Little Guy's Nursery

It's been awhile since I showed you a room in my house, hasn't it? There's two reasons for that. First, it's not a HUGE house, although it's a comfortable size, so there's a limit on rooms to share:) Second, we've lived in this house about three years during which we had our third child, which means I am still working on getting it the way I like it. Notice I said "I", not "we". That's because I am very blessed to have a hubby who doesn't care much about how it looks, as long as it's neat and tidy. I could paint a wall purple with pink stripes and he'd probably not even notice, but if all the toys were dumped out around the house and left for days on end, he'd get a twitch!

Since you've seen the family room, dining room before and in progress, master bedroom, and my oldest boy's room, it's time to let you peek on in just a little further. This is my little guy's old nursery and will be his bedroom when he and/or my middle boy decide they've had enough of sharing a room.

Nursery/Guest Room "After".





I love this room. I've sat in here many a morning with my coffee. Something about the color and the way the light comes in is so relaxing. When I was about 8 months pregnant I stripped it out and redid it for little guy, who was well on his way. I actually liked the color it was to begin with, but it didn't work with the bedding we'd selected.

Nursery/guest room "before".

In the past, I'd done all the decision making with the nurseries and decided this time to let the two older boys help me pick out some new crib bedding (you can already see what's coming, can't you?!)...then I nearly choked when they decided on...what else? CAMOUFLAGE! Seriously?! Can they not get enough of this stuff? This would be God's sense of humor with me. If I hate it, he'll make me have to deal with it. Always has. I know he was belly laughing as I stared in horror at the bedding they were holding in front of me! But, I try to always keep my word, and I'd said "You guys can help pick out the baby's bedding this time". After praying for God to hit the rewind button and hearing him say "NO WAY!", I picked it up and headed for the checkout counter.

It really wasn't that bad and grew on me quickly. It just wasn't what I'd imagined and took me a few minutes to come around to the idea it was actually workable. This was the set they picked out by Wendy Bellisimo:

"Blue Camo" by Wendy Bellisimo

My third pregnancy was such a blessing, but I was incredibly miserable physically. As I tried to pick out a  paint color I was having horrible headaches and apparently the pressure on my optic nerves was so intense that my vision was affected (which I didn't realize at the time). I painted the whole room... only to realize it wasn't the right shade (and got it on the sand colored carpet in the corner! I was convinced hubby was seeing things or messing with me until after I had little guy and saw it finally with clear eyes!). So, I fell back on my old stand-by...mix it myself. I had it matched and repainted the whole room AGAIN that same day.

The crib used to sit where the white dresser is now.

Next, I bought three or four extra matching camo crib sheets and five twin bed flat sheets. Patterns were drawn up on wrapping paper and window valences made and lined with the extra sheets. The remaining
four panels were the flat sheets on hospital tracks that could be closed to darken the room a little more if need be.

My box pleated window valences and panels made from sheets.

Next, I took four 12'x12' wrapped canvases and painted them in white with a khaki border. Next I glued ribbon on the line and buttons on the corners. Lastly, I took scraps of camo sheets left over from the windows and cut out wildlife images that were decoupaged onto the canvases. Wha-la! Nursery art that I didn't spend more than about $20 max on.

Custom wildlife art work made from sheet scraps, ribbon, paint and buttons.

The remaining camo scraps were turned into art work.

Last, but not least, I needed something over the bed, so I got on line and hunted for inspiration. This was a tiny woodworking pattern that I liked so I printed it out, then enlarged, and enlarged, and enlarged, and...you get the picture. Finally it was big enough to print and tape together. Then I cut it out with an Xacto knife, and traced it onto a heavy weight art paper, cut it out AGAIN and attached it to a fabric wrapped canvas with spray adhesive to keep the paper from bubbling. Done!

Although painted in a light aqua blue, it's not baby blue and is a very adult color. I deliberately tried to take it beyond the nursery stage so that it could stay as is for a number of years. It's really been a surprise how many people don't even notice that the fabric pattern is camo! I guess because it isn't being seen in a typical context, the pattern doesn't even register. Bingo. We (kids and I) both got what we wanted:)

Even though little guy is now sharing a room with his middle brother, he still calls this his room and loves it. Personally, I'm going to be sad when he want to repaint. I LOVE this room.It's currently the guest room
until Middle Guy decides he's had enough sharing and wants the room to himself (i.e.- is no longer scared of the dark!).

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Master Bedroom Tour

Ready to see those dust bunnies hidden under the rug and the Gold Fish crumbs I mentioned in my "Movin' On In" post? Too bad. I'm not QUITE ready to show those off. But, I have decided it was time to post a pic of our master bedroom since I went and got your curiosity up with my comment on the portfolio picture from Haute Design out of Charleston, SC. Two of their portfolio pictures were eerily similar to two rooms in my house. Here's the one I said looked so similar to my master bedroom:

Now, before we proceed, let me be perfectly clear that my room is not NEARLY as nice as this one with it's barrel vaulted, bead board ceiling (LOVE it!), but you'll get the idea. Mine is still in the process of being "created" as well. I do not have a bottomless budget to hire a team to come in and redo my room in a matter of a week, month, year ....whatever:)

Let's compare. There's the portfolio room above, and here's mine shot from nearly the same angle:



Our Master Bedroom.

