About a month ago we were walking around the park and Clara pointed to a dogwood tree and said “wow, that’s a big big tree in a big big world.” John and I cracked up. So now when I think of Clara’s playroom/big girl room, I also think of the big big tree and the big big world of ours. Hilarious. Anyway, back to the room that we have affectionately (and ironically) called the playroom. Remember that it looked like this when we moved in?
And then it got all cluttered up with junk and looked like this?
And then we organized it with the help of my mom and it looked like this?
And then in a Groundhog-Day-esque turn of events a year later it looked like this again (thanks to months of book insanity)?
So we cleaned it one last time and had a big yard sale and auctioned a bunch of book projects off for charity and finally we were left with this:
I may or may not have done a victory dance around the daybed that included some very painful-to-watch moonwalking. Gaining any actual use of this room will be ten times better than the junked up storage room that it has been for the past three Christmases (how are we on year three of living here without reclaiming this room sooner?!). So as we’ve mentioned a few times, it will serve as a nice little playroom for Clara and eventually will be her big girl room once she graduates from sleeping in her crib.
Why switch rooms? Well, the nursery is so small that adding a daybed basically sucks up all the floor space, so moving her into the larger spare room and keeping the nursery for a possible future kiddo makes the most sense for us). Of course we can always update the nursery for a boy bean if one should come our way someday (heck, kids rooms are our favorite things, so we’d jump at the chance). In fact here’s an old mood board we did a while back to show how Clara’s room could be adapted for a little dude:
Once all the extra stuff was cleared out and remaining items were pushed to the center of the room, it was time to paint (we had used the room as a secret-book-project backdrop so it was a hot mess). We’d repainted sections of the walls around ten times in there to create different colored backdrops for shooting – and had even painted the trim around one window a moody gray color and stenciled a good portion of another wall. Nothing was safe from the madness of book shots.
Here are a few other oddly-painted angles:
So yes, paint was definitely necessary. First I painted the book-project-window-shade from gray back to glossy white:
Before we pick a wall color we like to think about the other things that’ll be going on in the room. So we thought about that for a hot second or two. We actually wanted Clara to have some input, so we asked her what colors she wanted to see in her big girl room. Not surprisingly, she said “pink and red!” (her faves used to be pink and orange, but she moved to pink and red about a month ago).
It’ll be nice to have another room in the house with warmer touches in those red and pink tones (you know we love us some green & blue, so that’s prevalent in a lot of other areas). It was even cool with John since, in his words “as long as we’re not going hot pink all over the living room, I’m down with Clara getting to pick the colors that we use in her big girl room.” Mah man. He can build a deck and he’s cool with pink.
So just to give you an idea where we’re thinking of bringing in those pinks and reds (along with other hits of colors/textures that make a room feel layered and not-too-matchy-matchy) here’s a quick picture of some items we’ve been saving for Clara’s big girl room in a little floor-pile together. Floor-piles are the new mood board. Just kidding.
We don’t want the room to be red/pink overkill, so using tones like white and navy – along with hits of other colors like yellow and teal – to break things up is definitely on the agenda. And since we wanted the items in the photo above to stand out (instead of being the same color as the walls) we opted for a soft and pretty neutral that we know will be just as workable with any other accent colors down the line. Let’s face it, kids can change their favorite colors on a dime, so we don’t want our walls to be forever dependent on a red & pink scheme, ya know?
And this time instead of going with a gray-ish neutral (which we’ve done in a few other rooms) we dipped back into the warmer neutral palette and went for a super soft tan tone. Sort of like tea when you put in too much milk. Mmmm. It definitely still works within our whole house palette, but it’s a slightly warmer than some of the other grays.
We were between two extremely similar colors, so naturally, we picked the one with the better name. Totally reasonable tie-breaker move, right? The winner: Alaskan Skies by Benjamin Moore (we bought a gallon of their no-VOC Natura paint in an eggshell finish). The reason it won: we honeymooned in Alaska and took approximately 650,367 photos of the sky while we were there. The sweet little coincidence is that the paint in Clara’s nursery is Proposal (also by BM), so I guess we’re subconsciously drawn towards wedding/honeymoon related names.
