As we mentioned here, the bedroom is “still looking rough and we’re not sure about a lot of things – just waiting for inspiration to strike – which might involve repainting and rearranging furniture along with refinishing the floors”). We even elaborated a bit in the comments when folks started asking what we meant by that or if we hated the current color by saying: “We love the paint color but something is off about the bedroom and we’re not sure we can rule anything out – including the paint color. Everything is a suspect until proven innocent. Haha. Something is limiting us, so we’re not opposed to changing that thing once we pin it down (it might be the curtains or the art or something else!) just to get things to “click” for us. Who knows where we’ll end up!”
You can relate to that feeling, right? The whole something’s-off-but-I’m-not-sure-what-it-is thing? Moving the art together above the bed on Friday was a start, but we actually have a bunch of changes on the agenda for this week in the hopes of cracking the case and making “that room where we sleep” feel a little more like “that room that we love!” Of course we know that a big ol’ transformation doesn’t happen overnight, but we also have seen firsthand how a few updates and switcheroos can go a long way in remedying that “hmmmm, something’s just not right” feeling that has probably popped up at least three dozen times in our last five years of DIYing. So we know it well.
We’ve learned that the only real way to get any closer to something that feels right is just to play around and see what you like and what you don’t. The ol’ trial and error approach. Because if you’re sitting there frozen in fear or over-thinking things to the point that you’ve lost all momentum it can get sticky. So without further ado, let’s get into the first tweak, which has already taken place. And it’s kind of a biggie. It all started when we saw the rug on the bottom of this picture at an outlet liquidation sale…
We weren’t looking for a bedroom rug, although we weren’t ruling out the idea of changing anything in that room (because remember, everything in there was guilty until proven innocent- haha). I had actually said to John “the jute rug in the bedroom could always move out to the dining room since we’re planning on getting a natural fiber rug in there for under the table and it’s definitely big enough” – so I guess you could say we were open to anything. So when there was a big tent sale at our favorite lighting outlet (The Decorating Outlet), which also happens to sell rugs (it’s where we got the thick wool rug in Clara’s bedroom along with her blue capiz chandelier and the big glass pendants in our kitchen), we had to check it out.
And that’s when we saw the patterned blue rug in the picture above this one. And it was all over.
We love all of those colors (gray, navy, teal, white!) and the geometric pattern was totally calling our name. By now you know we’re suckers for a geometric rug, right?
They just do something to us. They make us feel alive. Oh yes, we live dangerously.
But back to reality. Since it was a thick 9 x 12 wool rug, we were nervous that even on sale it would be $700 or more, which is sadly way out of our price range. But when we checked out the tag, we almost couldn’t believe our eyes. Did that really say “was $1287.00, now: $250” ?????!!!!!
That’s not 40 or 50% off – that’s over 80% off! So we asked the guy what was wrong with it to make it so cheap, since the tag said “soiled” as the reason for the discount. We hoped if it had a stain we might be able to hide that part of the rug under the bed or try to remove it with some crazy scrubbing ritual, but he actually told us it was ripped. As in, there was a hole right through it. Eeks. But thankfully the placement of the rip was in a corner, and although it looked like this if you picked it up and put your fingers through it…
… it looked like this when it was laid out on the floor. See the big gaping hole?
We didn’t either! The thick pile of the rug was so dense that the rip wasn’t even visible, let alone obvious. So you know what we did, right? We thanked our lucky stars that it was there. It was the only reason that we were able to get over $1000 off (!!!) and take home a $1287 rug for $250. We shoved that sucker into the passenger seat of the car faster than you can say “will-that-fit-in-an-Altima?” and I rode in the back with Clara, happy-squealing my way home.
To save you some scrolling, here’s a before pic of the old rug for ya again (remember we’re still missing major furnishings, like something in that nook, art on those bare walls, etc):
Next we pulled out the old rug that we’d love to relocate into the dining room under the table. We laughed at how naked that yellowed old floor looked. Someday we’ll refinish it, but until then our new rug will be in charge of de-naked-ifying things.
First John did some cute vacuuming to remove any dust/fibers leftover from the tent sale. Look how fast he is. He’s like Edward except he doesn’t sparkle in the sun or bite me for sport.
Next we shimmied it carefully under our bed. It probably took us a good twenty minutes to get it centered – just inching it back or to the side a little bit at a time.
We love it more than words can say. Although, to quote Tim Gunn, it’s a lotta look. Haha. Still missing major furnishings/art of course, but we’ll get there. So some folks might go for something less patterned or colorful for their bedroom, but we think one of the main “what’s wrong with this room” issues for us was that it didn’t feel happy or fun or “us” at all. And now it does. Oh happy day.
See how this room could almost be anyone’s bedroom?
