17 May How to Solve 6 Bedroom Design Dilemmas with The Pillow Goddess!

I’m just twirling with delight, in this coral dress sponsored by Spring Frost Boutique, loving my brand new BOLD BLUE & WHITE BEDROOM I designed in the Spring 2019  6-week One Room Challenge, but I’ve got 6 Pillow Goddess Design Tips for you this week from the decisions I made to solve the six problem areas in my bedroom.

If you’ve been following The Pillow Goddess blog, you know I just finished (like last week!) the One Room Challenge, WEEK 6. Phew!! The BIG REVEAL is online now on the One Room Challenge (ORC)  website. I’m number 142 out of 233 Guest Participants.

What a fantastic, supportive, fun group, this ORC community!!  All because of one woman,  Linda Weinstein, who wanted to finish one room in 2011 with a group of friends, the One Room Challenge has become a very popular (some designers do it every year!) bi-annual event every October and April.  Thank you Linda and media sponsor Better Homes & Gardens!  I have made new friends and learned so much about myself and design!!

You can catch up below, week by week, to see behind-the-scenes action and the 16+ sponsors and friends that helped me pull this room together in just 6 weeks. And if you’re a designer and have never done this challenge, I highly recommend it.  You WILL, at least, get ONE room done in your home and that is an VICTORIOUS feeling!

WEEK 1 | WEEK 2 | WEEK 3 | WEEK 4 | WEEK 5 | WEEK 6 |

I’ll dive into greater depth in the weeks to come, as I’m still recuperating from pulling off my 1st ever ORC and 1st ever top to bottom full decorating of an entire room. As I want to share with you, here on the blog, many design tips I learned in the process and how you can apply these to your own home. Plus I want to share my sources so you can shop for beautiful home decor too.

My sponsors, team, and I did it in 5 weeks, as the photo shoot was scheduled in the 5th week. Woohoo!! An amazing and challenging feat for sure, but oh so rewarding. I get to wake up in this beautiful BOLD BLUE & WHITE BEDROOM every day. Thank YOU all for your support and comments. (See a list of the amazing sponsors of my room in WEEK 6.)

Now, just a quick post (HA! Who am I kidding?? I swear they start out with that intention!) to share BEFORE and AFTER’s of the room, and briefly discuss what decisions I made to solve SIX problem areas identified in WEEK 1.

6 PILLOW GODDESS DESIGN TIPS:

Check out how I solved the problem areas in my bedroom and hopefully it will inspire you to ake a few changes to your bedroom or another bedroom in time for guests this summer!

DESIGN DILEMMA #1 – My corner

PROBLEMS IDENTIFIED:

• Rickety small nightstand with not enough room on top or in drawers
• I had NO space to move around (about 16″)
• No place to store books, newspapers, etc.
• Tangled cords I tripped over
• Curtains in way making me feel claustrophobic

 

BEFORE:

AFTER:

PILLOW GODDESS SOLUTIONS:

• Purchase tall chest of drawers to serve as both a nightstand (with 30″ of top space) and mini bureau
• 3 deep drawers
• Add a plush rug for my feet
• Up to 46″ in room to move around!!!
• Closer to another outlet for all cords
• Curtains gone which opened about 54″ x 64″ x 28″ of room. Look at all that space!

NOTE: The blue mirrors in this image above were replaced, just in the nick of time at the tail end of the photo shoot, with wonderful tall silver mirrors you can see below on my husband David’s side of the bed.

PILLOW GODDESS DESIGN TIP #1: WHERE THERE’S A WILL, THERE’S A WAY.

I searched every day online to find the perfect nightstand in the right size with deep drawers that could not only serve as a nightstand but also as chest of drawers.  In the end, there were NONE in the right size in my price range, until I walked into Furniture in the Raw and found the perfect pair. I mean they are PERFECT!!  Did I mention yet that the drawers “glide” super easily so I can open a drawer from the side while in bed?

