MAKEOVER MONDAY: BOY'S BEACH BEDROOM

The room in our home with the most issues when we purchased it was Kai’s room. There were cracks in the plaster coming through two layers of wallpaper! It had a really dirty, beaten up, and painted white hardwood floor. The paint was chipping from the windows. I know there are other things that my memory has blocked in order to preserve my sanity. I’m calling it Kai’s room, but truth be told, Kai never sleeps in it. He likes to sleep between us! If you walk straight once at the top of the stairs, you walk into this room, and he’s worried that if someone enters the home, he’ll be the first person they see. The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. I had that same fear in our family home when I was 7.

The “before”—I promise it looked much worse in person

When we hired an interior designer to transform several rooms in our home, this one was not in the budget. So over time, it was up to yours truly. I’m pretty happy with the way it turned out, especially considering the starting point. Like all of the bedrooms, there was a hideous and dirty through-the-wall air conditioning unit. It was removed and central a/c was installed throughout the second floor. There was a ceiling fan in the front of the room near the windows, so we moved the ceiling light to the center of the room. Because we weren’t certain if we would reconfigure the second floor at some point, we didn’t want to spend the money installing hardwood floors. So we installed wall-to-wall sisal and layered an extremely soft indoor/outdoor rug over it to add comfort and dimension. I knew I wanted the room to have blue in it to continue the theme throughout the home, and I wanted a rug that was easy to clean, so this one was sort of a no-brainer.

I worked with Serena & Lily to choose bedding. As I’ve mentioned before, I like to begin a room with fabrics or a piece of art. In this case, it was the “fabric.” The exact bedding I chose is unfortunately no longer available, but I’m providing a few similar options. We have two sets of sheets for the beds. One has blue crabs all over it, and I chose this to remind myself that I’m a Maryland girl at heart and can pick crabs like nobody’s business! We chose a second set of sheets for when more mature guests are staying in the room so it is not so boyish. The throw pillows are also indoor/outdoor pillows and washable (because my kids are 4 and 7) and no longer available, but I’m listing a few alternate options that would still give you the same feel of this room.

When it came to art, I didn’t want to spend a ton of money because my boys have been known to launch Hot Wheels cars at one another, making breakage of things quite likely, at least for the near future. In a few years, I’m sure they’ll be wrestling and knocking into the walls themselves. One Kings Lane can’t be beat for affordable and attractive art. I actually saw the Surf/Swim print in their Southampton store, and when I applied my 20% off coupon, it was the best deal in town. Framed and ready to hang. The prints over the bed are from Pencil & Paper and also framed and ready to hang from One Kings Lane. Don’t worry if you don’t love my choice of colors, as they have several others and even sell sets of six to create an “I don’t have to think about it” gallery wall. The print between the windows is a limited edition from one of my favorite portrait artists, Sally King Benedict. My little guys love the water, so I just couldn’t resist. I framed it myself in a matted frame from Michael’s.

For the furniture, simple navy blue headboards were an easy and practical option. I’m providing the link to two options—a headboard and a bed—in the shopping section below. For furniture, you know I never match pieces, and in every room I really wanted to have a coastal/beachy element. This bedside table gave me that in this room. I love the shelves and the hidden drawer. And the lamp seemed to be a perfect fit when I saw it staged in a boy’s room at One Kings Lane. My son, Kai, actually chose the campaign dresser, and I said “yes” because it’s a classic choice for a child’s room yet can also grow with them into teenage years. The lamp on the dresser is a classic and could be moved to almost any room in our home, and it’s always nice to invest in classics. It’s presently on sale at the time of this post. This overhead light is from RH Teen, and I’ve listed a very similar option that has a slightly smaller profile.

The things that finish a room can’t be forgotten, so I couldn’t resist this colorful book that is a piece of art itself. The 80 puzzles inside are fun for kids and adults alike. I purchased a small easel for $5 from Michael’s to help it stand and display the cover. The green sculpture was found at HomeGoods, and other accessories are linked below.

This was a really fun room to put together, and I love that Kai actually had an interest in certain elements and helped me. My nephews and their friends have probably used this room the most, and I hope the next time they return, they’ll be happy with the progress that we’ve made. To shop items in this room, simply scroll through and click on the images below. And many of them are also available in the LIKEtoKNOW.it app.

SHOP THE ROOM