Creating a Pre-Teen Bedroom

My daughter is starting gr 4 tomorrow and she is nine years old. She has been slowly moving out of the "pink and pretty" type of decor for a little while now, but is still very much a young nine. I had hoped to fend off her requests for a room makeover, but I had worked on her brother's room last winter and she was anxious to have a fresh start in her room as well.

I couldn't really blame her. We had taken possession of this house and moved in all in around 2 weeks which left very little time for decorating. It wasn't a bedroom which echoed her personality and as she and her friends hang out there more, I wanted it to feel like a fun spot. 

I did not want this to cost very much as I have a feeling that her tastes may change as she gets older, but I think that there is a lot in this room that will be able to change with her. I started to keep my eye out for things on my treasure hunts.... I knew she needed bookshelf space. I knew she needed more drawer space. I knew she needed a new bed frame. Aside from these things, I really didn't have a vision..... Then, along came Pinterest. S I G H.

I was SOOOOO inspired by this room. If you are on Pinterest at all, you have probably seen it somewhere as it is a pretty popular pin. Take a look ~ it is so pretty and really spoke to my girl's personality as well. She was adamant about wanting to stay away from pink, but she thought she would be okay with coral (YAY!). I wanted to use bright and energetic colours and chose to paint the walls a bright turquoise.

I also wanted to paint the closet wall with chalkboard paint so that she and her friends would have a place to doodle and have some fun. It would also be sort of a unique feature. To bring the black into the room, I thought it would be nice to have a black and white wallpaper along the long wall. I did a brave thing here ~ I took her with me to Lowe's. They have a really awesome wallpaper aisle and they have a great selection of black and white papers in stock for under $40 a roll. I told her she could choose from any of the black and white they had. I really tried to let this be her choice ~ the one she settled on would not have been my choice, but she loved it and I do love the way it turned out! 

I had found the 2 little matching dressers at a thrift store in spring. I had to buy them because it is hard to find 2 matching dressers that size! Initially I was planning to use them in the master bedroom makeover I am planning, but as I thought it over, they seemed like a great fit for this project! They would give her lots of storage space, but would not overwhelm the room. She is still sort of small, so she can easily reach all of the drawers and they are shallow so they can be kept reasonable neat. (Fingers crossed on this one!).

The bed is a Hemnes model from Ikea. I found it on Kijiji without any of the hardware needed to reassemble it. I decided to paint it black and distress it a little to add the needed character. I went to Ikea (ON THE SATURDAY OF A LONG WEEKEND!) and waited in line at customer service to see if they could find the correct hardware. The models can change from year to year slightly and this exact design (brown stain with round spindles) has been discontinued. They were very helpful and since I only needed about 8 pieces, they did not charge me at all.

The bookcase is another thriftstore find. I thought it was great to have the closed lower storage and lots of room for books and her endless odds and ends. I loved the yellow in the inspiration room, so I decided to take the plunge with more colour. I really love the way it turned out! I added some black and white wallpaper along the back (it is not the same print as the paper on the wall ~ just extra I had left over from other projects). As you can see in the above picture, this wall across from the bed is a bit tough. That door goes to the Jack and Jill bathroom that the kids share. It is a great feature, but the drawback is that it adds another door to each bedroom, reducing furniture arrangement options. I still need to find some art or a mirror to add to this space....

I added the wire frame in yellow on the opposite side of the window from the bookcase to just add a little more yellow to balance that wall out a bit. I am still on the lookout for some pretty curtains to hang (that is why the frame is slightly off-centre). The bedding is from HomeSense and made by Cynthia Rowley. I love it SOOOO much. It is perfect in there!

This room is not finished yet, but the spirit of it is. I want to find some art and fill in a few spaces and have some fun with the details. I just wanted to share some of the projects I have been working of for my home too!

I had a decorative dress form that I added and she went crazy! If I had known how much she would love it in her room, I would have given it to her earlier. As you can see, she has it dressed in her outfit she chose for her first day of gr 4. So cute!

I tried to add up the total cost of the room makeover including paint and wallpaper and it came in under $300! This was pretty dramatic and just took a little extra time and patience (and work!), but I think it was worth it. She loves her new space and I do too!

I apologize for the darkness in the pictures. I tried with the blind open and with it shut and this seemed to look better, but it is tricky to get the lighting right in this small room!

Now I just need to get inspired for my own room!

Monday Listing

I am back from a very relaxing, but quick weekend away in Fernie, BC. I love going to the mountains and spending time with my family and friends. It helps to energize the rest of my week!

I have enjoyed the response to the pieces I have listed with bold colour choices. It is such a fun way to introduce a little interest to your space. Definitely NOT cookie cutter decorating! These pieces are more neutral in colour, but I think they are still a way to add a punch of character to your space.

Today I am late as I was having a few problems getting photos to upload but I think I have things straightened out. Fingers crossed!

Not Your Grandma's Curio Cabinet
{*SOLD*}

This is a bit of a change of pace from what I normally do. It was in pretty rough shape and frankly, very ugly and dated. What a difference a shabby makeover makes! I love the white and very distressed edges! The details are so pretty and I like the french country vibe it gives now.

The entire back is mirrored and reflects everything displayed inside. The glass is in excellent shape and the light works so beautifully. I love this for displaying a little collection or just some pretty items.

With the light on or off, it looks so great!

It measures:

70.5 inches high
23.75 inches wide
12 inches deep

Magazine and Book Case
{*SOLD*}

This is an usual piece, but so functional! It is not very deep, but is a great way to display your magazines or books in a way that makes them easy to identify. I think it would work great in kitchen for recipe books too. It is a sturdy little bookcase and has been painted black and very lightly distressed.

