Plain, petite and not at all pretty. When Cindy and Robert moved to their new home in Denver, this bedroom was clearly the right spot for their 5-year-old daughter, Megan. We found the paint, furnishings, lighting, art and accessories to make this a gorgeous little girls room — and you’ll see the after too! (No cheating by scrolling down to the bottom first!)
This family’s Stylefinder palette choice is bold jewel tones and their Stylefinder Style is mostly Traditional. Perfect for this bedroom with honey-toned hardwood floors.
They wanted a classic pink and lime green palette. While this palette may have originated in Palm Beach — we do it As, Always, Affordable…My Design Guide style selecting Candy Lime from True Value Hardware paints. Need help with a paint selection? Only $39.
This bed from Target made Megan (and Mom) giddy. Keep in mind that white furniture is also easy to create from thrift store finds. My Design Guide Must for this room: Keeping the furniture scale small to fit the rooms size and mostly Traditional in style.
The bedding (we always give you options) really sets the tone of the room. The quilting keeps it traditional, like the furniture and the bed, but the color keeps it kid-friendly and playful.
The important thing in a child’s bedroom, and in most rooms, is to not be afraid of adding personal touches, like these wall shelves and graphic area rug. Those items will make any space feel cozy and comfortable, as well as marking the space as uniquely yours.
Lovely Lighting. A chandelier and your choice of adorable, affordable bedside lamps makes this room complete. (Yes, youv’e seen our favorite chandelier from Target before — it works!) The Takayam table lamp (#2) is a little more modern, but the right size, scale and color — making the overall design look a bitch more rich. Anyone can go out and buy a room full of matchy-matchy furniture, our Custom Room Designs use the unique!
Drum Roll Please…
Do you love it? While a bed on an angle isn’t always successful, this one works because it helps to get some of that furniture off the walls and interacting with the negative space in the room. The other furniture also is set parallel to the bed, which creates square spaces int he room, adding a structured feel in a playful way.
This room’s playful nature is designed to be a room for a child that serves a function while still creating a place of whimsy and energy any child would love. It has feminine touches in both the decorative headboard and foot board, as well as the color palette. Green and pink are complimentary, and that always keeps a color concept strong. The white furniture allows the wall color and bedding to really stand on their own and minimizes some of the heaviness of the furniture, which helps to make the space feel child-friendly.
Want a room like this of your very own? Let us create it for your Style and Lifestyle with a My Design Guide Custom Room Design.
Have great furnishings but just need those finishing touches? Try our Art and Accessory Design.
If I were rich I’d have fresh flowers in my home at all times and my sheets changed every day. That’s about it. Those things make me feel rich. I splurge on flowers as often as possible have a new MyD secret weapon in that regard that I’ll tell you about soon.
This post is about things you need in your home that will make it look rich, even if we are not…
Stylish Drapes
That doesn’t mean expensive drapes. Stylish drapes have:
- The right pattern and texture needed to match your Stylefinder style
- The right length
- Preferably lined or combined with a shade like our MyDesignGuide hallmark bamboo shade
Depending on your style profile, these are some examples:
How do I know that drapes are the rich finish to any room?
I bought this gorgeous pair from Ballard design and hung them in our home office. My husband was amazed. According to him, “They make the room look so large and warm and finished.” More importantly, he insisted that we buy new drapes for the bedroom…and now our den!!! Can you believe it? Granted he’s kind of metrosexual — but I’m telling you he is now the Drape King. So what do you need to know to impress your Drape King/Queen?
MyD Rule of Thumb for Hanging Drapes:
Drapes typically come off the shelf in three standard sizes, 54″, 84″ and 96″ — yes, that’s 4.5′, 7′ and 8′ corresponding to 1 foot below most standard ceiling and window heights. Keep that in mind when shopping. The rod should be installed above the window frame unless there is an impediment like this problem I have in my bedroom.
Then, unfortunately, on the window frame it is. The drapes should reach to approximately one inch above the floor.
