Color me checkered and musically chaired

Being virtually homebound as I took care of my 88-year-old ill mom this month gave me plenty of time to also focus on a major decorating goal for my cottage. I want everything to go with everything, to have a unified color theme from room to room.

So I decided to begin with a new bluesy bed covering that would finally allow me to use a chair that had been kind of drifting aimlessly from room to room. I liked this arrangement so much that I bought identical bed linens for the guest bedroom so that a second chair could also find a new home.

Now, with two chairs removed from my study, I could put a chair I had been using in the living room back in its original spot. It made my mom cozier and warmer, with better access to television sound and picture as well.     

Next, came the living room. I’ve been going for a river cottage theme, since I live across from a river, so first I found an outdoor furniture coffee table online that would complement the color of the other furniture and look appropriately casual. With a little adjustment of the couch and a side table, I made room for two chairs.

The chairs I found at a nearby furniture store. I loved the cottagey check of the fabric, but the only problem was that I couldn’t figure out what color the check actually was. It looked blue/gray in the store and was described as brown online. One salesperson said it was black and another one said it was charcoal gray.

So I checked out one of the chair’s checked pillows overnight. Taking it home, I was happy to see that it would fit in beautifully. Only problem was, I still couldn’t figure out what color it was. But I ordered a chair pair anyway. They arrived today and all I had to do was screw in the legs and push the chair back into slots provided on the chair seat. And I even used two of the four pillows on the couch.

Sheers at the windows completed this exercise in musical chairs. And everything pretty much goes with everything now. Whatever color it is.