Our 1940’s semi detached house was dated, old and hadn’t been cared for in a long time, but it had good bones. The master bedroom wasn’t overly generous where size was concerned, but it was a cosy space, and one that I couldn’t wait to design.
Designing with my signature coastal style, we’ve been able to have some fun with this room, whilst also adding around 30cm extra space to it from the existing bathroom.
If you like a juicy makeover, keep on reading for before + afters of the space, along with everything we did and details on the finished room.
The BEFORE
There’s not a lot you can say about how the bedroom looked before except from it being small for a master bedroom, and it was really dated, and damp.
There was a mix of laminate flooring and wooden floorboards here, wallpaper on every wall and built in joinery which had seen better days.
We wanted to make this the master bedroom, but we needed a little bit of extra room to make it doable with a king size bed and positioning it on the opposite wall to the window.
Knocking into the existing bathroom, we then rebuilt the wall, gaining around an extra 30cm in space. The below image shows what the space looked like once the old wall was down, ready for the new insulated wall to go back up.
There was no going back at this stage, it definitely looked worse before it got better.
Instead of boarding over the added space that was created on the side of the bedroom, we decided to keep this open and add some shelving for a unique nook bedside table area with plenty of opportunities for beautiful styling.
We replaced the old skirting boards with Georgian MDF skirting with 120mm height, I aways tend to lean into this style as it elevates a room and gives the illusion of taller walls. We later painted this in the wall colour for a semi colour drenched approach.
This bedroom is north facing and was incredibly dark, so choosing colours with a warm undertone was key to get the most out of this space. (I recommend yellow, red or pink based paints for cooler, dark north facing rooms). Changing the old windows massively helped as the lead crosses on the top of the window weren’t letting natural light flow through easily.
I chose Farrow and Ball Oxford Stone for the walls, an understated, elegant neutral that has a warm red undertone. It was the perfect pairing for the wallpaper I chose. We then finished with Dulux Brilliant White on the ceiling to draw the eye up.
Coastal Bedroom Makeover AFTER
As I mentioned, this was a cold, dark north facing room and I used it as the perfect opportunity to have some fun with wallpaper. Wallpaper may as well be artwork, it’s very subjective so you should always pick something you love, rather than being inspired by what’s ‘trendy’, and of course, what other people like.
This Coral Spice wallpaper by Lucie Annabel was the easiest decision I ever made, it gave subtle coastal vibes, but with a warm, uplifting colour that worked perfectly in the light the bedroom receives.
I paired this with Farrow and Ball Oxford Stone on the walls, skirting and architraves, it has a warm red undertone to it and appears like a mushroom, sandy beige shade depending on the light you perceive it in. It’s genuinely one of the cosiest neutrals for a north facing room!
Because our master bedroom isn’t the biggest, a standard bedside table just wouldn’t have worked on the left hand side of the bed. Being able to create this nook set of shelving from the extra space we gained from the bathroom helped to create this unique opening in the room that’s ideal for extra storage and for styling. An intimate space that’s practical and doesn’t eat into the floor space.
I styled with a range of earthy, grounding accessories. With the nook not getting a lot of light, we added a rechargeable table lamp here from Pooky without any unsightly wires in sight.
As you’ll remember from the before photos, the existing joinery was dated and old and the cupboard backs onto where our stairs are. It’s actually a unique positioning for such a cupboard so we decided to open it out instead and add some rattan baskets for added storage. It gives a peek of natural warmth now and makes the room feel so much more open.
On the wardrobe, we converted this to adding two full length doors for a seamless, elevated look. I added some aged brass handles from Hendel and Hendel for a polished finish.
To balance the warmth of the colours in the scheme, I introduced a beautiful coastal blue on some of the scatter cushions, a gorgeous accent colour that breaks through the monotony of the rusty terracottas. If you’re creating a coastal inspired theme, you really can’t go wrong with this pairing of colours.
A rattan light shade is a no brainer in a north facing room, it’s trendy yet allows uninhibited light to pass throughout it all day long. Where light or lack of it is an issue in north facing rooms, making simple swaps like this will really help. This one is from Kave Home and really does work well in so many different spaces. We have the same one featured in our spare room too.
For the flooring we opted for a cream wool herringbone finish, it’s cosy and the most perfect colour for any home as it virtually goes with every colour.
Natural fibres like this are hardwearing and offer great longevity too. The finished feel of the bedroom is a boutique hotel style bedroom that’s cosy and warm, despite its north facing position. It’s definitely not the biggest master bedroom with a king size bed within it, but I’m so happy with this coastal inspired room which is cosy and calming to be within.
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