What about having my drapes puddle on the floor?
That’s fine, but it’s not really the hot trend it used to be and for those of us with kids and pets, those puddles are just dust bunny magnets. If you have a cleaning person or a butler…you go girl!
Want to feel rich every day?
A MyDesignGuide Window Treatment service provides you with 3 unique drapery selections that will meet your Style and your Lifestyle.
Need a DIY Solution
Check out A Soft Place to Land‘s drop cloth drapes. They are drop dead gorgeous!
And Remember, the MyD Dont’s
High water drapes are horrifying!
And you really need to say sayonara to your swags…unless you are decorating an old folks home, banquet room or a super formal home, consider retiring these to the basement. Don’t get me wrong, I did it too, but now we must overcome.
So, we love Art.com for their selection and pricing, but we also triple love Real Art – made by real people and being reproduced on a small scale. Real art makes your home totally you and if you make your way to local artists studios…..it can be affordable.
Check out UGallery.com for just such good stuff. We love the way you can see the art on your walls and return it if you don’t like – shipping paid….This 8×8 real oil painting by Bart Dluhy is colorful, fun and festive.
When purchasing a small piece of art like this have a spot in mind that is small, a pit stop where someone will naturally be standing so that they will stop and enjoy it . By a doorway, a mirror, window, light switch, small section of wall in a kitchen. Or, group it with a number of other pieces of art to make a larger composition. In a larger composition, look for art that is of similar coloring, content or style – combining unique pieces of art into one display is the black diamond of interior design. Have a grouping of art you’d like to share - tell us about it.
Want your MyDesignGuide.com custom Art and Accessory service to include this perfect painting…or something even more like your Style? It’s simple, affordable and totally you.
Try IKAT.
it’s the hip fabric in use in all the magazines like this recent picture from ElleDecor.
It’s just showing up in our favorite online stores, our My Design Guide custom room designs and Art and Accessories plans. We all need to introduce just a bit in our home – to keep it fresh. But, we gotta do it so our house doesn’t look like crazyville. Too much IKAT and your signifcant other will ask you to start wearing a belly dancing outfit and riding a camel.
Fabricadabra.com (what an awesome name) offers a great, detailed definition….I just use pictures:
The colors are fantastic, the patterns large and organic (organic? – see below).
Every room should have about three different pattern fabrics a solid (easy), a geometric (circles, stripes etc…) and an organic pattern (leaves, flowers, IKAT etc..). Introducing pattern like IKAT in pillows, drapes, carpeting or even throws is inexpensive, and makes your room look fresh.
IKAT is great if your Stylefinder Profile is Traditional, Coastal, Modern, Tuscan or even Rustic. Consider introducing this pattern in pillows covers like these from Fabricadabra.Com
Target, Bed Bath and Beyond now offering products in this fabo, fabric. Everything from
breakfast trays to bedding. Something for everyone.
I could easily spend days at a time looking through the magnificent creations on Etsy and pretty much everyone I know has admitted to feeling the same way about it. Quite some time ago I was browsing through the website and came across these awesome removable wall decals by designedDESIGNER.
One of the decals I immediately fell in love with was the Birds in the Urban Forest tree decal (pictured above) that consists of six trees, birds and loose leaves. Perhaps it’s the hermit in me that loves this so much; making me think that if it were possible to bring the outdoors inside, well, I could enjoy the best of both worlds without ever having to leave my house. Another favorite is the Flock of Flying Birds decal (pictured to the right.) These decals really start making you think outside of the box when it comes to how to design your space, whether you put them on the walls of your living room, office or bedroom. They are classy, lend your room to a nice modern, minimalist feel and gives your whole space a great amount of unique character. I love these!
designedDESIGNER also makes great decals specifically for nurseries and when it comes to those decals, I can’t make up my mind on which I like the most. They are all so great and will definitely make any nursery fun, happy and inviting.
designedDESIGNER also does custom projects upon request and all of the decals are made of quality vinyl sticker which can last up to 5 years outdoors and a lifetime indoors–until you decide to take it down. A step-by-step guide is also included with your purchase with simple instructions on application and removal and you will also receive a test decal to get acquainted with before you go to apply the one that will be on your wall for some time to come. All of the decals come in a variety of sizes and you can choose your own colors. So go check out designedDESIGNER if you’re shopping around for removable vinyl wall decals.
