Bedroom Makeover

A friend of mine whose 3 children are all away at college decided it was time to update and make over their bedrooms. They will all be home for the Holidays so she thought it would be a nice and unexpected surprise for them to come home to. She asked if I could help get her creative juices flowing and of course I said YES. So, yesterday I stopped by to check things out...

This is what I saw...

Quel horreur!

Mon dieu

I asked her nicely if she could remove everything from the room except the bed, and that I would be back the next day..."Don't worry, I said, it will be great as long as you promise me...NO MORE GREEN"

The large painting was on the opposite wall under 3 small windows

We turned the existing nightstand around for a cleaner look and brought the mirror and ginger jar in from another room. Instead of buying a new lamp, I suggested she convert the ginger jar into one. I just love how the 3 pieces of Chinese export blue & white pottery provide the perfect punch of color and pattern in the room!



This lovely vintage wicker settee was being stored in the garage! The fabric on the seat cushion was the perfect stripe! We were able to incorporate several of the throw pillows from the old bedding.

We centered the desk and eliminated the cork board in favor of the bead board shelf. The new chair, purchased at ladolfina.etsy.com, is a much better fit with the desk. Now she can use this set up to store her favorite magazines, write letters, send emails, work on projects or just get away for some quiet time.





The blue hydrangeas really pop in this green room and set off the blue & white ginger jar



We relocated the lamp with the green shade from the nightstand to the desk where it plays off beautifully against the chinese blue & white pottery




My friend really wanted to try and use as much of her original bedding as possible so we placed her old comforter at the foot of the bed. She also was able to re-use the original dust ruffle. It was absolutely necessary to update the fabrics and tone down all the green and floral with a new icy blue queen size duvet cover. The blue checked valances are original to the room. After we were done updating and rearranging everything, they didn't bother me as much!



I found this wonderful garden stool and glass top in the master bedroom where it wasn't getting much use, so I pressed it into service as a much needed additional nightstand. It really added the perfect element to the room and was desperately needed in this sea of green & floral.




Another lovely blue hydrangea provides a pop of color against the green walls. I found this wonderful old iron sconce hanging outside and incorporated it into the room. I love how it adds that weathered, aged look!

I stole, rather borrowed, a pair of smocked Euro Shams from her sister's room. I couldn't help myself!

Ok, so this is what we accomplished in a little over an hour. Things still need to be hung. The ginger jar on the nightstand needs to be electrified and turned into a lamp. I'm going to give my friend a few pieces of my leftover raffia wallpaper to glue to the face of the white nightstand and top of the desk. She'll have to get a piece of glass cut to fit.

Voila...a reinvented bedroom fit for a college girl, an inviting & cozy new guest room, and most importantly, a private sanctuary for my friend!