Could not be more excited to share this with you! The humble-refresh-turned-complete redo of my daughter Annie’s room!
What started as a desire for a larger bed (she upgraded from a double to a QUEEN-sized mattress!) turned into a complete rethink of her space, which had become a bit cluttered and dysfunctional. A bigger desk, a place for her record player, and some more clothing storage (of course!) became part of the wish list, as well as a yearning for a more tranquil space where she could retreat to at the end of her busy school days and chill on the weekends.
Photos by the lovely Hannah Garvin, FYI!
Let’s look around, shall we?
Annie’s room has some great features, like lots of light and a nice high ceiling. But it’s not the biggest, and with a bathroom door, and entrance door, and two MASSIVE closet doors taking up most of the wall space, possible furniture layouts are limited.
In the old room, her bed was pushed up against the window wall/ back corner in an effort to maximize the space. Somehow, it made the room look even more cluttered and made the layout more limited. Floating the new bed in the middle of the room made it easier to get around, and made everything feel more expansive… it’s amazing how you can trick your eye into seeing space where there isn’t much!
Sidebar: That canvas art piece was the inspiration for what little color we added to the room. Isn’t it sooo pretty? Here in earthquake country, I’m not a fan of putting art over the sleeping heads of my children, but I love how using a couple binder clips to hang this turned out… it feels casual and young and ties in nicely with the other geometric print in the room that you’ll see further down.
The bedding and that gorgeous rug are all from Parachute. The rug is wool and so soft, and the sheets are a mix of cotton percale and linen sheets that feel neutral and refined. What can I say, the girl has good taste.
canvas art | linen duvet set | bed | llama | rug
I’m so proud of this linen-covered photo board that we leaned up next to her bedside table, floor mirror style. I am not a DIY blogger by any stretch (!!) but I was inspired by some pin boards that Athena Calderone had created and decided to have a go at it. This way, she has a concentrated area to pin up pictures, art, and other meaningful things without cluttering up her walls. Follow that link for much better instructions than I could give— I decided not to paint mine, but rather to find a pretty, complimentary linen at the craft store.
sconce | bedside table | basket
fox vase | coaster | alarm clock
This is the cutest corner of the room, IMHO! Annie didn’t have room for a second bedside table, so instead I hung this Bluetooth speaker on it’s side so it could be a shelf for flowers, or a water glass, and it doubles as a way to play her latest Spotify playlist. The speaker is a Sonos and IKEA collab that you should GRAB while you can— they’re super-affordable and look great vertically on bookshelves. We have Sonos speakers throughout the house and they are THE go-to for whole home audio that you can build as you go. It looks cute and sounds fantastic.
The velvet pouf moves around a lot and doubles as a second seat for friends who come over to do homework together or play music. Also how cute is that plush cloud with feet?!
velvet pouf | IKEA speaker | stuffed cloud | vase
Oh hi there! Here I am in front of the OTHER big DIY project in the room, Annie’s long floating desk. I worked with a handyman on this one, who received a flood of text message inspo photos from me before we settled on a design inspired by a similar look by Almost Makes Perfect (who also happens to be the lovely maker of the canvas art over Annie’s bed!). This project had a lot of twists and turns, but we created it with a couple brackets that create minimal clutter under it so it appears to float across the entire back wall of the room with no furniture legs to get tangled in. A set of drawers from Amazon add storage that can be moved around on wheels and hides a lot of the cord clutter below.
Also, the pretty rope art is made my Cindy Zell. It’s knotted with ceramic beads and lends another neutral art moment to the room.
desk chair | drawers | phone charger | rope art | planters | geometric print
As soon as I saw this printer, I knew it HAD to be a part of Annie’s room… It’s the HP Tango, and it’s small, attractive and so functional in this space. Why aren’t more printers white? This one even comes with a book cloth cover (not pictured) that makes it look like a pretty photo album when not in use. Perfect for her occasional use, and makes great quality photos when a Snapchat pic earns a spot on her pin board.
Also, those headphones. I’ve always been a big fan of Urbanears, but these new wireless over-ear headphones in Almond Beige were the perfect addition to this neutral-toned room. A hook keeps them organized (ie. not lost under a pile of dirty clothes).
floating shelves | printer | headphones | hook | planters (top shelf) | planter (middle shelf)
This monitor. Is everything. Behold: The Samsung Space, an incredible feat in engineering. One clamp on the back of the desk holds up a whopping 32″ without taking up ANY desk space. With the screensaver on (pictured) you can see how the bezel just disappears (it’s so small!) so you’re really looking at picture, and nothing else. Plus the arm the monitor is on telescopes down on it’s arm so you can move it and tilt it to wherever it feels comfortable to your eyes and neck. It’s so so pretty in the room.
Also, yes, Annie has a second Bluetooth speaker in her room— this one powers her computer for when she’s working on music tracks in Garageband. We put a similar one in Spencer’s room as well— they look like vintage guitar amplifiers.
This floor lamp is from Industry West, and I think it’s so cute with it’s cocked head and adjustable height. Teenagers are a bit challenging to design for (they’re not “kids” but not quite adults either!) but I think this Scandinavian vibe feels minimal and youthful while still being sophisticated… worked with the other natural wood tones in the room perfectly.
lamp | speaker | instant camera
One of the big priorities for her room was a place to have her record player. Isn’t it fun that kids these days are into low-fi vinyl? As you can see, this dresser gets a bit cluttered with hair products (as teenage spaces do), but the crystals and diffuser balance out the energy with calming and soothing things.
The wolf pup photograph by Sharon Montrose is the lone vestige from Annie’s nursery and was one of the first things I bought when I decorated it, and we both still adore it.
dresser | baby animal photograph | record player | mirror |
aromatherapy diffuser | crystals
Last, but certainly not least— the bed and mattress. Wanting to upgrade to a queen-sized bed started this whole ball rolling, and I was THRILLED when Purple said they would gift me the mattress and Thuma (whose Instagram ads I had been drooling over!) said they would gift the bed frame.
First, the mattress: It couldn’t have been easier to order the Purple Hybrid Premier, and install in the room. It is SO FUN to see it arrive all rolled up like an oversized purple-wrapped yoga mat on your front doorstep, and then watch it expand into a plush, supportive thing before your eyes! Purple has a proprietary “Purple Grid” that keeps you comfy when you sleep: I am always FREEZING at night, but Annie runs a bit warm, and she says she’s so much more comfortable in her new bed! Underneath the 3″ thick Purple Grid are individually wrapped coils for extra support, so it has a combination of ways to make you feel supported. It also has a 100-night guarantee if you’re at all apprehensive about mail ordering a mattress, and if you MUST bounce on it first, you can check out Purple mattresses at select Macy’s or Mattress Firm locations.
The Bed, by Thuma was just as delightful to assemble, because it goes together like a Japanese puzzle of sorts… the corners (which are rounded to make bumping into them less painful, THANK YOU!) slide into one another without screws, which makes for a quite beautiful detail. The PillowBoard is low, and disappears into the wall (I chose light linen but it also comes in a charcoal color). It’s also incredibly easy to take apart if you needed to move it. Also, there’s that Parachute rug again. Obsessed.
That’s the tour! Hope you love it! Annie is super-happy and I really feel like it’s WAYY more functional and organized and WAYY less cluttered.
Thanks a million to Purple, Parachute, Thuma, Samsung, Industry West, Urbanears, and HP for their donations to this project.
