Bedroom Makeover on a Budget

Posted on by

I moved into my tiny flat in May 2011.  Built in 1972 it was in ‘original condition’ and in a state decor wise which is best described as ‘tired’.

In the intervening four and a half years I have done what I can to make my home a place that works for me. It is all looking pretty good – except for one room.  The small back bedroom, which at the end of moving in day 2011 looked like this

craft Room 2 May 11

and a week or so later looked like this

craft room

This room was intended as my art space, but after a few weeks of trying to squeeze my supplies and tables and me in, I decided to turn my big bedroom over to my art and squeeze my bed into this room instead.

This is a montage of my art room – just in case you have never seen where I create….. It’s not as tidy as this usually………..

pizap

There is, as you may have noticed, the most wonderful 70’s yellow floral wallpaper firmly adhered to the wall of the aforementioned tiny bedroom.  It wasn’t going to budge and investigations into removing or painting over required either more than my miniscule budget could afford or the use of chemical sealers that would likely kill us all in our sleep.

The yellow flowers had to stay for the time being.  I did my best:

Bedroom 28 8 14

But it really wasn’t good enough!  Time passed by, I went into the room only to dress or sleep, often never turning the light on.  It was a necessary room, but not an inviting one.

Recently I became very aware of the need to change and improve my evening ritual – I wasn’t sleeping that well and my reading time was also curtailed.  My room needed to be a place I wanted to spend time in.  I wanted to spend time winding down in a pleasant manner – taking a shower, putting on my pj’s making a cup of herbal tea and tucking into bed with that soothing drink and a good book and spending a bit of quiet time before sleep.

I needed my room to become a welcoming haven.

But how do you turn a tiny room into a welcoming haven spending as little money as possible?  You inveigle invite Youngest Daughter/Official Photographer to help and set to work and do a makeover in three days.

The plan: to remove the layers of curtains from the windows and streamline the area as much as possible while retaining privacy – the window looks straight onto an ugly old brick house next door and is also on the shared pathway between my flat and the back flat.  Take off the wardrobe door and replace with curtains.  Paint out the ugly wallpaper and rearrange the furniture.

Day one, clear everything out.  In a tiny house the issue becomes where to put everything.  Rain doesn’t help!  So, haul the bed into the lounge, shut the front door and don’t let anyone else inside.   Stop breathing and paint the walls with sealer.  Purchase a dozen onions, cut them up and put them in the room.  Close the door and don’t go back until Day Two.

Brm01

Finding ourselves still alive on the morning of Day Two, the Official Photographer and I painted, in the palest hue of green you will ever see, three coats onto the walls. [It looks white in the photos but is in reality a soft green that glows beside the cyan blues that are used in the furnishings.]  Endless rain doesn’t help with the quality of my photos either …………..

In between coats the windows were covered with a faux stain glass effect privacy film

Brm4

And also in between coats, a headboard was constructed from two large [100 x 80 cm] canvases that hold paintings I don’t currently want up, but don’t want to throw away.  An old blanket was used for the wadding and an unused piece of stretch fabric from the stash was the perfect size to cover the canvases.  It was all stapled together.

Brm03

It has to be duly explained here that all this is the brainchild of Youngest Daughter/Official Photographer who also doubles as our ‘Engineer Brains’ when I have a good idea but don’t know how to make it a reality.  Isn’t that a great headboard!

Brm6

Did you notice above the lace curtains that were retrieved from storage and cover the wardrobe instead of a door?

On the wall opposite the bed my favourite ‘soul’ picture, painted almost a year ago

Brm7

A new duvet cover was purchased in a sale and the 1500 thread count sheets [sigh, slurp!] were a Christmas gift.  And of course, there is no show without Punch Siddy

Brm1

 

Total cost of makeover

Sealer and paint  [on sale, saving 30%]     $97.00

Bedding [on sale, saving 60%]   $35.00

Headboard $0.00

Two girls, three days medium labour.

I can’t tell you how very happy I am with my room!  It may be tiny but it has everything I require and I find myself wanting to head off to bed at 8 pm now!

What do you think?

Thanks for coming by today, I love that you did!

