For the floors we went with TrafficMaster Laminate in Lakeshore Pecan from Home Depot. The price and the reviews were too good to pass up. Is it our forever floor? Probably not, but at the same basic cost as carpet without installation fees it was a no brainer for us. Hard surfaces vs. carpet? No competition in our house. Hard surface for the win. The color looks great against the wall colors we had already chosen, and we love how much bigger and more open the spaces feel by having a single type of flooring and one that reflects light. Before we had carpet in the dining and living room, and vinyl in the foyer. So, so, so much better. We knew going into it that we wanted to replace the wimpy 3 inch baseboards with something bigger, which had the added benefit of making the floor instatllation easier. The 5 inch baseboards are a much better scale.
I got the rug and curtains from Home Goods and though the rug could probably be a little bigger, I am happy with the overall effect. We have had that coffee table for years, we bought it for $50 off Craig's List. I still want to try upholstering the top but that has to wait on time and funds, just like everything else in my life! The side table is a cute, faux bamboo with caned bottom shelf from Salvation Army that we spray painted navy. For $5 I am super happy with it. The built-in's the hubby and his dad built and the T.V. stand was built by the hubby from 2 Ikea Rast dressers.
I am over the moon happy with how it all turned out and am so thankful that we went ahead and did this rather than waiting until we had saved up for engineered hardwood. That would have been very nice too but I know how long term projects like that can get derailed by life. I even checked the market around our area and carpet vs, laminate vs. hardwood doesn't impact the price too greatly so I think this was by far the best decision we could make for this time in our life.
