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From drab to fab: A bedroom makeover for the new year

My favorite room to decorate for clients is the bedroom. It’s where everyone spends about a third of their life.
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January 6, 2016

Change the wall color

The easiest — and least expensive — way to change the mood of a room is to paint it. This bedroom used to be off-white (actually worse — Swiss Coffee). A $25 gallon of light-blue paint washed the room in serenity while adding a much-needed base of color. We tested several blues on the wall before finding the right one. Stores such as Home Depot will sell you small samples of their colors that enable you to try out a few before making a final decision.

Spray paint the furniture

The client had a hand-me-down dresser and side tables with a light-brown finish that had dulled with age. The pieces, however, were still in good condition, and I liked their simple design with their cabriole legs. So instead of getting rid of the tables, I suggested spray painting them glossy black. Glossy spray paint is my go-to trick for transforming old furniture pieces. And you can always add new knobs and pulls to complete the luxe look.

Add a canopy

The room had a four-poster bed, but it needed some drama. The client had draped a fabric swag over it, but it didn’t do enough. I felt the bed needed a full canopy, but they can be expensive. A quick, inexpensive solution was to use curtain panels that could hang across the top and down the back of the bed. Pre-sewn pole pockets in the curtain panels, which are usually used to slide into drapery rods, slide into the horizontal bed poles at the front and back of the top frame for easy installation. Besides adding a dream-like feel, the canopy now filters the harsh overhead light above the bed. 

Raise the window curtains

Most people hang their curtains too low, using the top edge of the window frame as the starting point. Notice how this room looks more expansive once the curtains are raised to ceiling height. It’s a quick fix that can make a huge difference. 

Add pops of warm color

Because the light-blue walls have a gray undertone, I balanced this cooler hue with accents of warm pinks and coral. Colors need a counterpoint to help them stand out even more. Throw pillows, vases, candles and flowers are an easy way to add vibrant color — and a little goes a long way.

Ground the room in grays and creams

The danger in painting a room light blue is it can scream “baby nursery” or “bathroom.” But I kept the room sophisticated by grounding it in gray and cream neutrals. We applied a textured wallpaper border with the look of tin ceiling panels around the base of the walls and painted it a cream color. I used the same wallpaper border to frame a larger mirror (that had been a mirrored closet door), staining the framing dark gray to create a nice contrast with the walls. The new curtain panels are also charcoal gray.

Use mirror reflections

Speaking of mirrors, we added some decorative wall mirrors, and even a mirrored side table, to the room. Mirrors can do much more than enable us to check how we look. They reflect light to make a room brighter and they make a space appear larger. I also love how they act as ever-changing art — the colors and shapes reflected in the mirror change depending on where you stand in the room.

Use what you already have

A big lesson I was reminded of in this bedroom makeover was that you don’t always have to buy a bunch of new furniture. The old furniture had great bones, it just needed some sprucing up. Avoiding large purchases — except, in this case, for the mirrored side table, and even that was on sale — frees up money in your budget for new lamps, bedding and artwork. And saving money is always in style.


Jonathan Fong is the author of “Walls That Wow,” “Flowers That Wow” and “Parties That Wow,” and host of “Style With a Smile” on YouTube. You can see more of his do-it-yourself projects at

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