Before & After: How to Turn a Dining Room (Or Any Room!) Into a Guest Room Someone Would Actually Want to Stay In

Writer and editor Melanie Warner Spencer’s apartment in Uptown New Orleans is filled with charm, but no guest bedroom. So she’s come up with a way to transform her dining area into an inviting space a guest would actually want to stay in — and has tips and ideas you could steal for your own home.

Melanie shared her tips on how to turn a dining room (which makes sense, since many folks tend to eat out and entertain guests at restaurants) into a guest bedroom on her blog the Bon Vivant, on the website for New Orleans Magazine, where she is a staff writer (she’s also the Editor of New Orleans Bride).

From simply scooting the table to a corner and repurposing the chairs as nightstands, to adding a curtain on a tension rod for privacy, to updating an inflatable mattress with a cheery and stylish comforter, the real secret seems to be the combination of creating a semi-private spot with small details that shows you’re thinking about your guests.

Details like a stack of fluffy towels (so they don’t have to hunt them down), a locally made goody to munch on and local magazines so they can research where to go in the city.

And of course, fresh flowers always help.

Thanks for sharing Melanie! Your guests are lucky to have a spot of their own in your New Orleans apartment! See more photos and read more details on Melanie’s blog, Bon Vivant.