118 thoughts on “Bedroom Makeover on a Budget”

  3. What a fantastic makeover Pauline, I absolutely adore your headboard and love the idea of putting lace curtains instead of doors on your wardrobe. Just goes to prove you don’t need a big budget to make big changes to your home 🙂 You should write a book sharing all your wonderful tips and ideas, co-authored with your amazing girls – and Siddy of course, who looks so adorable ❤ I had the very same faux stained glass covering on a window in my last house in California, I loved it. Such a great idea to hide an ugly view but still lets some light in. I hope now you are able to put into practice your new bedtime routine, which makes me feel so sleepy and relaxed just thinking of it. Sweet dreams sweet friend 🙂 xoxo

    Like

    • I don’t have the self determination to dedicate myself to book production Sherri – that’s [one of the reasons] why I so admire you!
      I am so glad to hear you had that window film – I knew I couldn’t be the only person who was using it. I love it and have put it up on several windows for privacy or to block unliked views.
      I am already sleeping better and getting on with my reading pile 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  4. Pauline, I’ve had the wonderful opportunity to visit here twice. I read (and drooled and sighed and smiled) last night, but I was tired and decided to wait till today to reply. Your room is transformed! The colors are restful, personal, and beautiful and so deliciously you. The headboard is genius. What a clever idea using two canvases and and old blanket for structure, covered by that gorgeous fabric. Kudos to your designer and engineer. It’s so much fun when it all comes together.

    Like all the others that commented, I’ve not seen such beautiful film for a window. I bet it casts pretty patterns too when the light catches it. Your bedding is lovely and as for the sheets, once you’ve slept on high-thread count, you never want anything else. What a thoughtful gift.

    I’ve admired your lamp before, and will simply add that the blues in the room really compliment the lamp, dresser and closet/wardrobe drapes/curtains.

    I have a question about the onions. Are they supposed to absorb the smell or do they have another purpose? Where did you sleep during the transformation? It must have been tight quarters for awhile, but so worth it.

    Goodbye 1972, hello 2016.

    xo

    Liked by 1 person

    • Yes indeed! Thank heavens for leaving 1972 behind! Although the interesting thing is I am sitting in bed reading a book set just a little later in that decade. 🙂

      The onions are purely for absorbing the smell – and I have heard it said they also soak up some of the chemicals released in the process of applying the sealer and paint. They do a good job as the room was free of odour the following morning.

      I slept in the lounge for three nights. Siddy went and slept with Danella as he didn’t see the lounge as being the correct place for his ‘nigh-nighs’ [I baby talk my dog – shame on me!]

      Like

      • What a fun coincidence that you’re reading a book set in that time. Are you enjoying it?

        I’m delighted to learn the onion tip. What an amazing quality. So glad it worked.

        As for baby talking to Siddy, honestly who could blame you. 😉 with that sweet face looking up at you all the time. It’s funny though that he was put out at sleeping in the lounge.

        Has the rain and cold finally stopped again?

        Like

        • Yes I am enjoying the book very much, though it is probably not one I would have picked off the shelf in a book shop. It is written by a blogger I follow in the UK – he asked me to review it. It is very hot here for the past two or three days and I am mostly just a puddle on the floor in the shock of it all! 🙂 I’m looking forward to our catch-up.

          Like

          • Gosh, Pauline, your weather can not make up “its” mind. We had one or two cold (for California) days with a sharp wind, but now it’s warm and dry and wind free. February is usually one of the coldest and driest (as in lack of humidity) months. Today feels more like early spring.

            So nice of you to be reviewing a book.

            Like

  5. Pauline, I love, love, love what you have done with your bedroom. I can’t believe you lived with that wall paper for so long and can understand why you never wanted to go in there. I hope you are enjoying your new space and have a pile of books for bedtime reading now. Btw, I think you made a fantastic choice to dedicate the larger room for your studio as you need plenty of room and a cheerful environment to be creative.

    Liked by 1 person

    • I feel the same as you Lois! But maybe the result of waiting so long is that every time I enter the room I smile. I really appreciate having such a perfect space! And yes about the larger room for my studio too – it has worked out really well, just took a couple or so years to let it all mature 🙂 Thanks for your enthusiastic comment. 🙂

      Like

  6. I am so very late for the “reveal” of your new bedroom, but I absolutely love it!!
    What an incredible difference and it’s so very lovely, Pauline. The paint, the window, the headboard, those wonderful, oh so well deserved sheets … all of it!
    How are you sleeping? I hope you crawled into bed that first night (and every night since), with a big happy sigh and a complete sense of contentment?
    Yes?

