Psst- We did it. We survived hosting our very first Christmas dinner at our house. So of course Sherry’s hyper and giddy about sharing all of the photos and details next week (we’re spending the rest of the week with the family, but we’re dropping in with a little post today and another one for you tomorrow too). Hope you’re all enjoying the holiday!
When it comes to Reader Redesign submissions, sometimes it’s the room pictures that really get me, sometimes it’s the story behind the room, and sometimes it’s both. That’s why we loved the tale Julia and Chris’s studio tells… and the result is pretty sweet too. Here’s her letter: Hey John and Sherry, I wanted to share the studio we finished in our home. When our little family of three moved into our house last April, we had plans to turn the third upstairs bedroom (a seriously creepy and outdated nursery) into a second nursery for a second child.
After over a year and a half of no-such-luck in the baby department, we decided to open the door to the stale room and turn the room into a useable space that we could enjoy right now–a studio for me with room for our little girl, Greta, to “work” in too.
Over the course of a month and a half, we painted the walls a crisp white and the ceiling a lively turquoise. We changed the light fixture and the floor covering and the window treatments (which are actually two tapestries from Urban Outfitters) to inject life into this room.
What used to be a sad reminder of what we were wanting in our lives, became a beyond happy and exciting experience for our little family and the friends who cheered us on. One of the last projects I did was DIY a 3D quote on the wall that encompassed what this room represented, and our new mantra: “Be Open To Whatever Comes Next.”
Next on our agenda is having a picnic lunch right on the floor in here–we love it that much. Thanks for all that you do and your constant and daily inspiration! -Julia
I don’t say this very often about a room – but I think my favorite things about it are the ceiling and the floor. The color on the ceiling turns the whole space happy while the FLOR tiles below feel downright cozy. If you want more info on Chris & Julia’s makeover, hit up their blog for extra photos, sources, and links to the various DIY projects involved. And a big thanks to them for sending the inspiration our way! What about you guys? Do you have any favorite parts?
Love the quote on the wall!
Absolutley Love those curtains!!! Such a creative space.. how could you not be inspired!!!?
Congrats, you chose the BEST name ever! My name is Greta too.
I like the wall quote and the curtains!
My daughter would love a chalk board like this.
I love Julia’s artwork! They actually got reader input when making the updates which was so fun to be a part of.
and the floor! We have our very first FLOR carpet tiles arriving today and I’m so excited!
I admire their spirit as well as their decorating acumen! Waiting for babies puts all sorts of things in limbo. I hope 2013 brings lots of good “whatever comes next” their way.
What a lovely mantra!
STEALING the 3D wall art idea! Beyond brilliant!!
I’m an artist, and I would LOVE to have a studio like that!
Gotta be the curtains! A shot of “happy” every time you walk in!
I absolutely love Chris and Julia and their blog! I really want to do a very similar wall quote in our living room once we get around to painting it that is ;)
They are also working on Greta’s “big girl” room and using grass cloth wallpaper, which has inspired me yet again! :)
I am glad you are enjoying the holidays Sherry and John- love the reader re-design! And the quote- we so often have our house decorated for the life we wish we lived instead of seizing the moments we are living!
So true!
xo
s
Love it. And love their mantra. I may have to “borrow” that for my 2013 resolution. Such an energetic, creative space!
I absolutely love this room! The quote on the wall is fantastic.
I loved watching them do the room makeover on their blog. Best part was they had their readers help pick out many of the pieces. Totally love the bright colors and it has inspired me to paint a ceiling a fun color in my next house!
This is gorgeous and so crazy simple! These were all totally easy updates and it made such a huge impact. I love how she hung those curtains across the entire wall — I never would have thought to do that and it looks amazing. And I am crazy about that 3D, low-contrast quote. Again, never would have thought of it and now I’m trying to pick out a wall in my house that needs this right now.
Great room and great story. Sometimes you have to make room for good things to come into your life, even if they aren’t always the good things you were expecting.
Love this room and love the story behind it. Way to turn something painful into something inspiring! Thanks for the ideas!!
I saw this space earlier this year. I immediately bought the tapestry from Urban Outfitters. They are so vibrant and awesome! I did end up dividing the 2 I bought into 4 panels to cover 2 windows and hung them high and wide. Thanks for featuring them on your Reader Redesign! Awesome job!
I always wondered if you could paint a textured ceiling and if it would work okay…looks great…good to know that with the right color combo it could change the room-positively. Very nice!
Thank you so much for responding to my email about the number of people at your book signings! I just wanted to let you know that I received it without clogging up your inbox further. We will make hotel arrangements and see you next month! I’m so excited :)
Sure thing! So excited!
xo
s
I love love love the curtains. They got in such bright colors and bold patterns without overwhelming the room. I love this room, and the story behind it.
You guys!!! Whhaaatttttt??? I am so honored and flattered to be featured on your site today. It is seriously bucket list material.
Of course! We love your space and especially your story Julia! Such an inspiration.
xo
s
What a beautiful room and a beautiful attitude. And though I’m sure you know this, there’s nothing wrong with having an only child! I am an only and I can thank that for a lot of blessings I’ve had in my life, not least of which is my extremely close relationship with my parents. And my parents did ultimately get a son one day – my husband. Life is a funny thing and it’s wonderful to see you embrace its quirks and make such a gorgeous visual reminder.
