Oh how I have dreamed of a creamy bedroom for so long. Thats my favorite part of a new house. Its a fresh new canvas to create a place you love that represents what you like in the present. I knew the feeling I wanted long before I knew any of the specifics. I knew I wanted light, but I didn't want white. I know the "white everything" trend is in, but it just feels cold to me. I wanted it to feel clean while still embodying the warmth of a traditional home. So where did that leave me? Cream, but not yellow. I wanted just enough pigment for it not to be white. I was thinking along the lines of vanilla or cream cheese frosting. Something that would go with all of the wood tones we love but also with whites. I came across navajo white on Julie Blanner's blog and loved how she used it in her mudroom, so I tried it in our laundry room. The laundry room became my favorite room in the whole house and thats when I knew that was my color. We have more natural light in our bedroom than the laundry, so I knew it would be light and bright like I wanted. Even though Ive repainted a room a dozen times, Im always amazed by how different a room looks with fresh paint.
Please excuse the mess in the first photo, I almost didn't include it because I had already started breaking down the room and our bedding and stuff is everywhere (embarrassing) but I realized I didn't have a before photo so thats the one I had to use. You can see the dark khaki on the walls. Im not sure the exact name, but I feel like this was popular in the early 2000's. There was a similar color in our last house.. everywhere. Our room always felt dirty and dark especially paired with the carpet. Im not a carpet girl. No matter how clean it was it just didn't FEEL clean. The trim was an off white/cream and didn't pop. I want WHITE trim.. not stark but a true creamy white. I blame in on the fact that I grew up in a 1890's Victorian style house and in that style house the trim is true white. I knew I needed to repaint everything to acheive the feeling I wanted.. ceiling to baseboards. The walls make the biggest difference, but the trim is the icing on the cake to me when it comes to painting a room. If you choose the right undertones it makes your wall color "wow" even more. We started with Behr Papier Blanc in flat for the ceiling and switched to high gloss for the trim and baseboards.
Painting the tray ceiling was challenging. You could easily get to it with a ladder but painting all of the trim especially the bottom trim that wrapped around was tedious. Ive found that a brush can make or break painting. My favorite brush is a Zibra 2 inch angled brush with the short handle. We have tons of paint brushes and this one by far is my favorite because it doesn't hold paint like other brushes in its bristles so I don't have to worry about drips and I feel like one brush stroke goes further in covering the area, so less paint is wasted.
I painted over the carpet without having to heavily cover it by using a microfiber roller. I have had several people ask me how I get such good coverage in just one coat and that's the secret. It doesn't have to be an expensive brand but it does have to be microfiber. I had so many issues with little baby paint spatters before I switched to those rollers. It's made all of the difference.
We still have to warm it up with a little art and decide what to hang on the walls, but the end result was exactly what I wanted. It makes my antique dressers pop. It's not too light to go with my linen bedding, but its light enough to feel bright and clean. Now for a few colorful throw pillows and pictures and I'll be set. I definitely feel like my bedroom makeover was a success!
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