As I was making plans for our new master bedroom, chalkboard paint kept catching my attention. It seems to be very popular with DIY-ers (I think I just made up a new word). The few projects I have used chalkboard paint on, I have loved the final product. So “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”
I purchased the cheapest frame I could find at Hobby Lobby ($3) because I knew it wasn’t going to look that way for long. I already had regular paint and chalkboard paint at home from previous projects. Again, this is another super cheap-o project. My favorite kind of project :-)
When I got the frame home, I didn’t even bother taking out the corny picture that came in the front of the frame. I put a couple coats of chalkboard paint directly onto the glass. I don’t remember exactly how many coats, but I’m guessing 3-5ish.
I painted the frame white (again probably 3 coats), and then got out the sandpaper. Have you noticed I’m a little obsessed with distressed objects? Well here I go again. Once all the paint (white and chalkboard) were dry I sanded down the edges of the frame to give it more of a personal, antiqued look. (You always want to make sure your paint is dry before you start sanding so that you don't have your distressed chunks making your paint lumpy <--- like all those technical terms?)
Check this baby out!
Now, mounted to the wall, right above the light switch when we walk into our room, we have a little chalkboard to write sweet messages to each other. Cute, right? Messages from Phil always make me blush and give me butterflies :-)
Remember this? This was my nightstand before I got all DIY-crazy. It’s not hideous, just boring. I was ready for a change.
I removed the hardware, sanded everything down, and applied some primer.
Next came the white paint (White by Valspar). I applied 2 coats, and it was already starting to look better to me.
So far in the room, I had added a lot of creams and white, but since Phil said it was starting to “look like an insane asylum” (and he was right), I decided to add another demission to the color palette with gray, but to continue to incorporate my favorite damask pattern that was on the bedding. I purchased a stencil and gray paint at Hobby Lobby. (When you do this, make sure the your base paint is dry, and lightly use scotch tape to secure the stencil in place so it doesn’t move while you’re painting. Use a measuring tape to get your design precisely where you want it. I used a sponge-tipped brush for the stenciling for an even coat of paint.)
Once the stencil was dried and I sealed everything, I replaced the hardware. I was thinking of replacing the hardware, but in the end decided that I still liked the original too much to replace it. So here is my new nightstand.
What do you think?
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Ok so moving onto something minor with a huge impact on our new bedroom: the hamper. I guess I never felt the need to upgrade from the hamper we used in college. Yep, we were still using the same one.
But wait, it gets better.
Because Tomlin kept getting into our less than sturdy hamper, we rigged it to the wall with some old curtain hardware. Oh yes, we’re classy like that.
I hate to admit this, but I searched for a hamper longer than I searched for anything else in this room. I had no idea hampers could cost so much and still be so small! I’m not buying a tiny hamper! That would mean I would have to do laundry more so all of our clothes wouldn’t be spilling over the sides. No way!
I finally found this lovely hamper at Ross. I don’t think it was exactly what I was looking for, but then again, I really didn’t have a clue what I wanted so it worked out perfectly. With the colors and style I think it matches the room & the shabby chic feel I was going for (and it was only $25)!
Are you getting a feel for our new room with the new bedding, curtains, decorations, lamps, nightstand and hamper. At this point I thought it was already a million times better than it was previously. But of course, I didn’t stop here :-)
The next project to tackle in our bedroom was this lamp. It’s so plain! I know, I know, I typically like plain, but this was too plain even for me.
This lamp on my nightstand I got back in college, but in an effort to be financially savvy, I thought of a way to change the lamp without having to purchase a new one.
Before moving to our current home, I had curtains hanging in our bedroom. When we moved here, the “maid” never hung the curtains (shame on her!). I purchased long cream colored linen curtains and a new curtain rod. 
After the bedding and armoire, and lamp and curtains, we were already feeling like the room had made a complete 180. But you know me; I couldn’t just stop there. I had to keep going :-)
In July I opened the suggestion box for ideas on our master bedroom renovations. (See our hot mess of a bedroom here). It was the last room in our house to get renovated, and I seriously lacked direction. Thankfully, I received a ton of help and encouragement from all of our wonderful followers and I appreciate it so much. You all gave me a lot of direction and you will see many of your suggestions incorporated into the final product :-)
After getting all of your fabulous ideas, I made a thousand few to-do lists and worked my way through August. The goal was to do as many DIY projects as I could and to get everything completed by August 22, when school started. I am proud to say that I finished a week earlier than I anticipated and we’re in love with our new bedroom.
I decided (and double-checked with hubby of course) that I would go for a rustic romance/shabby chic/French countryside vibe. (I feel extra “teachery” when I have to describe my bedroom with adjectives like this lol). As I said before, I wanted to make sure that our room was peaceful and light, so the colors I chose were light gray, cream, ivory, and white. This month I will be revealing all of the projects that went into our new bedroom. I hope you like them as much as we do!
Since almost everyone said to figure out the bedding situation, I realized that the bedding had been a reoccurring problem that needed to be fixed first before I dove into the rest of the room. In the past, I had been getting bedding that I was satisfied with but nothing I really loved. I needed to buckle down and get something I loved so that I didn’t have to keep doing this every few months. Long-term this will be more cost efficient. To jog your memory, here is before, boooooooooooo!
Here is after, Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!
Instead of buying a set where I was only satisfied with parts of it, I built my own set so that I made sure to love every piece:
Standard Shams: Vintage Chic Scallop Shams
European Shams: Palais Royale Hotel Collection
Sheets: Therapedic Always Fresh
Throw pillow 1: Madison Square Toss
Throw pillow 2: Lenox Neckroll Toss
Throw pillow 3: I already had
Bed Skirt: Smoothweave
Comforter: Damask Stripe White
Coverlet: Lenox
Ok, moving on, I had to dig pretty deep, but this is a photo of the armoire when we first moved in back in 2008. I know you’re lovin’ my boom box ;-)
I decided not to paint this piece of furniture but instead to just clear the “trendy” boom box off the top. I did some shopping around our house and brought back an old milk bottle, medicine jar, picture of Phil and I, bird cage, bird candle, and some books. This look didn’t cost me anything, and it’s still a refreshing new look that matches my adjectives- I think ;-)
After these first two projects were done, even though they were really small and easy, we could already start to feel the difference they made. Phew! We were on the right path!
So what do you think?
Does it seem relaxing?
Can you see my adjectives reflected in these simple changes?
Stay tuned for more master bedroom projects!
My friend Danie suggested this macaroni and cheese recipe by the Neely’s (who are super cute), and it was fabulous. I definitely recommend it.
Looking back at both of these recipes, I realize the pork-overload at this picnic! haha thank goodness we don’t eat like this everyday!
