HER FIRST APARTMENT- GIRL'S BEDROOM WITH GINGHAM BEDDING

Our daughter recently moved out of town (out of state!😢) to start her full time job after wrapping up her MBA in May.  She has a roommate and they found a beautiful apartment complex in a great spot, we feel like we're on vacation when we go to visit!  Her roommate already had almost everything to furnish the living room so we didn't do any decorating in there, but I did help Emily get her bedroom together.  It was a challenge for both of us... me to restrain myself and her to stretch herself- ha! She doesn't like a lot of extra and likes to keep things simple.  I wanted more pattern mixing, color, pillows, wall art, a rug and lots of layers to make things super cozy- she wanted neutrals, one pillow, wasn't sure about a mirror over the bed, limited artwork, didn't need a rug. I did listen to her and ask her what she wanted and liked along the way- it is her room after all!- and made some adjustments to my original plan. Also, when I arrived to install what I had rounded up I asked her to let me do what I envisioned and if she didn't like any part we would change it. I *think* we both ended up pleased with how it turned out! 

Gingham Duvet Cover | Duvet Insert | Ruffled Gingham Bedskirt | Sheets | Bed Frame | Mattress | Mattress Pad | Marble Base Floor Lamp | Block Print Floral Accent Pillow | Similar Sunburst Mirror Here | Curtains | Curtain Rod

She picked out the gingham duvet cover for her birthday a few months ago (which I love!) so that was the starting point.  She's still using the furniture that she had in college but the new bedding freshened everything up.  Her bed is a full but I got the queen size duvet cover, and used an oversized queen comforter insert so the cover would be really full and fluffy. Just for reference though I think the regular size queen  would have worked great too and filled out the cover nicely. This bedskirt only came in a queen, but it was forgiving and not that big at all on her full frame, we could just tuck it up a little under the mattress if it was a bit too long. 

A friend gave her this darling dinosaur for her birthday, he's adorable and I know from personal experience makes a great little head rest- ha! I was showing a friend these photos too and she said "I have one of those too- love it!.  This pillow was the perfect little color combo and mix of pattern without being too much for her, I was so pleased with it and it comes in a lot of colors. I've had the sunburst mirror for years and love the contrasting shape of it over the bed.  After auditioning it for the afternoon she changed her mind and decided she liked it there too.   

Weighted Dinosaur (other cutie animals too!) | Block Print Floral Accent Pillow

OK, here's a little hack I did!  The duvet cover came with standard pillowcase size shams.  We needed Euro size and originally I planned to take the standard shams apart and use the fabric to make the front side of a 26" euro, but as I got started on that it just wasn't going to work without piecing the fabric together to make the front panel and I didn't want to do that.  The bedskirt was actually an afterthought- she just had a white one before but when I found this and saw that the entire middle section that covers the bed frame was also gingham I thought hmmm... free matching fabric! I cut enough out of the middle for two fronts and found a coordinating green at Hobby Lobby to use on the back. Just a tip, I was careful as I cut the fabric to follow the lines of the gingham and make sure the edges of the pattern were all the same, like the white stripe was all the way around, because I knew when I finished it it would bother me if one side had green along the edge and one side was white. I finished them off with a narrow flange hem around the edges. 

The missing piece absolutely doesn't bother me or affect the function, but I could have always sewn some other replacement fabric there if it did.  I used some scraps of rubber rug mats to try to keep her mattress from slipping around on her bed frame as it can tend to do (if anyone has a fix for that let me know!).  This bedskirt does have some elastic pieces that fit around the corner of the bed frame (probably intended to fit around a box spring which she doesn't have) but we didn't have any trouble laying it out and getting it all together with the mattress on top. 

Across from her bed, she has a chest and her tv.  She bought the cat picture a while back at a vintage shop and wanted to hang that, but otherwise didn't have much preference.  We decided to do a gallery wall of some of her favorite travel photos.  She sent me a few of her favorites and I think that's all she had in mind, but I gathered a few more from family trips and added them in.  Another "just let me try it and if you don't like it we'll cut back..." 😉 and she ended up liking it all! There are photos from Spain, Belgium,  Hawaii, a few with spots around Poland and sunset outside the orphanage there where she worked at their summer camp 3 years in a row, and our family favorite Red River. I had to sneak a family photo in there too! And her cutie cat is adorable in the mix. 

I dug though my hoard stash of frames and pulled some shapes and sizes to work with.  I was planning to do a mix of black and gold so original color wasn't an issue, I knew I'd be pulling out my favorite gold spray paint!  I didn't have measurements so I used the bulletin board in the middle to stand in for her tv, and the frame with the empty mat on the right for the cat picture she already had, then arranged and rearranged.  After figuring out what picture would go in what frame, I tagged them with photo and size so I would remember what went where after I got them printed.  Speaking of, I just sent them into Walgreens and picked them up later that afternoon.  You have to choose "Posters" for anything larger than an 8x10 and I ALWAYS search for a photo coupon code to use at checkout. I always get them for at least 50% off.  

Narrow Edge Black Frames 

I ended up needing to adjust the arrangement a bit once I actually got in her space to hang them but they all came together nicely!  I had these two open bamboo frames.  I added glass to one with a photo.  For the other, we did a little 3D artwork with some shells she had picked up on one of our beach trips.  I covered a piece of foam board with fabric and then hot glued the shells in place.  I love the little pop of variety it gives in the photo mix. 

She had her trusty cheap dorm room full length mirror but I brought her this prettier one that I had at home.  We might hang it eventually but it's great just propped against the wall too.  I've been missing it, need to order another one! 

She works from home a couple of days a week so it's necessary to have a desk set up in her room.  She wanted a spot to hang her medals and race bibs and thought a bulletin board might be better than putting all of those holes in the wall... good idea!  I found an old one in Caleb's closet that wasn't being used so I painted the unfinished wood edge gold.  Then I covered the cork with a pretty small scale fabric and glued a narrow ribbon down to cover the cut fabric edge.  She's already planning to do another race so we might have to get a bigger board! She's got the digital photo frame that her Dad got for her sitting on her desk too. 

That's all of the photos I quickly snapped, she was working at home the day I was setting everything up so I was trying to stay out of her way as much as possible. Last week I shared some things that we've used in her kitchen and bathroom that have been handy.  She's all set and pleased with her cozy room! Success! 

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