This petite family room has lots of architectural charm and character, a fantastic fireplace and flooring, classic columns and recessed lighting galore. Want it!!!! Stephanie and Terrence just moved into this space in Maryland and contacted My Design Guide for a custom room design right away.
Gorgeous flooring and fireplace
Their Stylefinder color palette is cool
Their Design Profile is Traditional, Asian and Modern
Want to know your Design Style? - Take the Stylefinder Quiz.
During their personal consultation with our designer, they said they needed a stylish family room for watching TV, entertaining and relaxing. They planned to install the TV above the fireplace and their big challenge was what sofa to buy and where to put it..
They are SOooooooo smart. How many of us have bought the mongo sized sofa we saw in the 10,000 foot show room and thought it was just perfect, only to get it home and go – Oh, no,…..it’s too big…… ugggghhhh….. (Me! did it with chairs!)? So we created this gorgeous room for these cool, modern traditionalists….
And the Results!
A 5 page custom design that shows Stephanie and Terrance their room in 3D from every angle, every product, every price and how it works with their design style and lifestyle. As, Always, Affordable – chairs from Home Decorators, Paintings from Art.com – all so budget friendly.
I love the drapes. This room is hip, its trendy, but classic at the same time…..aaaahhhhhh. What do you think? We love patterned chairs. They really demonstrate your style and make the room seem like it is professionally designed (which it is!!).
We found the perfect neutral Transitional sofa for them. How gorgeous! And the designer created the most calming, comfortable and cozy family room anyone could imagine. Purchasing a neutral color sofa is smart because it will work with your decor for years to come. You can change out pillows for a song, but sofa….not so much.
MyDesignGuide.com Rule of Thumb:
Every room should have about three different pattern fabrics a solid (easy), a geometric (circles, stripes etc…) and an organic pattern (leaves, flowers, etc..) to give the space interest and a truly rich design. We’ve got Stephanie and Terrence covered! Introducing pattern in accessories or even drapes is inexpensive and safe.
Coffee, cocktails or kids stuff, this room is perfect for it all.
Want your own custom room design - we can even use your existing furniture.
Do you struggle when buying accessories for your home….
Buying and returning – buying and returning…keeping and regretting???? Sounds more like boyfriends not bedrooms. Do you have lots of nice pieces, but just can’t get them to work together? Or has your room just gone EXCESS-ory?
Successories:
The secrets to success when accessorizing your home
1. Less is More – buy fewer and larger art and accessories in your home and rooms will be calm, cool and cohesive.
2. Use accessories to define and create an accent color for your room. 
Like this fabo orange and carry it throughout the room, moving the eye from one point of interest to the next. Elledecor.com
3. Group accessories in odd numbers for display.
4. Picture frames – are an inexpensive way to accessorize. Keep frame finishes mostly of one type (i.e. black, gold, or silver, etc…). Spray paint can make this happen for a song!
5. Succulents (i.e. cactus etc..) are our favorite plants for 
those of us who are busy, busy, busy and have brown thumbs.
6. Consider a My Design Guide Art and Accessory service - we’ll make your room a success for only $79.
7. Candles are a My Design Guide hallmark, elegant and inexpensive in any room .
Now get out there and Successorize!
If you could have your dream home, what would it look like on the outside? A castle, A luxury townhouse, a mountain retreat?
Mine would look like this cute little cottage.
See how the My Design Guide designers and architects turned this faded farmhouse into a dazzling domain!
Why can’t we all be interior designers? Why can’t I just make my room beautiful – I’m smart, I’m not color blind, I watch Sabrina Soto on HGTV.
