When I was a little girl, my grandparent’s bedroom set enthralled me.  The set is made of rich African Mahogany and has intricate carvings and details. 

A Wedding Gift

My grandfather bought it as a wedding gift for my grandmother in 1945.  She fell in love with the set but worried about the cost.  World War II was still raging, and she was a child of the Great Depression.  She picked out a second bedroom set but wasn’t ready to purchase it- her heart wasn’t in it. Nevertheless, she couldn’t bring herself to purchase the African Mahogany set because of the cost. 

My grandmother would go look at her beloved bedroom set at the store in the weeks leading up to her wedding. One day, there was a sold slip hanging from the ornate footboard. This devastated my grandmother.  But ever the pragmatist, she told my grandfather that they should purchase the backup bedroom set as soon as possible. She wanted a bed to sleep upon on her wedding night.  My grandfather smiled and told her he already put the order in for the set.  My grandmother was happy to hear that and started to put the African Mahogany set far from her mind. 

On her wedding night, the African Mahogany bedroom set was waiting for her. She hadn’t realized that when my grandfather said he put the order in for their bedroom, he meant that he bought the set of her dreams.  My grandmother was overjoyed.

A Bygone Era

My grandparent’s bedroom is dark with intricate carvings and feet.  The set has a vanity and a gentleman’s chair, which when I was a child, seemed so romantic.  These pieces are from a bygone era.  I would spend hours playing in my grandparents’ bedroom, sitting at the vanity, and pretending to be someone else.

The Next Generation

My grandmother made it clear that she wanted me to have her bedroom set when the time came.  She had made the comment on many occasions, but one day, there was a look of business in her eyes.  It happened to be the day I took her coffin shopping- more than 10 years before she would pass away.   My grandmother wanted to make sure I knew her wishes, and she also wanted to get a deal.  She was forever a coupon clipper. 

When the time came for me to take over the set, I moved it into a spare bedroom. I told my daughter it would be hers when she turned eleven.  My daughter was not yet six years old, and she would dutifully dust the set with a 70-year-old paintbrush every week, dreaming of the day when it would be hers.

I asked my daughter how she wanted to design her big girl bedroom.  She wanted a timeless look and looked to Paris for inspiration.  We started looking online for inspiration and created a mood board.  Little by little, we purchased the accessories that would define my daughter’s room: artwork, lamps, a coverlet, a duvet, and a new fan, actually it’s called a fandelier.  The room slowly took shape and became her own. In my heart, I know that my grandparents are smiling to see their beloved set cherished by a new generation. 

Love is a worthwhile investment.

BEFORE & AFTER

Paint

I painted the room in Benjamin Moore Woodland Green 459 when we first moved in before the bedroom set arrived. I loved the warmth and depth of color and knew that it would contrast well with the deep color of the antique furniture. To me, the color is timeless and would provide the perfect backdrop for whichever direction my daughter wanted to go.

Old Vanity and Gentleman’s Chairs

This is the original chair with the original fabric. It is over 75 years old. First order of business… strip the chair to its bones and bolster and reupholster. I went to the professionals at Re-upholstery and Restoration, and chose complementary fabric for each chair. I didn’t want them to be a perfect match. In an ideal world, I would have treated and restored the wood. Its varnish is peeling in places and could use a little love. Unfortunately, it wasn’t in the budget this year.

Lights, Camera, Action

Next up, we needed to invest in a new ceiling light. My daughter decided on a Paris theme for her room. But what does that mean? We started clipping pictures from home decor catalogs and pinning images on Pinterest.

It became clear that my daughter equated Paris with Glam. So we started looking into glamorous fans. I will be honest, that is a lot harder than you would think. But once we stumbled upon fandeliers it was all over. Fandeliers were just what the doctor ordered. We ordered ours from Wayfair. We also purchased a ceiling medallion from Wayfair.

The new table lamp on the bureau and the floor lamp were sourced from Luna Rosa in Hoboken, NJ. Luna Rosa is a great home decor store. Diane the owner is wonderful to work with. The table lamp is crackled glass and has an oblong shade. It is glamorous and interesting to look at. Definitely, one of a kind. I eyed the floor lamp for months. It became clear that in this reimagined glamorous and chic Parisian inspired room, both silver and gold would work. So we opted for a brass toned floor lamp with a structurally interesting shade. My daughter loves that it is turned on by a foot toggle.

Art

We sourced art from a few different online sources. My daughter and I love Georgianna Lane’s photography. Her photographs of Paris were a natural stop for some Parisian flair. Georgianna Lane has a shop on Etsy. We ordered the 5×5 prints and framed them in gold square frames from HomeGoods. We also purchased the artwork over the bed from Homesense.

Bedding and Curtains

My daughter loves hotel beds. So when it came time to source the bedding, she wanted the look and feel of a luxurious hotel bed. One way to elevate a bed is with European pillows. They are large square pillows that are amazing for layering. My daughter fell in love with a coverlet she saw in the window of Luna Rosa in Hoboken. It was the perfect shimmery grey silver and has an intricate circular pattern that is tone on tone so busy but not a scene-stealer.

We coupled the coverlet with a Restoration Hardware Teen tasseled duvet and matching European pillow shams. It brings just the right amount of drama. We also found a pink ombre faux fur blanket that is thrown on the gentleman’s chair when not in use.

With the bed we went silver so for the curtains we went gold. Potterybarn Teen had really cute gold tasseled curtains.

Accessories

My daughter’s room is a work in progress. While the main pieces are the mainstays and will not be changed, my daughter will grow and change and the room will grow and change with her. But that also applied to her little girl’s room. There were pieces from her old room that we incorporated into her new room.

A few years ago, I purchased a jewelry rack from Potterybarn Teen. She updated the jewelry but kept the organizer.

My daughter loves her heart wink pillow from Sugar Rush. A spectacular local candy and accessory shop in Madison, NJ. To this she added a pillow from Forever 21.

Every teen needs to know what their week entails. Potterybarn Teen had a great Whiteboard pinboard calendar. Checks all of the boxes.

Some other accessories to round out the Glamorous Parisian Chic room decor my daughter liked.

Ta Da…

Check out @talkingwmyhands for a room tour!

xoxoxo,