A “Plain” and “Uninspiring” Bedroom Got a Makeover with the Cleverest Built-In Bookcase
Life changes like divorces, breakups, new jobs, or layoffs can sometimes mean moving homes and the start of a new chapter in your surroundings, too. After Megann Thompson’s (@gresham_houze) divorce, she downsized to a 1950s-era brick ranch-style house, and her daughter’s room was “plain,” she says.
“The rectangular box of a room featured yellow-beige walls, a dated ceiling fan, bifold closet doors and old, brown carpet,” Megann says. “Nothing about the space was inspiring or fun … My daughter’s room at our last house was very fun, and I wanted her to have that same feeling in our new house.”
Overall, the space feels less dated.
The first step in the bedroom makeover was removing the old carpet. “I knew that nothing I did to the room would look good so long as that carpet was there, dragging down the design,” Megann says. She and her boyfriend, Cody, installed new flooring, and the cost of that was about $150.
They also installed wall molding and painted it mauve (Sherwin-Williams’ Hushed Auburn). The new built-in bookshelves and desk are painted to match. Megann’s advice for picking a kids’ room paint color is to choose something timeless.
“Though repainting is totally doable, with all the shelving, trim and tight nooks, it would be a sizable task,” in this room, she says.
The built-ins are multifunctional.
“The built-ins were pretty budget-friendly,” Megann says. She used $28 bookshelves for her bases and built upper shelves to go on top using pine boards. “I skipped adding a back to them, which saved on costs,” Megann adds. “I needed just one piece of plywood for the desktop portion.”
Megann says the bookshelves can also grow with her daughter. “The desk area can function as a vanity as she gets older,” she says. Right now, the shelves store her daughter’s books, she has a spot to sit and do homework, and there’s floor space to sit and play, too.
The new window treatments were a doozy.
One thing that was surprising about this 1950s room is that all of the trim and doors are metal. “I opted for Roman shades for the windows, and they were quite frustrating to install!” Megann says.
“After that experience, I decided I didn’t want to have to drill new holes in the door when updating the doorknob. I had to nix my plan for hardware with elongated backplates and keep it simple.”
The wallpaper was easier to install than expected.
Although the hardware portion was more difficult than planned, the wallpaper went on seamlessly. Megann says the wallpaper from Lowe’s was very forgiving to work with, and it cost her about $150 for the room.
Inspired? Submit your own project here.