Dream Houses: Our 70s Split Redo Part IV: The Master Bedroom

Monday, November 16, 2009

Our 70s Split Redo Part IV: The Master Bedroom

So I finally took pics of our bedroom! (a million!!- sorry!) Here's what it looked like when we first moved in. Scary, I know. The curtains were leftover from our old house & we had to hang them for privacy until I could get longer ones. (They were one of the last things we added to the room so anytime someone walked in I was so embarrassed! :) The limewashed paneling was pretty bad but appealed to me in a weird way... We stuck to our budget and spent just under $1000 in this room. We didn't replace the (new, clean-but-boring) carpet but have plans to do so. (Probably with a natural woven wall-to-wall carpet like seagrass or sisal.)

Here it is now:

I knew I wanted all-white because there's just nothing more relaxing to me & we really wanted to focus on the wooded views outside the windows. And I love getting into a clean white bed with fresh linens. Just love it!! (The duvet cover is from West Elm & I like the fact that it's pretty even when it's not made :) We keep our current books on the old step ladder (above) under the window that we found outside our house in the bushes. It keeps things neat.

What inspired the rest of the room was the antique brass headboard. (below) We found it on the side of the road set out trash when we first moved in. (One of my best trash-picks ever.) It's a double bed but works fine for our queen bed.

For our bedside tables we went with the Malm dressers from Ikea. (I think around $65 each?) We needed the storage space and I love having a big nightstand. I wanted modern & simple & I've always loved the lines of these. I chose an antique brass reading lamp by Robert Abbey suggested to me by Reichel of Copy Cat Chic (thank you!!! :) because it was such a better price than the Restoration Hardware one I was lusting after & had the same look. I love having the dimmer at night.

On the other nightstand we used the Chinoiserie ginger jar lamp I found on our first flea market with Eddie & Jaithan for only $20! I'd been searching for one of these for years as my grandmother had them when I was growing up at their house & I always loved them. (And she's not ready to part with them! ;)

I found the vintage crystal chandelier (below) at On a Whim (in Lucketts, VA ) last December and kept my fingers crossed that it would still be there when I realized how perfect it would be for our bedroom. I was lucky!!! I ripped the two fern prints above the bed out of a book we had & put them into $1 frames I found at a thrift shop. I love them against the paneling...

We have a semi-awkward wall on one side of the bedroom: not enough space for a piece of furniture but still a pretty substantial wall. I decided it would be a fun spot to hang some of my jewelry so I could enjoy it even when I'm not wearing it. (below)

I simply hammered in some large nails & had fun hanging the necklaces by color & size. It's one of those little things that just makes me really happy. I end up wearing it more instead of forgetting about it in my jewelry box. The chair was $13 at a thrift store & I painted it white.

The huge pillow on the bed is a cheap body pillow from Target that I had covered in a rich greeny-goldy ikat that I found at Calico Corners for 60% off.

I really wanted the room to have a simple & modern feeling with a touch of feminine & ornate detailing... This picture below kind of embodies the whole idea: ornate gilded sconces from my grandmother topped with a simple white vase from ikea. (We have one on either side of the window.)

And this seriously scrolly hand-carved bevelled mirror found at Lucketts was our splurge at $250. Its lines remind me a little of fern... I stare at it in bed & find lots of shapes & faces (there's an owl guy hidden in there) and I never tire of it.

And whenever I take pics of our house, I pretty much move these chemistry beakers into the room. (haha oh well.) Here I used fern from outside (where the Boston fern now lives :) and love them paired with the fern prints. Such a simple easy arrangement...

The white roman shades are off-the-rack from Sears & I swear by them. They're thermal-lined & if you can find the right size, they're awesome. The curtains are from Ikea. One last little look: