We spent the weekend tackling a number of hands-on projects for the girls’ room in the showhouse. The room still feels a bit sparse and far from done, so it will likely keep evolving up until our deadline.
- The bed needs to be raised and a colorful throw will be added.
- Linens need ironing and a custom bolster will be layered in.
- Colorful fabric window treatments will be hung as soon as they arrive.
- We might swap out the end table — still undecided.
- A soft blue lamp and a handful of accessories will help tie everything together.
Even so, we made serious progress and significantly shortened the to-do list this weekend.
Highlights: we stenciled the wall, painted the headboard, hung several pieces of art (including a whimsical chicken painting by our friend Lesli DeVito), and painted and upholstered two thrifted chairs. We also had fun adding a few playful wall hooks.
You might remember the old full-sized headboard we scored for $9.98 at Family Thrift Center.
It now wears a fresh coat of Benjamin Moore’s Hydrangea Flowers, set against the newly stenciled wall behind the bed. Parker, one of the builder’s go-to crew members and apparently a stenciling pro, handled both the headboard paint and the wall stencil.
It felt a little strange not being the ones on ladders doing the stenciling and headboard work, but with 3,500 square feet of house to furnish and accessorize it was great to have some of those tasks checked off while we focused on other details. The stencil was generously donated by Royal Design Studios. The room base color is Simply White, with Hibiscus by Benjamin Moore used for the floral stencil.
This approach lets us take some risks to keep the showhouse interesting — the bright headboard color plays nicely with the stencil and, if a future homeowner prefers a different look, the stencil can be painted over, making it a flexible design choice.
We also refinished two chairs ourselves that we found for $16 each at a favorite thrift store, Love of Jesus on Midlothian.
Here’s what the chairs looked like when we found them.
We debated staining the frames. John sanded them to raw wood, but ultimately paint felt like the better fit for this kids’ room, which already has carpeting and other painted pieces. Paint offered a playful pop of color that felt right here.
We primed both chairs with two coats of KILZ Premium (applied mostly with a foam roller and a brush for crevices), then painted two coats of Hibiscus — leftover from the stenciled wall — again using a small foam roller and a brush for tight spots.
While the paint dried in the garage, I recovered the seats using extra loft batting from a craft store and a manual staple gun. The batting was stretched across the seat front and stapled around the perimeter in back for a smooth, cushioned look.
We used a playful fabric called Candy Floss donated by U-Fab — one yard was enough to cover both seats. For neat corners I fold them much like wrapping a present, which keeps the front looking clean.
A couple of pattern tips: keep the print straight as you staple (flip the piece over occasionally to check) and, if covering more than one chair, make sure the pattern runs the same direction on each seat so they match visually.
Once the cushions were dry, we reattached them to the chairs and they looked brand-new. Old furniture with new life — huzzah!
Behind one chair we hung some ceramic animal hooks that we found at HomeGoods to hold imaginary-daughter items like a purse, a mini backpack, and a scarf.
They started out plain, so to add interest against the white wall we dipped the antlers in two different paint colors — Hydrangea Flowers and Berry Fizz — on purpose, because a slightly imperfect finish felt more charming than a perfectly uniform look.
We skipped taping and simply dipped them right into the cans. The dipped tips were a little drippy, so we suspended them from a spreader and used foam core underneath to catch splatters. The final effect is thick, glossy, and slightly irregular — almost like powder-coated resin — which makes each piece feel unique.
We also couldn’t resist adding a playful pendant light to the room — our little Burger pendant — which gives the space another dose of personality.
The room already looks much more finished compared with the blank slate we started with about a month ago.
We still have about half a dozen small additions to make in this room, and 24 other spaces to complete in the next two weeks, so it’s go-time.
Update: A few readers asked about the double desk in a single kids’ room. John grew up with two distinct desk areas — one for a computer and one for writing or drawing — so the double-desk setup seemed practical for a shared work and play zone.
Update #2: Some wondered whether showhouse furnishings need to appeal to every potential buyer. These rooms are meant to be a bit adventurous and distinct for the show. After the event, homeowners can choose to buy selected pieces, but they will ultimately decide how to stage and personalize the home for their family.
As John mentioned last week, the next couple of weeks are showhouse-heavy for us, so apologies in advance if we’re slower to respond. We’ve managed to squeeze in a few projects at our own house too, including some nursery updates, and we’ll share those when we can.
How about you — what did you work on this weekend? Any art hung, headboards painted, chairs refreshed, or animal hooks dipped?