And see how the room above it probably couldn’t be most people’s bedroom? Haha. That’s the beauty of a room that feels like you. It almost feels like it couldn’t be anyone else’s. So I’m sure there are lots of folks out there who would pass on this baby, but we decided when we moved into this house that we were going to make a playful, happy-go-lucky little love nest for our family. So we’re cool with waking up to a room that “smiles” back at us. Sort of like how we love our chipper living room and guest room (which have those other colorful geometric rugs going on):
I know, I know – things in the bedroom look a lot less polished or finished than those two rooms above. True dat. Look at that naked nook and those bare walls. But things always look crazy in the middle. Heck, sometimes things don’t really click into place until the very last tweak has been made, and I’d say we’re at least a dozen tweaks away from the final tweak (the pillows, curtains, and lamps might be the first to get some tweak-age now that there’s a new rug in town). But we’ll get there someday…
Nothing is safe when we have our tweaking hats on. Haha. But thanks to the new rug we’re invigorated and excited to play around a little more and see where we end up. So expect a few more changes throughout the week as we try our hand at a few other switcheroos and snap pics for you as we go. Some might fail, others might work- so it’s all about playing around in the name of figuring this room out a little more.
And can we talk about how plush this guy feels underfoot? Excuse me for mentioning the original price again, but have you ever walked on a $1287 rug before? We hadn’t either. It’s what we imagine the carpets in The Donald’s house might feel like. Super super plush. Like double thick. Burger even lounges on the rug now (he used to lounge exclusively in the bed, so it’s funny to see him sprawled out on the floor these days). It’s nice to know that we have the doggie stamp of approval.
What did you guys do this weekend? Any deal hunting, rug rolling out, or super fast vacuuming? John also ran his buns off at the James River Scramble (it’s sort of a rocky trail run/10K) and we loved cheering him on. We also squeezed in a stroll around the art museum (Clara loves VMFA) and dropped in on a new doughnut shop that opened. Good times. What were you guys up to?
renee says
Wow. That made such a difference! I love the colors, pattern and especially the PRICE! Good score!
Amy says
The rug is perfect! Just what the room needed! I’m totally seeing a thrift store 6 drawer dresser in that nook – painted in some fabulous color. Maybe the dark teal from the rug?
YoungHouseLove says
Always a possibility!!
xo,
s
Clare says
I LOVE the change! It looks great and can’t wait to see it when it’s done!!
Frank says
the room looks lovely! I cant believe the rug is that well made you cant even notice the rip. well done on the final result, with the rug and everything in place it looks amazing! Did you get a chance to change the currents from the previous one???
YoungHouseLove says
Changing the curtains is definitely on the agenda, but we haven’t gotten there yet! We’ll blog all about it when we finally get ‘er done!
xo,
s
Ana Silva says
I love it. I like how it looks with the green pillows on the bed. I have to say the room does look better.
jja says
Without any rug is the best version.
Ellen says
This may be an overshare, but I think if you moved your two pictures from the inside of the bedframe to the outside of the bedframe, it could make it feel less cluttered in the center. I LOVE the rug – you guys found a gem. :)
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, they actually used to hang outside the frame. See them in the old picture with the door open in this post? We have seen them in both places, and in person we just like them inside the bed as sort of a headboard of sorts!
xo,
s
Rebecca says
I am in LOVE with your rug and totally jealous of that price!!!!!!
Chinapaige says
Hi Guys!
I love your blog so much and although I haven’t done any projects on my own yet, I always come here for help when I have ideas. I don’t know if anyone else has mentioned this yet, but your amazing rug was also in June’s edition of Real Simple and is on their website. I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me because I liked the rug so much the first time I saw it that I was transposing it into other things. In the article it says it is called the “Floating Medallion” rug and can be found at http://www.shadesoflight.com for $949. Not as amazing of a deal as you guys got, but I just thought it was such a funny coincidence!
Keep up the great work. :)
YoungHouseLove says
Isn’t that such a funny coincidence?!
xo,
s
Jena says
I loved your new rug and the price when I read this post…..then I saw YOUR RUG in my Real Simple magazine from this month!!
http://img4.realsimple.com/images/1206/coral-colored-room_gal.jpg
Check it out – crazy!
Jena
YoungHouseLove says
I know, so funny right? We saw that like the afternoon or two after getting ours.
-John
Jodi says
I saw your new rug in the current issue of Real Simple magazine! It was used for a makeover in a teen’s room. Looked great.
Jodi says
Oops… I see it was already mentioned. :)
Jennifer Ashmore says
Love this rug! It’s featured in a before-and-after in the new issue of Real Simple magazine with a $1000 price tag. What an awesome deal you guys got!!
Sarah Streit says
Love that rug-it really pulls the room together!
meghan shadrick says
Love, Love, Love what the rug did for the room!!! Better size, better colors, more pizzazz, and totally you. As to the “missing pieces”, I think its just that your room is so darn big (lucky you). The walls feel empty on either side of the bed. If it were me I would think about using small, but beefier dressers on either side of the bed instead of nightstands and add put your artwork above them (with lamps too of course). The proportion of furnishings to the space might be better balanced. Just my thoughts….I know you’ll make it work: )
Jessie says
I am sure that I missed it… But what size is your bed? Queen or King?
