Before and After: Basement Guest Bedroom

My clients asked me to do an English-inspired guest room out of a catch-all basement bedroom.  The husband asked for something that would remind him a bit of his native England, with heavy emphasis on blue, his school color from his days at Oxford.  Um.  Okay.  Soooooo up my alley.

I chose to go monochromatic and more masculine than what I did for their carriage house last year.  The room is not done yet, but here's a peek.

We started here...

Adding grasscloth, furniture, carpeting, roman shade and a herringbone patterned bedding, we are now here...

Before...

Now...

That angled wall, above, will have a gorgeous 72" mirror, framed in a crackled, antique gold finish over some exposed wood.  It will work magic to open up this cozy space.

The brass lamp, above, will be replaced by antique brass, wall-mounted swing arm lamps on either side of the headboard (everything will move a bit to the left to accommodate them).

The budget for the adjoining bathroom was not huge, but we were able to tie it in with some effective changes...

Here it is now...

The new wall color, vanity, light, and rug have made a huge difference (in person!).

So, here's a horrifying story for you...we were originally only doing paint, rug, and accessories in the bathroom.  Well, I made the brilliant suggestion that perhaps a great new mirror would get things looking more connected to the new bedroom.  Here's where I died.  The contractor, taking down the mirror, hits the light fixture, chips it, the mirror brakes and ruins the existing vanity.  "Don't worry," says my client, "we should really be doing a new vanity and light anyway."  Sure.  That made me feel like a million bucks.  Or not. (They are the nicest people.)  If that weren't enough, the tile floor wasn't finished under the vanity, and OF COURSE the new vanity didn't cover up this gap in the floor.  So yes, new tiles and grout under the new vanity.

The mirror that came with the new vanity will be staying.  Goes without saying  :-/

The adjacent kitchenette also got a makeover with paint and a new rug.  The furniture was all removed, as I suggested we take an antique amoire from another room and put it along the wall for much needed clothing storage for guests.

These rooms are not finished yet, but since I'm impatient and didn't want to wait, I thought I'd post them.  The bedroom needs some serious styling, and there will soon be a gorgeous monogrammed pillow on the bed for a pop of color, and some art on the walls.

I hope from the projects I show that you might, somewhere along the way, pick up an idea that might work in your home.  And if you ever want help in your home, just email me.

Talk to you soon,
Carol