Okay, so here’s how I use this chest of drawers/nightstand:

• Top drawer for all my nightstand “stuff” (I want to get some cool organizers from The Container Store soon)
• Middle drawer for undergarments and socks
• Bottom drawer for the clothes I always throw on. So instead of having a heap of clothes on the floor, they’re in a drawer.
• I also have a tray in which to keep my phone and incidentals
• Plenty of space between the bed and chest of drawers to have a bag to recycle the paper (yes, I still read a physical paper late at night!).

NOTE: after seeing my photographer and sponsor Gregg Cestaro’s awesome photos, it gave me perspective. I realized we were still squishing the bed wall by not using the walk space, so I moved everything over  to the right even more, giving ourselves even more room and there’s about 6 inches on either side of the chest of drawers that is not in the photos!)

See how I chalk painted and waxed the chest of drawers in WEEK 3.  And aren’t those solid brass knobs from sponsor Alexander Marchant gorgeous?  Love them!!!

Sources: Chest of drawers – Furniture in the Raw; brass knobs – Alexander Marchant; crystal lamp and tray  – HomeGoods; small clock – Breed & Co.; crystal vase – Sparrow Interiors & Gifts; Peacock box, gold-edge dish, vase, and peonies – Pier 1; rug – Joss & Main; crystal and silver coaster – family heirloom; books – my own collection; mirror that we returned cause it looked awful – Target.

DESIGN DILEMMA #2 – My husband, David’s, area.

PROBLEMS IDENTIFIED:

• Using antique telephone table crammed between the bureau and bed as his nightstand
• There was no room to put his books, magazines, medicines or eyemask
• No room for the clothes he was wearing that day because the drawers in the bureau were a “pain in the ass” to open and close
• Had to use his desk lamp from his office because the petite Limoges lamps were not enough reading light

 

BEFORE:

AFTER:

PILLOW GODDESS SOLUTIONS:

• Purchase tall chest of drawers to serve as both a nightstand (with 30″ of top space) and mini bureau
• 3 deep drawers
• Add plush rug for husband’s feet
• Purchase new reading lamp with 3-way bulbs
• Purchase tall silver mirrors from Home Depot to replace ugly Target blue ones (thank you Sandy!)
• Room for a picture of his girls, books he’s reading and a brass tray for his wallet and papers

 

NOTE: See how the tall silver mirrors look so much better? And once hung, they will really add a lot of height to this small bedroom.

PILLOW GODDESS DESIGN TIP #2: Decide in advance if you want nightstands to match or not match.  

Life last year was so busy moving back and forth from our Airbnb to this bedroom and moving out of house so all interiors could be painted, everything was such a mess.  I was REALLY craving calmness and balance in our new bedroom (we decided in January 2019 to move into this bedroom permanently).  So even though many interior designers (even my own, Patrick Landrum!) recommend different looks on either side of the bed, David and I went with symmetry and selected matching chest of drawers, lamps and even mirrors. We love it. It feels GREAT and ORGANIZED!

Sources: Chest of drawers – Furniture in the Raw; brass knobs – Alexander Marchant; crystal lamp and tray  – HomeGoods; brass tray – Sparrow Interiors & Gifts; mirrored box – Home Goods ; rug – Joss & Main; crystal and silver coaster – family heirloom; small blue and white ginger jar – Goodwill; books and crystal paper weight- David’s own collection; frame – Home Goods; tall silver mirror – Home Depot.

DESIGN DILEMMA #3 – The Bureau

PROBLEMS IDENTIFIED:

• It took up too much room and squashed us, the bed, and our nightstands. There was not an inch to spare on that wall.
• Knobs were broken and drawers were impossible to open and close. (Installing gliders was not possible for this antique.)
• Had both my personal dressing table set and my husband’s stuff too. His and hers all mixed together.
• It was a family heirloom and hard to let go.

 

BEFORE

 

AFTER:

 

PILLOW GODDESS SOLUTIONS: 

• Let go of the antique bureau
• find a pair of chest of drawers to replace the bureau
• move everything on that wall over to the right
• use some of the walking space between the two entries to the room

 

PILLOW GODDESS DESIGN TIP #3: Be willing to let go of family furniture. If you don’t love it and it doesn’t work for you, it’s time for it to go.  

