SHERWIN-WILLIAMS® SAVE ME // A TWEEN ROOM MAKEOVER

Are you ready for a BIG reveal?!  Last month Sherwin-Williams basically gave me a fairy wand and challenged me to help transform a reader’s room that needed saving. Instantly I knew exactly which reader’s room to tackle. I had just been sent an email from a long-time follower asking my opinion. This local follower wanted to know two things… 1.) How to best paint over a mural on a wall and 2.) How to break the news to her husband (the artist) that she wished to paint over his mural. Lol! The second was in jest, but seriously it was time to cover the mural.

The wall in question was in their almost nine-year-old daughter’s room. He had painted a very sweet princess castle scene for her room when she was much younger, but alas she desperately wanted something a little more “cool.”

The other issue with the mural was it may have been a tad incomplete… (note the light switch and the baseboard area in the corner).

Dad was instantly on board, so no drama had there.  He knew it was time to say goodbye to his heartfelt effort.  So I went over an assessed the rest of the space with the family.

After sitting down and discussing the wants and needs of the family, especially the daughter, I was excited to hear they wanted to start from scratch! I only say excited because that meant I get to have more fun as a designer. The furniture was all in really great shape, but as you can see from the photos the two twin beds take up the majority of the room. They wanted her to have more floor space and a desk.

I shared some inspiration images with the daughter to see where her head was at for the design of the room. I showed her images of teen rooms and told her you don’t have to like any of these rooms, just point out at least one thing you like about each space. Quickly, I began to see a pattern… or a lack thereof in this case. I instantly noticed she was not a fan of mixing bold patterns. I also noticed that she was gravitating towards monotone spaces. Not necessarily neutral, just rooms all in the same color. She also continued to point out the furry pillows or beanbags in each of the spaces.  

After going through the images, she then gave me two requests the first was easy to accommodate, she wanted a loft bed. Now for the curveball… she wanted a wolf themed room. I asked “like a scary wolf?” and she replied with “No, a cute wolf.”  I’ll be honest, this was the first time I have been asked to design a room around a wolf.

Now when it comes to kid’s rooms and themes, I try to stay away from them. Kids grow out of phases so fast!!! But I wanted to be able to incorporate the “wolf” element for her in a way that if she does grow out of it, that it can be easily transitioned to something else.

I could have gone literal with wolf-gray paint in the space, but  I decided to lean towards the wolf’s ice blue eye color. The blue gray tones would also blend well with the rest of the homeowner’s home… so I charged forward with that decision. But, before I could choose a paint color, the mural had to go. I must admit I felt a little guilty painting that first brush stroke over it.

With paint technology as good as it is these days, I usually don’t feel like it is necessary to use a primer on the walls. But in this case, I decided to defer to the experts at my neighborhood Sherwin-Williams. They recommended that I do a light sanding on the wall first to knock down any edges from the paint used on the mural and then use PrepRite ProBlock Latex Primer to prime the wall.

Once the mural wall was primed properly, I began to coat the entire space in Sleepy Blue SW 6225. I used the Emerald Interior Latex paint once again,  becauseI absolutely love the coverage and finish it provides. It is also super durable, which is great for a kid’s, er I mean cool tween’s room.

I think that the mom was just as excited to say goodbye to these tan/beige walls surrounding the rest of the room as well.

After the walls were complete, I decided to go for the full monotone feel and paint the loft bed in the same color. To ensure durability I primed the entire bed using an oil-based ProBlock primer and then two coats of Emerald Urethane Trim Enamel.  If this would have been in my own home, I would have sprayed this behemoth of a piece… but avoiding possible mishaps at someone else’s home I painted it all by hand. I used a small 4″ foam roller for the majority of the piece. It gave a really smooth factory finish in the end.

Once the walls and bed were fully painted, it was time to pull the space together. I brought in a rug in muted blue tones with a few hits of pale pink and a deep maroon. And of course, the fuzzy wolf textures all began to appear.

And just to jog your memory a little here is a little before action with the after counterpart.

The loft bed itself opened up the room tremendously, but also the fact that the bed, walls and art ledges  were all painted the same color opens up the space visually. It is a go-to trick of mine when working in smaller spaces.  

The implied wolf elements are the wolf blue eye paint color, the wolf gray velvet desk chair, the numerous furry accents and a few strategically placed art prints. So while the room doesn’t scream WOLF she picked out the wolf accents as soon as she walked into the space for the first time. So I take that as a win for a non-themed, themed room.

She has also requested a neon light. I loved this one because it had a switch we mounted on her top bunk so she can control it herself at night. She loved it because she said it looked like moonlight. Perfect for a wolf to howl at, right?!!

The art rails can allow for art, books, etc. to be switched out as she sees fit. And, the end unit of the loft bed has tons of storage shelves. She can load them up with all of her favorite things.

The desk area will be great for homework and can grow with her over the years. The addition of the cork wall again allows her to add her own personal touches.

On the opposite side of the room is her new lounge area. Her requested furry beanbag sits comfortably with a floor lamp and a small table for her things. And, the fun gallery wall had to include a wolf poster. She was thrilled to see that print up in her space!

It was so rewarding to be able to participate in Sherwin-Williams Save Me and to “save” this room in particular for the young lady and her family. Hopefully this space will grow with her over the years and not have her outgrow it first. That is the goal with kid’s spaces after all.

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