JULIA’S COLLEGE BEDROOM DESIGN BOARD

(via Lonny)

My older sister, Julia is moving off campus from a dorm to a bedroom is a house she’s renting with a group of friends. I was super excited when she turned to me for help decorating her new space, since she now has hardwood floors and room for a queen bed and dresser! I immediately got to work honing-in on an affordable bedroom design that was space and cost efficient, without sacrificing on style. I knew Julia would prefer a neutral color palette that leaned towards cool colors, so I chose a wallpaper pattern I could mount on hollow-core doors behind the bed for a removable pop of color that would be easy to install and remove. I found stylish smaller pieces from west elm that my sister could take with her to her next place, and hacked the dresser for a design solution that didn’t break the budget on the larger pieces in the room.

P.S. Save 30% off all bedding and get free shipping at west elm with code STAYINBED!

WALLPAPERMy sister’s in a dual-degree program with Tufts University and School of the Museum of Fine Arts and is an incredible fine artist, but just decided to go pre-med this year. I loved this wallpaper pattern in the first place, but it’s especially appropriate because it’s inspired by the shape of amoeba cells! The pattern has a smaller scale than my design board shows – you can see it in a room on the Walls Republic website. I’m excited to bring such a big statement to the room in a temporary way! I’m mounting the wallpaper on 80×34 inch hollow-core doors so that they are wider than the bed once on the wall.

DRESSER LEGSDressers can get expensive, so we found an easy design solution that takes a lackluster IKEA dresser (just a simple Nordli dresser) and adds a bespoke touch and a pop of blue with these fun legs from PrettyPegs. You may remember my DIY desk project with them, and I just love how the simple addition of unique legs can transform a piece.

I’ll be up in Boston to install my sister’s room and share a walk-through of the space on the west elm snapchat at the end of the month, so stay tuned to their account (and mine as well for behind-the-scenes) and for the official reveal on their blog Front+Main soon!

Product for this project is provided by Minted, Pretty Pegs, Walls Republic, and west elm. Thanks for supporting the brands that keep Thou Swell running!