I am not a person who is too fond of the formal living room; I often find it to be a rather cold place in an otherwise warm home. People have reserved their most uptight, formal pieces for a room that almost never welcomes any company; these are rooms that are more often regarded from afar than they are truly enjoyed. I vowed when I moved into my own home that I would forgo the formal living room for a comfortable room that welcomed guests to congregate, talk, read, and otherwise relax; not the traditional offerings of the formal living room. But I figure we only get so much square footage in a home; why waste a good portion on it on something that we will never truly use?

I wanted to make my home livable – comfortable in every way – every inch of it. And so my quest for the informal formal living room was set into motion. First and foremost I filled my living room with comfortable, overstuffed furniture – places where a person could curl up and read. To complete the look, I added comfortable throw pillows and blankets. Then I put up attractive but casual shelving and filled it to the brim with books of all kinds. Now I had more of a library thing going than a pretentious living room where one would sip tea. I was onto something here.

The final piece of the puzzle was a grandfather clock. Let me say that I just love grandfather clocks; I think they are equally regal and warm. But as much as I wanted to put a grandfather clock in my living room I was concerned that it would eradicate my goals for the room – making it a stuffy environment rather than something comfortable.

Luckily I found a website where a variety of grandfather clocks were offered for sale – in contemporary and even casual styles that fit the décor of my living room perfectly. With the perfect grandfather clock in place, I have now finished the comfortable and attractive living room that was my dream.