Since I’m the cutter-inner and John’s the roller in this relationship (those sound like weird euphemisms) I was totally jealous about John’s big erase-the-past roller moves. Meanwhile I’m sitting on the floor painting above the baseboards. Look at me go! Just kidding. And now for a montage of John rolling over all of the randomly painted portions of the room (I wish it was a montage, it’s just this picture and the one above).
Not gonna lie, it felt pretty good to watch him go over all of those random colors and stencils on the walls and finally move towards a room that’s all one color again. Meanwhile I was inching my way around the room cutting in around the windows, doors and the ceiling. Speaking of which, we didn’t paint the ceiling (just left it white) but we’re debating adding some soft tone up there someday down the line after the room comes together more. Stay tuned…
I think we’re in love with the wall color though. Not too pink, gray, or tan. And not too white, so the window trim, molding (and future crown molding that we’d love to install) pop nicely against it. Just like extra milky tea against a clean white mug. Yum.
So we’re currently waiting for the paint to dry so we can move all of the furniture back into semi-normal spots.
Then we’ll share more photos along with planning/details/projects as we go! Back in 2010 Clara’s first nursery evolved over the course of about 20 posts and two or three months. Can’t wait to watch this bare little room take shape…
So that’s what we’ve been up to. What did you guys do this weekend?
Amanda Ross says
Yay! You guys are finally getting started on her big girl room! Cant wait too see the rest :)
Jess @ Little House. Big Heart. says
I can’t wait to see Clara’s big girl room! And that’s a great shade of Greige!
PS. Aren’t toddlers so perceptive? “A big big tree in a big big world”… they kill me with how honestly they see things. I wish I could see things how they do sometimes!
YoungHouseLove says
It was the. cutest. thing.
We were giggling for hours about it.
xo
s
John @ Our Home from Scratch says
We’re doing the exact same project in our house. Our 2 yo is ready for a big girl room.. it’s currently her playroom, but we’re going to redecorate it. We’re looking at a greige paint. I love your floors in that room, gives you more versatility. I like that color you picked! Looks clean!
Anele @ Success Along the Weigh says
Love it and not long now before the pregnancy rumors start flying again…like they ever stopped. HA!
This weekend it was off to Lowe’s to actually purchase the paint to redo the bathroom. (Much to the Mr’s chagrin…like he’s going to be doing any more than taping off the trim. Ween.)
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, it’s true! I was like “and cue the guesses that I’m prego” – but it’s not like that hasn’t been happening since Clara came out :)
xo
s
Tanya says
You haven’t denied it this time though……… :)
The paint colour is a good neutral choice.cant wait to see the room come together. Xo
YoungHouseLove says
Really? I feel like I’m constantly denying it. Haha!
xo
s
Ruth says
It’s just wishful thinking on our part.
The un-preggo are like “well, if I’m not pregnant, the next best thing is for my imaginarily internet BFF $herdog to be pregnant.
And the preggos are thinking “OMG. Can you imagine if me & Sherry were pregnant (pitch rises to approximately tea-kettle frequency) AT THE SAME TIME???”
YoungHouseLove says
Haha you guys are hilarious.
xo
s
B says
that wasn’t a denial either ;)
Julia @ Chris Loves Julia says
Love the color. Soft and cozy. We surprised ourselves by going with a really light taupe/yellow for Greta’s big girl room and it works. We installed grasscloth over the weekend in there:
http://www.chrislovesjulia.com/2013/01/grasscloth-wallpaper-victory.html
And laughed that we first estimated her big girl room getting done for Christmas. It’s a little different when she SLEEPS in the room we are working on. Kind of nixes our usual evening work session. I can’t wait to see Clara’s big girl room come together.
**Air-five from Greta to Miss Clara!**
YoungHouseLove says
So pretty! Clara sends an air five (with a sticky peanut butter and jelly hand) right back.
xo
s
Janelle says
As a renter, I normally loathe beige, but I like the super-light tan you chose. It’s definitely a good canvas for you to go wild with colored accessories.
This weekend we brought the dog to the park to romp in the snow and went to a basketball game. All in all a good weekend. Happy Monday!
