Sunday, January 8, 2012

First blog DIY - Guest room wallpaper



So when I moved into this loft, one of the most aesthetically-challeneged rooms was this guest room. The walls are at an odd angle, the 'headboard wall' is about 20 ft fall (not an exaggeration), and the room is rather small. A small guest room doesn't bother me all that much... not like guests really need a full dresser or chest to house weeks worth of clothes or anything. The oddly angled exterior walls do add a bit of interest and dimension to what would otherwise be a very boxy shape. But that 20 ft white wall. Gah, did that keep me up at night (I want to act like that is a joke, but sadly, I did lie awake at night - on pinterest, mostly - trying to figure out the best way to make that look better.)  At first, I thought I would just compensate with a tall upholstered headboard in an interesting color or print fabric. Insert my fear of commitment pertaining to furniture and that idea got tossed pretty quickly. I knew I would tire quickly of whatever color/fabric choice I made and didn't want to re-do the room 80 times. So I researched and studied and browsed and merged several bits of inspiration to piece together this DIY. I am so, so pleased with the way this turned out.


Side note: this room is FAR from finished.  Please ignore the tragic lamps, side tables, and poor lighting.  

First, I saw this post on another blog (actually I saw the pic on pinterest first that led me to the blog - which I LOVE, btw), and read all about the Sherwin Williams removable wallpaper that they used in their apartment. I absolutely LOVED this pattern. After deciding to go with the wallpaper method, I looked through so many wallpaper books... and always went back to this as my favorite. Obviously, wallpapering a 20 ft tall wall was out of the question (for me, at least) - but I wanted to create interest behind the neutral oatmeal-colored linen headboard. I decided that measuring and wallpapering a section of the wall behind the headboard and framing it with some black painted trim was the best idea.

Before:

The only thing done at this point was that the exterior walls had been painted a dark blue/navy color.  It doesn't really show that well in these photos, but if anyone is interested in knowing the exact color just shoot me an e-mail.  Unmade bed and all, sigh (sorry Mom).  



During:

After measuring, we drew with a pencil on the wall where the molding would go.  Then we put the wallpaper up.  It took 5 cut strips of this for us to do this much of the wall.  This part took less than an hour.


Then I painted the trim/molding strips that were cut to the size that we needed.  I used a Behr semi-gloss primer and paint in one.  Yes, that is parchment paper underneath the painted boards.  



After:


Once the paint dried on the trim, we put it up around the border of the wallpaper and trimmed any excess paper.  I also made the bed.  You're welcome.







 

41 comments:

  1. Oh my goodness, SARAH!! It looks absolutely fantastic! And it really, really makes me miss you guys and the loft! LOVE IT!!

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  2. Woah...for this being your first DIY project, you didn't mess around! I am so impressed and I really love the print you chose. Can't wait to see more! :)

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  3. Sarah, this blows all of my redecorating completely out of the water! This is incredible and I am now thinking of putting this up in our study...sigh

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  4. That looks incredible! Love this idea & definitely will be keeping it in mind for my next place

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  5. um, i'm moving in. and you will never see inside my home. =) our guests are lucky we removed the ducky towel hangers that were in our guest bathroom. when we moved in i was pregnant and then having an infant, now toddler...i just can't be bothered. but now i just want THIS room. it is gorgeous girl!

    xoxo, jenn
    the stylish housewife

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  6. This turned out lovely, and such great visual interest! I'm currently looking for wallpaper for a feature wall in my sewing room so I'm going to check out Sherwin Williams now!

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  7. This looks incredible! I love how you framed it, so chic!
    xo
    Lia

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  8. I loved this idea! It looks amazing! You did a great job!

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  9. Love this idea, Sarah! You did such a great job! I'm still amazed at the awesome things on Pinterest.
    xo~Crystal

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  10. This is absolutely amazing! Great job girl.. I love the look... might even consider doing it myself! ;) Thanks for the inspiration!

    xx
    Jen

    http://belledecouture.com

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  11. i LOVE how it turned out! pretty amazing for a first DIY ;)

    xoxo,

    Fashion Fractions

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  12. I love the pattern that you picked. Was it hard to match up the pattern? From Brooklyn with love ~jen

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  13. I LOVE this, even if I'm too lazy to do any DIY projects, kudos & bravo!!! Looks great:)

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  14. WOW! This looks fantastic! What a wonderful DIY! xo, Christina

    http://www.styleclouds.de

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  15. This looks absolutely incredible. I love it!

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  16. Wow, this is amazing! You are very talented!

    http://confessionsoftheglitterati.blogspot.com/

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  17. Even though it's far from finished, it looks fantastic! You have a great eye, clearly not only for amazing clothes but also decor. Creativity is definitely your forte!

    Love it :)

    xx
    thistimeisacharm.blogspot.com

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  18. Such a smart idea!! Totally loved how you did this... great inspiration! Way to DIY.

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  19. hello. this is amazing! adds such interest to the room.

    i just ordered the grayish boots. seeing yours all the time is what made me love those!

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  20. This looks awesome! I kind of want to go do the exact same thing behind my bed!

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  21. Love this!!! I'm hopeless at DIY, so I'm so impressed that you painted and cut and hung all this yourself! It looks awesome.

    And I also sometimes stay up at night on Pinterest...it's an addiction.

    xoxo
    CK

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  22. Looks amazing! Way to go...see you are crafty too :)Who knew?

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  23. This looks amazing! What a great job! I def want to try some more DIY projects this year!

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  24. That's so cool, I love it!

    http://www.hsquaredfashion.blogspot.com

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  25. Love the DIY wallpaper. Love what you have done with the room. I love finding inspirations from pinterest.

    Reminds me of a upscale hotel room but super comfy and cozy.

    myminibag.blogspot.com

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  26. Love love love this! The wall paper is gorgeous and the idea of not papering the whole wall is genius! Still looks great without all of the work!

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  27. Wow! I am so impressed. It looks like something at a chic hotel. I've been tempted to try that removable wallpaper in my closet and may just have to take the plunge. Can't wait to see the completed room.

    Mandy
    The Klury Report & Kini Style

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  28. I love it! I think you did a great job-and the wall paper is super classic-so hopefully you won't tire of it as quickly as you might have if you would have gone with something else.

    xx

    Erin @ http://www.trufflesnruffles.com/

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  29. Holy sh*t balls!! Is my room ready for me now?

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  30. That is Bad Ass!!! Seriously, you just inspired me to do this!!! Thanks!!

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  31. wait, this is amazing! and it just gave me a great idea on what to do with my headboard! x

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  32. What a great idea! It looks amazing! Can't wait to see what else you do to this room!

    Lindsey Turner
    http://thriftandshout.blogspot.com

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  33. Turned out great- I am sure some very lucky guests will enjoy it to the max. And I really love the hardwood flooring in the second to last pic.

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