    Liked by 1 person

  8. Wow, and a thousand times wow. Regardless of budget, some people just do not have the vision or the creativity or the colour-sense to make a space beautiful. But you can achieve far more with your artistic ability than most people with ten times your budget. Enjoy your gorgeous new room.

    Like

    • Hello Twisted!! [Blush] High praise – thank you so much. I think many people are afraid of colour and so they stay with the magnolias and trendy neutrals and miss out on the fun. Thank heavens there’s an upside to being artsy-fartsy! 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

    • I am sleeping better – isn’t it amazing what a difference a pot of paint makes! Um – it’s always been Siddy’s room – despite the fact that I said he would never sleep in my bed before I got him – and had his own little bed all ready to go – he has never used it and goes ‘Nigh’-nighs’ every night with me ……….. It’s as well he is a little, non-shedding pup 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  10. Hello there ladies of unlimited talent ! Painter, gardener, dog whisperer, zen goddess and now home decorator extraordinaire. My word, you two are really, really talented. Honestly, anyone can make a home a marvel of beauty without a budget. But you have done it creatively and beautiful while spending just a little . Bravo! I can’t see any remnant of the previous domain what-so-ever, so I’m amazed how quickly you’ve finished your re-do.
    The windows are just dreamy. I never seen such pretty window cling. I’ve seen plain white here but never stained glass. That’s gorgeous. I also think the headboard was super clever. Wouldn’t have ever thought of it. Do you have a window on both sides of your bed? Of course Mr Siddy must love it all too, but he’d probably be happy anywhere you are. Great photo’s too D! xo K

    Liked by 2 people

    • Hello Boomdee are you home from tropical Hawaii? I have received your most delightful vintage styled postcard on Friday and as always just tickled that you thought of us while enjoying your mid winter break. The blue lace curtains on the other side of the bed are covering the wardrobe opening as I took the door off to make the room usable with a double bed in it. So no, there is just the one window. I love this window film, or cling as you call it – it is quite the prettiest one I ever found, for as you say they are generally just faux opaque bubble glass – which is good for privacy but not stylish like this is. Little Siddy just likes to be with his mumma it is true – but he also likes the bed 🙂 We are off now, me to read a chapter of my book and he to sleep cos he’s a tired little puppy. xoxo

      Liked by 1 person

  11. I am late to the party but wanted to say I think this is just gorgeous, I love your eye for decorating and elegant style. I think when you let your own style dominate, rather than decorating for sale or to look like a magazine it really shows and radiates love. I think you are subliminally affecting me as I find I am loving turquoise lately when I have never liked it at all before! :))

    Like

    • Heh, heh! Welcome to the call of the sea 🙂 Thank you for all those kind words they are making me smile and feel most self satisfied 🙂 Purples are really nice too and go well with all the shades found either side of cyan……….. just saying 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  12. I am SO impressed, Pauline! You two did an amazing job and in only three days! You are lucky to have a creative proem-sving daughter and she is lucky to have a Mum who welcomes her ideas and efforts. . . a perfect partnership!

    One thing you did not mention (or at least not in depth) was the joy you must feel on waking each day in such a tranquil haven. I imagine it is both peaceful and inspiring.

    The headboard is gorgeous and I love that it combines storage, recycling and functionality.

    What next, I wonder . . .

    Like

    • Thank you Linne – and well spotted on the functionality with the headboard – two birds with one stone really 🙂 I am loving going to bed and waking up in this room – it is a peaceful haven and so much appreciated I really can’t express it!

