A New Look ~ Revealed

What a pleasure it has been to re-do Maddie's room!  Let's take a tour and then we'll talk details.

(For whatever reason, using a caption on the pics is messing up the post so just remember...BEFORE is on the left and AFTER is on the right.)

This is the view when you walk through the door.

Since Madeline's desk was rarely used, I chose to remove it and store her things on the dresser instead.

I shifted the bed from its old location to create space for a book wall.

The window got new curtains and I downsized the dresser.

The hooks got raised for a growing girl!

Okay.  Let's stop here and back up a bit.  The inspirations for the room came from looking through magazines and blogs.  I had Darla look through pictures and just tell me anything she liked.  We also asked Maddie if she had any requests.  I noted them all and then we started to shop.  

Several items I found on Kijiji and gave Mike and Darla (Maddie's parents) instruction on how to refinish them.  I also helped with a couple of the details like the wallpaper on the headboard and the antiquing of the chair.

Headboard (TEN BUCKS!!!)

Chair

Dresser

Choosing the paint colour and accent began with the bedding.

I suggested a few possibilities and when we narrowed it down we were able to find a great shade from a child's room featured on another blog.

I also had Darla and Maddie purge and sort so that we would only be working with what was truly needed/wanted in the room.

Maddie is an avid reader so I wanted her to have a great spot for books.  These shelves are a fun and pretty way to display her collection of novels (including some beautiful vintage Nancy Drews which were a special gift to her from her neighbour.)

One of Madeline's requests was a wall word.  After some thought she chose "smile" - always wonderful advice!  

Mad also has a great collection of jewellery.  After some searching for a used jewellery armoire to refinish, we chose instead to shop the house and painted this little cabinet for her to store her stuff in.  The bulletin board keeps her necklaces from tangling.

A couple more requests were the photo collage (left) and Darla hoped for a chandelier (right).

The bench was my own request...so cute and handy to use in a multitude of ways!

The closet clothing got sorted and we stored some rarely used items on the shelves.  Scarves are hanging through the shelving at the bottom and belts got hung on the wall.

While it feels amazing in the end, a big new look can start off feeling overwhelming.  So let's just go over some tips to take it step by step.

~Save pictures with spaces and ideas you love and that are practical for you to live in...it's okay to copy!

~Make sure you are choosing new items that fit with the items you want to keep...bedding for instance.

~Be willing to purge and sort through your stuff. 

~Look for colours in photos so you can see how they look on a wall...rather than in a tiny colour card.

~Be willing to buy used and refinish.

~Make sure you list out all your must haves and address them...nobody wants a beautiful room that doesn't meet your needs!

Thank-you sweet Maddie for the wonderful opportunity to re-work your space!

I am including a source guide in case you see something you'd like to find.  Please let me know if I've missed anything.

Sources:

Paint - Wythe Blue, Candy Cane Red, Oxford White - Benjamin Moore

Headboard, Chair, Bench, Dresser, Large Mirror, Red Baskets - Kijiji

Shelving - Jysk

Chandelier, Curtains, Rods - Rona

Garbage Can - Walmart

Dresser Knobs - Lee Valley

Smile Letters and File Folders - Michael's

Bulletin Board - Home Sense

Small Mirrors - Envy

Frames - Urban Barn

"m" and "M" Mug - Anthropologie

"M" - Target