I've been gone for a minute, but I'm back! The last few months have been a bit chaotic. There were all of those holidays, we sold our apartment, moved out of Manhattan, and traveled to South Africa for three weeks! Finally, I'm starting to feel settled...well, sort of.
A lot of you have asked where we've moved. While we look for a new home, we're temporarily living at my mother-in-law's house in the Hamptons. We feel very fortunate to have a place to stay while we take our time making the next big decision.
Ralph Lauren Home "Cape Lodge" 2008
Enter the bedroom makeover I'm currently working on. It's our bedroom here and plainly said, I've never liked it. The furniture is very traditional and it lacks cohesion. With the influx of our belongings, we were forced to add two dark brown dressers from the basement which made me like it even less.
I was stumped. I racked my brain thinking of ways to make the bedroom more palatable. My gut reaction was to fight all of the furniture. I thought about adding modern lighting, painting the room dark, using a bold headboard, but none of these ideas left me with a clear vision of the ultimate "design" for the bedroom.
After coming back from Africa, a lightbulb went off in my head. I realized that instead of fighting the existing furniture, I needed to embrace it. I decided to be inspired by British colonial decor, a style I was exposed to while in traveling throughout South Africa.
Ralph Lauren Home "Cape Lodge" 2008
Design by Robert Duffy, Image Credit: James Merrell
Ralph Lauren's Two-House Retreat in Jamaica, Architectural Digest
Ralph Lauren
Design by Serena Crawford
My plan of attack is as follows:
1. Add a sisal rug
2. New bedside lamps
3. Change the duvet cover and bedding to white
4. Find a new bed, preferably a canopy
5. Incorporate our vintage zebra rug
6. Add additional decor that is in keeping with British colonial style
7. Use lots of plants
8. Paint? This is a big question mark. The colors in question are a bright white, a denim blue or a light turquoise.
Below is my initial design board for the project. If you've been following along on my Instagram stories, you know how far this bedroom has already come! If you'd like to see more inspiration images and product ideas, head over to my Pinterest board dedicated to this project.
Although this bedroom is temporary, we do spend a lot of time here in the summer. My goal is to make the room a comfortable retreat that we can enjoy for many years.
When you don't have the budget to start from scratch, don't be discouraged! You just have to learn to work with what you have and find deals where you can! It is my intention to makeover this bedroom for less than $1500. So far, it's been a great lesson for me that I hope you can translate in your own homes!