…in his bedroom. Well, most of it. Here’s Emma’s hilarious letter about the makeover they turned out for their son’s room:
We moved in to this three-storey 1876 “brownstone” (sidebar: it is neither made of brownstone nor located in New York City) three years ago – we’re in Ontario, Canada. We’ve been working our way through the house converting what was four separate apartments back into a single home. This bedroom is up on the third floor and it belongs to our 5-yr old son, Angus. The ‘Before’ photos were taken when we first looked at the house and, at the time, this bedroom was the living room of a medical student at the University nearby.
When we finally got our hands on it and finished some necessities in the rest of the house – like a working kitchen and toilet – we decided that (a) the room needed closets and (b) it should be out-of-the-park awesome so that he’ll never leave home and will look after us when we are old and can’t find our false teeth (sidebar #2: we will re-visit this plan when he is 16 and takes up the drums, or when he is married and his spouse doesn’t want to sleep on a bunk). Enter the built-in bunk bed loft, which my husband made while I helpfully pointed out where things didn’t line up.
We were going for a campy/beach club look and he added in the cedar shake roof to make it feel like a real playhouse… or maybe a crab shack…
I was dying to try this map wallpaper after seeing it online. In fact, I think I impulse-ordered it well before we had even moved in to the house. We had heard a few times that wallpapering is a real relationship tester, so we armed ourselves with a bucket of paste and few glasses of wine late one night once the kiddos were asleep. The wall wasn’t quite big enough for the whole earth, so the most nerve-wracking part was deciding which parts of the world to leave out (sidebar #3: our son is going to be floored when he discovers the existence of amazing places like ‘New Zealand’, ‘Fiji’ and ‘Alaska’).
This room was so much fun to do. Hope you guys like it! -Emma J.
Angus is a lucky guy, right? I think Emma has as good a shot as any of us at keeping her kid around forever. You can see more pics and learn more about the makeover right here on her blog. Thanks Emma!
Rebecca Lately says
That’s awesome! Thank you so much for sharing!!
Linda says
Emma’s commentary made me laugh aloud on a bad day at the office….and I enjoyed the room as well.
Hope you are all enjoying your vacation!
Sharon says
That is just amazing. Well done.
Megan @ Rappsody in Rooms says
Wow! That is definitely one of the most incredible kids rooms I have EVER seen!! The nook, the map, it’s all so good!
Stephanie says
What an awesome room! The little roof over the bunk area? Amazing. Love everything about it, and the mom’s sense of humor. :)
Laurie says
Amazing! What a truly envious space!
Effie says
Wow! I love this! So creative, and fun, I would love to do something like this one day.
giedre says
oh. em. gee. SO CUTE! Also: hilarious that the whole map isn’t up there. I would be that kid who would totally not realize that there are whole countries/states missing! :D
xox
giedre
Sharnese Coney says
This room cool. I wish I could do something like this
cassie says
LOVE it all! went over to her blog and pinned it- love the penants and the overall clean vintage look!
John @ Our Home from Scratch says
This room is brilliant!
Might I add that the name “Angus” is an excellent choice for a boy.
Kim says
Adorable!! I love the little shingle roof and the hanging lights. What a creative kid’s room! I’m pretty jealous of Angus :)
Heather says
That bedroom is so cute I’m about ready to move right in myself! :) They did a great job. It looks straight out of a magazine.
Chez says
This makeover is unbelievable! Wow – such a vision. I wish I could “see” an end result like that. Great creativity!
Vanessa says
LOVE THIS.I wish I was a kid with this room.
Jenny says
This is so awesome! Love the bunks, and the built-in bookshelves for them. And the way they worked with the quirky space. And also the writing, as other have said. Thanks for sharing this!
Megan @ The Brick Bungalow says
I love this! They did a great job incorporating the slanted wall.
Cindy says
Sherry, John, and Emma: Best kids bedroom ever! How lucky is he?!
Carrie Lea says
A) that was hilarious and now I want to be friends with Emma.
B) once Emma and I are besties I want to go visit her and sleep in that awesome room!
Marissa C says
Wow, I really love this one. It’s a nice change of pace from the chevron covered gray + other color schemes that seem to be all over the place lately. Not that those aren’t cute, but this is truly unique and lovely.
Melissa@Mama Never Sleeps says
What a phenomenal makeover! If Angus moves, out let me know. I would happily sleep here. I adore the shake roof and the map.
And I nearly spit water out of my nose upon hearing poor Angus’s geographical education gap. I love your writing, Emma, thank you for the laugh this morning!
(And please, never ever show my children this room. They think I’m a fabulous designer because I stuck some plane stickers on their wall.)