It measures:

39.25 inches high
20 inches wide
6 inches deep

Grey Twin Tables
{$90/set}

This is a simple set of side tables. They are a good size and and a nice height too. I like the look of a matching set together to use as a coffee table, but these would work well as side tables flanking a couch or love seat or even as night tables on either side of a bed. 

They are painted a creamy grey and the subtle details are highlighted with some light distressing. 

 It is not always easy to find a matched set of tables, so I am  selling these together.

Each table measures:

21 inches high
17 inches wide
29 inches long

As always, if you are interested in any of these items, they are available on a first come, first served basis. Please contact me through email at lisabaron70@gmail.com or by text 403.700.0877. I love the feedback and emails from readers who love these second chance pieces as much as I do!

For Sale!

Starting this week, I will be offering a few pieces for sale on my blog on Mondays. These are pieces that will be available exclusively here until Thursday. If they have not sold, I will list them on Kijiji. I try to only create and sell things that I would want to have in my home ~ to be honest I would keep most things if I had the room! My goal is to upcycle ugly and unwanted things into something beautiful and desirable while adding affordable character to your home. Items are sold on a cash basis and pick up is in Airdrie, Alberta within 10 days. I would love to hear your feedback... 


Here we go! 




Dining Room Table
{Reduced! $120}

This table is super sturdy and would work well as a desk too. I love the chunky legs and subtle detail. It fits 4-6 chairs comfortably.

59" long

35.25" wide

29.5" high

Shabby Trellis Coffee Table
{sold}

This coffee table is a sweet size and would be perfect at the end of a bed as well as tucked in front of your couch. It has extra storage with a lower shelf and very cute trellis detail on each side.

36" long

18" wide

16.5" high

Pair of Jade Tables
{sold}

I love these tables together as a coffee table. I went with a bolder colour as they have very simple lines and make a fun statement together this way. A version of this colour is showing up everywhere this spring and can work well with almost any colour scheme in your decor. They are fun to style as they really grab attention! They would work great as side tables or as night stands too. 


I used the Benjamin Moore Advance Paint on these so they have a hard, slightly glossy finish with no distressing. I was inspired by the cover of the current issue of Country Living.

The colour of these tables is very similar and I think that grouping smaller tables together can be so versatile and looks more interesting.

22" long

18" wide

18.5" high

(each table)

If you are interested in any of these, contact me at: 


lisabaron70@gmail.com
or call/text me at 403.700.0877

May 2, 2012

{Making it Pretty}


When Christine contacted me a few weeks ago, she had a couple of little projects for me to do for her. One of them was a free bookcase she had found online.

I was a little hesitant with this piece as the surface is a laminate. It can be a bit tricky to paint, but I am willing to try anything (and Christine was totally game!) so I went for it!


I repaired the edging and the broken leg and gave it a really thorough sanding to rough up the finish to help the paint adhere better. For something like this, it is really important to use a high quality primer first. I really LOVE  Stix Primer, it is far superior to anything else I have tried. It is more expensive, but worth it for a project where you want a beautiful finish.


I think that this turned out beautifully!

I painted it black, and added some pretty wallpaper along the back to make it pop a little more.

I very lightly distressed the edges and gave the whole piece a polish with Minwax Furniture Paste. This was truly a diamond in the rough! I love it!


The other piece Christine had brought to me was an old dresser. I think she may have found this on good old Kijiji as well. It has great lines and was absolutely solid, it was just a bit beat up and needed some extra tlc to make it shine.

This was intended for her young daughter's room so she wanted it pretty, but fairly neutral so that it could grow with her.

I painted it Decorator's White from Ben Moore and distressed the edges and some of the more "lived-in" areas.

I have some really pretty and bold wallpaper that I lined each drawer with. I like to be surprised with a little extra pretty on the inside too.

I found some inexpensive drawer pulls at Michael's of all places. They are just acrylic, but actually look very pretty and have a little sparkle too.

We mixed some clear and pink knobs on the drawers as we couldn't round up enough of either to finish the dresser with one colour... Sometimes you just have to work with what you have!


When Christine came to pick these up, she brought me an old lamp. I hope that I will be able to do something fabulous with it! It is my favourite kind of project. Really ugly and she has trusted me to do whatever I want....  Hmmmmm.

May 1, 2012

{Rosebud Mercantile Part 3}


I just realized that it has been 2 weeks since I wrote anything. This seems to be a common theme for me. Life is busy and it is easy to get distracted with all the busy-ness!


Things have been selling at the Mercantile and I finally made a trip back there today in the rain. I brought my sunglasses, hoping that the weather would have a change of heart, but it continued to pour all day. I brought some bigger pieces as people are really interested in some fun pieces to give a room a little character. I added some more colour to this batch as well. I think everyone is ready to take a few risks for spring!


Here are a few of the pieces I brought with me:

Sunny Yellow Square Table

Beachy Blue Bench

Distressed Black Side Table ~ I love this cheeky knob!

Shabby White Wardrobe

I have been playing with adding a watermark to my pictures. With Pinterest and other sharing on the internet, I thought I would make sure that I have my projects marked.... I am not sure what to think, but I will keep tweaking it and see how it goes.


I sweet-talked my long-suffering husband into loading all this up for me this morning (EARLY!) and I hit the road! I met Val in Rosebud and she helped me get all set up again in my little corner at the Mercantile.

The little black table did not make it into the display as it was sold on its way into the building to a very sweet woman who instantly decided she wanted it! She was on her way through and very decisive... Thank you so much!


I am planning on changing my blog a little as we move towards summer. I hope to have a regular post early every week to list the items I will offer for sale. Some larger ones as well as more of the "smalls" I have been working on and posting recently on my Facebook page. I have quite a few pieces that I hope to start on soon and get posted in the next week or so.