August 31, 2009

Aloha!

I have a surfer girl in my family, a surfer dudette that dreams of Hawaii. After living in a baby pink room for 9 years, she decided she would like to have a big-girl room. It sounded like a gnarly-cool idea until she said she wanted orange walls. Rather than shouting a big fat NO, we headed to the paint store.
Oh the possibilities! Her first choice ~I kid you not~ was construction zone cone orange.
Uh. Big fat NO.
So we found a good compromise: Desert Sunset (Olympic) with hot pink accents.
You know I'm all about CHEAP, so here is the breakdown:
Reversible hot pink/orange bed matelasse' and 2 shams: $29.99 Ross
Surfer Girl picture: $24.99 HomeGoods
Beach mat (rug): $1.99 Old Time Pottery
Big flower throw pillows: Issac Mizrahi Target napkins on clearance $.98 each
Bed roll pillow: Target clearance $11.98
Headboard: mine as a child ~ free
I found the desk at a thrift store a couple of years ago. We added the chunky Pier1 Kids knobs (clearance, of course). She talked her daddy into the hot pink desk chair while mommy was in Germany (so worth it!) Daddy also purchased the big flower for her birthday. It's 3-D made out of heavy duty tissue paper and wire. Good job, honey!


The curtains tie the colors all together. Hot pink and orange flip flops! It is actually a Sunbrella (indoor/outdoor) fabric. It was very easy to sew because it is so sturdy. The wooden surfboard was a Christmas gift from us: hubby cut it out and I attached the "wally" flip flops. Speaking of walls, I am IN LOVE with vinyl wall clings (see the hibiscus in the corner).
We also added the vinyl surfboard to the wall. Her name is above it in big chunky white letters.
All of the vinyl came from Uppercase Living.



Now for the el-cheapo art project that I promised. Lucky for you it's a 2-for-1 deal today:
The memo board is the freebie, since it is part of the grouping. I simply took an old memo board (formerly baby blue gingham) and recovered it with some leftover curtain fabric. I didn't have enough of the dot ribbon, so I found some striped. Which worked to my advantage because it tied these in:
About a year ago I was staying at a friend's (very nice) beach house. Above the bed hung some original art: painted flip flops in a shadow box. The more I admired them, the more I became convinced that I could do the same thing without the "ar-teest" price. So I purchased some plain hot pink flip flops in the dollar section, gave them a little artsy-fartsy flair with acrylic paint, and added a bow. Using my coupon, I purchased 2 raw-wood shadow boxes, spray painted them orange and added a little flower power. I hot-glued the flip flops to white heavy-duty paper and viola!
I did spray the entire thing with high gloss clear spray paint to give it a finished look.
Just to be real: the original beach-house artwork was behind glass. I had intended to do that, but I shattered the glass on one of the frames before I even painted it. So now it is true 3-D art.


That's it! All that is left to say is:

For more DYI ideas, check out the party at Kimba's

25 comments:

Christina said...

Love love love the makeover!! What a lucky girl. Definitely a makeUP. Great budget too!! Excellent job!

Terri said...

What a lovely job on the new room. It is such fun to start with a theme and go with it. It is fun and bright and am sure your daughter will have the coolest room on the block. Great job. Terri

The Lord Family said...

Love it! I love all of the neat, personalized touches that you made. Thanks for the great tips!

And you can't go wrong with orange...we have an orange kitchen! :) I love orange--its such a happy color.

Joy for the Seasons said...

I cannot thank you enough for sharing this. My 5 year old's favorite color, believe it or not, is orange. Don't run across that everyday. She has been asking for an orange room forever and we, of course, have told her "NO!" But this actually looks like a very lovely and workable shade!

Melissa said...

Absolutely adorable! You could earn money decorating for others!

Michelle said...

You've really done a great job...everything looks so adorable!

Have a lovely day!
~Michelle :)

Samantha said...

The multi-talented strikes again!
Fabulous! Every little or big girls dream!

Amber said...

LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE IT!!

What a super fun room!!!!

Wonder if I could pull that off for the master bedroom!! ;)

Anonymous said...

You know what I love even more than the super cute room? That super cute little girl that lives in it! Can't wait to hang out with you guys!!
E

Carpool Queen said...

And having seen the flipflops in person, I must say they are just darling! Her room is probably my fave in the whole house.

The Cherry Family said...

Her room is totally cool! You did a great job! I wonder if my boys would let me do some flip flop art in their room!

Christina said...

What a fun room. Love that you broke down the prices for us. I love bargains too. Esp. when they look this good. I'm sure your daughter loves it.

Anonymous said...

I'm a new lover of orange and pink together.

Love the room. But I'm partial to Hawaii-themed rooms. My youngest two were born there and they had a Hawaii-themed nursery and then bedroom until they finally stopped rooming together this year. I LOVE the flip flop idea and will probably try to steal it. But since you stole it first...;)

Tracey said...

Don't let Heather fool you...she's just trying to get everyone to paint a room orange because she graduated from Clemson!

I love this room..especially the framed flip flops!

Thanks for all the info..the time you spend on your blog is very appreciated, even if I forget to comment sometimes.

Suz said...

Very cute! Fits her personality. I may have to steal your flip flop idea. Love it.

Shannon said...

Wow! What a fun and PRETTY room! Love it! When you said orange walls and surfer theme I didn't know what to think but it is beautiful! I love all of the special touches and fabrics!

P.S. Thank you for putting a link up to Jason and Katie's blog. Everyone's prayers mean so much.

Natalie said...

So cute Gretchen! I love the orange walls and they really look great. You're a good mom. :)

Hey, random question, but where did you guys get your subway tile from that's in your kitchen? I remember reading about it a while back and now Adam and I are in the market for some...

Caro said...

what a gorgeous bedroom! I wish my daughter would want something like that. But nope. She wants a SPACE related room. *sigh*

Pam @ bibbidi-bobbidi-beautiful said...

Your blog has me seriously wishing I lived someplace with a hobby lobby and sonic! Your daughters room looks great! If they have to grow up, this is a pretty cute way to do it!

Julie said...

Well done. Proud of you for letting her go orange. It turned out great. I really like the pink desk chair and flipflop art.

Julie said...

Well done. Proud of you for letting her go orange. It turned out great. I really like the pink desk chair and flipflop art.

Alyssa said...

WOW! Fantastic remodel...your daughter must be so excited!
Congratulations on a job well-done.

Alyssa
lifeoflyssie.com

Jen said...

You did a remarkable job! Very professional. I'm a surfer girl at heart, so I'm already loving your daughter (and her room!).

Blessings on your weekend:)
Jen

Unknown said...

Wow! What a cute bedroom! (Can't let my daughter see the pics...lol!)

Camille said...

Hi! I just stumbled across your blog, but I wanted you to know that I find it sweet and inspiring! It's obvious that you find joy in all parts of your life, and that is so refreshing.

Wish I had a room this cute when I was younger! I'm eagerly awaiting more do-it-yourself projects!

-Camille