In collaboration with our favorite local furniture store: Chapin Furniture
We’ve lived in this house for 3 years and the boy’s bedroom was never high on our priority list when it came to renovation. With so many of the other rooms feeling complete, it was time to take this basic square room and turn it into a cozy space that is perfect for 2 growing boys.
If you’ve been following along for a while, you’ve seen the boys’ room go through a couple stages. First there was the starting point when we moved in. I mean, who could forget that green carpet??? Then we did a smaller update where we said ‘goodbye’ to the green carpet and peach walls, which thank goodness, because they NEEDED to go. That was enough to make it feel like it was headed in the direction we wanted it to go, but nothing too creative. The final transformation was everything I had envisioned and more!!
The inspiration for their room came from the Hygge & West Piedmont wallpaper that I used. As soon as the time came to start this project, this wallpaper was what my brain immediately went to. I have loved it for so long and I KNEW I had to use it! It’s fun and whimsical and perfect for kids, but classic enough that it won’t go out of style, and the color is neutral enough that it’s not visually overpowering. I’ve compiled a list of some of my other favorite wallpapers HERE.
The boys’ beds are some of my favorite pieces ever! The shape of them is so cute and the coolest part is that they have a storage drawer in them – which is really ideal for any age! Ezra and Curren like to keep their treasures in them and I love opening them to see what is special to them. When I chose the fabric for the beds, I went with a windowpane pattern that has a taupe thread, which perfectly ties into the color of the wallpaper.
These beds are a part of the “Mary Lauren Home” collection with a local furniture company, Chapin Furniture! They are so incredibly well crafted and even have storage drawers underneath for extra space. If there’s a color or pattern you’d like to see, let me know! You can also contact them about ordering this bed in any size and any fabric.
I know it’s not for everyone, but I REALLY love mixing prints and patterns! Like a lot. I just feel like it adds so much personality!! But… There is a right way and a wrong way to do it. Start by taking the size of the room into consideration. A large bright room can handle larger scale patterns and bolder colors much better than a smaller room like the boys’. No matter the size of the room though, I do think it’s important to pick coordinating colors and vary the patterns in busy-ness. Otherwise it’ll just look like a bunch of random patterns thrown into a room.
Once the big stuff was done, it was fun to start adding the finishing details like the lights above their beds and the monogrammed pillows. I gave their Ikea dresser an easy upgrade just by replacing the knobs with some I found on Amazon. Let me tell you… I searched high and low for globe knobs like these when we did our kitchen and they were nowhere to be found. That being said, I was SO happy when I found them for this dresser. They are perfect!! A bunch of the smaller decor items, like the duck bookends, were things that I found at antique stores and have been holding onto for years. They add such a nice touch of whimsy – and open up some space for me to add more antique finds to my collection. The beds, foot stools, blankets, and the rug are all from Chapin Furniture.
The boys love their room, but I’m pretty sure they would’ve been fine continuing to sleep on the playroom floor in sleeping bags haha!! It took over 2 years, but it was worth the wait and I absolutely love the finished space. I think sometimes standard box rooms can be labeled as “boring” because there really isn’t anything special architecturally. No cut outs or built-ins or weird corners, it’s just a box. But I always find these types of transformations so inspiring! We didn’t knock down any walls or make any huge changes, everything was cosmetic.
It really goes to show how much of an impact simple DIY fixes can have!! Here’s to 2022 and all the projects ahead!
May I ask, where do you find all the art and frames? Is it from antique stores or do you use a paint to turn old frames antique and then pop in a printed picture? Love the little pictures above their beds and the lamp! Also the John Muir book, the cutest! We went to Yosemite before we got pregnant and our dream is to take baby there for the John Muir trail one day. 🥹💕 these posts are beautiful!