Sherry and I were totally charmed by this room that Anna made over for her two boys. Partially because we don’t have a son (well, we do have a furry one, but he doesn’t have his own room) – so it’s always fun to see decor for the other chromosome combo. And also because she squeezed lots of cool ideas and details in a room that could’ve easily been overlooked. So keep your eyes peeled for a chalkboard closet, a cozy desk space, and some stylish storage.
Here’s Anna’s email:
I just finished making over my two sons’ room and I wanted to share. Here’s what the room used to look like (on a messy day!). There were lots of unused corners and we knew we could get more function out of it if we really thought things through.
Here’s where we ended up. Boy rooms are always exciting to me since there aren’t as many of them “out there” as girl rooms. This did take me about 6 weeks since (1) I’m lazy and (2) I DIYed a lot of the things… the curtains, the duvet covers, the desk.
There’s only so much a girl can do in a day for a room that’s not even for her!
The small details like the personalized hooks and the book rack on the wall are definitely functional. Aka: less stuff on the floor!
Here’s a shot of that desk we made for that corner next to the bed. It definitely makes the whole room more usable.
And here’s the art on the wall above it (and to the right of it):
Thanks for looking, guys! – Anna
Thanks so much for sharing Anna! You can check out more pics here on her blog as well as a full source list here. I of course was particularly drawn to the map (which reminded me of this one by Kate in this Reader Redesign from 2009) along with the bike and the seven art (perhaps this room was meant for me circa 1992?). And Sherry was loving everything from the cool lighting choices to the chalkboard closet doors and those striped drapes. What’s your favorite part?
Mmmm, those curtains. Must have.
She did an awesome job with this space! But my favorite part, honestly, is the quote she chose for the closet doors (even if it probably changes). I love that she’s promoting that kind of mindset in her children at a young age. :)
ditto.
Fun to see a boy room! We’ve got two boys and bunk beds and we’ll be moving soon (hopefully) so it’s good to get some new ideas! I’ll be pinning this one…
I love everything about it, esp. since I’m thinking of re-doing my boys’ shared room.
I am in the middle of redesigning my little boy’s shared room! This is a great inspiration room.
Any idea where she got the wire book rack? It is super cool!!!
Here’s hoping she drops by with that info!
xo,
s
She mentioned in the middle of this post that she found them at TJ Maxx:
http://www.takethesidestreet.com/2012/03/boys-room-details-sources.html
Yes, I am stalking her big time right now ;-)
Found it at TJ Maxx one day… sort of wish I had bought another ;)
I’ve seen some just like it at Homegoods, TJ Maxx, or Marshalls
I love that room. Anna has one of my favorite blogs.
I am loving the “industrial” light and of course being a lover of all things books, the lower bunk book shelf!
My “next to the last” son is shipping out to the Army soon, and I’ll have a free room, I mean empty room for the grands. This setup would be great. After reading Ana White’s blog, I’m thinking we can tackle making a similar bunk bed set.
Great Job and very inspiring!
Her boys room turned out beautifully! She should be proud. I love what a difference just swapping out the rug made and I loved the map and the quote on the closet, that’s a fun and great way to write inspirational quotes for young men!!
I love the mini book shelf in the lower bunk! I have two boys at home so I will definitely be borrowing some of Anna’s ideas. Well done!
I really love the curtains and overall functionality of the space!
BTW – I finally finished my Pinterest Challenge project! http://www.attemptsatdomestication.com/snails-pace/
Fun!
xo
s
Love the map!
With three very messy boys (the messiest two sharing a bedroom) I so appreciate this room! My favourite bits being the wall racks for the books (awesome idea, so much easier for them to throw the books (preferably gently…but they are boys)into rather than nagging them to put their books back on the shelves), the chalkboard wardrobe (I want one!) and I’m loving that adorable red step too.
I’m curious as to who think will be the next Design Star? Sherry, I could see you and Danielle being BFF’s– she’s got great taste and is slightly quirky!
I like her! I also like Hilari and Britany and Mikel. Basically I play a lot of favorites. Haha.
xo,
s
What a great boys room! I love the art!
Haha. I love that she admits that she’s lazy. Hooray for honesty!
It’s weird how much I’ve grown to love the idea of kids sharing bedrooms. I like the thought of buying a small(er than most) house and making it work for a family. The whole McMansion thing has never appealed to me, mainly because I love little old Craftsman bungalows.
I think this space will easily transition as her boys get older too. Awesome!
Dooo it, dooo it, dooo it! We love this smaller house and I love that my kids share a room — we didn’t need to do it but we decided it would be good for them in the long run and it’s worked brilliantly. The only thing I miss is a master bathroom, but I have big plans for a master suite with daylight windows in the basement… we’ll get there ;)
Very cute. I need to beef up on my organizational skills for my little guy. He likes to have all his toys on display and amazingly enough they seem to travel and spread out until the entire house is his playroom. ;-)
I definitely love the curtains and the chalkboard closet, but I must say my favorite thing is the huge map!! :)
I just wanted you to know how much I am enjoying the Thursday Reader Re-Do’s!