But I can’t do it. So instead, I move things around in my home CONSTANTLY until I find just the right spot. But it makes my husband crazy. He’s afraid to go to the bathroom in the night because he might trip over something I moved after he went to bed 
The answer is blah, blah, blah–hard work, education and experience… boooooo hissssss. Ok, so I’m not ever going to be an interior designer because I ain’t going back to school for that; instead I’ll just drool over the amazing designs at My Design Guide.
Take this room for example, great cute city living room. Note the paint swatches on the wall – don’t we all do that? 
Click to see the magic process our designers use. It’s amazing and inspiring.
This giveaway is now closed.
Woman Tribune has an awesome new contributor, Champe Granger from My Design Guide, but you may already know this. You may have heard the rumblings through Twitter or on Facebook, or you may have seen the two great articles she has already published here–one on choosing and putting together window treatments on the cheap and a selection of modern, backless barstools.
If you didn’t know about Champe Granger’s contributions to Woman Tribune, you do now and you can consider this her official Woman Tribune welcoming party–and we’re officially kicking it all off with a pretty awesome giveaway I know you’ll be excited about.
My Design Guide was created by Champe Granger and Roger Bouchard, who are serial renovators, entrepreneurs and who LOVE a bargain. They created My Design Guide for those of us who want real, professional, custom interior design, but don’t want to pay a lot for it. The designers who work with My Design Guide are degreed and accredited interior designers who have attended four year design or masters degrees programs from top design universities throughout the country. When you work with My Design Guide, you can guarantee you are working with the real professionals and you are getting an amazing deal!
A consultation with My Design Guide will include 3D pictures of your revamped space, along with why a specific type of addition was suggested and why it will work for you room. You will also receive a shopping list of all the suggested items that are seen in the images from stores that everyone knows and has access to, and that also won’t break the bank, including Target, Walmart, Pottery Barn and Pier 1 Imports, among others.
My Design Guide has been generous enough to sponsor this giveaway where five winners will receive a $50 gift card to My Design Guide.
Remember, My Design Guide prides themselves on being able to sniff out awesome bargains and being able to give you a quality and professional custom interior design, so $50 will actually go quite a long way with them. Maybe there is a space in your home that is driving you nuts. It doesn’t feel quite right and you know it needs something, but aren’t sure what that is. Or maybe you don’t know which sofa or accessories would look best in your space. Get a My Design Guide Quick Room Fix. Just by emailing your room pictures and telling them the problem you’re having, you will receive specific, affordable action items, products, paints and other recommendations that will save your space and your sanity.
If you saw the after pictures of when I tackled my not-so glamorous bathroom and felt the same way about yours, My Design Guide’s bathroom decoration can help you out by showing you how to decorate with fixtures, art, accessories, paint and window treatments.
To win one of five $50 My Design Guide gift cards, just go through their Style Finder and tell us what your style is in the comments. [REQUIRED]
Additional Entries: [Leave a separate comment for each additional entry.]
- Tell us what room in your home could use a little makeover.
- Visit My Design Guide’s Design Gallery and tell us what redesign is your favorite.
- “Like” My Design Guide on Facebook
- “Like” Woman Tribune on Facebook
- Follow @WomanTribune on Twitter
- Tweet about this giveaway. Feel free to use the following tweet or write your own. [Can be done once per day.]
Win 1 of 5 $50 gift cards from My Design Guide at @WomanTribune: http://tinyurl.com/2g2y456 ends 6/17
- Blog about this giveaway with a link to this giveaway post and to My Design Guide and their Style Finder. [Worth 5 entries, so leave 5 comments.]
This giveaway ends Thursday, June 17th at 11:59PM EST. This giveaway is open to all those over the age of 18. The winners will be contacted by email and have 48 hours (2 days) to respond with their mailing address. If I don’t hear back from the winners within that time, another winner will be picked.
Full Contest Disclaimer
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