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Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired Bedroom Makeover – Part 2 The Reveal

July 10, 2020
Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired Bedroom Makeover - Part 2 The Reveal - Crane Bird Wallpaper Woodchip & Magnolia

AD | Crane Bird Rose Pink/Cream Wallpaper gifted from Woodchip and Magnolia for our bedroom makeover.

Welcome back to Part 2 of our Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired bedroom makeover. If you stopped by last week, you would have seen the horror that was the bedroom we’d inherited from the previous owners of our Thatched cottage. You can read it here if you missed it.

Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired Bedroom Makeover – Part 2 The Reveal

Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired Bedroom Makeover - Crane Bird Wallpaper feature wall from Woodchip & Magnolia

I’m super thrilled with how strictly limited on budget and lockdown measurements, we somehow managed to create an oasis of tranquillity with little more than three rolls of wallpaper and two tins of paint, a tin primer and leftover ceiling paint from our teen’s room. Obviously, there was a lot of hard graft involved. Mainly, in terms of getting the room ready for decorating.

Feature Wall – Bird Crane Wallpaper – Woodchip & Magnolia

Crane Bird in Rose Pink and Cream Wallpaper - Woodchip & Magnolia and Standing Crane planter
Crane Bird in Rose Pink and Cream Wallpaper – Woodchip & Magnolia

As much as this post is about showing you the end result, I thought, I’d also show you how we came to achieve what has turned out to be our bedroom of dreams. Of course, the star of our bedroom makeover is the Crane Bird wallpaper. It’s intricate detail inspired by the orient has breathed life into our bedroom space. I also hope that for those of you that haven’t wallpapered before, you might be inspired to give wallpapering ago in your own homes too!

Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired Bedroom Makeover – Part 2 The Reveal

Preparation & Essential Wallpapering Guide…

Remove Existing Wallpaper

When it comes to wallpapering, you might be tempted to wallpaper over existing wallcoverings. My best advice is don’t! You might find that you end up with your new wallpaper not adhering to the existing paper or worse, both layers come away. There’s also the problem that your existing wallpaper may just show through the new which will mean all your efforts will have been for nothing.

Another key consideration when wallpapering is to make sure your walls are as smooth as can be. Sand any obvious lumps and bumps and fill any holes that you come across. And if removing existing wallpaper, maybe invest in a steam wallpaper remover. They’re great at stripping the walls in no time. Also, use a good scraper to rid the walls of any residual glue from pre-existing paper too.

With walls that are almost 100 years old, and years of bad decorating, we did have our work cut out for us in terms of sanding and filling cracks. What we hadn’t expected was a large gaping hole that the previous owners had wallpapered over without ever having filled it in. This probably explained their choice of the embossed glittery number that was there when we moved in!

Priming & Painting

Once the hubs had filled, sanded and stripped, it was a case of cracking on with the painting!

First up, it’s important to paint ALL the trim/woodwork before wallpapering. As well as any connecting walls and ceiling. You won’t want to be trying to cut in after you’ve put your wallpaper up.

The hubs primed all the trim, doors and radiator before painting with Farrow & Ball’s Nancy’s Blushes.

DECORATING TIP: BEFORE priming surfaces, give them a quick sanding so the paint adheres to them better. Essential for surfaces such as MDF.

upcycled sink

The modern sink unit also got a lick of primer ready to be painted in Yeabridge Green from Farrow & Ball.

upcycling fitted wardrobes

And also the fitted wardrobe frame.

As we were only papering one wall to create a feature, the hubs had his work cut out for him. Let’s just say it would have been less time consuming and easier too have wallpapered the whole room.

Wallpapering…

Crane bird in rose pink and cream from Woodchip & Magnolia

So after what seemed like a zillion coats of paint later, we were finally ready for wallpapering. The fantastic thing with Woodchip & Magnolia wallpaper is that it’s literally a breeze to hang. That’s down to the quality and the fact that it’s paste the wall not paste the paper.

Equipment Needed

Wallpaper Paste – make sure you buy wallpaper paste that is for paste the wall. We still had a tub leftover from Brewers when we had our garden room decorated. It’s easy to get, and would highly recommend, Brewers, who were absolutely brilliant with ordering in the Farrow & Ball paint. They managed to get it to us within a week!