Aw thanks Ashley!
xo,
s
Thanks so much guys, I just got a comment saying they popped over from YHL and so I had to come see for myself — I’m flattered you shared my space! :)
Aw, of course Anna! Thanks for sharing the eye candy with us!
xo,
s
LOVE the chalkboard closet idea! Way to go Anna, that’s so creative! I may need to steal that idea when my son is old enough to not eat chalk :)
Wow I love this makeover. I esp like the personalized hooks and the bookshelf/storage unit. It makes me want to put my boys in the same room! Maybe when the baby’s out of his crib…
Hi guys,
For the last week or so the Richmond SPCA logo is replicating itself all over the background when I view on my iPad so you can’t really see the words. It’s fine on the desktop and on my iPhone, but no dice on iPad. I’ve tried the standard checklist to refresh and clear, but no luck. I don’t know if I’m the only one, but the way it’s doing it is not like it’s just loading wrong so wanted to share ;). Thanks you guys!!!
-Jenn
Yeah, unfortunately it’s just a bug with Apple devices sometimes (and doesn’t effect everyone). It should clear itself up in a day or two, but you can sometimes speed up the process by clearing your history. Sorry about that!
-John
I was just looking at her bunk bed plans over at Ana White’s site yesterday, how funny! I love what she did with the space though…no clutter, gotta love it!
This is so awesome! Did anyone else notice the 7 on the wall??
LOVE the book rack!
Loving the book rack and that map hanging.
Also admiring her willingness to post a totally honest before picture!
I lovelovelove that wire book storage and giant map. Awesome! I’m also a fan of the chalkboard paint on the closet doors– and the inspirational quote. What a great, learning-friendly space for two boys to share!
a few weeks ago i found this room after searching for boy room ideas. I love how it screams “boy” but not in a loud way…if that makes sense. I loved her number 7, she purchased hers at a REstore…I went to my local shop and found a few numbers…I choose number “8”, my son was born in 2008. (hers had no particular meaning.
I love this room — Anna is great! It was so much fun reading about how this came together on her blog. Thanks for sharing! :-)
Love the black board doors! Such a cool way to teach the kids some values through nice quotes.
I am so glad you featured Anna’s boys’ room! I found her blog last fall via pinterest because of this console (http://www.takethesidestreet.com/2011/05/table-is-complete-next-comes-styling.html) and loved her sense of humor and writing style. I read through her archives and found a bunch of incredible projects. If that’s her version of “lazy,” I can’t imagine what productive looks like. :)
Haha- amen!
xo,
s
Love the details. I always love looking at boy rooms too since I only have one girl. It’s so much fun to play that “what would we do?” game!
Love it!!
I can’t find anything about where she buoght 2 things:
the book holder shelf mounted to the wall next to the bottom bunk bed,
and the wire book holder under the 2 windows….
do you know where she got them from? I posted a comment on her site also, so either you or she can answer the question. thanks!:)
I think the wire book holder is from HomeGoods and I’m not sure about the other one. Here’s hoping she drops in with that info!
xo,
s
Bookholder next to bottom bunk looks like it could be an ikea spice rack… I could be wrong though!
Love the room! It looks great!
I really love that little desk and how much work she put into the themed art above it. I can totally see myself sitting there for hours writing!
Being a “librarian-in-training”, I loved how my eyes automatically found that adorable little book rack on the bottom bunk. Makes me want to go buy a bunk bed for my ONLY son. lol And of course, I spotted my all-time favorite kid’s book, “Tikki Tikki Tembo!”
This is gorgeous!
Not only do I love all the DIY aspects (that are actually totally do-able for real world lazy people!) but I love that the room totally translate to real-house space. While ALL of the transformations the YHL readers share are gorgeous, this is the first one I felt like I could actually DO in my home. Great job, Anna!!
I meant to say this yesterday and then life happened and I forgot, but before I forget again- Thank you so much for doing a boys room post! B/c this one is AWESOME and there are so few to begin w/ and even fewer that make me go “Ooooh me gusta!!”
I love the idea of the chalkboard on the closet doors. I would love to do that to my boys room except their closet doors are sliding doors. What do you think I do? Turn them around and paint the other side or get brand new closet doors??
That sounds really cool!
xo,
s
I have a similar map that I want to hang in my son’s room – what size is yours, and how did you handle the framing?
Here’s hoping she drops in with that info. Or you can click over to her blog for more info!
xo,
s
I just saw this room on Ana White’s site and totally love it. For the past couple of days I’ve been checking out the bunk bed plans. I already thought Anna did a great job on the bunk bed and closet space. Seeing her actual before and after is even more inspiring. My girls room is driving me crazy, and I will definitely “borrow” some of her ideas.
I love the artwork, really fantastic choices
I like the arrangement and the design for small room like this
I love the chalkboard closet doors!
Curious where you got those bunk beds? We are string a vintage theme travel room and gotta figure out the bed. Either painting what I have or getting bunks.