Jenna says
An unexpected color choice! I don’t know why, but I expected you guys to go bold on the walls. Love the muted tone, though. Can’t wait to see it all come together!
Kara says
Did Clara see and say anything about the floor mood pile?
I think floor mood piles are the most realistic ones! (Since, let’s face it, most of us probably wouldn’t actually put all the items on a neutral backgrounds to figure it all out!)
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, well she loves her moose. Especially trying to feed him food from her kitchen. And she said “C for Clara!” when she saw the pink pillow :)
xo
s
Katie B. says
Love the color! It always feels so refreshing to finish painting a room. Good luck with the rest of the project!
This weekend we put flooring in our basement – and we finished installing the flooring by ourselves in about 8 hours! It’s a vinyl plank, so nothing too complicated, but it makes a huge difference in the space.
YoungHouseLove says
That sounds awesome! Congrats!
xo
s
amanda says
Looks great! Can’t wait to watch it unfold.
I love the floor pictures are the new mood board.
Hilarious.
Ellen says
I’m super excited to see you guys start on her room!
Has Clara ever expressed any desire to help you paint?
YoungHouseLove says
She loves to paint at school (they have an easel!) so sometimes when she hears that we painted a room she says “can I help? do you have an easel I can use?” – so cute! I can’t wait until she’s old enough to help :)
xo
s
Shelly says
I have a non-playroom related question! (Maybe you call it out in the book) but what is that golden yellowish color (under the brown) that you had painted for a book project? It’s in the realm of what I’m thinking of using in my kitchen when I repaint this spring! Thanks!
YoungHouseLove says
That wall was Sunburst by Benjamin Moore. Hope it helps!
xo
s
Natalie says
I cannot wait to see her new room! I have a 2 year old as well and am about to transition her into a “big girl room”! Where did you get the beautiful day bed? I have been looking for one for her and love this one.
YoungHouseLove says
That was a wedding present from John’s Godmother from West Elm! We love it. We actually have two of them (slightly different styles) so one is in the sunroom and one’s in her big girl room.
xo
s
SingleMama says
Can not wait to see what you are planning with her big girl room. But, I absolutely love her current room.What were your plans for that room?
YoungHouseLove says
It’s mentioned a little in the post, but she’ll sleep in there until she outgrows her crib and we’ll keep that as a nursery for a possible future kiddo (making a bunch of tweaks if it’s a boy of course, but we love kids rooms so that’s our idea of fun).
xo
s
Richard says
Looks so great! But Sherry, get your cute self off of the floor when you’re cutting in! Even professionals tape off just the baseboards these days. Save your knees, and you can just “zing-zing” (as we call it here at home) that paint on the bottom, and save your steady hand skills for the ceiling and windows and doors. That frog tape is perfect for this one!
YoungHouseLove says
Really?! Who knew? I like to freehand things. I always say that I don’t gamble and I don’t skydive and I don’t bet on horses. My wild-woman tendency is to paint without taping off. Haha! Such a rebel.
xo
s
Lindsey @ arkadian belle woods says
Hooray for progress! To be honest, seeing this room randomly in posts over the past few years has made me feel so much better. We have been in our house since November 2010 and we have a room like this. We too are making some slow progress but it’s always nice to know that we’re not alone in the shameful closed door junk room! I can’t wait to see her room take shape! PS – Pink has always been my favorite color and orange is my hubby’s favorite (our wedding colors) – Clara’s got good taste – I totally see her being the youngest interior designer/DIY-er of her generation!
Michelle says
No DIY for me this weekend … but I turned 30 AND got engaged!
YoungHouseLove says
Wahooooo! Congrats Michelle!
xo
s
Emily M says
We FINALLY installed the closet system into our little boy’s room. Now I’ll be spending the next week going through everything that used to live in that closet before putting it back in there. Purge baby purge.
Amber @ Wills Casa says
Yea! Can’t wait to see it come together! I still haven’t started on my 3 year olds big girl room, but I’ve been frantically searching Craigslist for a bed. I have not been able to snag one yet. Let’s hope the CL gods smile on me soon.
YoungHouseLove says
Good luck Amber!
xo
s
Nikki says
Oh, I am looking forward to watching this room take shape. I have always included my boys when making color decisions. Just be warned, I have found that their favorite colors change quite frequently.
