As I mentioned recently, I’m already starting to think about the final look and feel of my future guest bedroom/home office. When I start to get an itch to decorate a room, my brain really DOES NOT STOP with the planning stage. I will actually lose sleep, lying in bed knowing I NEED TO GET UP IN 4 HOURS and yet, my brain will be going, “Should I use some kind of wallpaper? I do really like that one I saw the other day… or how about that one I’ve always wanted to use? Yeah, but if I do that, then my colour scheme needs to change slightly… Or maybe just a splash of that fabric… oh that means that great desk chair would work perfectly… I wonder if I should splurge on a really expensive desk or get that one at Ikea I saw… I wonder how big that one was… I should get up and get the tape measure out so I can be sure it’ll fit…” OH MY GOD SHUT UP ALREADY.
While my boyfriend will shake his head in disbelief at this admission, at least you guys understand, right? I mean, a big blank room just FULL of possibilities! The mind boggles at the thought.
Because I’m really at the very beginning stages of our journey and I’m not entirely sure where we will end up, I thought it might be useful to talk through how I tackle a decorating project as it happens.
The first step, naturally, is finding your inspiration. For this, I normally start at Pinterest (and if you’re not using Pinterest yet, why the heck aren’t you? And if you aren’t following me already, let me just say that 3600 people CAN’T BE WRONG. Ahem.)
The first thing I did was check out what I’ve pinned on my Pinterest Board called Home Offices Workin’ It. If you are going to start any decorating project and you’re a little lost on where to begin, it’s a great tool to use to see what appeals to you most. Now, there are obviously some anomalies but what I noticed was a bit of a pattern…
Many of the pins showed a lovely little brass anglepoise lamp. I’m obviously attracted to these things.
Did you notice as well that how many of the offices I’ve pinned have white desks? Something else for the list then.
A collection of eclectic accessories is also a common theme. Not just a place for files or a pencil holder – we’re talking interesting vessels, bunches of flowers, beautiful trays.
Brass accessories are also pretty common. Well, I probably already knew that one but it’s nice to know that subconsciously, I’ve pinned images that contain these elements.
Another thing I noticed is how many of them had some kind of an inspiration board. While I love Pinterest, there’s something rather attractive about a physical pinboard with an array of inspirational images.
I also noticed a lot of pretty ‘practical items’ too – so lovely pencils, stylish staplers, beautiful stationary, gold paperclips. All these things have gone on my list.
Lastly, you may be as surprised as I am that there were few with bold wallpaper or dark walls – we’re talking a lot of white with pops of feminine colour, pretty accessories and plenty of gold and brass…. So while I do love a deep, intriguing room as you know, I’m thinking mostly white walls and a fairly neutral base with great artwork, an inspiration board and fabrics and accessories to bring in pops of colour.
Now that I have a direction in terms of style and a few of the elements I’m considering, it’s time to start the measuring up – what do I have room for? What is the best placement of furniture? What things do I need to have and what to I just want? And so the process begins…
Have you noticed any other patterns in my inspirational images? How do you go about tackling a room redesign?
Image credits: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9 / 10 / 11 / 12 / 13 / 14 / 15
Hello Kimberly,<br /><br />just finished my post about my new home office, today. I work always in the same way. Pinning inspirations at Pinterest, creating a moodboard physically and than moving around the house, to look what I already have and what I maybe need to buy for my "vision". The most, I like the process, the development of ideas and of course the result… To carry heavy
It's always living through the mess of a remodel that's the worst part but the end result is definitely worth it! :) xx
I can't wait to see your finished room. Seems like we are loving the same style as I am channelling feminine with touches of gold for my studio/guest room too, love these inspiration pictures you have gathered.<br /><br />Ps We also lay awake at night planning too, followed by restless dreaming! Decor 247 x
great idea before starting a decorating project! I will need to go through my pins and look for patterns when i'm ready to finally tackle my office.<br />– jackie @ <a href="http://www.jadeoak.com" rel="nofollow">jade and oak</a>
YOu've got a good board started my friend. And its too bad we aren't in the same time zone, because I am often awake in the middle of the night thinking the same things!
I can't believe I WASN'T following you on Pinterest! I am now though, so you can update your blog post to 3,690 people can't be wrong :p xxx
I love your new post it's really beautiful, full of inspiration and light (L)
Ha, I do the exact same thing, including never being able to sleep when I'm planning decor (which means I have a LOT of sleepless nights – current obsession is the bathroom). <br /><br />Pinterest is amazing for planning a design. I do the same thing of pinning loads of things and looking for patterns. I noticed yellow sofa kept coming up when I was doing the living room. Haven't got one
I'm so glad that I'm not alone in the laying awake at night thing!! See, I knew you guys would get it ;) xxx