Manda Wolf says
OMG that is awesome!
Chitra says
I have liked many Reader’s redesigns but never commented.This one is by far the best i have seen.
Lucky boy!…Emma off to your blog:)
~Chitra
Anne [A Squared] says
I want to live here!
Heidi says
I LOVE this room and Emma’s funny comments. I can definitely relate to “helping” by pointing out where things don’t line up. :) This room turned out really great – I am a sucker for both bunk beds and built ins. Great re-design!
sarah @makingitmyhome.blogspot.com says
LOOOOOOOOOOOOVE it!
Cottage Katie says
WOW! That is out of this world awesome! Lucky kid for having such creative parents. I have always wanted to convert my moms three unit apartment into a single family home, but I can’t imagine actually taking it on! Forget the wallpaper being a relationship tester, how about a big overhaul!
Great work and if the rest of the house looks anything like this room it must be a really wonderful home!
Kim in The Cove says
I have never laughed so hard reading about a 5 year old’s bedroom makeover! Emma, you are a hoot! The bed room looks awesome!!! So glad you were able to help your husband line it up just right. ;)
Christine says
That is brilliant! Any child, young or old would love to sleep in there!
Mellissa says
I love it! In addition to a child’s room, I think the basic design would also do well in a vacation home.
Liz Ann @ Liz Ann Design says
I REALLY like the loft setup. The map on the wall is a nice touch too! I don’t mean to be a debbier downer, but what will you do when your son is too big in both age and styling preference to appreciate and fit in his loft? Will you deconstruct the shack? Maybe create it into something more hip for a teenager? A really awesome post, keep up the good work!
Katy Morrow says
:) Loved this! We have the same map in my son’s room, and he will be similarly floored by the existence of New Zealand and Fiji . . . most of Alaska made the cut! :)
Robyn says
This room is crazy gorgeous! I love the little roof detail, would love to recreate this (although I doubt that’ll ever happen!).
Hope you guys are enjoying your vacation, you earned some time off! xxx
Julianne says
Wow!!! This is my favourite kids bedroom redo ever!! Great job, Emma! Running over to follow your blog now so i can steal your ideas…. ;0) #WhootWhoot #FellowCanuck
VV says
Alaska aside, NEW ZEALAND?! WHY!! He’s gonna wanna know where Middle Earth is C’MON!! sadface…
But the room is ridiculously awesome minus the New Zealand snub. I’m definitely checking her blog out. Her writing totally tickles me and I feel like we could be friends. Minus the New Zealand snafoo.
annie @ anniehearts says
Oh this was just so cool. And the wit!
Great choice on this feature!
Hope you’re enjoying your vacay!
Annie XO
SarahN says
The reader letter is absolutely GOLD, I’d read her writing even without awesome photos… I am pleased (as an Aussie) that we made the ‘cut’ so to speak :p
Lauren Hay says
omg this looks awesome!!
Janice says
Great room. And I was most excited to see a pendant from Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada, where I live. (Not to be confused with the St. John’s, Newfoundland pendant they also have pinned on the wall!!!)
michelle says
awesome room!
ps. I loved it when you guys listed your favorite part. Can we go back to that? :)
YoungHouseLove says
Sure! Mine’s that awesome shingled area/roof and, of course, John’s loving the map.
xo,
s
Andrea says
Love Emma’s tongue in cheek humour. So glad Australia was kept in! Yay!
Amanda says
Gotta love those Canadians :)
Susan says
Loved this room, but especially enjoyed Emma’s hilarious writing style!!! She sounds like a fun person. Very creative and attractive room. Lucky kid!
Lauren @ Beautiful Fight says
I LOVE this room. So pretty. I’m obsessed with maps.
Georgia says
I love the beach hut in a room look. How cool is that! I once saw that map wallpaper put over the top of a wall that was first covered in magnetic paint so the whole wall became a bulletin board. Always thought that would be really cool.
Lucy says
I love this redo! And I love that she wants to trap her children into living with her forever. When all else fails and they still want to leave the nest, break their legs!
(OK, I’m seriously joking to all of you with 911 on speed dial.)
Yonca says
Best reader re-design ever!!!
Monica says
Angus is a lucky guy. of course Emma has as good a shot as any of us at keeping her kid around forever. and best wishes to you all.
Christine says
WHAT. New Zealand didn’t make the map cut. But…but…but…we’re awesome here. We have Elves and Hobbits and everyone here has a pet sheep. :(( Devastated!
Awesome room make over, shunning of New Zealand aside. *sniffle*
SkylarKDM says
Wow, what a cool room! I want to live there! ;)