Decorating Dilemma: From Kid's Room to Guest Room
Now that my youngest has finally made it through college and into his own apartment, I have a nice-sized spare room that I'd love to make into a guest room. But when I've tried to set it up, it still just looks like my son's room only bare, with his single bed, his beat-up dresser, and not much else. What is the trick to making a guest room welcoming?
Whenever you change the function of an entire room, you have to start from scratch, or you will be haunted by the previous room. And that's going to take some investment, so the first step is figuring out what your budget is, and then taking a close look at what you want to spend money on, and what items you can find at yard sales and refurbish yourself.
Probably the first place to start with your project is in painting. Not to stereotype your son, but my guess is that Junior's walls are pocked with holes from where he had tacked up posters of Limp Bizkit or J Lo. Not to mention the scuff marks.
Unless you already have a color scheme, start with the paint. You want a color that is soothing and calming, so consider a combination of beiges and light browns with highlights of chocolate or cream. Or, go with a pastel palette, with pinks, lavenders, pale greens.
Once the room is painted, it's time to consider furniture. Our favorite look these days is the twin beds, as shown in these two photos. Twin beds are more practical than a double; if you have a couple, they can split up while they're visiting you, and if you have two friends visiting, or two siblings, they'll likely be more comfortable in single beds than in sharing a double.
Sheffield Top Tip:Twin beds also bring symmetry to the room. The room immediately looks more balanced. And since you don't need a lot of other furniture, chances are you'll have the room. A table between the beds, and a dresser, are all you need. If you have more space, a nice armchair or a luggage stand would round out the room.
In the photo on the left, we can see that the headboards are covered in fabric, which matches the pillow shams on the large pillows. In the other photo, the bed skirts are made of fabric matching the window treatments. This matching brings harmony to the room, which contributes to its welcoming feeling.
Even though we're telling you that you need to re-furnish the room, this doesn't mean you have to break the bank. Maybe you can take Junior's old dresser, find a small table at a yard sale, and sand them down, then paint them in a coordinating color. Look for a cute lamp and get a nice shade for it, install a fresh plant, an alarm clock, and you're ready to receive visitors.
One note: often the guest room becomes the clutter room, which gives it a feeling of being unused and unhappy. If you have the space to have a nice easy chair, try to use it; make the guest room serve also as your own special quiet reading room. This will keep a feeling of liveliness in it, and will keep you from tossing every lost item in the house into the room.
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