      Like

  13. Wow! What a transformation. I should submit myself to your family’s transformative powers. Well, I finally got my haircut and coloured last week so I’m on the way.
    I know what you means about making do and I guess not realising quite how long you’ve put up with something which really is dragging down your mood. Our bedroom defintiely needs a face lift but we did our son’s bedroom up while he was off at Scout camp. 12 days away seemed like such a long time but like all renovation projects, once you start removing furniture and frames which cover up a few evils, trouble hits you from all angles. We had a couple of holes in the wall, one which I’d unsuccessfully patched and looked like a tumour. The previous owner hadn’t put in skirting boards either. They turned out to be a real pain to retro fit, especially as the walls aren’t straight. So, my husband was sculpting them to get them to fit as well as carving out holes for powerpoints while we had days and days and days of rain and the scout’s return loomed imminently. You can see his room here: https://beyondtheflow.wordpress.com/2016/01/15/return-of-the-prodigal-scout/
    I really like your idea of the headboard and will look into that.
    As much as the room needed doing, especially with him starting high school, I really wanted it to be a way of externalising our love for him. He’s a kid who needs that reminder. So far so good although the skateboard has already put a dent in the freshly painted gyprock where we hadn’t quite managed to finish nailing in the skirting.
    Hope you are having a great weekend and enjoying your room. BTW, you have defintiely got your priorities right. Big room art, small room sleep. I love it!!
    xx Rowena

    Like

    • Thanks for your enthusiastic comment Rowena and the link and wandered over to see your boy’s bedroom. Of course the colour is spot on 🙂 Kids and dogs hey! Still, I often wonder if dogs ignore returning family members simply because, like the indigenous folks when faced with the sailing ships of Europeans arriving on their shores, can’t see them as they weren’t expecting such a thing. Once they have time to take it in and can see us, it’s all on of course. Cats on the other hand see us perfectly well and simply choose to make us wait a suitable amount of time as punishment for having the temerity to waft in and out of their lives. Love them all to bits anyway 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  14. It’s beautiful and so creative! I love the colors. Is cyan blue like a teal blue? Do the onions absorb the paint smell? I’ve never heard of that. I think it was a good decision to use the larger room for your art ( it is also a lovely room and very well organized). I personally like a small, cozy bedroom. I need to organize better, as always you are so inspiring 🙂 xo

    Liked by 1 person

    • Hi LT, yes ‘cyan’ is the given name for the colour that sits exactly half way between blue and green – teal and aqua being more or less blue or green either side of cyan. Yes, onions absorb smells. Very handy when painting and six or so chopped in halves or quarters cleared that bedroom of the fumes of the sealer over night. The art room doesn’t always look tidy like those photos show – but it is a lovely room to work in and doubles as a guest room too so all in all it works better for me. Glad to be thought ‘inspiring’ 😀 Thank you! xo

      Liked by 1 person

  15. Well, you answered my question about the onions. I had never heard of that. I put vanilla into the paint and then it smells just lovely. I also used a low VOC paint. But I like the idea of adding a tiny bit of color to the white. I have so much white to reflect the light so I can see better but really want a tiny bit of color too. Why is it our bedrooms are the last thing on our list of places to decorate? You did a fabulous job on that room. I don’t think I could have lived with that wall paper quite as long. YD did an excellent job of coming up with a headboard design. I love all the butterflies in there as well as your beautiful artwork. Now it’s a sanctuary! Perfect and peaceful. You can both be proud and I can see Siddy is definitely delighted with the end result and he didn’t have do give up dinner so you could afford to do it. 🙂 Love what you’ve done.

    Like

    • Thank you Marlene 🙂 I have never heard of putting vanilla into paint to make it smell nice – what a good idea! I imagine you would have to use quite a lot though? And yes, I used low VOC paint [I think they all are now from the brand I used] – but the sealer was another story altogether! Onions are excellent for removing odours and freshening up the air – I sometimes pop a halved one into the fridge if there is something in there that has left an odour or in the rubbish bin…… Isn’t it amazing how long I lived with that wallpaper! I didn’t want to use the sealer because I was afraid it would affect the animals health and wellbeing and the fumes would linger for days and make me sick too. [I was assured in the paint shop though that it was much improved since I last used it some thirty years ago 🙂 And it was – but it still was pretty awful] My appreciation of having a nice room is probably doubled for having the long wait 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

      • Looks like we both learned something new. I’m going to add peppermint oil next time to see if it works as well. I used an inexpensive brand of vanilla and it take all that much. I don’t use onions for much of anything since I can’t eat them. I’ve always used baking soda for absorbing odors. 🙂 My daughter doesn’t like my oak furniture saying it’s too heavy looking for the room. You can’t buy the quality anymore and have seriously thought about painting it a light color to lighten it’s effect. It’s solid oak and cedar and a good 20 years old. My headboard is heavy looking too but it has overhead lights and lots of book storage. I have too much stuff! 😦 I think it will be my next project after I finish painting the house and putting in the garden. I know what you mean about the long wait making it more appealing now.

