Hope you’re having a wonderful week between Christmas and New Year’s. We’re enjoying family time while also sanding, priming, and painting our kitchen cabinets (it looks like a paint bomb went off with a few stray gingerbread cookies mixed in), so we hope to share progress on Monday. Today, though, we wanted to show a budget-friendly bedroom makeover by Katy for her son Gabriel. The project was completed for under $200—including major pieces like a bed and a dresser—and it was done in a rental, which always makes these transformations extra impressive. Kudos to the landlord for allowing such thoughtful updates. Here’s Katy’s note about the project:
Hi Sherry and John! I wanted to share my son’s room makeover with you. We moved into our house in 2011, just a few weeks after I found it at a yard sale. Yes, that sounds crazy, but we’re renting now and hope to buy it someday.
The house needed a lot of TLC when we moved in, but I love a good project. Our son was not quite two when we moved, so his room became my first priority to help him settle in.
I knew I wanted a deep, peacock-like blue for the walls, and your old guest room gave me the inspiration to go bold. I chose a gallon of Plumage (with tinted primer) and got to work. My aim was to spend as little as possible, and I’m thrilled with how it turned out.
My mom found a Jenny Lind–style bed for Gabriel, exactly what I pictured for the room. It was only $80 and is solid wood. She refinished it with Annie Sloan chalk paint in French Linen and sealed it with clear wax. I absolutely love the finished bed.
I bought the dresser on Craigslist for $20 and refinished it myself. The wall hanging is a thrift-store tapestry, and the small trees were actually Christmas decorations repurposed for the space. My mom gave the charming paint-by-number pictures a few years ago. The gold-painted mobile holds old family photographs of my dad, grandmother, and aunt—personal touches that mean a lot.
My grandfather introduced me to Shel Silverstein as a child, so I was delighted to find Falling Up at a thrift store. I used pages from the book as wall art for Gabe’s room. We enjoy reading the poems, studying the illustrations, and playing I-spy with the pictures. The bench is from our wedding, and the basket holds books and toys for easy access.
And that’s Gabriel’s big-boy room! I’m excited to share it and hope you enjoy it as much as we do. —Katy
We love this makeover. Gabriel is a lucky kid. Some favorite details here: the Shel Silverstein pages casually taped to the wall are a smart, low-cost way to add personality and visual interest. The gray Jenny Lind–style bed is gorgeous, and the thrift-store tapestry adds warmth and texture. Even the bedding is great. Katy shared more photos and details on her own blog, but feel free to comment here with your favorite part before you go take a look. It’s hard to choose—there’s so much charm packed into this affordable, rental-friendly project.