Master Bedroom Design (Renter-Friendly) + Moodboard

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Well, we moved and I’m still writing the full blog post to share lots of my thoughts on selling our home. Until then, I’m getting a little inspiration to work in our current home. We are currently renting and our plan is to build a home in the very near future. Now that we are renting there won’t be any major home projects (which is great for us), but there are still plenty of things we can do. So, no painting the ceilings black for the near future. However, everything I’m going to share with you is renter-friendly!

Master Bedroom Before

When you can’t significantly change the walls with materials and paint, you’re left with actually a lot of ways to make changes in a space. Textiles, textiles, textiles! I’ve been forced to think of new ways to make changes in our space and they actually aren’t new ideas after all. Window treatments, furniture, bedding, art, rugs, blankets, and decor all can make a big impact in a space. Our current bedroom seems rather boring with it’s gray walls, so I’ll be looking to update some of the above mentioned textiles. Previously, everything looked great against the bold green board and batten wall we built. In our new home, I’ve had to completely rethink the space to make it an appealing and warm. Just because we are renting doesn’t mean our space can’t have personality! Enter a new master bedroom design…

The Emma Mattress

Full transparency moment…this makeover started with needing a new mattress. We’ve been waking up with sore hips and wonky backs. Low and behold our mattress has a dip in the middle! I’m not sure if it’s due to boxspring support or just that our current mattress which is 6 years old is giving out on us. The edges of the mattress are comfortable but the middle is caving in. Thankfully, one of my partners, Emma, reached out to see if I’d review their Emma CliMax Hybrid Mattress…definitely! So at the core of this master bedroom design will be a decent mattress. We literally are counting down the days!

The DIY Headboard

Then things snowballed into building a new headboard, looking for a new dresser, new bedding, new curtains, and a rug. Wow, that escalated real quick. To save money I’ll be doing DIY projects for things that I can re-use or make, and I’ll work with some of my favorite brands to showcase their offerings too. So back to the headboard. The easy route would be to re-cover my current upholstered headboard. You can read all about it here and watch how I swapped the fabric here. However, I’m ready to retire the current headboard style and build a wingback version with graphic and colorful fabric.

The build for the headboard will be fairly easy since I understand the steps involved to make an upholstered headboard. The most difficult part of the build will be attaching the wings to the main frame and picking a fabric choice. I ordered fabric samples from Milton & King and love all the options they provide. I’m VERY fond of the Holy Kereru Fabric in Berries (seen above). The rich colors and graphic design is EXACTLY what I want in this space. Remember, we aren’t painting any walls so all the colors has to come from textiles and furniture!

Ellington 6-Drawer Dresser

The Dresser

Our current dresser is in okay condition but could be a lot better. I purchased it second hand and have already painted it twice. So I started looking for a new dresser thinking that there has to be a decent dresser for an affordable price. I really didn’t have plans to do any projects with dresser but it looks like that’s going to happen now. The dressers I really liked (quality, 6+ drawers, real wood, and cane or fluted design) are pretty expensive. I looked at a lot of dressers!

The West Elm Ellington 6 Drawer Dresser was by far my favorite but the costs was $2300 after tax and shipping. I slept on it for a night and woke up thinking maybe I could reconstruct our current dresser into a fluted dresser. Also, I don’t want to make any big purchases in this home with our future plans of building so that’s another reason to hold off. DIY it is! So, the plan is to use fluted/reeded molding, a fun paint color, and new handles to update the look of my current dresser. Do you think I can pull it off? I’m a little nervous but very hopeful! Follow my Instagram stories for daily updates.

The Rug

For the rug, I’m happy to be partnering with Boutique Rugs on some lovely options. For now, I have the Ridgemark Area rug as my main rug option for the space. I know that because I am picking very bold and colorful fabric for the headboard, a neutral rug is in order. It would also be nice to have something that feels good underfoot since we have hard flooring. It’s a little nerve racking picking out a rug early in the design process so I’m a little nervous. I’ll be sure to keep you updated though.

Bedding, Curtains, and Decor

The other bedroom items I’m finalizing are bedding, curtains, and decor. I definitely want linen sheets and possibly a linen duvet. This linen sheet set on Amazon seems to have really good reviews, in addition to the matching linen duvet. I love the color options that are available and of course I love linen. Our last pair of linen sheets finally got worn out after a few years but I loved them.

As for curtains, the plan is to purchase these Half Price Drapes that I love. I have them in my bedroom now and my daughter has them in her bedroom too. I love the quality, price, and all the color options available. They are very plush and feel very high-end. I can’t recommend these curtains enough. Though I’m not sure what color I will choose yet, I’m confident these are the one.

Arch Metal Wall Mirror

Lastly, I’ll finalize decor over time. I’ll be on the lookout for some decor for the dresser and nightstands. I really like to be very hands on with decor at the end so I’ll likely visit local stores for final options. Once I see the colors, fabrics, and pieces come together, then I can make a good decision about what decor should go where. Since we don’t have as much space as before, I want to be thoughtful about everything in the room. If I’m thoughtful about what I buy there is a higher chance I’ll love it for longer.

Whew! Now that we got through all of that talking, I’m sharing the final mood board with you with some of the items I’ve chosen for our master bedroom design. And let’s not forget our new mattress that will allow us to feel better when we wake. We really need a good night’s rest with no bad side effects! Let’s hope that my design choices are right or very close to it. I’m so ready to have a more vibrant and comfy bedroom… a little inspiring place to go after a long day.