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yes, I’m ready for that! It’s funny that Clara has always loved pink, but the “other color” tends to shift sometimes. Either way we’re going neutral for lots of large things (wall color, furniture colors, etc) and then just adding the color with accessories, art, etc.
xo
s
Amy says
Can’t wait to see how this room turns out – the beige color threw me for a second. =)
This past weekend we moved from our little 768 sq.ft. house to a 1960 sq. ft. house.
Sick of painting for now. Haha!
Michelle Rosales says
Love that color! We are currently one deep in a kitchen remodel and playroom remodel since its attached to the kitchen. Playroom is mostly done now complete with a gallery wall of canvas, letters, and a chalkboard. We did gray cabinets in our kitchen and were finishing up the floors now. Ugh- I wish I blogged so I could show you guys! My husband blames your blog for me getting all crazy with house remodeling LOL!
YoungHouseLove says
Aw, we’d love to see it! Sounds like you got tons done!!
xo
s
Brittany B says
I have been waiting FOREVER to see the playroom take shape! I cannot wait to see where you go with it. Maybe it will even give me some good ideas for my daughter’s playroom. It’s primary colors now and just awful! Looking forward to the next few month of playroom posts!
Kelsey says
Okay, I read it once and then scanned it again, so I’m sorry if you said already…. but what color is this?
YoungHouseLove says
It’s Alaskan Skies by BM.
xo
s
emma says
Could you share the runner up? I’m looking for a good warm neutral. Thanks!
YoungHouseLove says
It looked almost exactly the same. So sorry we don’t remember the name at all, but it was practically the same swatch with a different name under it, so if you like this I’d just go with Alaskan Skies :)
xo
s
DebInNYC says
Have you considered making some art from the Bean’s cute quotes? You could frame them or even paint them on the wall of her room. Could be cute!
<3 D
YoungHouseLove says
Love that idea! We just made a calendar that hangs in the laundry room with them, but there’s always room for more :)
xo,
s
Lauren @ Lettuce Eat Cake says
Is it strange that seeing you guys painting a room beige is actually somewhat shocking? Haha. I love it, though! It will be so soft and pretty once you’re done with the room. I can’t wait to see it!
YoungHouseLove says
Hahahah! Notice I couldn’t bring myself to say the beige word. It’s tea with too much milk. Haha. The color of sand at a tropical beach! Anything but beige :)
xo
s
J says
How exciting!! Moving up to a big girl room is so exciting! We started the progress for our little lady LITERALLY over a year ago!! http://the-shiny-side.blogspot.com/2012/02/big-girl-and-big-giraffe.html. We just moved her in a still have TONS of finishing to do! So much fun though!
I was secretley hoping you would keep the book project stencil on the one wall for her room (finishing it of course). I loved how it almost looked metalic in the photos! Can’t wait to see what you all come up with!
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yes, it was hard to paint over that. It was so pretty! Maybe we’ll have another place to work that into the house someday!
xo
s
Kristen @ LoveK says
Pretty paint color! I’m excited to see how the room comes together, pink and red are some of my favorite colors too! :)
Morgan Porter says
I love the final shots you guys share of the changes, but I’m also glad to see that you have rooms that rotate through clean and messy times! Now I feel like I’m totally normal that I can’t keep up with every room in my house! … Now maybe I can get this office cleaned up today.
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, you can do it Morgan!
xo
s
Caroline says
I used “little man’s” curtain fabric in my laundry room! Check it out here: http://astitchincjtime.blogspot.com/2012/12/the-laundry-room-finished-and-complete.html
I LOVE the tan! It’s looking good!
YoungHouseLove says
Looks awesome! Love the dark teal paint too!
xo
s
Allyn says
Yup, my first thought was preggo? Isn’t lovely to have millions of people debating on the state of your uterus? You now have that in common with Jennifer Aniston.
We’ve decided that the general floor plan for your house is what we want someday, with the master separated from the rest of the bedrooms. Grownups need privacy.
I ordered seeds for our garden this weekend. Makes me so excited for spring!