        Liked by 1 person

  16. It looks fabulous, Pauline! What a deal on the bedding and a gift of such luxurious sheets…. sigh…ahhhhhh! You ought to sleep like a baby in such an oasis. Love the stained glass window! Was it a film that you laid over the window? I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like that. Removing your curtains from there and allowing the light to come in yet providing such a pleasing decor definitely helped to create a peaceful environment. I like that idea. And of course, topping it off with that beautiful painting is the perfect finishing touch. I do love the colors of your crafting room. One must have a pleasing space in which to be creative! The turquoise / aqua colors suit you perfectly! Calming, creative, and peaceful.

    Like

    • Thank you Jan! Yes, it is sold as window film from DIY stores – or on-line which is where I get mine from. I wait until it is 50% off and then buy 5 or 6 metres. I’ve used it in several places round my house now to great effect. Not having to have those heavy layers of nets and drapes makes such a difference when space is limited. I’m very fond of those colours and they feature all through my home 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  17. I so enjoyed this post and think you did a fantastic job, especially considering your final spend! The headboard is genius and I LOVE the ‘stained glass’ – both add real luxury touches to the room. I will be helping my older son and daughter in the coming months as they are each looking to step onto the property ladder and budgets will be extremely tight. It’s fun to see what others can do with very little cash and huge amounts of enthusiasm, so thanks for sharing!

    Like

    • Thank you Sheila – great feedback! I am a recent convert to the joys of this window film. It is just perfect for removing less than pleasing views, ensuring privacy and maximising space. And when the pattern is carefully chosen can add to the decor rather than subtract. 🙂 [I suppose I should have mentioned all that in the post]

      Liked by 1 person

  18. What a beautiful makeover, Pauline. You and Youngest Daughter did a magnificent job together. I love your butterflies. I usually have butterflies on my bed in summer too, but this year have kept on my green spread. Next year the butterflies will return.
    I love your create space. It looks so, um, well, creative. I can see why you chose the bigger room for that purpose, but I am pleased to see that you have now made your bedroom more welcoming. I am impressed by the faux stained glass windows. They look quite lovely, much better than the view you described. I thought wrong, didn’t I? I was thinking you would choose a pale pink, but instead you have two of my favourite colours. I am a blue girl so purples and greens are my second choices, which is part of the reason why your favourite painting appeals to me so much – that and it’s beautiful message.
    Thank you for this glimpse inside your home. 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    • Interestingly Norah you were almost right in your colour pick. I toyed with pink for quite a while as the room is on the south side and I wanted to make sure it felt warm. It would have been the ‘hint of pink’ probably more on the lavender side, but I finally settled on the ‘hint of green’. as that suits my colour palette choices better. I like any colour that hints to me of the sea so I am likely to use a colour palette that ranges through the blues, greens and slightly purples. See – more in common!! 🙂 It’s so great isn’t it!

      Liked by 2 people

      • It is, Pauline. I’m so pleased I found you. Of course the pink would be in the colours of dawn or sunset reflected in the sea. Our sky was beautiful this evening. The storm that was threatening rolled away (unfortunately) and pink brush strokes across the few lingering grey clouds were beautiful. The rich blue-grey behind them was an amazing backdrop.
        I wish you sweet dreams in your butterfly bed. 🙂

        Liked by 1 person

  19. I am deeply impressed. What a great idea to use the bigger room for a creative space. The smaller room looks so inviting and is hardly recognisable from the before picture. The stained glass although you said is faux is so pretty and clever. Siddy is the icing on the cake! I love small spaces because as you said, it makes housework a quick affair. ❤ ❤ ❤

    Like

  20. I ma impressed, from one frugal girl to another!!! Well done, cozy, comfortable, bright and than your lovely artwork…perfect and in your own style! Sweet dreams, xo Johanna

    Like

  21. Wow, I am so impressed. What a transformation. That headboard is amazing and the colors are really really nice. It’s really inspiring. I just think about stuff and don’t get off the dime, but I may now be spurred to act…

    Liked by 1 person

    • Excellent – a little colour and a touch of pattern goes a long way to making a space warm and welcoming I always think……… although most people know by now I tend to use an awful lot of cyan blue in my rooms and mix it up with lots of patterns in the same colour way. I shall look forward to seeing your creative spaces 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  22. It’s not the same room. It’s turned into a beautiful butterfly like Heimlich from A Bugs Tale! You girls performed magic incantations and arrived at the perfect hue of alchemy to create a space that is light, beautiful and perfect for you to spend time in Ms Pauline. I call this a sterling success :).

