Presley's Playroom

So I'm kind of embarrassed because my baby is 6 months old and her big girl bedroom is already ready for her. I know I know. To my defense, it's also her playroom and we currently spend a few hours in there every single day. A few weeks ago I decided that it was time for it to be pretty.

Before:

When we first moved here it was our storage room for things we were getting rid of. The only thing we did was smooth the popcorn ceilings in there. We piled it completely full of stuff we didn't want or need. Lots of clutter. In October of 2014 I finally had a garage sale and sold most of it and donated the rest. So then it was just an empty room. It sat like that for a while until my nesting really set in and I NEEDED it painted. I think I was 7 or 8 months pregnant. My mom came over and did the job for me since I couldn't. Preggy probs. I decided on a pink ceiling with white walls. I was inspired by a few things I'd seen on Pinterest. It was a bold choice going with white but we went for it and I'm glad we did because I love it. So then I put a few toys, a shelf that I got for Christmas , my tv monitor/dvd player that was in the attic that used to be in my middle and high school bedroom (my first flat screen), curtains that were originally in our bedroom that I replaced, and a houndstooth couch that we didn't have anywhere to put so we just stuck it in there. It was plain and boring and nothing matched but that was that for the time being. I had my beautiful little babe and all was well and it was no longer on my radar. I was too busy raising my little human. About 2 months ago we started playing more and more in there and I just decided that it was time. I needed to finish the room. I made it a summer goal of mine. I actually found the comforter for the bed close to a year ago (right after we found out we were having a girl and I went a little crazy) and loved it so much that I put it on my Amazon wishlist. I thought it'd be so cute in a little girl's bedroom. My inlaws bought it for me for my birthday in October and I was so excited. I've been waiting patiently to build a room around it as my focal point ever since. So now, a year and a half after we moved in, our last room is (mostly) complete. It won't be totally complete until Presley's old enough to move to a big girl bed and we move her dresser and wall monogram over from her nursery. But we have so much time. I'm not wishing my baby's babyhood away just to finish a room. I'm completely obsessed with her and seriously don't know what I did all day before she was born. She's the greatest. 

Here is how it looked right before I had Presley:

And here it is now!

The walls are Glidden's Arctic White and the ceiling is actually a color my mother-in-law created for Presley's dresser in her nursery. She chalk painted it for me. She used Annie Sloan Pure White and added Emporer's Silk (red) until it became the pink that we wanted. They didn't have a pre-made pink chalk paint I liked that went with the nursery so it was her idea to create the color. I liked it so much I took it to Farrell Calhoun and had it matched and Matt painted the nursery closet that same pink. Then we used that paint to paint the ceiling in spare oom (it's name before it became the playroom). I wanted it that specific pink so that I could incorporate things from her nursery into the new bedroom later and it would all match. For example, her dresser, the monogram above her crib, a few frames we painted, etc. Now it all goes together and we won't have to do a lot of repainting when we move stuff over (again, in a very VERY long time). 

The thing with white walls is that they look so bare you might feel the need to fill them up completely. I did at first because I thought I was filling a void but quickly realized it was too much and toned it down. I did a lot of things in here that I ended up not liking and redid. I kinda figured out what I wanted it to look like as I went. I can't tell you how many hours I just stared at those blank walls wondering what in the world to do with them. I finally have them at the right place. It's a fun, whimsical space that I hope Presley will love to grow up in. Can't wait for all of our Disney movie marathons and Barbie days in there in the future!

First thing I did was the accent wall. I made 2 strands of garland one day and ended up hating one of them (of course it was the one that took me all day to make). I loved the one made of scrapbook paper but wasn't a fan of the one made out of entirely handmade pom pom balls. RIP. The scrapbook garland took like 20 minutes to make. I had a paper puncher for the circles so I just found coordinating paper I liked and punched it all out. I got a clear thread and hot glued the paper to it on the front and back. So easy.

