My goal this year is to make every room in our house work better for us. I’ve long admired the idea of the “not so big house,” inspired by Sarah Susanka’s books, which promote thoughtful design and quality details over simply building larger homes. Her approach encourages making smaller spaces feel purposeful and well-crafted—focusing on quality rather than quantity.
I love the challenge of making the most of the space I already have. I don’t plan to move or build anytime soon, but I enjoy developing and personalizing our home with pieces I love that also improve how we use our rooms. Recently I wrote about planning a new cabinet for our “gathering room” for that very reason.
Until now, a dresser provided storage in our family room. It served us well for years—first in our old dining room and then here—but it belonged to my mom and it was time to return it. That prompted me to imagine what would best suit the space. I considered built-ins for the wall, but ultimately decided to save that idea for either side of the fireplace instead. While those built-ins will wait, I found exactly what I needed: a long, shallow cabinet with closed doors. The dresser had been a bit low and too deep for the area, so this cabinet’s measurements were a perfect fit.
I usually prefer repurposing what I already own, and I often find great pieces at flea markets, consignment shops, or garage sales. This time, I wasn’t finding anything suitable, and I didn’t have the desire or time to DIY a piece, so I decided to invest in exactly what I wanted. I found cabinets for both my gathering room and this family room at Restoration Hardware (neither the post nor the cabinets were sponsored). Their mix of function and beauty felt worth the purchase, and I ordered them—grateful for a designer discount.
The cabinet for the family room arrived first, and I absolutely love it. It fits the space perfectly and offers the closed storage I wanted. Now I’m looking for two new lamps to complete the look. I’ll share more photos when I have them so you can see how well it fits into the room.
I’m excited to keep reorganizing and refining how every room in our home functions. Small changes like this cabinet make the house feel more tailored to our needs and style.
Below is how the cabinet looks after I added new lamps. I shared a post about the lamps and how they were filled, which helped finish the vignette on top of the cabinet.
Have you read The Not So Big House? What do you think about prioritizing quality over quantity in a home?
For more on the family room’s evolution, here are previous posts documenting the changes and projects that led to this look:
Fireplace Makeover
Rearranging the Family Room
Tufted Ottoman
New Hardwoods
How to Hang Oars (or Paddles) in an X-Shape
Gallery Wall