YoungHouseLove says
It’s a queen! We used to have a full so it feels huge to us! Haha.
xo,
s
Liz says
Not sure if this was already posted, but your rug was in Real Simple in a room with ORANGE walls. I love your room and the orange room. Great rug!
http://www.realsimple.com/home-organizing/organizing/room-makeovers-00100000080537/page4.html#16
Liz says
Nevermind, I see it above! Should have scrolled to the end of the comments. :)
YoungHouseLove says
Isn’t that so funny? It’s such a small world!
xo,
s
Wynnie says
The jute rug you scored from Pottery Barn, does it shed?? I have had the same one, 9×12, in my living room with a 5×8 shag rug over top of it for about 7 months now and I vacuum it once a day with the beater bar off and there are still little fibers all over!! On my sofas on my clothes in my daughters hair after laying on the rug. It drives me crazy. Do you know of any product or trick that keeps natural fiber rugs from shedding??
ps love the new rug in the bedroom
YoungHouseLove says
Oh no! That’s so odd! Ours hasn’t had any shedding issues (I wear black all the time, so I can’t deal with that, haha). Only Burger is allowed to shed in our house! Maybe your vacuum is really kind of pulling it apart? Even without the beater bar, maybe everyday vacuuming is releasing more stuff and loosening it somehow?
xo,
s
Krissy says
So there are 10 pages of comments and someone might have already mentioned this because the episode aired May 1st, but Nate Berkus used your bedroom rug when he redid a brownstone in Harlem! I had to rewind and check it out, I got so excited!
YoungHouseLove says
No way! That’s amazing!
xo,
s
suzi says
I think now there is so much glamour that you need to replace the side tables with something much larger, and mirrored.
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yes, but the placement of the door makes that impossible (the door would swing into something wider). We’ll have to see where we end up!
xo,
s
Crystal says
I love your bedroom the most so far. I’m so jealous over that fabulous rug!
Susan says
What’s off about the room? I can give you an artist’s reaction to your photos of the room. The white crown molding and baseboard give the room a very horizontal look. But the bed is very vertical. And since both are white, they are fighting each other. I was going to suggest you change the color of the molding, but the longer I look at the photo… Have you considered painting the ceiling the same color as the wall? Oddly enough, I think a light blue ceiling would recede and make the room appear taller.
YoungHouseLove says
Check out more recent posts where we completely rearranged things and love it much more!
xo,
s
melissa (fitnessnyc) says
I am sorry if you’ve answered this a million times, but what’s the paint color for your bedroom?
YoungHouseLove says
It’s Carolina Inn Club Aqua by Valspar. Hope that helps!
xo,
s
Ashley says
LOVE this rug!!! Do you know what brand it is? I would really like to find one for our house.
YoungHouseLove says
Just scroll back in the comments for that info. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Sonya says
I know this is an old post, but I thought this was the most appropriate place to tell you – I saw your rug! In the current issue of the Real Simple magazine I was reading last night. I think it was in a bedroom organizing make-over article…or it was just in a pretty picture of someone’s house…or maybe just an advertisement…at any rate, it was definitely your rug.
I always think it’s cool when things I have are “famous” – like the knife caddy in my kitchen that I saw in Real Simple a couple months after I purchased it and a nifty dress with watercolored fish on it that I bought at Anthro (way on sale) and then saw on a girl in a sitcom at some point after that. And yes, by famous I mean randomly in a magazine or tv show.
YoungHouseLove says
Isn’t that crazy? We saw that too! Such a small world!
xo,
s
lindsey b. says
maybe someone’s already mentioned this (the rug tape patch was a good idea!) but you could also take a big upholstery needle & some upholstery thread & stitch up that bad boy from the back just like you would a hole in a sweater! amazing luck to find it for so cheap & that the hole doesn’t even show from the front! whee!
YoungHouseLove says
Love that tip!
xo,
s
Cadie says
I adore the new rug! I think I saw something similar on Joss and Main recently, but you definitely snagged the deal of the century. Goes perfectly with your colors, and the size is just right, too! Way to go!
Melissa says
This rug is on Joss & Main right now (way after the fact) for like $450. The Marcelle Guilbeau collection. You guys did well!!
YoungHouseLove says
Wahoo!
xo
s
melissa says
I love the paint color of your master bedroom, what color is it?(: thanks!
YoungHouseLove says
It’s Carolina Inn Club Aqua by Valspar.
xo
s
jen says
Paint color on walls please?? It is beautiful. :))
YoungHouseLove says
It’s Valspar’s Carolina Inn Club Aqua! Hope it helps!
xo
s
Allyson says
Hi! Ok, I Love love love this rug. I know this is a year and a half late but do you know the brand of the rug?? Thanks! Your houses are amazing!!
YoungHouseLove says
We think the maker is Rizzy Rugs if that helps you track it down! It’s been on Joss & Main a few times. Good luck!
xo
s
Cyndi Hochstaedt says
I absolutely LOVE your amazing moroccan tile blue/grey rug. SUCH a steal!!!!!!! I am always telling people how important it is to scope out clearance, no matter what! I have some serious obsession with moroccan tile… check out my obsessions here at decisivedecor.blogspot.com
Thanks for sharing your amazing home!
Cyndi