How it looked with the 2 strands of garland and before I changed it around the first time. Too much of somethin and not enough of another:

I knew I wanted a reading corner. I actually saw the idea with the spice racks as book shelves on Pinterest a year ago and loved the idea. I put them on my wishlist and Matt got them for me for Christmas. They're Ikea brand. I spray painted them blue and they made such cute shelves. The big pillow was actually a high school graduation present. I just got a new cover for it and propped it up. The elephant I got for Pres at Marshalls when I was pregnant. She loved using it for naps and tummy time when she was itty bitty. I got the cute pom pom blanket at Target. It was on clearance. The little rug I actually found at Walmart of all places. The chalkboard I got at Hobby Lobby for about $5 with my coupon. I hate the "chalkboard" material that comes on cheap chalkboards. It's more like plastic and chalk hardly writes on it. So I had some chalkboard paint on hand and painted over the whole thing. It works much better now. This was the same chalkboard I used to take my weekly baby belly pics as well as used for decor at her gender reveal party.

And Elphie knew just what to do with it. My little scholar (and the pre painted spice/book racks).

I ended up with a blank space (baby) to the right of the shelves and could not think of something to put there. I thought floor lamp? Hanging lantern? One of those cool hoolahoop fabric tents that hangs from the ceiling? Ehh too bulky. I finally found something I loved. This is a needlepoint circle ($1.99) that I slip knotted misc fabric around. I hung it up with jute from the ceiling. I really love the color and fun it added to that corner.

I couldn't for the life of me figure out what I wanted on the other side of the book shelf above the chest (that may or may not be painted on day). It's such a beautiful wooden chest and I don't want to ruin it but I think it'd look so cute painted. It's an internal struggle I'm currently dealing with. First world probs I know. But anyways. I painted 2 canvases and hung a frame but didn't like it. I ended up buying a bulletin board ($5 after coupon at Hobby Lobby), painting it the leftover pink chalk paint and adding big polka dots to it. I glued purple pom poms to clear push pins as well. I was inspired to make the Monster's Inc painting from something I saw on Pinterest. I'm completely obsessed with that movie and Disney and I know Pres will be too. She has no choice. I found the gray wooden verse plaque at Hobby Lobby and just loved it. I love that little area now.

So I sit back and gaze at the room and it just needs something else. Then I realized the white doors were just killin my vibe I was going for. So I went to the paint store and picked out a purple I like. I first painted just the closet door then a few weeks later painted the other 2 doors in the room. I love the color they added. Completely changed everything. The color is Farrell Calhoun Purple Lace.

I've had these hooks for a while. They hung in our East Memphis house for 4 years but I never found a place for them here. I finally found a spot. I spray painted them blue and they fit right in.

So then I decided that I didn't like the beige ikat curtains. They were too boring for a little girl's room. Especially one with white walls. I found these cute pink ruffle curtains on sale on Target.com and ordered them. I was worried they'd clash with the pink ceilings but I think they compliment them. The comforter has lots of pinks in it so I can get away with lots of variations throughout the room. I did end up taking the hem out of them and extending them. I do that with all of my Target curtains (3rd pair I've purchased) because I like to hang my curtains higher than the top of my windows. It gives the illusion of a bigger room and it just looks better. Plus my curtain rod was already hung and I wasn't about to rehang that lower so my new curtains would touch the floor. Hanging curtain rods is the WORST! I love the extra pink they added. Definitely something the room was lacking before. Now when the light shines in the window in the late afternoon the whole room and hallway light up pink.

The wall to the left of the curtains was actually one of the first things I did. I found that giraffe at Hobby Lobby (see a theme here yet? I literally go every day when I'm in the middle of a project like this). It was love at first sight. To the right I have a cute frame given to me by a friend and underneath I have a frame with a verse in it that my best friend gave me for my babe's room. The nursery was already finished at that point and I had run our of wall space but it looks so great in here.

So the closet door wall. I figured that's where her pink dresser will go in the future so it needed something above it. I had this white window I purchased at Sheffields in Collierville around Christmas time. It had a wreath on it and it sat on our mantle for the holidays. I liked it but thought it could be used better in this room. And it gives me an excuse to redecorate for Christmas this year :) Sorry Matt. I got some jute and slip knotted the same fabric and ribbon from my hanging mobile to it and hung it like garland. I swiped a few strokes of the pink chalk paint on it too so it wasn't just a white window on a white wall.

