The Inside Man: James’ Treehouse Bedroom
Name: James Omedo
Location: Atlanta, Georgia
Style: Cool, calm bedroom in the trees
Say hello to James, the last of five guys that I’m visiting this summer! I’ve teamed up with
Valspar Paint to help James redo the bedroom he shares with his wife in Atlanta.
James is an art director and a teacher, and he lives in the city with his wife and their soon to be one-year-old son, Elliot. With a new baby, they don’t have a lot of time for decorating, and (as often happens when you have kids) the amount of stuff in their home has multiplied super fast. I’m hoping to help James and his wife pare down and carve out a restful room of their own.
A COOL, CALM BEDROOM PALETTE
He says,
“Lack of storage and organization are the biggest design challenges. Also the room seems so small. I would like to have inventive storage and also to take advantage of the view. Currently this room is painted a tan color, but I would like something calm, super organized yet cozy and inviting.”
James’ bedroom has an amazing view, and he and his wife already have a sense of style, which you can see in the photos. Their taste leans towards simple, modern forms, and their bedside tables and dressers are nice, as are their lamps. They really need new bedding and a more distinctive wall color that will ground the rest of the room. Right away, I noticed the lavender shirts James is wearing in these photos, and I think they’re a good starting point for a peaceful, relaxed color scheme.
I’m recommending a few different lavenders from
Valspar Paint’s Ultra Premium Collection. These cool colors range from classic light purples to slightly darker tones. I think the lavender will set off the view beautifully, and will provide a clean backdrop for some new curtains to frame the windows.
The view from James’ bedroom
JAMES’ FAVORITE NEIGHBORHOOD RESOURCES
To give me a better sense of his style, James sent in a list of his favorite Atlanta spots, from furniture stores to places to eat breakfast or see music.
FURNITURE
- Intaglia Home Collection: Classic contemporary furniture. Locally owned.
- Lewis and Sharon: Atlanta’s best fabric store (in my wife’s opinion). They even have a collection of muslin furniture and you pick the custom fabric. We bought some fabric in the Staceage area of the store to create the cushion on a bench we made together.
- Room & Board: In the Westside Provisions District with some other favorite spots.
- IKEA: Easy and inexpensive.
HANG-OUT SPOTS
- Piedmont Park: The sand volleyball courts, active oval, pool and play ground.
- Loca Luna: Music and atmosphere make you feel like you are in Cuba.
- Atlantic Station: Everything you need in one place.
FOOD
- Silver Skillet: Great old breakfast spot.
- Crazy Cuban: Neighborhood sandwich shop.
- Flying Biscuit: Is a MUST on the weekends for breakfast.
- Kilwin’s: Is a sweet ice cream place also found at Atlantic station.
- Tin Drum: Is one of my favorites.
For more good stores in Atlanta, check out Apartment Therapy’s
local listings.
James in his bedroom before the room re-do
A COOL, CALM BEDROOM
When people first become parents, it’s easy to become overwhelmed by all the new stuff that enters your home — including baby clothes, toys, and gear. Having good storage and organization is important, but so is keeping a limit on what comes in and learning to declutter.
I’ll need to work with James to get some old things out the door before we bring new furnishings into the bedroom. I really want to make this a space that James and his wife can reclaim for themselves — the kind of room where they can unwind after keeping pace all day with their jobs and their son.
On Thursday I’ll be posting my face-to-face meeting with James. You’ll see my photos of his bedroom, the work we accomplished during our meeting, and the next steps in our plan!
ABOUT THE INSIDE MAN
We’ve teamed up with
Valspar Paint to create The Inside Man, a special feature dedicated to daily (Monday – Friday) posts from Apartment Therapy and GQ about men’s color conundrums and style questions. From sofas with cup holders to brilliant bachelor pads, we’re focusing on the décor dilemmas men often bring to us.
MORE FROM THE INSIDE MAN
•
The Inside Man: East Coast
•
The Inside Man: Midwest
•
The Inside Man: Southwest
•
The Inside Man: West Coast
• Read more about guy style at
www..
• Check out GQ’s guide to guy style at
gq.com/theinsideman.
Photos: James Omedo, Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan, Apartment Therapy