We made a conscious decision together to let go of my mother’s bureau even though it was part of her bedroom set.  And we decided together that we wanted nightstands AND chest of drawers to best meet our needs. Basically our two new chest of drawers are just like chopping the one bureau in half.  Now we each have our own space for everything!

I asked David last night what he was using his drawers for and if he had an opinion. HA! HA! HA!

You take up too much room in the bed. You snore. There’s no amount of decorating that can solve those problems!

Sources: Chest of drawers – Furniture in the Raw; chalk paint and black wax – Home Depot; brass knobs – Alexander Marchant; top glass – Binswanger Glass Co.

DESIGN DILEMMA #4 – Chair and where to hang sentimental cross-stitch

PROBLEMS IDENTIFIED:

• Antique chair’s fabric was old and worn.
• Chair was NOT comfortable.
• Tried to hang cross-stitch above bookcase but they just didn’t look right.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

 

 

 

PILLOW GODDESS SOLUTIONS: 

• find a beautiful fabric to make the chair stand out
• re-upholster the chair. (NOTE: Accent Upholstery sponsored part of the cost for this project.)
• hang the cross-stitch on the wall near me, in my corner

 

PILLOW GODDESS DESIGN TIP #4: There’s always a way to mix antique furniture, family heirlooms, and sentimental pieces into a bedroom. If you edit enough, old mixes with new perfectly.

The antique chair was David’s mothers and the cross-stitch I had made for my mother and father.  I wanted them in the room near me, but it took awhile to figure out where.  It’s a coincidence, but the fun gold peacock box I bought at Pier 1 made me see that in the lower right corner of the cross-stitch I made for my mother there’s a peacock.  I loved discovering that!

Sources: Chair fabric – Calico Corner; Upholstery work – Accent Upholstery; framed cross-stitch – my own.

DESIGN DILEMMA #5 – Corner Bookcase

PROBLEMS IDENTIFIED:

• Awkward bookcase to style (It was my Great Aunt’s and it’s actually 2 pieces put together.)
• Great place to stuff things so it held a lot of junk
• No lamp
• Too many family photos to display, all bunched up
• Not styled in any way

 

BEFORE:

 

AFTER:

PILLOW GODDESS SOLUTIONS:

• clear out the junk and find places for your paperwork, jewelry and other stuff
• edit the family photos
• purchase some new frames
• purchase a modern lamp
• add some blue and white boxes to shelf
• add blue and white bowl with greenery
• style with collection of my mother’s leather-bound opera books and David’s large books
• add part of my collection of vintage Fenton, hobnail vases

 

PILLOW GODDESS DESIGN TIP #5: Style. Style. Style.  Bookcases have endless ways to style them.

See what you have on hand to style a bookcase and add new things, if necessary, to mix up the old with the new.  Also pay attention to height of each item and color and texture. Bring in greenery and fresh flowers too.

I specifically chose to not style my bedroom with all blue and white ginger jars.  I ordered a blue and white lamp, but changed my mind at last minute when I saw how the crystal base of this lamp mimicked the graphic wallpaper. I also wanted something different and I love my vintage white hobnail collection, so I incorporated a gorgeous vase (sponsored by Ebay shop owner Augusta Collectibles ).  I love how the white pops against the beautiful wallpaper. My mother’s leather-bound books were tucked in a corner in storage, so I dusted them off and thought they’d make a nice addition.  Also, my husband found that his large, hard-back novels worked perfectly in the round-edge bookcase shelves.

I need to read up on Carla Aston’s 5 Bookshelf Styling Tips, as I’m still working on styling this corner bookcase. Because of it’s shape and depth, it’s challenging and I know I can come up with some additional ideas, but I ran out of time, so for now, it works just fine.