 O.k . Different fabrics, a window seat area versus french doors, an ancient T.V. in place of another seating area, and sheer bed drapery.  BUT, look at placement style and color. See the similarity? Apparently great minds think alike (wink, wink)!

Now for the budget breakdown for you. This is not a total low-budget makeover. This is where we started:

I actually liked the color before. It was Sherwin Williams "Macadamia", but wanted to try blue.

See how the door and window aren't actually evenly spaced out from the corners? See if you notice it in the afters.

The first thing we did before even moving in was to rip out and replace all the carpet. I went with a light sand color praying the new DuPont Serona Polyester fiber was as good as they claimed and worth the money. So far, so good...although it is time to call in a carpet cleaner and see what happens:)

The paint color was nice, but I have never done a blue bedroom for myself and the hubby so I decided to paint it. I went with Benjamin Moore's Brittany Blue but mixed in Behr. (I'm a long time Behr user and it's always been my go-to paint. I have heard Benjamin Moore's is just as good, so I'm thinking my next room painted will be a little test to see for myself.) It's the same color that was used as the background for the mural in my oldest boy's room. Truth be told, as much as I love it, I'm tempted to repaint it Benjamin Moore's "Palladian Blue". It's got just a touch more green in it and it was one of the colors I debated for this room. I've since seen it used and love it. A friend of mine painted all her ceilings in this and they're BEAUTIFUL!

Palladian Blue

Benjamin Moore HC-144

image via House Beautiful

 Gorgeous, isn't it? But, I currently have Brittany Blue which I also love. It's just a little cooler in tone.



"Brittany Blue"
Benjamin Moore 1633


I do not believe in buying "cheap" furniture. By that, I don't mean top dollar...just top quality. There are a million ways to find really good stuff that is top quality at a fraction of the price. Our bed was a splurge...BIG splurge. We got it at Ethan Allen. It's their British Classics four poster.

Ethan Allen British Classics Bed

We did not buy the whole set...just the bed. It's been worth every penny. I love snuggling down in our bed! Since we up-sized to a king, we also had to buy new mattresses. UNFORTUNATELY, no one bothered to tell us to get the low profile box springs and I was too excited to think straight, so now I feel like the "Princess and the Pea"! I got over the height shock, but haven't gotten over how incredibly comfortable this bed is:) This is the bed I initially wanted:

Ethan Allen Newport Laurel Bed

But for once, the hubby wanted to have a little say-so and felt the British Classics bed was just at little more bulky and masculine. He's so good about letting me do whatever, I couldn't argue because I did like it. Besides, he does have to sleep in it! Guess it's only fair he gets a little say-so (wink, wink):)

Here's some more shots of the room and a little more on the "decor" budget:

The fabric I used for the bed skirt and window seat was what started the whole coastal color scheme in the house. It's Waverly Harmonics Harmony Spa.

 I searched my remnants store for almost a year until I found a stash of it and used in my room.

I love how the sunlight floods in this room.

That trunk was my great grandparents and has been passed down along with another I'm planning to get from my parents at some point (when I can remember!).

The duvet cover is by Sferra and I found it at Ross for...ready? An incredible $7.00! All the bedding came from either T.J. Maxx, Ross or Target. The desk was my father's and I'd love to paint it, but need his "Oaky Dokey". The mirror & serpentine dresser were my grandmother's, and the rocking chair was hubby's great grandmother's! Lot's of antiques that have been passed down. Gives a more collected over time look that I like.

The bed lamps I found at the Habitat ReStore for $8 each. They were shiny brass I spray painted Oil-Rubbed Bronze and found new shades for on sale at Hancock Fabrics. The bed ties are just strips of left over burlap. The bed sheers are just yards of sheering I cut and hemmed.

Ready for a laugh? Because the bed is so high, I had to get creative with night tables until I can buy some pieces I like that are high enough yet not too big and still within budget (harder than you might think!). They are really large plastic trashcans turned upside down with a pressed wood table top laid over them. I covered them with a sheet, cut a pre-made curtain in half for the topper, and laid the glass on top! (Can you believe I just told you that?! I have no shame, do I? Don't answer that!)

I made the seat cushion from more remnants and old sofa pillows.
The curtains are white bed sheets I hemmed and made headers for:)

This is my desk area. It used to just be an awkward space like on the other side, but hubby was nice enough to build me a desk for our first Christmas here to my specs. I love this space (told you my computer was a dinosaur!).

This is the other side of the window seat area. See my stash of fabric?
That's just a fraction of it! I think I have an addiction.

Well, there you have it. You've now seen why I got so excited when I found that portfolio pic on Haute Design's web page. Hope you enjoyed the mini room tour!

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