I love this big ruler to measure all my kids on over the next few decades. If we do end up moving in the future we can take this with us and not leave their growth chart on the door trim somewhere for someone else to paint over. I found it at Hobby Lobby for just $25. On Etsy they were way more expensive because of shipping.

Last but not least, the bed. I went through an insane garage saleing phase right when I started college. My little East Memphis house was completely full but I was obsessed with redoing furniture and getting good deals. I would get up early every Saturday like like 2 months and go on the lookout for stuff. My family started calling me a hoarder because my attic started filling up. I was bringing in more stuff than I could get to at a time. Fitting accusation I think. I got really good at carrying large pieces of furniture up my pull-down ceiling attic (that had super janky stairs that would occasionally detach...I know...freaked me out too when my life flashed before my eyes a few times). Anyways, at an estate sale probably 5-6 years ago I was rummaging through an attic and found this cute little twin bed. I went and told the people I found something in the attic I wanted and they said the attic stuff wasn't for sale. So then I felt like a creeper for being somewhere I wasn't supposed to be and I said I was sorry. They didn't seem to care. There wasn't a sign or anything and they said they just hadn't gone through the attic stuff yet. Then they asked me what I wanted and I said a bed. They went up with me to take a look. They said they'd sell it to me for $35. WHAT A DEAL! Of course I had absolutely no where to put this bed but I was super excited about it. So there it sat. In the depths of woe of my own attic for years and years. So FINALLY my day had come! I already had the bedspread and the bed. I just needed a mattress.

*Note: I brought Presley's monogram in here to hang it up just to see what it'd look like and then put it back over her crib. We don't have 2. I'm not THAT crazy. That space remains bare at the moment.

Here it is before the table was painted and the trim was added to the skirt. Presley already loves it! She was mesmerized by the floral pattern:

We got a new bed when we moved. We upgraded from a queen to a king. When bed shopping for us I searched all over Memphis for a quality mattress at a good price. I found one at this sketchy place called Overstock Outlet in the Perimeter Shopping Center on Summer along the interstate. The mattresses there were like hundreds less than the next lowest priced place. They're all brand new and in the original plastic. Our bed is such good quality and so comfy so we've been really pleased. So I didn't even look anywhere else when buying this twin mattress. I sold a few cakes to save up for my purchase and ended up getting the mattress and boxsprings there for $145. It's a pillow top and really comfortable. 

I painted the bed Luxor Blue by Farrell Calhoun. I love how it turned out. The comforter is by Dena Home. I found it online at NostalgiaHome.com. I don't think they sell this pattern there anymore but they have other cute options. I'm sure you can find it somewhere on the internet. I love anything by Dena. I've mentioned that brand lots of times. I have a shower curtain by her as well as lots of baby clothes (baby brand is called Happi by Dena). I got the chevron pillow from Target also on clearance. I got the white bedskirt at Bed Bath and Beyond and ended up sewing the pink satin trim to the bottom. It was with the bias tapes at Hobby Lobby.

I wasn't going to paint the side table but once I thought everything was finished I just had to. My mother-in-law had some Pure White and Graphie Annie Sloan chalk paint she let me borrow for this project. I mixed the 2 together till I got the colors I liked. I went a light gray for the base then added a little more Graphite to the mixture for tonal drawers. Then I sanded the whole thing to distress it a bit. I think it looks a lot better. I got the pink glass lamp at Overstock Outlet when I was buying my mattress. It's Target's Xhilaration brand and I got it for just $8. I got the white lampshade at At Home (old Garden Ridge) and hot glued pink bias tape I had on hand around the top and bottom to make it match. I later added the embroidered daisy trim to the bottom that I got at Joanne's for $3.75 a yard. I painted the canvas behind it.

So there you have it! Another girly bedroom and my heart is happy. I ended up loving the endless possibilities that the white walls gave me to work with. I got to compensate by filling it up with lots of fun, bright things. Presley and I love to hang out and play in there even more so now and I'm just so glad it's finished. I'll end this post with a pic of my sweet little babe. LOOK HOW CUTE SHE IS!!! I love to squeeze and kiss her all day long.