Sources: Lamp – PRIME Amazon; white Fenton hobnail vase – sponsored by Augusta Collectibles ; gold frame – Paper Place; crystal frame – my own; white frame – Home Goods; blue and white boxes, LUXE candle, and antique gold trimmed glass box – Sparrow Interiors & Gifts; Assortment of inspirational books – Peacock Alley founder Mary Ella Gabler’s Uncommon Thread, Common Sense & Coffee by Angel K. Robinson and Charming & Pretty – The Art of Home by Mari Robeson; blue and white bowl and greenery – Pier 1; blue and white box – Home Goods; books – our own.

DESIGN DILEMMA #6 – Curtains and bedding

PROBLEMS IDENTIFIED:

• Curtains were ugly, had no tie backs,  and got in the way
• Curtain rod was falling down because I would accidentally pull on it when I  tuck them behind bookcase and pillow or stepped on them
• Curtains made the room feel smaller because it closed off the window seat area and shut off natural light
• Couldn’t enjoy window seat and morning sunshine
• Bedding was a thin, quilted, vintage French Damask twin bedspread. It was too thin with quilting coming out and fringe hanging off.

 

BEFORE:

AFTER:

 

 

PILLOW GODDESS SOLUTIONS:

• get rid of curtains, which opened about 54″ x 64″ x 28″ of room. Look at all that space!
• select fabric for shades and valances to be custom made
• re-upholster window seat
• Select floral duvet by sponsor Peacock Alley
• order a dust ruffle
• make decorative pillows for bed and window seat
• wallpaper the wall in Kimberly Lewis wallpaper
• wallpaper the ceiling and three cubbies to display vintage hobnail collection

 

PILLOW GODDESS DESIGN TIP #6: When in doubt, go all out!

The bed and the window seat area and wall were going to be THE focal points for the new room. I knew I had to go all out to make them showstoppers and to fulfill my vision of a floral on floral room.  Two major sponsors helped create this look I envisioned for the window seat area and the bed.  Kimberly Lewis sponsored the gorgeous midnight blue, graphic Beverley wallpaper and Peacock Alley sponsored the vintage floral duvet and pillow shams from their Archives.

At the last minute I decided to order floral wallpaper for the ceiling and interior walls of the window seat area. I feel like this was the finishing touch, the icing on the cake, for my floral on floral vision. It makes me very happy every day to look at this beautiful wall and window seat!

Sources: Shades, valances and window seat fabric – Fabric.com; pompom fringe on valance – Deborah Main Designs vintage French trim collection; luxury duvet and coverlet – sponsor Peacock Alley; fabric for all pillows but one from Deborah Main Designs studio; one floral pillow fabric – Etsy sponsor BelleGriveSupplies; ceiling floral ceiling wallpaper – uniQstiQ; vintage hobnail vases – sponsored by August Collectibles; wallpaper – sponsored by Kimberly Lewis Designs; gold and white nesting tables – Joss & Main

Now for a final fill view of the bedroom BEFORE we started the 6-week challenge and AFTER, when it was finished. Our house was built in 1957, and many of these vintage bungalows have one walk through bedroom. This bedroom is it, so it has two entrances.

This one is coming into the room from the hallway near our dining room.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

And this view is when you walk into the bedroom from the front hallway near the bathroom.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

That’s a wrap for my first post on “Life After the One Room Challenge”. Mainly I’ve been catching up on sleep and enjoying my space and the view out my window seat.  David and I love the room and it’s wonderful to wake up to a really pretty room. Blue and white is quite a cheerful color combo to have for a bedroom.

What color is your bedroom?  Have you thought about changing it up?  I hope some of my experience as a Guest Participant of the One Room Challenge and The Pillow Goddess Tips inspire you!  Till next week, where I share more detail about my desk and the art I selected for the blue and white bedroom, please enjoy your weekend and thank you for following my blog. XO PG

NOTE:  All BEFORE images are mine. All AFTER images are by photographer and sponsor Gregg Cestaro. Opinions are my own.  Some of the items listed in the sources were sponsored, either entirely or partially, by up to 16 sponsors.  I am forever grateful for all the sponsors generosity!