French-Inspired Guest Bedroom Makeover Reveal

Come see how we turned my son’s room into a serene and calming retreat in this guest bedroom makeover reveal!

Well, it’s finally here! After 8 long weeks of planning, shopping, lots of return shipping, and set backs, we’re finally revealing our French-inspired guest bedroom makeover! 

Though this was actually my third One Room Challenge, this one was surprisingly harder than the previous ones. However, despite the fact that it was a little stressful, I’m actually so glad that I did it again. It’s incredibly satisfying to be actually and completely done with decorating a room!

And… just in time for actual holiday guests to enjoy the space!

This post may include affiliate links. Click here for my full disclosure policy.

 

Just to refresh your memory, here is our mood board plan:

 

And here is what it looked like when we started:

 

Before

 

And here we are now!

After 

It’s amazing how different it looks! I’m loving how soft and serene it feels, and of course, the paint is just such a huge change. I keep walking in here multiple times a day to look at it! 

Sponsors

Ballard Designs | Kathy Kuo | Wayfair

 

And now, let’s get into all the details!

Paint Color

If you followed along from the beginning, then you know I was leaning towards a muddy grey/blue/green color called Pigeon by Farrow & Ball. After getting samples of that, plus a few other blue/greens from Benjamin Moore, I decided I loved the tone of the Pigeon the most.

However, it was a little dark, especially in this small room. So I ended up going with the Pigeon at 50% strength and it’s perfect! It’s the right amount of color, and I love that sometimes the color looks blue and at other times you’d swear it’s green.

The ‘muddiness’ of it is actually what I love! I wanted it to be malleable rather than a strong statement towards one color or the other.

 

Bed

Oh the bed! For awhile, this bed was the bane of my existence! Which is funny, since when I did the ORC for our primary bedroom I also had trouble with the bed!

I knew I wanted an upholstered bed, but I was back and forth between more of a true French-inspired look and something simpler. And though I love the two I was looking at (here and here), I ended up going with something very simple for two reasons.

One, I have two sons and this room isn’t designated as anyone’s in particular, so at any time one of them could be in here and I didn’t want it to feel overly feminine. And secondly, I didn’t want to spend a ton on a bed in a guest room. (Though I do wish I had ordered one of those two French beds for my own room!)

I ended up ordering this slipcovered bed. I liked the simplicity of it and the manufacturer is the same one who makes our other guest room bed, so I knew it would be decent quality. It typically takes about 6 weeks to get as it’s custom made, however, when it arrived it was the wrong color. And that was only about 2 weeks before I was supposed to do the reveal!

So after speaking to customer service at Target, as well as the manufacturer directly, I was assured they would rush a replacement. At that point, I knew I’d be late with the reveal but I thought it would still be before Thanksgiving. But then I got an email saying it was shipping, and I realized the second bed was also made in the wrong color! Oh boy.

After calling customer service again, and begging them to try to rush another order, they actually did! Though it was a bit of a hassle and sent me into a panic, it turned out fine in the end and I’m thrilled with the look!

 

Night Stands

I’ve had my eye on these nightstands from Kathy Kuo for a few years now and I’m thrilled with how they look in the space! They’re more unique than a lot of what’s out there, and the Swedish style is stunning.

They are very high quality and made from solid wood, which I love. I also love the fluting, and the little knobs really add a special touch. 

 

Light Fixture 

A few weeks back I shared with you guys how I was struggling to find a decent ceiling mount fixture. They are surprisingly hard to find! However, I ended up falling in love with this one from Ballard Designs. The brass color is perfection and the scallops could not be cuter!

It really adds lots of charm to the space! 

 

Table Lamps

For some reason, from the start I had my sights set on glass lamps for the nightstands. I thought it would feel less heavy than wood or ceramic, plus every lamp I loved was light in color and I didn’t think they would separate enough from the lighter nightstands. 

However, the lamp I really wanted was the Morton table lamp and it was way more than I wanted to spend. But I found this similar option and I couldn’t be happier. The lamps are very high quality in person, and they’re actually the exact same measurements as the more expensive ones! The glass is so pretty and I love that they add some light to a smaller space.

One of the few differences was the finial. The Wayfair lamp has a gold modern style finial while the Morton has a glass one. So, I ordered glass finials from Amazon, and ta da – got the exact look I wanted! 