Love! I adore that quote wall. Having the letters the same shade as the wall packs a surprising amount of visual punch. And that curtain is fantastic.
I love everything about it, those curtains are amazing and the pop of color on the ceiling is so pretty!
Love the 3D quote on the wall. Hang in there, the best is yet to come. Best of luck to you!
I had no idea FLOR made carpet tiles. Thanks, guys!
This has nothing to do with the room (which is lovely), but the “We’re Digging” totally prompted me to read “Gone Girl”. And by ‘read’, I mean devour in 2 days. An excellent book for a snow day (Iowa got walloped with 12 inches in 12 hours last week, and I was quite cozy in my sweats, book in hand). Thanks for the rec!
Ooh yes, John read it on the plane and I can’t wait to read it too! No spoilers! I hope to start it this weekend :)
xo
s
Oh wow! What an inspiring story! I am cheering for them on whatever comes next. I also love the idea of using your house the way you need it now. It definitely makes it a happier space!
Love the room redo that serves as an inspiration, too! Kudos to them for making the present count instead of just planning for an uncertain future. I’m a new addict to their blog.
Such a sweet room. That ceiling and the wall quote are the stars of the show.
Love the new room and the story behind it.
Thanks for featuring such an inspiring reader redesign!
I love, love the white walls against the turquoise ceiling. What a wonderful pop of color!
The whole room looks like creativity waiting to come out.
Pet peeve: one champs, not chomps, at the bit. I realize this is a lost cause.
Thanks Stephanie! Who knew?
xo
s
Couldn’t resist looking this up. Sounds like it is a lost cause, Stephanie — the “chomps” might win out in the long run. See link http://www.grammarphobia.com/blog/2007/01/do-you-champ-or-chomp-at-the-bit.html
So interesting!
xo
s
Hey I got someone to read about it! I will take it!
Wow! It’s hard to believe that’s the same room. That is what I love about the reader redesigns. Such a huge transformation and like John I think the ceiling is my favorite. So much inspiration in the room.
ME TOO! Loooove the ceiling–But the fun curtains and the 3D white-on-white quote aren’t far behind! I also find that $5 (!!!) extra long IKEA curtain rod quite fetching…and that yellow table lamp….AND the FLOR tiles over the stained subfloors….okay, it’s all kinda amazing.
Love everything about this room! I checked out their blog, and I wound up pinning their “house tour.” Beautiful home (and her paintings are great, too!).
Oh my, LOVE Julia and Chris! They are so cute, and their studio inspired some choices we’ve made in our home too (specifically, we got the exact same FLOR tiles in our living room now)!
YAY, so happy to see them featured here.
I’ve been putting off updating our guest room since we bought the house a few years ago in hopes that it would someday be a nursery. Welp, here I am after two years of trying and I’m beginning to think I should just go ahead and start painting it. At least my guests won’t have to sleep in an ugly room, and if a baby ever comes our way, then I’ll get to re-do it all over again!
love the look, but did they paint the popcorn ceiling? that will never come off!
This is amazing! So simple! Yet, so much impact!!
What do I love most about this room … the spirit of the homeowners!!! … it’s written all over the place, from their wisdom to let go of a painful reminder {we can all learn something from that}, to living in this moment {“now/here” instead of stuck in “no/where”}, to their spunky and effective use of color and graphic objects. They are so inspirational :) I definitely will DIY some version of that quote: be open to whatever comes next. I love love love this. Robin
Ha! I had that same pink striped window topper in my bathroom for years (stuffed with tissue paper to make it all balloony). And I’ll tell ya, just removing that 80’s holdover and replacing it with something more contemporary made a huge difference. I love Julia and Chris’s choice!
That’s a very nice, touching story and a wonderful room. It’s got some very unique touches, like the painted ceiling and the bold colors on the curtains, that I really love!
Love the room! Thanks for featuring the story behind it too-we’ve spent the last 8 months trying for our first without success, and it seems any time you open facebook or your e-mail homepage, someone else is glowing about being pregnant. Totally understandable that not getting pregnant isn’t newsworthy, but it’s nice when someone else makes the journey feel a little less lonely in such a positive way!
Julia, I’m so glad to see your pictures! I’ve been thinking about doing big white letters on a white wall and I’m so excited to see how great yours looks :) I’m definitely doing it now!
Great room. I love the curtains as well..and the ceiling and the floor. All of it!
I got a chill when I saw the carousel stencil. The previous owners of my first house had the exact, same stencil in their little girl’s room. It was out of date then–12 years ago!!
So uuuggglly! I was very happy to paint over that sucker!
Such a precious makeover, so beautifully done. With all that lovely energy in your new room, I wouldn’t be surprised if something really special were to come along.
Have a wonderful New Year!!
I have admired this room in other websites I love it, my favorite feature is the colorful tapestries use as window treatments. But their is so much to love about it.
Wow that ceiling really pops, and I love the white letters on the white wall, so cool! Super cozy and inspiring.
I love how they made the best of their situation and created a super fun room. Those curtains are killer, and the turquoise ceiling just makes it. I needed to read something like this today. Thank you.