Dysfunctional Office into Safe Haven Sitting Room {Makeovers by Brooke}

First of all, let me inform you from the get go, this post is going to be LOOOOOONG. Don’t say I didn’t warn you!

Back when All Things Thrifty was an infant in early 2010, I painted this office and was the proudest person on the planet. I loved it. The leaf wall made me happy. In fact, the IKEA desk made me even happier. Three months later, I decided that I hated the desk on that wall because I couldn’t keep it clean and it was driving me crazy to look at the clutter every. single. day. So, I moved the desk to the opposite side of the room to spare my eyes from the clutter. I moved the painted piano to that wall and it lived there for the next four years.

Let me point out the elephant in the room…. I have come a long way! HA. I’ll leave it at that. Believe it or not, I thought the shelves were decorated so wonderfully back then. Smile

office before

I have wanted to redo this room for awhile now, but to be honest, I never even went into this room. It was always full of clutter, and I rarely set foot in there. It was the catch-all room in the house. So, it went on the back burner of my mind while I worked on rooms that we actually spent time in.

I now know that clutter is a creativity killer for me. For me to actually want to be in a room, it cannot be full of crap. It seems so simple, and yet it took me four years to figure it out. SO….my office facelift began!

The goal of the room was simple: I wanted it to be bright, happy, and a place I could relax. So, the dark walls needed to be painted. I could just tell you that I painted the wall and all was well, but that would be a lie, and since I warned you about a long post, I’m going to show you the entire process….

I painted the walls and I HATED the color. It. Was. PURPLE.

I picked a color called Gray Shimmer by Behr Marquee, and it was literally light purple on the wall. Good times.

Behr Marquee Gray Shimmer (2) Behr Marquee Gray Shimmer (1)

Take two….I painted the room again, this time with Behr Dolphin Fin.

Fixing the purple grey paint (1) Fixing the purple grey paint (3)

It was MUCH better and I knew it was the right decision. It is a beautiful color and I absolutely love it.

purple-grey-paint

Next, my amazing hubby helped me install MDF molding in a Greek-key pattern on the wall. Stay tuned for a tutorial post on this soon!

greek-key-wall-molding

greek-key-molding-treatment copy

I got the digital images for these darling geometric birds on Etsy at the inknest.

Living-room-decor-ideas

geometric birds_Layer 1 copy geometric birds_Layer 2 copy geometric birds_Layer 5 copy

But, I adjusted them slightly in Photoshop to fit my wall and the colors I had in mind.

grey bird new squatty bird new pink bird new

I am absolutely in love.

bird-wall-art

The coral and yellow pillow are from HomeGoods, and the grey and white pillows are from Target.

Geomentric Bird Art

After the Couch Painting Disaster of 2014, I bought this love seat from Down East Home. To spice up the love seat I exchanged the square tapered legs with cute six inch spindly wooden legs from The Home Depot.

greek-key-molding-grey-walls b

Now I actually hang out in this room. I deem that a success!

office-redo-collage copy

I still have a few items on my to do list for this room, so stay tuned! I’ll be adding a few finishing touches over the next few weeks.

xoxo,

Brooke

 

Published on April 28, 2014

45 thoughts on “Dysfunctional Office into Safe Haven Sitting Room {Makeovers by Brooke}”

  9. So fantastic! Can’t wait to see the tutorial on the Greek key art. So original!
    Clutter is a creativity killer for me too….I am currently in the middle of a “shared office” redo myself. oy.

    Reply

  10. I love the wall detail. I have never seen something like that. I love that you see the growth in your decorating. I am slowly improving on my own and cringing with some of my “brilliant” early ideas. We live and learn I guess. And grow! The colors you chose are great, so bright and definitely more inspiring. Enjoy your new and improved relaxing space

    Reply

  13. Swoon!!!! You are just going to have to come on up here to N. Idaho & help me when I start decorating our new house. LOVE this!

    So happy that we had the chance to connect. Had a wonderful time with you.

    Reply

  14. This is an awesome makeover… Love the “SWOON” comment…my thoughts exactly! It’s a great balance between bright and neutral without being that “all neutral with a pop of color” that I see over and over and personally find seriously annoying and unliveable/unrealistic.

    Reply

  17. love it ALL. and PILLOW envy. where? please! (I’ve been searching for the coral one! loveseat envy too.)

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    1. Cindy! Thank you! I’m a pillow hoarder! I love them! Ok, the coral ones are from HomeGoods, the grey and white ones are from Target and the middle yellow velvet one is also from HomeGoods! xoxo, Brooke

      Reply

  21. Brooke! This is soooo gorgeous! I love the couch, and I especially love the wall treatment. It’s stunning. Everything is cohesive and perfect. I hope you enjoy your morning Diet Coke uninterrupted in that lovely space. 🙂

    Reply

  23. So in love with the whole room!! Especially that wall!!! Something like that might be perfect for my accent wall issue in our new place!! Want to come help me? 😉

    Reply

  26. DYING over that accent wall with the moulding. Dan is the man!! I am coveting that couch and pillows, too. Every time I got to DownEast Home, I want to buy a gray couch.

    PS. Gray paint is so hard to get right! I’ve been there!

    Reply

  29. Hey Brooke! Love the office redo. I have a Mid-Week MUST HAVE series on my blog, and I think the MDF paneling will definitely be a MUST have in my next office. LOVE IT! Look for it to be featured this Thursday, and feel free to link back to my site! Love your creativity.

    Reply

  37. I love the bird art! I would never have thought to change the color. Would you say that it was pretty easy to change the colors on the birds?

    Reply

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