• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Partner
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy

Southern Hospitality

Adventures in Decorating, Thrifting, Cooking, Fashion & Gardening

  • My Home
  • Categories
    • A+ Blogs
    • My Blog Story
    • Decorating
    • DIY/How-To
    • Family
    • Gardening
    • In the Kitchen
    • My Home Tours
    • Thrifting
    • Travel
  • DIY Gallery
  • Fashion
  • Feature Friday
  • Shop My Home
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • RSS
    • Twitter

Beachy Guestroom in the Birmingham News

December 20, 2008 By Rhoda 47 Comments

0 shares
  • Share
  • Tweet

It was exciting once again to be featured in the Birmingham News today. My contact and friend at the paper, Mary, did a wonderful job with the write-up and I’m very happy with it. You can click on the picture to enlarge it. The article is lengthy, so I’ll type it in here so you can read it all. Luckily, I type fast:

Rhoda knows exactly how to describe it: from granny to beachy glam. She’s talking about the redecoration of a guest bedroom on the lower level of her Chelsea home – a perfectly adequate space that was comfy and functional, yet lacked eye-catching pizzazz.

Yellowish-tan walls, leftover linens, fall colors and sturdy furnishings certainly received no complaints from visitors. Rhoda and her husband, Peter, spend very little time in the room, so its decor wasn’t exactly a priority.

“I really didn’t have a motivation to change it,” she says. “My stuff in here was perfectly good.”

Then Rhoda, a thrift shopper and do-it-yourselfer, scored a find that spurred her to action. A king-size comforter set, in black-and-cream damask, became hers for $15 at a yardsale.

“I absolutely loved the pattern” she says. “But I wasn’t sure what I was going to do with it.”

Her solution: Remake the entire guest room around the boldly designed comforter set, focusing on black, cream and a “soft aqua-blue”.

She didn’t want to spend lots of money on the project, so she began to collect appropriate items at her usual spots: yard sales, thrift shops, bargain stores. She also examined furnishings and accessories used elsewhere in her house, to see if they might fit in.

“I started plotting and scheming what I was going to bring in here,” she says laughing. “I wasn’t about to go nuts buying new stuff.”

A striped easy chair from the Salvation Arm could be recovered. Mirror frames could be painted white. A vintage sewing machine could be moved and repurposed as a side table.

The walls needed a new hue, she chose Rainwashed from Sherwin Williams, with “slightly brighter aqua shade colorwashed on top.”

She nabbed a knotty-pine bookcase for $50, painted it black and removed the particle board backing. In its place: a pretty piece of wooden beadboard, trimmed to fit at Home Depot and painted a slightly darker blue than the walls.

She found a pair of lamps for $7 and embellished the fronts with black decals. She stripped a couple of old shades and revamped them in a zebra-print fabric. Other elements included a new window treatment, a bench from Big Lots (her one splurge at $100) and a small laminate table painted Caribbean Blue.

Rhoda’s innate design sense and ability to visualize the result were crucial. She made decisions slowly and deliberately, picturing how each piece would complement others in the room. “I’m not a minimalist,” she admits. But she does value balance and harmony, as evidenced by the carefully arranged seashells, bunny statues, finials, books, and paintings.

“I just like my little stuff,” she says. “Sometimes I have to make myself not put too much. You need a little space for the eye to breathe.”

Rhoda offers details of the redo and step-by-step instructions for some of the changes on her weblog, Southern Hospitality. She also displays her design sensibility on a Web site for her consulting business, The Restyled Room.

Others may take more expensive routes, buying everything brand new or emphasizing the varacity and background of antiques. Achieving success on the cheap, however, makes her happy and proud. “If you can get the look for a few dollars, I’m thrilled,” she says. “This turned out exactly the way I wanted it to be.”

Thanks, Mary for a great article, once again! For my new readers stopping by, here’s the whole room reveal that you can take a look at: Beachy Glam Guestroom

Hope you all have a great weekend!

Related


Don't Miss a Post, join my list!

Filed Under: Family Friends and Me, Travel 47 Comments

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Barbara says

    December 22, 2008 at 5:22 am

    WOW, you go girl! Great story and picture.

    Reply
  2. the pleasures of homemaking says

    December 22, 2008 at 2:56 pm

    Love the feature! I think they should give you a regular column! Congrats!

    Manuela

    Reply
  3. Laura @ the shorehouse. says

    December 22, 2008 at 7:06 pm

    I loved the article! It does a great job of summing up your redesign…one that I’ve loved watching unfold here on your blog, from when you first came home with that amazing comforter!

    Reply
  4. The Decorated House says

    December 22, 2008 at 9:47 pm

    Hey Rho~
    What a great article.
    I haven’t clicked on the picture yet, but it the whole spread looks wonderful!
    Merry Christmas!
    Donna

    Reply
  5. Melissa Lewis - Off The Wall says

    December 23, 2008 at 5:08 pm

    Oh yea! That is too cool Rhoda! You deserve all the accolade and mention, for sure.

    Merry Christmas:)

    Reply
  6. Robin says

    December 24, 2008 at 3:22 pm

    Congratulations, Rhoda!! I wish I took the paper now! And I love that room. Have a blessed Christmas!

    Reply
  7. Katie says

    December 26, 2008 at 12:03 pm

    Rhonda,
    You are so awesome. I like that your not a designer snob. I feel that no matter how much money we have that we should be good stewarts to what God has given us. I buy stuff all over and I love to remake things and make them new again. I love your blog!

    Reply
« Older Comments

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

Thanks for stopping by! I’m Rhoda, from Atlanta, GA and I love decorating and DIY projects. Decorating a home doesn’t have to cost a fortune and I’ve spent years thrifting at antiques markets and yard sales, finding those treasures that make a home unique. I’m here to inspire and encourage other women to find their own inner creativity. Won’t you join me?

Click Here

Click Here

Email Series
How to Decorate in
Classic Timeless Style
.....without breaking the bank!

House Renovation Journey!

Our Paint Colors

Archives

Categories

Footer Widget Header2

Featured here:

Better Homes and Gardens
Atlanta Magazine
Better Homes and Gardens

Footer

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • Home
  • Contact
  • Partner

Copyright © 2023 · Southern Hospitality · Blog Design by Little Blue Deer
Privacy Policy

Get my FREE Email Series How to Decorate in Classic Timeless Style....without breaking the bank!
After years of decorating my own homes, I've learned a few tricks on how to create a classic home on a budget. Hope you'll join me!
Your information will *never* be shared or sold to a 3rd party.