Be Our Guest!

I'd like to start with how we did our guest room, which is really a room for my mother when she stays with us. The decor is to her liking, and was designed with her in mind. I have to say, it came out really cute.

So here is the piece that started my design process.

This small chest of drawers was my Great Grandmother's. I really liked the chippy paint finish and decided to leave it as is.
So that started the theme of a more toned down shabby chic decor.
The charming little birdhouses are my mother's. They just went perfectly in the room and she was delighted to put them there.

We needed a bed, but all I had was a bed frame. Boring. Here is what I did.

Looks expensive, right?
Nope.
The sides of the day bed structure are an old headboard and foot board that I already had. The headboard was warped beyond repair. I cut off the taller posts in the back, and cut the foot board in half. THe taller poles were attached to the lower posts, like so.

I then painted the new side rails with enamel paint. It's usually in the spray paint section and is FAR more durable than latex paint. It also goes much further than spray paint.
If you use a paint brush, you get an interesting texture to the piece. If you want a smooth finish, use paint sponges.
The quilt was 20 dollars at Wal Mart. The pillow shams that don't match the quilt were given to me by someone who never used them. They coordinate, but don't match exactly.
The chinelle throw was a hand me down, as was the little patch work dog.
I made the whole bed look for under 50 dollars. The quilt was 20 bucks, and the paint was about 10. Various painting supplies, about 5 dollars.
And underneath, still the floating bed frame that I already had.

The side rails that give the day bed look are not attached to the frame, but rather are attached to the wall.

Now, for the window piece that is above the bed.
I found the window in a junk pile at a relatives house.

I was unsure if the paint was lead based or not. Judging by the age, it probably is. To prevent the paint from falling off in the house, I used a sealant on the window. This not only prevents paint chips from falling off into the hands of the kids, or pets....but it preserves the look I want to keep.
The lace was simply stapled on in the back. Because I used a bright color on the walls, the lace really pops beautifully.
The lace was a lace curtain and valance I got at a thrift store for 5 bucks. The curtain is polyester, so not an heirloom.

The rose shaped fabric draping is just curtain shears that I gathered and tied off with a natural yarn. Twine, or burlap ties would look beautiful too.
I already owned the curtain shears. I see them all the time at the thrift stores though, so they are not hard to get for cheap.

My mother owned old steamer trunks that she didn't have room for anymore, so I took those to add to the decor.

Now I have extra storage space for guests, and the steamer trunk adds some wonderful charm to the room. These trunks are not terribly expensive at vintage stores, or you can try Craigslist.

The lace (on top of one of my countertop remnant shelves I mentioned in an earlier post) is the valence that matches the curtain in the window.

This was a refinishing project. Again, searching outbuildings on family land...I found this little night stand. It was terribly wobbly and needed a tiny bit of paint to take it from ugly to shabby chic.
The doilies are quilt pieces that I salvaged from a scrap bag found in an attic.

Another restoration project for this room was an old vanity chair that belonged to a relative.

It started out....really rough. There are gouges on it, and the top was trashed.
To work! This took some serious sanding, wood putty, and elbow grease. This is the end product.

The cushion is a bit uneven, as I had to kick a cat off to get a picture. ;)
The new cushion part was one of my mom's old skirts that I cut up.
I'm very pleased with how this turned out.

There we go. One guest room for under 200 dollars.







Bonus!
The 10 minute upcycle!

Believe it or not, this was actually a cake plate. The middle indentation was just perfect for a mirror.
I picked up the mirror at the dollar store. It came with a cheap plastic frame that was easily removed.
I sawed off the base of the cake plate, and it left the perfect hole for the mirror to be hung.

Then is was just a matter of gluing in the mirror.
That's it.
Not much work for a beautiful accent piece.


See ya next time!