    Like

  24. Ok so I’m officially awful but I couldn’t help looking at the books by your bed…. *hangs head*. What I love it the up cycling of the pictures and blanket to make the headboard. I did something similar (with a high degree of guidance form a really skilled friend) with my dad’s old writing desk to create my own. And the neat way with the window stain glass. Sooooper!

    Like

  26. It’s wonderful what you did with the room. It looks so nice and serene. I bet Siddy was a big help. The little ones always are willing to get into the mix of things.

    Like

    • 😀 Siddy spent most of the time sitting anxiously on ‘his’ bed in the lounge waiting for it to be returned to it’s rightful place. Now and again he wombled around the room inspecting progress before retiring back to keep watch over his bed.

      Liked by 1 person

  27. Wow, what a transformation! I do love that turquoise colour it’s so bright and cheerful and the stained glass effect on the window is beautiful, such a good idea. Siddy looks as if he has settled in nicely already 🙂

    And thanks for the handy tip re onions in a painted room – I will remember that one!

    Like

    • Thanks Jem – Siddy couldn’t wait to have ‘his’ bed back in its correct place! Always use half a dozen onions cut in half or quarters to remove paint smells. I forgot to mention that the following morning there was no smell from the stinky sealer 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  28. I super love your room Pauline! Green is one of my favorite colors and any shade of green for me is always the perfect shade. Now, you can rest early with tea and a good book. Enjoy, enjoy your new sanctuary. 🙂

    Like

  29. I love it! So calming – and the stained glass effect is brilliant. I shall think of you hunkering down with a good book as I’m just about getting up in the morning! A restful bedroom is a rightful luxury I feel.

    Liked by 1 person

  31. This. Is. Amazing! What a transformation and it is so excellent that you did it for almost no cost. A true testimony to creativity and excellent problem-solving. You will dream sweetly in this room!

    Like

    • Thank you Kerry – it is such a pleasure to spend time there now! And I forgot to show a closeup of a lovely white crochet place mat sitting under the lamp….. did you spot it anyway?

      Like

  32. You did a beautiful job transforming the room into a gorgeous sleep haven. What a difference! And the dog stuffed-pillow really makes the room.

    Like

  33. I don’t know why you couldn’t live with the yellow 70s floral…no, seriously it’s pretty disgusting. So glad you found a way to cover it and take back your room. I love the stained glass effect. You both did a marvellous job and I can see why your room is now your sanctuary.

    Like

    • It’s a wonderful colour isn’t it David! Thanks for the Tweet. I think I finally managed to work out how to access my Twitter account today – I’ll be able to start twittering all over the tree now!!

      Like

  38. Love it! The way you tell the story, too. Your daughter is a kind of genius, methinks. The headboard is so smart. We use the plywood window coverings (hurricanes) covered with a sarong! Very similar, but not so sharp and professional looking. And the colors are YOU! Such a lovely place to read, perchance to sleep. 🙂 Thanks for sharing it all with us. Hugs and big love from Hawaii.

    Like

    • My daughter will of course nod her head in agreement with you on that statement Christi 🙂 She is very clever and practical!! I think the headboard makes the room! Thanks for cheering us both on xoxo

      Like

  39. I have been a fan of window film for some time. Until recently I lived in a large victorian house in New Hampshire and used it on French doors and windows overlooking parts of the neighborhood I just didn’t want to see. It’s so easy to install, still allows light and is easy to clean, besides being pretty! I can’t even remember how great is the number of walls and ceilings I have painted in order to make a place feel more like mine. (I once stayed up all night painting the ugly outside of an old apartment bathtub lavender.) A couple of years ago I moved to a smaller house, here in Maine, and much of the decor is not at all to my taste–but I just can’t be bothered with interior decoration anymore– something I used to love to do! This place is clean and in good repair, so I ignore the flowery wallpaper (it almost disappears when I hang my own paintings over it) and other features that were all the rage in the 1950’s. Your “new” room looks fresh and very much like a place where you can rest and be at home. That’s what counts, about a room….that one can feel a peaceful sense of oneself, at home. Looks like you done good!

