About a year ago, we began planning some major painting updates in our house. We had done the kitchen, dining room, master bedroom and Joseph' room, but the rest of the house was bor-ing. We have alot of white trim and white/beige walls or oak trim and... white walls. The only room that had color that we didn't paint ourselves was Camille's room. Her room was a light beige-y pink and both she and I wanted some more COLOR on her walls. Plus, she had gone through a phase where she wrote on her walls, toys and furniture. I wanted those markings GONE.
For months, she had color samples taped to her walls and she gave us input on what she liked and didn't like. She looked at the colors for several months before she told us what she really wanted.
And then we did... nothing. Life got in the way.
Around Thanksgiving, I began thinking of what she would like for her birthday. Adam and I tossed around a few ideas before I suggested we re-do her bedroom as a surprise. He thought it was a good idea and I went to town pinning ideas on Pinterest and asking our parents for help. Adam's parents agreed to help paint and organize while my parents agreed to keep all four kids overnight.
And I managed to keep it a complete secret from her! It was so, so hard because she asked for a birthday party the weekend of her birthday. I put her off, telling her it wasn't going to happen THAT weekend. She was in tears but I blamed it on her grandparents, my parents, coming to town. She pointed out that my mom had been in town on her actual birthday last year but I brushed her off. It was KILLING me not to tell her but we really wanted to surprise her!
Friday my mother and I began to empty and clean her room. Everything but her bed and dresser went into the master bedroom. I was twitching from the mess and clutter but I knew things had to get worse before they got better. Because we didn't want her to go upstairs, Mom and I ditched the boys with my dad, picked her up from school and took her to the mall where this happened:
Yep, my parents bought her Caroline for her birthday! On a side note, isn't the cut-out of Saige so life-like?! Out of the corner of my eye, it looks like another girl standing there! (Oh, and ask me some time about the creepy stalker saleslady at the American Girl store. It was... weird.)
That night we met my dad, Adam and the boys at the hotel for pizza.The kids kicked us out and we went home to finish cleaning out her room. I was "allowed" to place the painters tape around the trim. I say "allowed" because Adam and his parents are incredibly anal about painting. They have a Team Mind-Meld thing going when they paint a room and each knows exactly what to do and what the other Team members need before they need it. It is awe-inspiring and creepy. Mostly awe-inspiring, though.
The next morning (after a full night's sleep!) we finished cleaning and began painting. When my in-laws came over, they kicked me out of the room to begin the Top Secret Mind-Meld and finish painting. I huffed over to the master bedroom to get all crafty with printable labels, diaper boxes, and ten billion small pieces of toys (and doll clothes).
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| The small plastic shoe boxes hold small toys and LEGO. The diaper boxes, covered with wrapping paper, hold her Bitty Baby and AG doll clothes. All this went into her closet, where she keeps most of her toys. |
For a room with two windows, two doors, that is not square and had two different colors going on, they finished painting quickly. While we were waiting for the paint to dry, my mother-in-law and I got busy with oil, rags and a Magic Eraser to get the marks off her dresser, nightstand and jewelry box. It took some good scrubbing but in the end the items looked like new!
Finally, we were ready for the best part: decorating!
The wall with the unicorn painting on it is actually a darker color than the other walls. You can only really tell when you look in the corner:
The green is painters tape.
Some more details:
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| The purple flower pillow is a Pottery Barn Kids find! It's so soft! |
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| Close up of the unicorn painting my sister made for Cami when she was a baby. Camille wrote on it when she was 3, so my sister fixed it for her birthday. |
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| dresser, newly cleaned! |
But... how did she like it?
We've hardly seen her all weekend! She's been in her room, playing and crafting up a storm. She also swears she is going to keep her room clean but... we'll see!
Happy birthday to my sweet princess! We love you!
Details:
We were able to re-use almost everything from her old room; we just cleaned it up and reorganized. One of the things I love about her room is how many hand crafted items are in there, either made by woman who love her. Those rag dolls? Made by my aunts. The quilt? My grandmother. She is surrounded by love and that is priceless.
We also bought alot of the items when we first moved in almost 4 years ago. When possible, I've listed the prices of the items as I remember them.
Light pink paint:
Darker Pink/accent wall:
Purple curtains: $10/each at Wa-l Mart
black out curtains: about $15/each, Target
Doll lamp: priceless. It was my mother's, then mine!
Quilt: Also priceless. My grandmother made it and it's over 30 years old
Unicorn painting: priceless, an original made by my sister.
Bookshelf: about $25 at Bed, Bath and Beyond
Purple flower pillow: $10, Pottery Barn Kids
pink ribbon boards: $7/each, Target
Purple frame: $7, Target
Cinderella toy box: e-classifieds
Shelf: $25 at Target. It's really a rack to hold shoes and was found in the home organizing section.
plastic boxes on shelf: $5-7, Target
pink stuffed animal hanger and boxes on desk: Babies R Us (price unknown)
Letters: seven years ago, I got them on e-bay. Now you would look on Etsy!
Butterfly hooks: Target
desk: Sam's, ten years ago. It was my old craft desk.
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