A few weeks ago I mentioned that we were going to redecorate The Boys’ bedroom and I was so desperate to get started that I forgot to take any ‘before’ shots. After rooting through my old phone pics I came across this one, which is pretty poor quality but gives you an idea of how bland and boring it was for two young boys.
Resourceful as ever, I did actually originally make the curtains myself from a really heavy vintage sheet. I also made the roman blackout blind, the bunting and appliquéd cushion cover.
However, that was six years ago and we really wanted to bring the room up to date and add some bright, stimulating colours with a funky pattern. In short, something infinitely more appropriate for seven and nine year old boys sharing a room.
The starting point for the new design was this incredible wallpaper by Quentin Blake for Osborne & Little (£42-00 per roll) based on his “Cockatoo” illustrations for his children’s book of the same name.
A single roll was just enough if we papered one wall and was economical enough to enable us to choose designer wallpaper.
The room was also crying out for more storage and where better to go for storage solutions than Ikea?
Whilst I’m not a fan of flat pack furniture, in this case it made perfect sense – we measured up units to fit around two walls and it all came in at under £300 including delivery, which is less than half the price of a good quality single wardrobe!
You might remember that I showed you the mood board I put together – here it is again in case you missed it: –
And here is our interpretation of that design – very close to the vision and pretty successful, though I say so myself!
We didn’t have enough to paper the bit behind the units but they’re fixed to the wall so you can’t see!!
I made a roman blind out of 1.2m of matching fabric (also £42-00 per metre) and this is enough to tie the whole design together without being too matchy-matchy.
“Teresa’s Green” paint by Farrow & Ball in a washable finish was a good match to the wallpaper and was used on the remaining walls.
I already had this limited edition print by Quentin Blake (featuring the scene from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory where he finds a Golden Ticket), so I put it in a large square Ikea frame and it has the starring role on its own wall.
The lower height storage units had the potential to double up as a comfortable seating area, so a 2m length of 10cm thick upholstery foam makes the perfect bench seat cushion. I made a piped box cushion cover from cotton twill in a vibrant Pillar-Box Red, being sure to include a zip at one end to make it removable for washing.
With the addition of a plump feather, faux fur cushion, this is now a favourite place for The Boys to sit and read.
The Works were selling this huge poster of a map of the world at the bargain price of £4-99 back last year and The Boys begged me to buy it for their room.
I can’t tell you how brilliant it has been for teaching them Geography without them even knowing it – they have hours of fun matching up the countries with their respective flags at the bottom!
A couple of hooks on the back of the yet-to-be-painted door give them space to hang their dressing gowns.
Their Very Talented Father made the bunks from scratch to my design. I wanted them to stretch the entire width of the room and be high enough up off the floor to store a games table which they can pull out when they want to use it. It was the only way I could incorporate their request for a table tennis/table football/snooker/air hockey table into such a modestly sized room!
The space underneath holds more units for the hoards of dressing up clothes that are in daily use and also becomes a den when the games table is removed.
The best bit is yet to come though.
See the ladder in the corner? It’s going to be replaced with a climbing wall as the means of getting into bed, and a fireman’s pole to get out!
Needless to say they can’t wait for those, but that’s going to have to be another payday:)
Remember the bedside book pockets I made last year? They’ve been a huge success so they went straight back onto the newly painted bed panels.
The battery operated lights were a fiver each from Homebase, I think, and are ideal for The Boys to enable one to carry on reading without keeping the other awake.
All in all we’re thrilled with the makeover and The Boys absolutely LOVE their new room – they even keep it tidy because it’s so easy now everything has its own place!
Have you come down with Spring Fever and feel the need to spruce up your home too? Come on, show us your decorating projects – everyone loves a “before” and “after”:)
April 8, 2015 at 6:35 pm
I’m thrilled as the boys are!!!! It’s simply stunning!!! ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤
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April 8, 2015 at 7:03 pm
Thank you! It took lots of planning and hard work (not to mention money!) but it was worth it:)
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April 8, 2015 at 7:13 pm
It was indeed!! Wow!!! Great!! You did a wonderful job!!
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April 8, 2015 at 6:54 pm
What a fantastic space for the boys. No wonder they are thrilled. Just a suggestion, how about a curtain/blind hanging from the bottom bunk to the floor to create a den? Sharon x
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April 8, 2015 at 7:06 pm
I had planned to, but it closed the space up making it feel small – it’s not a big room. You know how they say to make a room look bigger, choose furniture with legs that you can see under. The same applies to this so they just hang a blanket from the bottom bunk when they want a den:)
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April 8, 2015 at 8:12 pm
That’s great, such a lovely space for a den 🙂
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April 8, 2015 at 7:29 pm
Totally wicked! Bet they love it!
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April 8, 2015 at 7:34 pm
They really do, but I’m the real winner because they love to keep it tidy now!
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April 8, 2015 at 8:55 pm
Did you make the wonderful Union Jack rug? I love it!