YoungHouseLove says
Ooh that’s fun! Is spring really coming? I can’t wait!
xo
s
Pallavi says
I have been following your blog for quite some time now. Out of the many home improvement/DIY blogs, yours is one of the best! I like things well organized and believe in keeping it simple and your blog and the work you do is just that.
Can’t wait to see how Clara’s big girl room turns out. I was surprised to find that you have painted the walls tan. I thought it would be something bold after Clara’s “I love Pink and Red” comment. However, tan is a wonderful base for bold colors. So all the best and keep us posted.
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks! Yes, I was thinking that going with a color that works will all other colors on the walls will help if Clara changes her favorite colors down the line. And now that red and pink will really pop :)
xo
s
kristi says
that quote about the big big tree in the big big world (which is so adorable!) makes me think of this cute kids song – maybe clara would like it? it’s called “big world” :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-Npu_ly3ZM
got your book for christmas and love it! y’all are so fun. can’t wait to have a place someday to use some of your ideas :)
YoungHouseLove says
So cute! And so glad you’re enjoying our book.
xo
s
Melissa says
The room is getting off to a great start! And what a great time of year to look for a few pink/red accessories!
In other news, you mentioned John building the deck and it got me thinking, did you ever string lights up over the deck? If so, how’d it go?
YoungHouseLove says
Oh man, we haven’t! Can’t wait to get ‘er done when it warms up a little!
xo
s
Abby says
I also have a non-playroom question, but it was in the pictures so it kind of counts. Ha! Where did you get that stencil you all used on the wall that you painted over? I am looking for one and loved it!
YoungHouseLove says
It’s from Royal Design Studios. We loved it! And we used a small foam roller and it worked (no more hand stippling!).
xo
s
Cassondra says
The big tree in the big world reminded me of a little kid in my 4 yr old Sunday School class yesterday saying “polar bears live in the great snowy arctic”
YoungHouseLove says
Hahaha, so funny! Sounds like a voice over for Animal Planet.
xo
s
Maureen says
So excited to see everything come together eventually! This weekend, I attempted (for the second time) to make a tufted ceiling in my closet. I failed. Again. Tonight, I will be buying the materials for attempt #3, and I think I FINALLY have the formula down pat. Ugh. Let’s hope so. I may or may not have thrown a baby tantrum upon realizing attempt #2 didn’t work.
YoungHouseLove says
You can do it Maureen!
xo
s
Starr @ The Kiefer Cottage says
The room looks nice–it’ll be even better once you move in some color!
This weekend, we bought my 2 year old a full-sized mattress since he’s now trying to climb out of the crib. I almost cried since he’s my last baby. We also went to see Les Mis, and again, I almost cried while my husband actually did cry. Like a baby.
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, no way! I hear it’s a tear jerker!
xo
s
Laura says
Well, since you asked: my weekend was spent unpacking the very last box since moving into my new apartment! Whoohoo! It only took a month to unpack!
Now, to do something about using my crashpad (a large, stiff foam pad using for bouldering, a type of rock climbing) as a sofa. Lack of real seating impedes having casual dinner with friends!
YoungHouseLove says
Woot! Congrats Laura!
xo
s
Kasey M. says
I imagine your guests end up covered in chaulk sitting on the crash pad sofa (which as a fellow climber I find hilarious). Then again if they’re your climbing buddies they mightarrive covered in chaulk already!
harmony says
Looks great so far. I cant wait to see this room come together. :)
Kelli says
I LOVE seeing rooms transformed into playrooms, and I know you guys won’t disappoint! I was also relieved to hear that Clara’s still in her crib. Our son is about to turn two, and peer pressure keeps me thinking he should be in a toddler bed by now. But he can’t climb out of his crib yet, since the mattress is so low, so the fact that he can’t escape right now is really appealing, too. :)
YoungHouseLove says
Our doc looked us in the eye and said “do not move her unless she’s sleeping poorly or jumping out” – apparently waiting until they’re ready to be moved is key in hopefully making a smooth transition. So we’re savoring it while it lasts :)
xo
s
Kate says
The room looks great! And by the way, we just converted our son’s crib to a toddler bed and he will be 3 this week. We wanted to wait until the last possible moment. He let us know when he was ready – he started sleeping poorly, acting afraid of his crib and waking up really early. We took the front crib rail off and bam – he loves his new bed and sleeps like a champ, no fears, no tears, and he stays put! Good luck with the transition.
