One Room Challenge – Boys Bunk Room – Reveal!

11 May One Room Challenge – Boys Bunk Room – Reveal!

Well, I made it.  My Boys Bunk Room reno is complete.  I am so excited to reveal the photos and discuss every detail!

*All images in this post were taken by photographer, Brian McWeeney, who I am very grateful to work with again.  Special thanks to him for all of the time he spent shooting and editing these images.

*Other sources and special thanks at the end of this post.

This was a major undertaking, and I sort of can’t believe it is done.  I’m thrilled, the boys are thrilled, and my husband is thrilled it is over, since that means I am sleeping again.  : )

Where to even begin?

Maybe with a full room shot?

When you enter the room through the new entryway and look to your right, the above view is what you see.  I am so pleased with how everything came together.  And the space is just what my boys requested – colorful, imaginative, and full of texture.

To say they are excited and over the moon about their new room may be the biggest understatement of the year.

If you follow me on Instagram, you saw the colors we pondered for the wainscoting.  We chose the darker blue, and I’m so happy we painted the wainscoting a color versus white.  The deep hue brings life to the space.  And those sconces!  The vintage brass ship lights I found at Round Top turned out amazing, and they are the perfect little reading lights!

At the foot of each bottom bunk, we used Ikea spice shelves as a place for books and other beloved items.  In the below photo, note the little crawl space that goes through to the other low bunk bed.  We thought the boys would like being able to see each other, and that is a fun space to crawl through or have little games in.

If you are familiar with my design style, you know I love to infuse spaces with a story, a sense of history.  Since so much of this room is newly constructed (although our home is nearly 100-years-old), I ushered in a collected-over-time feel through a few intentional older pieces.  One of my favorite elements of the room is the life-size pair of Lone Ranger and Tonto posters from the 1950’s.  Children across America collected cereal tops and sent them to General Mills in order to receive these huge posters in the mail.  They are BEAUTIFUL.  The sharp pigmentation and detail of the art is just fantastic.  By choosing simple, acrylic frames, Kemosabe and his loyal sidekick shine, while not competing too much with the wallpaper.

When I first received the posters (they were an amazing $100 Ebay find), I looked into getting them linen backed to take away the folds. (I did not want them to look too tattered)  But after placing the art in the frames, I realized the creases tell their story – folded posters sent in the mail anxiously awaited on by young people across the US.  I grew to love their patina.

The curtain fabric designed by the talented Vivian Ducas of C’est la Viv pairs perfectly with the magical Forest Wallpaper.  Their duet is playful and youthful, and flows really well together.

The trim work adds architecture to this space, and those beds are oh so cozy!

A fun little detail…I designed a narrow shelf to go above the wainscoting all of the way around the room. I know tiny treasures will be displayed up here for years to come!

I made the acrylic and brass stair handrail the same way I made my kitchen and bathroom hardware.  The sparkle and masculinity of the brass clips fits well with the scheme of the room.

The mid century chairs were purchased at an estate sale years ago, and I covered them in distressed camel leather.  We have owned them for a long time now, and they have moved all over our home.  After rearranging several rooms recently, I thought I had no place to put them, and I pondered selling the chairs.  But then it dawned on me they could work nicely in here.  The scale is spot-on, and the seats are low and comfortable for little boys.

I discovered the vintage dragon ship needlepoint at yet another estate sale (behind some junk in the garage!), and my sons were thrilled because it looks like Legos!

The brass lamp is another Round Top find.  To make the cord more aesthetically pleasing and “fun”, I wound some green nylon rope around it.

Let’s talk about the rug…I have major love for this rug.  It is soft, it is colorful, and it is just right for the space.  The quality is unreal.  I bought it from my friend, Jenn, (who is so cool and sells the most amazing items!) and you should totally follow her.

The little card catalog is my husband’s from childhood, and it still holds his collection of baseball cards.  It is so special he can share them with his boys now.

P.S.  Those red shoes are AMAZING, and I bought a pair for all of my kids and myself!  They are very easy to slip on and off, and super durable.  You can choose from tons of colors and styles, I can’t recommend them enough!

