I love how the guest room has turned out. Having moved into it for several days while the master bedroom was being painted gave the Professor and I a chance to try it out for comfort - Mattress comfy? check. Good night's sleep? Check. Reading lights easy to access and provide enough light? Check. Desk and outlet for laptop..you got it...check!
We had quite a time deciding on the color for the wall. The main rooms (LR, DR, Kitchen and Hallways) are painted 'khaki' from Sherwin & Williams - my opinion is still up in the air with it - some days I like it, others I don't, but I'm not ready to take up the project so for now? Oh yeah, I absolutely love it!
It is the bedrooms and baths where our personalities come out - paint choices tend to be vivid but I fell in love with a matelassé bedspread I found at BB&B. It has a soft, yellow background with shades of lavender, wine, green and gold in the leafy, sort of garden motif. The tones are not assertive so they go well with the brighter tones of the same colors on the accent pillows and throw (both from Pier 1) and provide a nice contrast to the rich brown and sort of cabernet wood tones of the bed frame. Over the bed are two reproduction travel posters from my home state of Washington (Olympic National Park on the left, Snoqualmie Falls on the right. We've stayed in the lodge at the top of the falls several times - very romantic place. Pricey but worth it for the memories). Both posters were inexpensive purchases from AllPosters and provide a nice punch of color that goes well with the accent pillows. The end table lamps were an Overstock.com purchase. I thought they looked elegant (kind of a riff on a Japanese street lamp), were high enough to provide adequate light for the reader in bed and are easy to switch off. They also have a small footprint on the small end tables so they don't overwhelm the table top. I also added a water carafe so guest won't need to bump around in the night if they are thirsty.
So at first I was thinking of a darker green for the walls, but I was concerned it would be too reminiscent of pea soup so in the end we stayed in the green family, but brightened it up quite a bit. We used Benjamin Moore paint. Why Benjamin Moore? It rolls on easily, covers extremely well (I've never needed more than one coat so painting goes quickly. The color on the paint chip WILL exactly match the color on the walls (once dried), it's durable and it's price is not much higher or in some cases the same as other well known brands of paint- This may seem like an ad, but after years of painting projects using many other brands, Benjamin Moore is the best by far and they can match any color even if its not theirs (I presume other brands do the same thing these days). Anyway, the color the Professor and I chose was 'Fashion Week' (from Valspar and I know, the name says nothing about the color) and had them match the color using BM paint. The paint is actually lighter than the photo shows - and it works beautifully with the furnishings in the room.
We furnished this room primarily with furniture from the lake cottage. The small roll top desk had the proportions to fit into the room without overwhelming it and can hold all the usual desk accessories but can be closed up easily to hide the clutter. The chair was picked up at the 'Rustic Soul' in Belle Fourche - and I didn't re-paint. I thought the sage green looked pretty next to the golden oak. The pine trunk is another piece we've had for years - it has been refurbished inside and out and used to be in the dining room of the lake cottage and served to hold all our napkins, tablecloths etc. Now it holds extra blankets and duvets. It goes beautifully with the desk and the black metal strips play off the black frames we chose to display the travel posters.
On the top of the desk is a stationary holder that I've had for many years that holds miscellaneous books (a few are anthologies that contain a couple of my short stories!) and a guide to the Black Hills. To the right of the stationary holder is an antique barometer that was displayed for over 50 years in the Professor's parent's house.
The reproduction poster is full of vivid colors and serves as a sentimental reminder of our visits to West Point in the fall for football games and the Christmas concerts we attended. Good memories of moments shared with good friends. On the left of the holder is a small wooden carving of a pheasant - It's so cute. The ring-necked pheasant is the state bird of South Dakota and I picked it up at the airport gift shop several years ago. Wish I'd bought a couple more...
I also added the comfy wing chair
we had in the living room of the lake cottage. I think it looks perfect in its new home with new accent pillows to brighten it up. The subtle plaid of the greens and a small thin stripe that matches the wine color in the bedspread brings the two disparate patterns together. Hope you agree.
Since I wanted to keep the room from feeling crowded, I did not want to add a dresser - I could probably have re-arranged the furniture but that bed is sooo heavy, neither the Professor or I were thrilled with the idea of moving it around so instead I decided to hunt my usual sources in the Black Hills and see if I could find a dresser with the proportions needed to simply place it in the closet but still leave room for whatever items our guests might want to hang. I ended up finding another cool piece from 'The Rustic Soul' where I purchased the chair.
The proportions were perfect for what I was looking for. I love that store, it has a lot of re-purposed furniture , antiques, jewelry, just lots of stuff that can get the imagination in gear and even though it's small shop, I can spend at least an hour wandering around while chatting with owner, Michelle. Notice the pulls on the drawers? Those are what sold me on the purchase - so unique!
I think we will line the drawers using an idea that I picked up from Martha Stewart. We have tons of cardboard left from our move, so the Professor will cut some of that up into the drawer dimensions then we'll cover with material I'll pick up from the local fabric store (or if I can find something around the house that will do) - a small project that gives a pretty finished look to the inside of the drawers - they can be popped out easily and more sturdy that using paper. I've done the same thing in our bedroom end tables and dressers and love the pop of color/pattern when I open the drawers. Very spiffy!
Til later,
Hospitality, n. The virtue which induces us to feed and lodge certain persons who are not in need of food and lodging. ~Ambrose Bierce, The Devil's Dictionary, 1911
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