I like sleep. It’s the best way to feel well-rested! In order to get the 7 hours or so that I need each night, I like my bedroom to have certain features:
- light-blocking window coverings
- cool air, with a temperature no higher than 70 degrees, and preferably lower
- soft but crisp sheets without perfume
- reading light (I’m a book worm!)
This month, I’m sharing my guest room update, just in time for Summer guests. Next month, I’ll share my principle bedroom refresh.
Before
Our house technically came with three bedrooms. We converted the smallest one to an office. This is the second smallest of the bedrooms. We call it a guest room, but until the renovation, it was our son’s room. Now, it serves as a guest room or snoring room, as required.
During:
Before we could redecorate the space, we had to clean up the shell. We scraped down the stucco ceilings, patched and painted the walls, and replaced the carpet. Years ago, we had the bedroom closets reconfigured by a professional closet company, and they are still as good as new. This means that we don’t have to have a lot of furniture in the bedrooms.
After
Our new lighter, brighter second bedroom now has a neutral shell that can adapt to any colour scheme. We kept the custom upholstered valance (visible in the mirror), which has blue and gray stripes on a beige background.
- The upholstered headboard and embroidered bird pillow are from Pier One.
- The fuzzy throw blanket was scored at a Habitat for Humanity Restore.
- I’ve had the Tiffany lamp in storage for years.
- The pine mirror was a wedding gift and the pine night table was hand-made locally.
- The white cabinet with glass doors is actually made up from two pieces left over from the cabinets we purchased at the Restore for our basement. I had my cabinet maker turn it into a piece of furniture by adding a base and top, with frame all around to connect the two halves into a single piece.
- One thing you can’t see is the new mattress. It was important to us that this bedroom be as comfortable as the principle bedroom, so we invested in a good sleep set. The bed is a Queen size, which we selected for comfort as well as consistency — we can swap bedding among all three beds in the house, depending on how I want to set up each room.
This secondary bedroom has been well-used since the refresh, and I’m happy to say that it is performing as planned.
Jeanne Grier is an award-winning interior decorator and owner of Stylish Fireplaces & Interiors. With over 25 years’ experience in the Toronto area, she has completed hundreds of makeovers. Her expertise extends to fireplaces, and she is an NFI Certified Hearth Design Specialist. She and her husband Colin operate a retail showroom in the Toronto area, featuring over 50 electric fireplaces, as well as wall coverings and fireplace accessories.