all of the sources for the boys room makeover

Now that the boys’ room is finished and you’ve seen how it turned out {thanks for all of the nice comments, by the way!} today is a good day to share sources and answer a few questions.

One thing you should know about my approach to decorating: nothing is precious or crazy expensive. That’s just not our style. I think even if we did have an unlimited budget, I’m not sure I could spend hundreds of dollars on sheets for my boys’ beds anyway. The challenge of putting a classic and stylish room together without spending a small fortune makes you get a little creative, work a little harder, and the finished result is always so rewarding.

I hope you see some doable ideas here, affordable design and inspiration to use what you have and fill in with a few diys and a couple of purchases.

On to the sources … broken up into categories.

bunkbeds // purchased from costco 6 years ago. I wish I had a link for where to find them, but I couldn’t find one.
dresser // old
shelves & brackets // ikea {see details here}
chair // old
woven cube // diy shown here

ceiling light // depot ceiling lamp potterbarn kids
floor lamp // pharmacy floor lamp target
reading lights // hektar wall spotlight ikea
table lamp // rounded turned wood lamp target

sheets // ticking stripe sheet set target
duvet // striped duvet west elm
blanket // swiss military style wool blanket the sportsman’s guide

be brave canvas // lindsay letters
camping art // hail tiger *ENTER DISCOUNT CODE JONES15 FOR 15% OFF*
stamped wood round // diy shown here
chalk antler print // the burlap bungalow
swiss cross canvas // painted by me
pinecone print // cut from an old letterpress card
compass canvas // chalk on black painted canvas
cardboard antlers // jdc|monthly october project
constellation print // paper source gift wrap

zinc letters // diy shown here
lantern // morkt lantern ikea
mini drawers // local craft store. There is not a source on the tag – I’m so sorry!
lockers // urban outfitters mini locker that is OUT OF STOCK. Boo. This one is a fun alternative.
deer pillow // lulu & georgia
plaid throw // hermine throw ikea
rope mirror // nate berkus port mirror target {on clearance now}
embroidered pillow // target {not available online}
raccoon // folksy forester manhattan toy
jute rug // tarnby rug ikea

A few more details …

I struggled for a while trying to come up with a good window covering option. The bunk beds overlap the window on both sides and so in the end, I decided to do a full wall of curtains to simplify the lines. My mom and I brainstormed how we could get the look of a canvas tent, without it being too obvious. We used a large drop cloth cut in half and stitched with red thread for that industrial/outdoorsy feel. Then Ryan and my dad stapled the whole thing to a 2 x 4 cut to the size of the wall and installed it at the ceiling. With curtain tie back hooks turned sideways, I can now open each side and loop over the hook to open the curtains.

The entire setup cost less than $30.

Many of you asked about where the boys toys and clothes are stored. Their room is mostly toy-free since we have a playroom to hold all of their play things. As for their clothes, each boy has a drawer for their shirts and the rest are stored in their very unattractive closet.

Pajamas go in the wire drawers {just thrown in – I’ve given up on folding pj’s}, each boy has a shelf for their pants {a system that is quickly needing updating as they grow and their pants are getting too big to fit}, and sweatshirts/sweaters/button up shirts are hung. On the top shelf are random too-big items or off-season sports uniforms. Nothing fancy, but it works.

Now let’s chat for a second about the cork wall. It was a pain. I’m glad I did it, but it did not go as smoothly as I would have hoped.

The people from WidgetCo sent me a stack of cork wall tiles which I was really excited about because 1. they were self-adhesive which makes them easy to install and 2.they were super thick so the tacks wouldn’t go through the cork and into the wall when putting up photos.

So one saturday a few weeks ago I spent a few hours putting up the tiles.

The peeling and sticking part was easy – cutting the tiles to size was a bit trickier, but after a couple of hours, the wall was finished.

We left for a few hours and when we returned, the tiles had all come down. I tried to re-stick them, but they came down once again. I contacted Widgetco and they said that sometimes you have to add some extra adhesive depending on your wall surface. They sent me out a pack of replacement tiles and last weekend, I tackled the project once again.

I tried gorilla glue. They fell down. I tried hot glue. They fell down. Finally, I tapped in a little finish nail to each corner and that did the trick. I should have just done that from the beginning. I would still recommend the tiles because they are great quality and there are not a lot of other options available, but maybe test the adhesive on one tile before taking the time to do an entire wall.

Whew. That was a lot of info in one post. Hope it is helpful. As always, let me know if you have any more questions!