‘This year I decided to enter my own bedroom makeover in the One Room Challenge. It is a bi-annual event where participants are given 8 weeks to track a project to it’s completion. It isn’t a contest. It is a good natured journey of fellow homeowners, some of whom are also designers, sharing their weekly progress.
When I told my husband I was ready to redecorate our bedroom he said, “Didn’t I just paint it?” Actually that was back in 2012; 13 years ago! I got busy designing. I knew that I wanted to add storage cabinetry. Our home was built in 1939 and the closets are modest. So I began by designing the cabinets using the cabinet line that I carry, Crystal Cabinet Works. They are fully custom and they are made in Minnesota. Whereas a lot of cabinet makers outsource their doors from overseas, Crystal makes their own doors in house, so with the exception of the drawer glides and hinges they are truly American made.
I ordered the cabinets in a custom color, Benjamin Moore’s “Moroccan Red”. It is the perfect red. It’s vibrant and rich without being too bright. I’ll be honest with you, sometimes the inspiration is an internal feeling. I just felt certain the cabinetry needed to be red. From there I chose the rest.
There was another consideration. My husband insisted we keep his grandparent’s dressers. I had painted them cobalt in 2012 partially because the veneer was falling off in several places and partially because I like the color. I really didn’t want to paint them again, so I decided there would need to be blue in the color palette. That is when I found the wallpaper and I had my muse and the star of the room!
From there I found a fabric for the custom bench at the end of our bed that Mr. Hooper uses to jump up. Mr. Hooper is our Scottish Terrier. My husband thinks Mr. Hooper is spoiled. I can’t imagine why.
After the wallpaper went up, I found myself gazing into our bedroom and smiling like a dodo. This room truly makes me so happy. The drapery gets installed this week and the rug got moved in last weekend which meant dragging all the furniture out of the bedroom and back in again. Have I mentioned how amazing my husband is? He has done all of the work in our home and he is so supportive of my design ideas. Notice the paneled ceiling in the following photo as well as the light fixture. He installed all of that. The one thing he won’t do is hang wallpaper. I’m okay with that.
The water hyacinth and wrought iron “Annabelle Large Pendant” from Currey & Co. has been on my wish list for a very long time. It brings texture and warmth to the room. In design projects it is important not to get too attached to one idea. I had preordered a different light fixture for our bedroom and after it was back ordered I decided I didn’t love it enough to wait. I remembered this light fixture and I’m so glad that the other one was unavailable. I know that scallops are very trendy right now, but I have always loved them so I am certain I won’t tire of this gorgeous pendant light.
The wallpaper makes my husband’s dressers look great! Those dressers are more proof that it pays to be flexible when working on an interior design project. If I had been a mean wife and made him get rid of them, I never would have found this wallpaper which is my favorite design element in the room. I love the Bavarian vibes happening here. There will be no waking up on the wrong side of the bed in this room! It’s so dang cheerful. To be continued…
