We only have three bedrooms in our house and the smallest is only big enough for a crib, a dresser and a glider. Nothing else. So when our two year old began to get too big for her crib (she is tall for her age), we knew that putting a twin bed into her room wouldn’t be an option. We considered buying a toddler bed, but since we anticipated needing a crib (and its corresponding mattress) for a new family member in the relatively near future anyway, we decided it would be better to move our daughter into the back bed room.
Our back bedroom is a combination office/guestroom/dumping ground for items without homes. It has been the eyesore of our home constantly (except when we actually had guests) since we moved in almost four years ago.
I wanted to redo the room for a little girl, but allow the expensive portions of the décor to grow with her.
First we emptied the room and its closets. I purged the linen closet leaving some of the sheets and towels in there, but mostly just sheets for my daughter’s twin bed and her own towels. But I do still use the top shelves for seasonal linen storage. We bought a wardrobe on sale at IKEA which we set up in the unfinished attic as off season storage for coats and other clothing. A few items (such as my knitting supplies) moved into the closet of my daughter’s old room, what we now call the “baby room.” But most of it went to the attic. This fall a major attic purge is on the agenda, but I can’t ask my heat hating husband to deal with 90 degree+ temperatures in our attic in July and August.
We pulled my old twin bed down from the attic and purchased a new twin mattress and box spring. We were lucky enough to find a very nice set that was on clearance for less than half of the usual price (about the same or less as the cheapest mattress in the store). We got an old dresser from my sister’s basement and a book shelf from another part of the house. A lamp from my parents’ attic provides basic lighting, but we definitely need more. While I was tempted to purchase a little girls bed linen set, they were all so expensive and I couldn’t find exactly what I wanted anyway. The bed linens are also cast offs from when I lived at home. They were still in good shape and the ivy pattern will be age appropriate for a long time, if not indefinitely. (I picked them out when I was 15). I bought a set of Beatrix Potter wall decals from Amazon.com. These were a really easy to apply and my daughter loves them. A few small decorative items from my childhood plus the complete Beatrix Potter Box set rounded out the room.
By far the best part though, is the window seat. There was this large gap between the two closets that seemed to be nothing but wasted space. We used to store file drawers there. I had the idea, my husband and brother-in-law did the building and for less than $50 my daughter has an adorable window seat and a nice big storage box for off season blankets, freeing up more closet space. I may add a cushion later.
The room still needs work. We’re hoping to add a few more outlets and some more lighting. But finally, the most cluttered room of the house has become the cutest. Our daughter loves it and gets excited each night about sleeping in her “big girl bed.”
Love it!! Nice job! The window seat is awesome. I’ve always wanted one of those. 🙂