Our Guest Bedroom Update

Remember when I shared my vision for our dark and moody guest bedroom? Well, I went in a completely different direction. Sometimes it takes making a mood board to realize what I don’t want I guess!

While I still like the idea of the embracing the small room and making it dark and cozy, it didn’t really jive with the rest of our house. I was also concerned that dark panels might be too trendy. And, the biggest issue with the dark accent was that I am not sure this space will be our guest room forever, so painting something as committed as black seemed like a very bad idea for a potentially transitioning room.

I decided to stick with white walls (Whipped by Clare paint which is throughout the rest of the house). I used a West Elm comforter I’ve had for years but changed it up with some fun pillow shams from Anthropologie. The floral throw pillow is another accessory I’ve had forever, and it was from IKEA years ago. The bed, like I said, is a family antique I used to use in my Chicago apartments. Same for the nightstand, which I finally painted with leftover paint from our backdoor (Spiced Brandy by Behr).

I picked up this chair at Goodwill and painted it with Rustoleum Chalked Spray Paint in Charcoal. The gold shelf belonged to my Great Aunt Ruth. She had this on her wall as long as I can remember. She moved to assisted living in the spring and didn’t take it with her. It was sort of an iconic Aunt Ruth piece to me, so it brings me joy to have it in my home now. The Alton books on the shelf are also hers; I love all the little Alton details from her apartment. The art is all thrifted as well as the mirror, and the lamp is from IKEA. Speaking of IKEA, there are no curtains yet because I’m waiting for those to be re-stocked. The rug is from Aldi because I’m a sucker for that weekly deals aisle.

Absolutely love this painted mirror I picked up from Country Meadows antiques. I wanted a painted mirror and tried to paint my own Goodwill version based on one I loved at Urban Outfitters. The result was … fine, but not what I had hoped for. :) Then I spotted this one and it’s better than anything I could get from UO or paint myself!

I went full on airbnb by adding the wifi name and password. This little wooden building sitting on the shelf is another piece that belonged to my Aunt Ruth. It’s the historic Stratford Hotel in Alton. The Alton embroidered hoop is from Rushmore and was made by the shop owner’s sister.

A gorgeous glass box ($1 at Goodwill!) for a guests’ jewelry at night. Vase and lamp from IKEA. Art is thrifted. The table is painted Behr Spiced Brandy. I shined up the hardware with baking soda and lemon.

Our Chicago friends came for a visit over Labor Day weekend, so I had a chance to really think out what the room needed. As you can probably tell from the photos, this room is absolutely tiny. The double bed just fits, so there is only room for one night stand and no dresser. I added an IKEA spice rack I already had (previously used for kids’ books at our Chicago house). I painted it white and installed it on the side of the bed that is by the wall so that a guest on that side of the bed can set down a book or charge a phone (I added an extension cord here too for that reason, for those of us who keep our phones in our rooms). The closet is actually wonderfully large for this small of a room, so I used an IKEA cart to house towels, toiletries, a hair dryer, and some Alton literature in the closet which can be wheeled out if needed. Spare hangers and a luggage rack are also in the closet to stash suitcases and clothes. And the Goodwill chair works well for putting on shoes or laying out an outfit.

I got this dark blue IKEA cart on sale last year, but this new green color is beautiful.

A little spot for a book or charging phone.

I’ve read that the best way to make a room comfortable for guests is to try a night’s sleep in it yourself. Can’t wait to take a sleep in here soon to see what else it might need. COVID-19 has certainly reminded us to appreciate travel and the gift of guests. We are fortunate to have been able to host our friends and hope we can all freely visit each other more often again soon.