Sunday, June 20, 2010

Guest Bedroom: Please, come in

After painting the walls, painting some fugly furniture, rearranging, and tinkering, our guest bedroom is finally open for business! Just to refresh your memory, here’s the before:





The walls were kind of an aqua color, which was fine, but it’s the same color as the other two bedrooms in the house, so I wanted something different. This room was essentially used as a storage room for extra college furniture and odds-and-ends that didn’t have a place anywhere else in the house. Basically, it’s the room that you keep the door closed all the time so no one sees it unless they have to stay there.

One “powder blue” incident and a coat of Valspar Metropolis later, we had a gray room. Much better already! It’s kind of a chameleon gray that has a bluish tinge in certain lighting. I think it’s a very calm, soothing color. Perfect for a guest room, right?


And now, I present to you the done-enough-for-now after:
I bought the dark gray “blackout” curtain for the large north window last year, because it gets drafty and also lets a lot of light in. Now the room stays nice and dark in the mornings, although I don’t know if it’s really helping that much as an insulator.

Unfortunately, the east window still has the oh-so-lovely “temporary” paper shade – the same kind that currently covers most of the other windows in our house. And yes, we’ve had all these shades for over two years now. Oy…yet another project on the list… but I digress.


I found this queen bedding set on sale at Target for only $65!


I decorated with a few accents, which I either grabbed from other rooms in the house or found at Goodwill/garage sales (more on those some sweet finds some other time). Other than a couple pops of orange and blue, the room is primarily gray and white. Ideally, there would be something on the big empty wall above the dresser, but I haven’t figured that out yet. Maybe it’ll be a DIY art project someday. There is a vanity mirror that attaches to the dresser, but I didn’t like how it looked, so I nixed it. 


Although it’s an eyesore, I kept our old 13" TV in here just so guests have the option of watching a little tube in bed. (Except we only have a few channels on our limited cable, so this is certainly not high up on the amenity list.)

Bedroom budget breakdown:
Wall paint (Valspar Metropolis) - $30
Furniture – free from neighbor
Furniture paint (Valspar Satin White latex enamel and Rustoleum Crystal Clear Gloss) - $20
Bedding from Target - $65
Curtain - $50
Accents – Under $10

Total: About $175

So there you have it! I could spend a lot more time and money decorating in here, but considering we have overnight guests only a handful of times a year, it’s probably not worth the effort right now. The main thing is that I don’t have to keep this room an ugly, hidden secret anymore. In fact, I find myself wandering in here every once in awhile just to gaze around and pat myself on the back.

This is my first major room “re-do” in the house, so I’d love to know what you think. And if you have any other (inexpensive) decorating suggestions, lemme hear ‘em!

16 comments:

Kelly@TearingUpHouses said...

Nice paint color. And are those ceilings as high as they look?!

Kelly

Kim @ NewlyWoodwards said...

I really like the white furniture painted. I find that painting old, intricate wood like that looks so chic and modern. Love it.

And, I think everything looks really nice. I'm glad you didn't just stick something above the dresser. Find something you love and works for you. I have the tendency to throw crap on the walls and then hate it because I didn't find the perfect thing.

I realy like the grey walls, too. I'm seriously considering grey for our master in the next house.

Amanda @ Little House on the Corner said...

Kelly - Yes, they are 10-foot ceilings! It's really nice because the rooms in our house are pretty small.

Kim - Thanks for the advice! Patience is a virtue, but it IS tempting to just slap something on the wall. I'm digging the gray, and I'd totally do it for our bedroom if I hadn't already one it in this one! It's neutral, but it's not a boring neutral.

Danielle and Clint said...

O wow! The gray really made a difference! And the painted white furnature is a nice touch to the space! Great job!

Anonymous said...

What an awesome room, especially for that price!! You know what I really love? How you left the wood trim. White trim looks nice, but I really wish my house still had the warmth of stained wood.

Now... when should I book my trip? :-)

Unknown said...

I'm huge fan of grey, I love the wall color and you have super high cielings no fair! The furniture looks great (nice update) Your guest room looks nice and inviting :) the room looks so much better now

Unknown said...

ps: We need to replace our faux wood blinds in our hosue!! Only a few of them work - lol - our dirty little secret :)

kristine hensley said...

your room turned out great!! i have a suggestion for cheap/free artwork for you -- get a 1 yard wallcovering sample and staple it around a canvas frame. if you come up to luke's office sometime, i can show you the wallcovering books and order a free sample for you. i've got 2-3 around my house and it really helps my bare walls!

micah said...

Fabulous paint color and I love the painted furniture! Marvelous! Can't wait to see it in person.

Carrie @ Two Poms and a House said...

everything looks great lady. bet it feels good to know that you put all that hard work in and the finished product makes you feel happy!

Unknown said...

i'm loving that color... very nice! i wish it looked better in my house. we have REALLY dark trim and it just clashes. sigh...

Kasey at Thrifty Little Blog said...

I love cool shades in the bedroom. It really looks like a relaxing retreat :)!

Sara @ Russet Street Reno said...

Whoa, 10 ft ceilings! Ours upstairs are 7.5 ft. Boo!

I love the changes you've made, the budget is also enviable.

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kristi.w. said...

Looking good! I like the colors you picked out for this room. Your future guests can look forward to a super relaxing night's sleep.

Sarah @ Hennessey House said...

wowsa!! fantastic changes! i, too, LOVE the gray. and i really love the white long dresser.

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