YoungHouseLove says
That’s so awesome!
xo
s
Brandi from Bloomington says
We actually painted our boys’ room this weekend. We went with Valspar’s Tinted Spearmint. We ended up painting the ceiling the same color because of a mis-tint. The boys love the new color and I’m sprucing it up with white furnishings and pops of orange.
YoungHouseLove says
Sounds pretty!
xo
s
Kaity says
We just painted our kitchen last week. It’s amazing what a new color can do for how you feel about a room. It’s the first room in our house we’ve painted and I’m already thinking about a future palette for the whole house. I keep thinking back to how you do that and I love the idea of having everything flow together.
engineeringahome.wordpress.com/2013/01/16/in-the-kitchen-paintin-it-up/
YoungHouseLove says
Congrats Kaity! That’s a big job!
xo
s
Sarah says
I love that day bed! And knowing that you all are working on that room in earnest after three years make me feel a lot better about the slower-than-molasses pace I’m setting for my home office re-do.
MrsG says
This weekend we had to take a window rough-in down to make it a bit more plumb :-(
Then we house-wrapped part of our one-day-will-be-amazing abode! Building your own house is amazing, yet blows at the very same time!
YoungHouseLove says
Wow, sounds like you were busy! Congrats MrsG!
xo
s
Heather says
Cute! I like the color change up. I love seeing kids rooms with warmer tones in them.
Our weekend was spend prepping for drywall, fighting off the beginning of a cold, and listening to way too many farming podcasts while seed planning for 2013. I have today off, so I’m taking photos for a farm update and now on that note I’m off to attempt a DIY hoop bender for our low tunnel covers so I don’t have to buy a hoop bender or hoops themselves. Cross your fingers!
YoungHouseLove says
Fingers crossed!!
xo
s
heather says
It worked! Holla.
YoungHouseLove says
Wooot!
xo
s
lauren says
In my own house, I’ve always avoided that class of colors (tannish beige) it looks kinda dirty after a while. Hopefully this will be a chance for me to see how awesome it actually can be! (E.g. maybe I am the dirty one, not my poor wall color?) Looks great so far.
YoungHouseLove says
One small distinction I would make is that I’m less attracted to the yellow/tawny tones of tan/beige, which can look a little “old and yellowed” – so this is more like a milky milky mocha tone (like light sand on a beach, it’s not yellow or straw colored). I’m sure that doesn’t make much sense, but maybe sticking with a cleaner tan/sand tone and going less yellow or straw colored might help?
xo
s
lauren says
Ah gotcha! I think especially with the white trim, it’ll pop out as a nice muted separate color instead of just looking dirty.
Jenny Thompson says
Do you mind sharing where you picked up the pink “C” pillow? Its adorable and I am pretty sure I’ve seen a similar black/white set on Giuliana & Bill!
YoungHouseLove says
That was from Joss & Main a few months back. I’ve been hoarding it! Haha. Hope it helps!
xo
s
Jesse Lee says
Love the “C” pillow! I need one for my daughter Charlie. Where did you get yours?
YoungHouseLove says
That was from Joss & Main a few months back. I’ve been counting down the seconds until I get to break it out.
xo
s
Karrie Kaneda says
HELLO! The “C” pillow is one of my designs– as is the throw. SO cool to see my items on here! Available in my shop at http://www.ahappyhabitat.blogspot.com. I also pop up on Joss & Main and One Kings Lane now and again. Thanks!
YoungHouseLove says
We love your stuff Karrie!
xo
s
Allisen says
YAY! I’m so excited for this room! With all this gloomy winter going on in the Midwest it will be nice to see a bright and happy room.
That color reminds me a lot of your old guest room (Water Chestnut I believe?). Is it similar in real life or does it have different undertones do you think?
YoungHouseLove says
I think the main difference is that there’s less yellow and tawnyness to this color. It really is like watered down tea, so it’s sort of like a milky milky sand color without any of those straw undertones. Does that makes sense?
xo
s