    Liked by 1 person

    • This is the first time in my adult life I have waited to make something I loathe more acceptable to my colour palette. I did try hanging large canvases and paintings all over that wallpaper but the durn stuff still showed through! There is however a quiet satisfaction about the fact that I could allow it to be for so long- I did think I must be growing up! I can see myself being much less bothered by things that once would not have been allowed to exist in my home or surrounds and that too is very freeing. But I still like pretty and I do love my blues and this is, as my friend remarked today, like camping out in a very posh tent! She was, I assumed, referring to how very small the room is 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  40. Nice job! It is amazing what a coat of paint will do. I agree with the “go crazy and get it done” approach to redecorating too. 🙂 Just found your blog and have started following you. Looking forward to seeing more!

    Like

  44. I love your new space Pauline. The stained glass window treatment is genius and the colours so vibrant but soothing. Well done to you and YD/OP. And if Siddy’s happy, for sure the mumma has to be happy:)

    Like

    • Thank you Nanette! I shall pass on your congratulations 🙂 and of course Siddy is always happy – which ensures I stay that way too – he’s like my own personal, private little guru 🙂 I’ve become a recent convert and a big fan of window film when privacy and or ugly outlooks are the issue.

      Like

  45. You have a wonderful eye along with a creative gift of doing with your hands. You did awesome. New paint is a great investment for a makeover.A toast to your efforts!

    Like

  46. I have been living in a tight space so I can empathize with this post, Pauline! Your area can be tackled like the garden you made such a beautiful oasis. I need to get rid of some of my stuff. . . hugs, Robin x0

    Liked by 2 people

    • It is tackled Robin and I really like it 🙂 Interestingly I think I am becoming really happy too with living in a small space – now all the rooms are finished [well, as much as I can do anyway] Housework is a quick affair and so is gardening – leaving more time to do things I enjoy 🙂

      Liked by 2 people

      • I only saw the beginning of your project apparently because the finished effect is gorgeous, Pauline! 🙂 I would have told you I felt envious of a light yellow flowered patterned wallpaper! (Renting an apt with all white walls.)
        I must have started this on a day I ran out of time scrolling through all the photographs. I am used to my concept of one photo to study on a post and I studied the boxes up to the ceiling in your bedroom.
        Laugh out loud for I am not such a good friend, I guess, thinking it would be days before you got back to us with the end product.
        Sorry about this mix-up. Your solid colored headboard is beautiful. It was a project similar to what a friend of mine did with her bunting, wooden frame and a quilt material that had been hanging for a long time over a dowel rod. I like people using what they have and going with their favorite “wheelhouse” of colors. Your own painting is very beautiful and one of my favorite “souls” you shared with us. The colors of teal and cyan, along with turquoise are so pretty holding a bit more green than ceruleon blue and azure blue. I was a “Blue Willow” plate and Asian vases with blues were in my last house’s dining room and living room.
        My current bedroom has grandies toys lining around the edges but if I stand at the foot of my bed, blocking or cropping the walls, it is rather nice. I have a creamy colored comforter with a more blue than green crinkled ribbon strip, a lighter blue and then an even lighter color taking only 36 inches of the cream colored spread. It has a little hint of green but not really enough to send it into anything specific. I call it ceruleon blue but not sure if this is accurate. It was a “steal” at JC Penney Company for $15 (a designer named Ty Pennington created the combination “ribbon”) and I have a double bed. Above my white walls I have a white shelf with four Lladro figurines, which are more of a dove gray blue color. Their faces are so barely beige you cannot hardly see them. Anyway, they have a little “dressing table” and a restaurant, bucket of dinosaurs and shelves of cars and trucks. Thanks for reading and yes, we have similar small spaces but I don’t have a patio nor exit to anywhere outside unless I walk to the front of my apt building or the back. I have a great university for my “neighbor” and they always have it groomed. 🙂 Feel free to delete after you read this, Pauline! Hugs, Robin

        Like

Comments are closed.