I had a minor disaster with the frame of the vivid, brush stroke Sister Corita Kent lithograph.  Two days before the shoot, it fell and broke.  I was worried I would not be able to get it fixed in time until I called a local company called Fast Frame.  Literally, my first words were, “How fast is fast?” : )  I can’t thank Bruce enough for making a new frame for me in less than 24 hours.  Fort Worthians, you should definitely check out Fast Frame.

Utilizing these old closet doors (found at my favorite local salvage yard) as pocket doors saved so much floor space, and I am still basking in all of the storage I have for my boys now!  The new-old doors are eight feet tall, and the vintage unlacquered brass pulls are 30″ long. (pulls found on Ebay) Painting the edge of the door insets gives the pair such depth.  I really like how they turned out!  It is pretty obvious I have a thing for big statement doors.

I will do a separate post on the closet at some point because it turned out so fab, and I want to show you every organized detail!

Of course, I am relishing all of the elements of this room, but more importantly, I know many special memories will be made here.

My sons are 7 and 8, and they are crazy about each other.  It has been a delight to work with them on this project and design it with my eye and their preferences.  I’m so happy to be their Mom.

They grow up fast, and I am grateful for these funny, crazy times.

My kids are all close in age (a year apart), and the boys AND the girls are excited about having “sleepovers” in the new Bunk Room.  (when I get safety rails made for the top bunks – the only thing I didn’t finish)

We have plenty of chaos around here, and while I am feeling rather sentimental and a bit emotional over the completion of this space, I should absolutely tell you I am exhausted, and I feel like I have been running the last six weeks.  I took out the word “amazing” in the first draft of this post so many times, you would think this was an episode of “The Bachelor”.

My kids see me working hard for other people’s spaces, and it was great to spend time and energy working on this just for them. I’m so happy it is done, and I am overjoyed at the outcome!

My next post will be a Before and After article discussing more about the details of the space. Please let me know if you have any questions I need to address.

If you like this makeover, please share it!!!!

In case you are just now joining my One Room Challenge journey, catch up on Weeks 1-5 by clicking these links:

Week 1

Week 2

Weeks 3 & 4

Week 5

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Special Thanks:

Juan Wall, Head Carpentry & Trimwork (I’m so grateful for all of the nights you came after your full-time job to work on this)

Alonzo, Assistant Carpentry & Trim

Brian McWeeney, Photography

C’est La Viv, Curtain Fabric Design

Marleny Welch, Seamstress

Acrylic Framing, Kipp Walden & Team at Nationwide Plastics

Painting, Sergio’s Painting

Lithograph Frame, Bruce at Fast Frame, Fort Worth

House Beautiful, Media Sponsor

Linda, Calling It Home, Creator of the One Room Challenge (don’t forget to look at all of the other spaces!)

And lastly, my husband, Kent.  He works really hard so we can do projects like this, and he definitely ends up taking on more household duties when we are in the throes of project chaos.  Thank you, sweetheart, for all of your support and encouragement!

Sources:

Wallpaper  /  Curtain Fabric  /  Moroccan Colorful Rug  /  Drawer Pulls  /  Ceiling Fan  /  Striped Quilts  /  Color Border Shams  / Whale Pillows  /  Alligator Pillows  /  Mattresses (I researched these a ton and I LOVE the ones we got)  /  Acrylic & Brass Stair Handrail (DIY link)  /  Hidden Drapery Rods (attached to the ceiling)  /  Vintage Leather Chairs (options here)  /  Card Catalog (mine is vintage, similar options here)  /  Record Player  /  Vintage Brass Shiplight Sconces  /  Vintage Brass Arm Lamp  /  Green Nylon Rope for Cord Cover  /  Sister Corita Kent Lithograph (options here)  /  Hardy Boy Books (love this set!)  /  Red Shoes  /  Bookshelves  /  Coloring Books  /  Colored Pencil Jars  /  Vintage Childrens Records (I buy most here)  /  Tooth Fairy Pillows  /  Building Toys  /  Boys Pajamas  /  Green Dot Pillows  /  Womens Denim Shirt