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The Best Laid Plans: Home Improvement Edition

July 11, 2016 by Lisa Leave a Comment

I’ve owned my house for a little less than two years, which means that for the past two years, I’ve lived with my lackluster bedroom. Once I signed on the dotted line, I had big plans for this space. Oh man – I was going to make it look so cool and relaxing with lots of neutrals and then make it all pop with a statement wall. Or not.

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The neutrals that I thought would make this place look airy and soothing, just ended up making the place look drab. And that statement wall? Well, maybe that would have been cool if I picked the right shade of emerald or jade instead of what I like to call dinosaur green. When you stir this together with a plethora of furniture, clothes that need donating (but never make it to Goodwill) and ill-planned layout, you get sort of a wreck. So after two years, I’m saying goodbye to this half-baked plan and moving forward with a mini-bedroom makeover. Here’s what I have planned to improve the space.

High contrast

Besides the lot of neutrals being so blah, they also faded in with the woodwork – literally. I think a good remedy for this is to go high contrast. That means picking a rug that doesn’t blend into the floor and upping my paint game.

More art!

The walls in this room are embarrassingly bare. Michael and I started to layout a gallery wall, but we soon realized we needed more frames and then just stopped. This time I’m following through.

Paint

First time around, I didn’t do a great job, despite my best efforts. The old walls absorbed the paint like a sponge and after three coats, I couldn’t deal – I washed my brushes and called it good. This time I’m recruiting my dad for a little help and making sure that I do the job right.

And I haven’t forgotten the important part – color! I’m still a fan of a green, only this time a darker, more sophisticated shade, like a hunter green. A deep shade like this is probably too overwhelming for the entire space, so I’m thinking of painting the bottom half of the wall in this moodier shade and then the top in the same snowy white (only a better coat). I said I wanted contrast, and I think this could be the ticket.

A silly update

I won’t lie – I love having a TV in the bedroom. Yes, I know that pre-sleep screentime can mess with your rest and that tech-free bedrooms are supposed to be more relaxing, but I don’t care. Once in a while I like to catch up on my stories from the comfort of my own bed. And I’d like to do that with something a little more streamlined than the 90s-era box that sits on our dresser. Lucky for me, my dad is opting for a bigger screen, leaving his smaller flatscreen to me. Less bulk, more modern, same cozy Shark Tank viewing. That’s a win-win-win.

The finer points

By this I mean all the finishing touches. That means if I think matching nightstands will complete the space, I get them. Or if I think some baskets will keep the closets cleaner, I buy some baskets. Living in a perpetual state of oh it’s almost done is annoying. I committed to reworking this room, so that means seeing the process through to the end. So that means when it’s all done and dusted, every item on my to-do list is done.

Stay tuned, folks. I’m starting on this makeover NOW. I’ve already briefed my dad on the paint situation and nabbed some new art.  It’s happening!

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About Lisa

Lisa is a writer, reader and crafter based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

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