List of Necessary Equipment

  • Scissors – A pair of sharp large bladed scissors to cut the wallpaper.
  • Sharp Stanley type Knife – For trimming off the excess wallpaper
  • Wallpaper Tool for edging- the hubs has an old piece of shaped Formica that a decorator friend gave him years ago which he still uses.
  • Pasting Table – for laying out your paper NOT pasting.
  • Long rule & The hubs used a spirit level to mark and cut paper
  • Pasting Brush
  • Plumb bob & line
  • Damp clean sponge/cloth (we used a microfibre cloth and sponge)

How To Hang Wallpaper For a Feature Wall – Video

I’ve put together a little video of how the Long-Suffering Hubs and I hung our feature wallpaper below. Hopefully, it will encourage you to give it a go yourself. It’s honestly so rewarding and depending on how large an area you are wallpapering is done in hours rather than days. I love the instant transition from a blank wall to what I see, as large scale art in the form of wallpaper, especially when it comes to Woodchip and Magnolia’s unique and creative designs.

Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired Bedroom Makeover – Part 2 The Reveal

Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired Bedroom Makeover - Part 2 The Reveal Before & after

It’s easy to forget how nondescript and uninspiring our bedroom was before we set about changing it. I can’t tell you how much we have fallen in love with our bedroom. Transforming it from a throwback to the ’80s that lacked any consideration, for the era or indeed the architecture of our thatched cottage, to create a romantic setting with Woodchip and Magnolia’s Crane Bird Rose Pink/Cream Wallpaper. This beautiful wallpaper inspired by the Orient is a show stopper.

Inspired by our cottage garden that we view from our bedroom balcony, this room now feels connected with its surroundings as well as more fitting its architecture and era. My slightly bolder colour choices adds a modern twist that brings this sunny room alive.

Shopping Your Home…

Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired Bedroom Makeover - Part 2 The Reveal - Crane Bird Woodchip & Magnolia feature wall

I basically shopped my home for pieces that we already owned for our updated bedroom decor. It’s the best kind of shopping even with lockdown restrictions being eased.

Bird Decor…

Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired Bedroom Makeover - Part 2 The Reveal - Crane Bird Rose Pink and Cream from Woodchip and Magnolia
Big Bird has found a new home!

I have an absolute love for bird decor and received this handcrafted standing Crane Bottle holder for my lockdown 50th birthday. He’s affectionately known as Big Bird. He now takes pride of place next to our Woodchip & Magnolia Crane Bird feature wall after having travelled around quite a bit in search of his forever home. I think he’s most definitely found it here in our bedroom.

Mixing Styles

Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired Bedroom Makeover - Part 2 The Reveal Crane Bird in rose pink and cream from Woodchip & Magnolia

I love mixing styles with pieces that we have collected over the years. This little japanese lady from a charity shop works well with modern touches such as our Barcelona Lamp from Lime Lace.

DESIGN TIP: Fill your spaces with meaningful objects that will bring you joy. Don’t fall into the trap of over theming your spaces otherwise they’ll look something out of a catalogue and will lack interest and will be less personalised. Try experimenting with different styles including old with new. That way you’ll create a unique and interesting home.

Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired Bedroom Makeover - Part 2 The Reveal - Crane Bird in rose pink and cream from Woodchip & Magnolia

You may recall this vintage plate design from our previous bedroom from Alijoedesigns that I framed using Va Va Frome Peal Lowe wallpaper from Woodchip & Magnolia. This wonderful art adds a modern vintage twist in terms of decor whilst adding a touch of additional pattern to the room. It’s also a reminder of our old bedroom and the start of our love for Woodchip & Magnolia’s wallpaper designs.

Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired Bedroom Makeover - Part 2 The Reveal - Crane Bird wallpaper Woodchip and Magnolia

DESIGN TIP: Staying true to what you love when you buy for your home rather than buying what’s on-trend, will ensure years of enjoyment. It also allows you to shop your home even when you change up your decor as you’ll find your most coveted pieces will fit in with your own personal style.

Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired Bedroom Makeover - Part 2 The Reveal - Crane Bird wallpaper Woodchip and Magnolia

Our rather unique diving man from Rockett St George gets to enjoy this space too. He never fails to make me smile which we should all consider when designing our homes. It does wonders for our wellbeing.

Interconnecting Door

Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired Bedroom Makeover - Part 2 The Reveal - Dressing table and Joan Baa Stool

My Swoon dressing table and Joan Beauty Baa Stool are perfect for this space where we have the interconnecting door through to my dressing room/guest bedroom. I also used another plate design I had bought for my old office from Alijoedesigns and you couldn’t have gotten a more perfect match for our new bedroom decor.

Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired Bedroom Makeover - Part 2 The Reveal -Dressing Table and Baa Stool

Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired Bedroom Makeover – Upcycled Wardrobes

Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired Bedroom Makeover - Part 2 The Reveal - Upcycled fitted wardrobes using Crane Bird wallpaper Woodchip and Magnolia and Nancy's Blushes Farrow and Ball
Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired Bedroom Makeover - Part 2 The Reveal - Upcycled fitted wardrobes using Crane Bird wallpaper Woodchip and Magnolia and Nancy's Blushes Farrow and Ball
Close up of Crane Bird wallpaper – Woodchip & Magnolia | Nancy’s Blushes Farrow & Ball and Handles – Downing Reynolds

One of our greatest achievements with our bedroom makeover, was updating our outdated mahogany fitted wardrobes. I won’t lie the amount of painting involved was laborious but most definitely worth the effort. The easiest part was wallpapering the doors.

Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired Bedroom Makeover - Part 2 The Reveal - Upcycled fitted wardrobes using Crane Bird wallpaper Woodchip and Magnolia and Nancy's Blushes Farrow and Ball

I’ll be writing a separate post on how we went about up-cycling our wardrobes with my next post.

Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired Bedroom Makeover - Part 2 The Reveal upcycled fitted wardrobes
I love how subtle changes in light affects Farrow & Ball’s Yeabridge Green and Nancy’s Blushes from darker to lighter variances as the sun hits this room.

What I love about our trying out our new found up-cycle skills is that we have ended up with unique and bespoke wardrobes that we wouldn’t have been able to buy off the peg. The fact that we also saved ourselves a considerable amount of money was a wonderful feeling too! It’s literally gotten my eyeing up my antiquated kitchen cupboards… watch this space!

Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired Bedroom Makeover – Upcycled Sink

Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired Bedroom Makeover - Part 2 The Reveal - Upcycled sink and wardrobes

You may recall from my previous post that we had inherited a modern sink unit that again didn’t fit in with the look and feel of our thatched cottage. What with lockdown and not wanting to get any trades in for obvious reasons, we decided we would upcycle the sink. Painting it the same colour as the walls (Yeabridge Green), we’ve helped it blend in with its surroundings.

Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired Bedroom Makeover - Part 2 The Reveal - Upcycled sink

I’m still in two minds as to whether we will replace it with a vintage style washstand from the likes of Burlington Bathrooms, but for now, we’re very happy with the result of our efforts. At least it doesn’t stand out like a saw thumb and of course, we have saved money in the process.

Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired Bedroom Makeover - Part 2 The Reveal  - cottage bedroom

The only missing crucial part of our bedroom makeover are window treatments. As an interim measure, we have put up the old roller blinds for now. My dilemma is that if you look closely, you’ll see that we have the overhang of the thatch in view. For me is an integral part of our home and would be a shame to hide it with the likes of roman blinds. There’s also the case of the mirror above the washstand which if we chose curtains would be too close. It may be we end up with a new roller blind to this window and vertical blinds to the balcony door… for now, I’m still pondering.

Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired Bedroom Makeover – A Thank You

Romantic Whimsical Nature Inspired Bedroom Makeover - Part 2 The Reveal - Crane Bird wallpaper Woodchip and Magnolia

Woodchip & Magnolia’s passion for colour, pattern and your walls will ensure you’ll be banishing any woodchip and magnolia that you might have lurking around or inherited. It’s time to be rid of them for good and make your home a more colourful and interesting place to live in.

The Interior Editor – Woodchip & Magnolia

On an end note, I wanted to say a massive thank you to Nina at Woodchip & Magnolia. I’ve been a huge fan of their wallpaper designs for as long as I’ve been writing this blog, which happens to be four years this week! Nina has put her heart and soul into her award-winning independent wallpaper company and it shows with every design they offer. They literally live and breath their love of creating the most wonderful and unique wallpaper designs. If you’d like to read more about this fantastic company, you can read about them here. Or, if you’re biting at the bit to turn your own walls into wonderful masterpieces, head straight to their website here.

I hope you’ll join me next week with my Part 3 on How To Upcycle Your Wardrobes with wallpaper and paint. And don’t forget you can also save the image below to Pinterest too if you’ve been inspired by today’s post.

Thanks as always for stopping by! Until next time…

Maria xxx

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