So, my twelve-year-going-on-twenty-year-old daughter has decided she’s “over” the room I put together for her when she was 10. At the time, she wanted bright and colorful. Even being someone who’s naturally drawn to color, I knew the teal walls weren’t the best idea. I tried to persuade her to go more neutral and promised lots of pops of whatever colors she wanted, but she insisted, and I decided it’s just paint, so we went for it. Now here we are, almost 3 years later, and she’s asking for a neutral room with pops of color. LOL. Does anyone really laugh out loud when they type LOL? Can we maybe call it SCIMH? (Sarcastically Chuckling In My Head) Truthfully, I love how it turned out (you can view it HERE), but seeing as how she’s a girl on the cusp of teenagehood, I respect that she wants a change. And who am I to fight it? I love a project!
So, for those of you not familiar with this age, they’re bombarded with images from Pinterest and Tumblr that are deemed as “cool.” And as the mom, you can be sure I’m deemed as “uncool” in her eyes. I thought maybe my Instagram following could give me some leverage with her, but no such luck! She’s unimpressed and doesn’t trust my opinion! Boo hoo! I’ve decided as opposed to randomly making suggestions and getting shut down because my name isn’t Bethany Mota and I don’t have a famous YouTube channel, I thought it best to take a trip to the awesome warehouse-style store that is At Home. Have you been? It’s huge and has everything you can think of. I told her today was “pillow day,” and I really just wanted to purchase those to start with. She took photos of accessories she liked, but to me, accessories and art take planning, and I need to plot out where we have room for what before I commit to it. Pillows are a different story. She said, and I quote, “I want a million pillows.” I’m not gonna argue! I LOVE PILLOWS. So she walked through the store with her own cart, throwing in pillows she was drawn to. We’ll certainly add to what she picked out. She needs a few more with bright, youthful patterns, and maybe a textured one that’s furry. But for now, I’m excited with what she liked! She’s leaning towards a light gray on the walls with solid white bedding, so the pillows are definitely where the fun comes in. And allowing her to have control over where we started I think helped in the trust department. It’s hard to convince a 12 year old that something is going to look fantastic when she can’t see everything as a whole. I imagine this is how “real” designers feel when they’re trying to talk design with clients who don’t know what they’re talking about.
So, here’s what we’ve got going so far. The bed below that we’re considering is from www.lexmod.com. That site has a great selection of tufted headboards/beds at reasonable prices! My daughter really wanted white, but I assured her that would get trashed fast, and if she really wanted white bedding, I didn’t think a white headboard was the way to go.
FYI, the cute nightstand in the photo above is from Marshall’s. I bought this a few weeks ago so I guess technically we didn’t start with the pillows. But I was so in love with the color and retro vibe of the legs, that this was a piece I threw in the trunk and said, “She’ll like this whether she likes it or not!” That made sense, right? 😉 The orange chair below is also from Lex Mod. I haven’t even shown her that yet. I was just browsing online for desk chairs and thought it’d be an awesome pop of color. Who wouldn’t want to do homework sitting on this fun chair? We’ll see if she raises her hand to that question.
So, there you have it! The very beginnings of what is sure to be a beautiful new space for my daughter. I’m going for sophisticated with splashes of fun. Please be sure to check back for progress! And wish me luck! I see a lot of eye rolling in my future.
Skye Bed
Nimbus by Benjamin Moore
Slither Chair
