The Master Bedroom Before and After

A year and a half later and the bedroom is complete! Finally! We went through multiple stages with this space. When we first moved in, we were sleeping on an air mattress for four months while we focused on renovating other areas of the house. Since getting rid of the stucco meant lots of mess, we moved into a different room for three weeks while we drywalled and painted. We then moved back into the bedroom, this time with a real mattress on the floor, but still no bed. Ever since then it's been a slow grind to completion. It was a long few months of uncomfortable sleeping situations but we had it livable by Christmas last year (about six months after moving in). We had a bed and furniture, but not much else.

Overall we didn't have to do a whole lot in here, but since we took on so many projects with the rest of the house all at once, the finishing touches got put on the back burner. The major renovation work done was drywalling over the stucco ceiling, trimming out the room with a more modern boxy trim, replacing the light fixture and, of course, applying a fresh coat of paint. The before picture is how we viewed the room prior to purchase. Here is the reveal:

Bed, dresser, end tables and wall mounted lamps: Ikea, Duvet cover and throw: Dominion, Yellow sheet and shams, curtains: Winners, Floral: Pier1, Light fixture: Rona, Art: photographed and printed by Chris Nicholas.

The floor in the bedroom was in great shape, so all we had to do was give it a good scrub. We wanted the bedroom to be dark and moody but cozy at the same time. We painted the walls "Grey" by Benjamin Moore (yes it's actually just called "grey"). Although the walls are fairly dark, we felt the light floor and white bedding would keep the room from being too dark. We opted to keep everything neutral, with pops of taxi cab yellow for a New York feel, as discussed in our mood board post. If we get sick of the yellow down the road, we just have to change out the accessories. The photographs were taken by Chris on his trip last year to NYC. We printed the giant 8' 8" canvas over the bed and the two photographic prints near the window with our in-house wide format printer (I run a photography business, remember?). Chris constructed and stretched the canvas by hand.

Ok, I lied a little when I said this room was finally finished - we still need to replace all the doors/door knobs and add another blind to the window for privacy. But you get the idea!

One: Empire State Building and yellow candle holder: Winners, Yellow striped pillows: custom made. Two: Jak and yellow candles: Winners, Floral: Pier1, Art (1, 2): photographed and printed by Chris Nicholas, Wall color: Grey by Benjamin Moore. Three: Lacquered tray: Bowring. Four: Bathroom photograph shot and printed by Chris Nicholas, Bathroom wall color: Brushed Silver by Benjamin Moore. Bathroom light fixture: Rona.

This being a house of the 80's, the era just before the full en-suite was popular, we ended up with a tiny half bath off our bedroom. Even though it sucks not having a second shower, it's better than nothing. This bathroom was a challenge since we had to do it on a tight budget. I'll be posting a full progress and before and after on this room soon, but for now I'll leave you with the above sneak peek.