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April 8, 2015 at 8:57 pm
No I didn’t, it was half price in Laura Ashley a few years ago! It looks OK still though:)
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April 8, 2015 at 9:12 pm
This all looked great, and then I saw the bed… A work of art in itself! Fab work all round 🙂
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April 8, 2015 at 11:02 pm
Thank you – my husband is a wonder at working out how to make what I want, we’re very lucky:)
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April 9, 2015 at 4:29 pm
Lucky you! My husband is great in lots of ways, but any form of DIY is out of the question 😉
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April 8, 2015 at 9:29 pm
Fabulous!
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April 8, 2015 at 11:03 pm
Thanks Claire, it’s certainly an improvement on the bland ‘before’!
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April 8, 2015 at 10:03 pm
In a word from Charlie and the chocolate factory…Your boys bedroom makeover is FANTABULOUS!!!!! A wonderful transformation (not that it was at all bad before!) but so colourful and fun, it’s no wonder the boys want to keep it looking tidy – they must be over the moon!!! It might have taken a lot of time in planning, but it was certainly worth the effort, and, as you say, if you plan well you can incorporate some designer features at little cost overall! Brilliant buy too with the map 😉
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April 8, 2015 at 10:58 pm
I love pondering over interiors almost as much as making things and if I can combine the two, even better! Luckily I have a handy and willing assistant in my husband who never moans or questions my (often bizarre) requests:)
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April 8, 2015 at 11:09 pm
😀 Your Hubby is a Star!!! I was, and still am blown away that he struggled outdoors with your day bed last Summer..and seemingly so without question or fuss 😉 But, what a glorious Summer you enjoyed because of him!
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April 8, 2015 at 11:12 pm
I know, although he did ask me if I was absolutely sure that’s what I wanted! He’s a keeper:)
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April 8, 2015 at 11:17 pm
For sure!!! Double hugs and kisses every day!!! 😉
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April 8, 2015 at 10:56 pm
Wow!
If I believed in reincarnation I’d want to come back as a child in your family!
Is 43 too old to be put up for adoption?? 😀
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April 8, 2015 at 11:06 pm
Ha ha! Trouble is, children never appreciate how lucky they are, do they? Six kids are more than enough anyway – wouldn’t want to be greedy:)
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April 8, 2015 at 11:37 pm
Amazing!
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April 10, 2015 at 3:14 pm
Thanks, we’re pretty pleased with the way it turned out:)
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April 8, 2015 at 11:57 pm
It looks amazing!!! Well done! Can I move in? Ahah 😛
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April 10, 2015 at 3:16 pm
Thanks! I don’t think they’ll grow out of it too quickly either.
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April 9, 2015 at 1:04 am
That is the coolest boys’ room ever!
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April 10, 2015 at 3:17 pm
That was the aim so I’m glad you think so! Not sure they realise how lucky they are though:)
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April 9, 2015 at 8:21 am
It looks fantastic! I bet that boys are thrilled, and actually try to be ‘sent to their room’! Love the bird wallpaper and fabric, and the organisation and storage look great too. Do you have your next decorating project lined up?
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April 10, 2015 at 3:19 pm
Next project is the sun room from an old downstairs shower room and toilet. Still at the planning stage but I’ll probably blog about it at some point:)
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April 9, 2015 at 12:24 pm
Wow wow wow your boys have the best parents!! Everything is fantastic! I don’t actually know what to say haha!!
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April 10, 2015 at 3:22 pm
Thanks Beth! It took a lot of planning to get all the elements into what is an average sized room, but we’ve made good use of the space I think:)
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April 9, 2015 at 12:26 pm
What an absolutely brilliant space to hang out in, lucky boys…and lucky you on two fronts A) The boys keeping everything tidy & B) A super keeper of a hubby , a fantastic makeover well done on all your hard work x
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April 10, 2015 at 3:24 pm
It was definitely worth the effort – actually, I wish I’d done it ages ago as it works so well!
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April 9, 2015 at 12:55 pm
It looks superb! I simply love the wall paper and matching fabric. A room to be proud of, both for the boys and yourself!
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April 10, 2015 at 3:29 pm
Thank you – I hoped being brave with the bold design would pay off and I think it has! A mood board was well worth the effort though as it gave a good idea of the finished look, in fact it’s pretty identical to the actual room.
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April 10, 2015 at 1:17 am
Lucky boys indeed! What a wonderfully put together room! Love those bins!
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April 10, 2015 at 3:31 pm
Thank you! Ikea are brilliant for storage ideas aren’t they? Being bold with the coloured bins adds character to the room and makes the units a bit more interesting to look at too.
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April 14, 2015 at 12:31 pm
Oh my gosh! You’ve done such an EXCELLENT job on this room – it simply looks fabulous! Lucky boys! Marianne xx
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April 14, 2015 at 1:27 pm
Thanks – I planned it down to the smallest detail and we’re thrilled with the end result:)
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