Major remodeling happened in the space to open it up to the rest of the house. We (ie, my dad) removed four walls to achieve an open-concept living – dining- and kitchen space.
In addition, we re-worked the garage entrance by raising the floor to one level and closing off a laundry and mudroom area.
Here are the before pictures of this living room space. If you look at the left, behind that closet is where you entered from the garage. The door you see takes you out back. It was wonky, dark, and narrow, making it a useless space.

To make this entrance more functional, we removed the closet (where they had put laundry), raised the floor and door entrance to one level, and framed an area to create a mudroom and laundry room space.



In the pics below, you can see that by doing so, I now had a nook for the TV and fireplace, plus an actual mudroom!


Since the entire floor was now all on one level, this removed the backyard’s access from inside the house, and to make up for that, we added a set of French doors. I love how much light these let in and the view of the yard and woods.
Here, you can see how things started and progressed through the remodel.



This living room remodel took a lot of vision, but removing all the walls, raising the floor, changing the entrances, installing new wood floors, and painting everything white totally transformed this space!
Here is my modern farmhouse living room after all the remodeling:

Sponge Paint Accent Wall
I saw this + pattern and, for whatever reason, fell in love. I loved how it was a modern addition without being too drastic, like painting the whole wall.


The best part about this DIY project was that it cost nearly nothing. I used a sponge, cut it to size, and then dipped it in leftover black paint. Viola!

Furniture and Decor
My couch is nothing fancy; it’s a hand-me-down. Since I’m guilty of letting the boys eat on the couch, there is no way I’m buying a new one until they don’t make such a mess.

To decorate around the mudroom area, I added this vintage dresser and blanket ladder. Since my kitchen has all upper floating shelves, having this dresser nearby is handy to keep platters and dishes I use less often.


As you can see, the dresser underwent a transformation where I did a two-tone paint and wood effect and changed the mirror to a larger one.
If you’re interested in learning more about furniture makeovers, my refinishing furniture guide is exactly where you should start!

Although this is our daily spot, that didn’t mean I wanted to look at the TV, especially since this is the space you enter the house. I found this gorgeous hardwood TV cabinet, painted it white, and added the peel-and-stick wallpaper.

I truly love being able to close the doors at night or during the day while TV is off-limits. This cabinet is a gorgeous decorative piece, yet so functional for storage and hiding the TV.
Just off this living room space is a cozy sitting area that, when I remodeled, I used a consistent floor throughout the entire first floor to try to make this area look more part of the living room than an addition. The layout is a little wonky, but that is the charm I love about older homes!

I added the X doors to this window bench, topped it with cushions, and placed the floor pillows in front to create an additional sitting area. The boys love to lie in the window and also on the floor. They also love to use this spot as a stage where they sing and dance!



Sources
I’m linking what I can to exact matches for what I used in my living room. Much of what I use is either Thrifted or refinished by me, so if you don’t see a link to something, reach out, and I’ll give you more details!
- Wood Flooring – Hallmark Novella Collection in the color Twain Oak
- Paint Color – Sherwin Williams Alabaster in a satin finish, color matched using Behr Scuff Defense Ultra.
Formal Living Room
- Ramsbury Rug
- Accent Chair with Wood Base
- Black and White Lumbar Pillow
- Black Farmhouse Industrial Wall Sconce
Family Living Room
- Big Joe Black Bean Bag Chair
- Floor Pillows
- Blanket Ladder (mine is DIY but this is very similar)
- White Area Rug
- White Farmhouse Ceiling Light
- Magnolia Home Olive Branch Peel and Stick Wallpaper
I hope you’re feeling inspired by my living room makeover and remodel, plus have fresh ideas on how to decorate your living room in a vintage modern farmhouse style.
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