 

Area Rug

Right from the start I wanted to use a natural fiber rug, but one that had a little detail to it. After searching around for awhile, I found this diamond diamond rug from Ballard Designs and it’s perfect! It’s chunky which adds lots of texture, and the diamond pattern adds interest and detail.

This rug is such a classic look, and I love that it balances out the dressier feel of the room.

 

Bedding

The bedding was probably my biggest challenge of all! Ironically, though I love what I call the ‘muddiness’ of the room color, finding bedding that worked with that tone proved harder than I anticipated. But after some trial and error (and oh-so-many returns!) I’m happy with the way it turned out.

The duvet is a simple white linen, and euro shams in a eucalyptus shade (that match the walls perfectly!) are the first layer, followed by standard shams in my favorite diamond flax linen. I also added a sage green quilt in the prettiest pattern to the end of the bed.

 

I then added two throw pillows in a pattern; one in a brown floral and another in a grey/taupe gingham. This was not what I had originally planned, but in the end, I love the contrast it brings to the space and to me, the brown makes the room feel less ‘sweet.’

 

Dresser

This French country chest is such a nice change from what was here before! To be honest, I was hesitant to put one in here due to space, but I think my son’s dark and heavy (and much larger) dresser made me think it might not work, but it’s great!

The piece is gorgeous and the perfect size. It’s wide with generous drawers, yet narrow enough to fit in the space comfortably. Plus, I love the look of this French-style chest. The off-white color with contrasting wood top is perfect! And it’s nice for guests to have somewhere to store things, especially if they are staying for awhile.

Above the dresser is a sunburst mirror I already owned. Originally I planned to order this pretty print from Etsy, but the seller couldn’t have it done in time. I may still order it – I haven’t decided yet. But for now, this works plus it gives guests a mirror for getting ready, etc., which is nice.

 

Artwork 

The botanical prints might be the least expensive thing in the room! I ordered them off of Amazon and then framed them in my favorite pale wood frames from Target that I love. I also used them in the office and love the look – and they’re priced so well!

 

Thank you to the One Room Challenge! I’ve loved being a part of it, and even though we were a little late, I’m finally done! Which for this procrastinating girl is a win!

Also, this guest bedroom makeover would never have happened as quickly had I not had the motivation that the ORC provides. I’m thrilled that it’s finished, and am very happy with how it all turned out!

If you missed any of the previous weeks and want to catch up or just see where I started, you can get to all of them below:

Week One | Week Three | Week Six

 

Many, many thanks to the wonderful companies that were kind enough to sponsor this project, Ballard Designs, Kathy Kuo and Wayfair. You helped make this project come to fruition and I’m forever grateful!

And to those of you who’ve been reading, I can’t thank you enough for following along on this adventure! I’ve loved getting your comments and input here on the blog, as well as on Instagram. And I hope you love the guest bedroom makeover reveal as much as I do! 

If you want to find any of the sources of the products I’ve used, I’ve linked them below. There is also a detailed source list at the end of the post!

 

Shop Guest Bedroom Makeover Reveal 

 

Sheila
xo

 

Guest Bedroom Makeover Detailed Source List

 

Paint: Trim and ceiling are Cloud White, Walls are Pigeon by Farrow & Ball, mixed at 50% strength

Furniture: Bed is the Bellmead Slipcover Bed | Chest is the Beatrix French Country Chest, gifted from Kathy Kuo | Nightstands are the Lanie French Country Nightstands, gifted from Kathy Kuo | Chair is previously owned, similar here and here

Rug: Dunmore Natural Jute Rug, gifted from Ballard Designs 

Artwork: Vintage Botanical Wall Art Prints, framed in these Thin Gallery Frames

Shades: Custom made, similar here

Bedding: Dream Brushed Cotton Euro Shams in Eucalyptus | Belgian Linen Diamond Quilted Standard Shams in White | Throw pillows, Brown Floral Pillow Cover in 20×20 and Taupe Gingham Pillow Cover in 14×20 | Belgian Flax Linen Duvet in White | At foot, Decorative Border Cotton Print Quilt 

Ceiling Fixture: Suzette Ceiling Mount, gifted from Ballard Designs

Table Lamps: Hurley Glass Table Lamps, with these finials added

 

 

If you enjoyed this post, be sure to check out the posts below for more French inspired decorating ideas!

French-Inspired Home Office Makeover Reveal

50+ French Farmhouse Finds at Wayfair

French Farmhouse Primary Bedroom Makeover Reveal 

50+ French Farmhouse Decor Finds at Amazon