lynn~

Your room is so pretty! I really like the wall color, and I don't think the shades look out of keeping in that room at all. On my monitor, they mimic the warm cream color of your walls, which I think is nice.

Your new furniture looks great! I followed your saga of the mismatched/poor quality furniture last time, and I am so glad you found nice, quality furniture this time around, that still looks pretty and feminine as well.

That looks like a wonderful place to end the day. Peaceful and comfortable too. The tv is nicely tucked away in your armoire, which I really like! Great place to relax.

I'm sure you will find ways to accessorize what you've already got, but now your "bones" are good, and you can change out accent pieces to alter the look whenever you get the urge to do something different.

Love it. Congratulations on a really nice room!! Enjoy!!

Lynn, I think the shades are perfect with the doors, trim and wall color. The white would have been the wrong choice. Don't second guess yourself!

The room is so serene. I know it's calming to be in. DD1 has the Shabby Chic apartment. I was just in San Francisco helping her hang pictures at her new place. It's so soothing.

One idea she had was to put her dresser in the walk-in closet since it was large enough to hold it. Freed up some floor space for her.

I'd love to see your bed pillows when you have the chance to take more pictures.

lynn
I love your bedroom. I think white, off white is what makes a bedroom a haven.
I have always had white, off white MBbedrooms but had cherry BR furniture and used color every where else in my home.

My curtains are white, walls white , bed covering white and use to have white carpet too! Now its wood because of animals.

I would have loved to have seen crystal lamps in the soft room.
You are headed in the right direction .
Sorry about your accident. Get well and happy holidays!

Lynn, your new furniture and bedding is just lovely. Very pretty! I'm eager to see the pics when you get it all done.

I think the room is very restful and serene, Lynn. I would stop fussing about the blinds - having a variety of shades of white and ivory in a room gives you depth and interest. If all the pieces and the walls and the shades were the same color, the room would look flat.

Take a good look sometime at how nature works - the green leaves on the trees, or even the greens on the evergreen trees, are never all the same shade of green. Perhaps from a distance they appear to be, but when you look closely you see the variations that create interest and depth as you gaze at the tree. Think of your bedroom in the same way.

Look forward to seeing the room when you add in your personal touches, get some more lamps in the space, and your pretty pillows on the bed. There is plenty of time for that, tho - first take care of yourself. I hope you feel better soon.

Jjanks, thanks for letting me know how happy you are with your Southampton collection that is made by Durham and yours also is quality. Thanks for your wonderful comments making me feel happy with how my room is coming along.

Thank you totallyblessed for your wonderful comments and letting me know you followed my heartache with the furniture fiasco/saga with the Stanley furniture.

Thank you Allison0704 for letting me know you feel the linen color of the blinds was the right choice and the white color would have not looked right since I value your opinion knowing you have such beautiful taste. I can't wait to take pics to share with the decorative pillows on the bed and the updated iron table's accessories.

love-my-lilhome, thank you for letting me know that you love white and off=white bedrooms also. I also was thinking crystal lamps would look better so I am glad you brought this up. I do love my lamps and I keep wondering if I should put them in my other room (I don't want to return them since I do love the satin brass poles) or change the shades or just keep them since they are so pretty and do not look bad. But I do love the look of crystal lamps with the shabby chic look.

oceanna, thanks for viewing my pics and letting me know you love my new furniture and bedding.

Les917, thanks for letting me know you find my bedroom restful and serene and would leave the blinds alone in the linen color and you find the shades of white and ivory pretty as they are. You are right that natural is not perfect and maybe I have to stop trying to feel everything has to match perfectly. What other lamps do you have in mind? I can't wait to take more pics with more of my room finished for you and the others to see.

I really appreciate all of you for posting and letting me know that the wall color looks nice and the blinds look nice also despite coming out darker than the sample and how I imagined the look. Thanks for letting me know that the white black-out blinds may not have looked that great. I wanted ivory or cream blinds but they did not have that color and the white color was more of a blue white than a yellow white so I was not sure how it would look. No valence or window treatment suggestions or top of the cellular blinds? I do not mind constructive criticism so if anyone feels differently please let me know. Black-out blinds do not have too many choices and they are not as pretty as the ones without the silver inside but I can't sleep with a mask on my face since I am a light sleeper and tried that already.
I wanted crystal lamps after my furniture arrived but had bought these lamps after returning the Stanley furniture and was waiting to see how they looked before my Durham Furniture arrived.

I did have a post about one of the shades being bigger than the other lamp since one is a floor lamp and wondering if that was bad. The shade came out more yellow than the online JCPenney site. I love the two chains on the lamps so it is easy to turn on and off when I am reading in bed. The light is great since each lamp takes two 60 watt bulbs. Should I keep these lamps in this room or put them in my spare bedroom that I use as an exercise room (have not exercised since the car accident) and personal files room and now sock bedroom? Any suggestions? I can always change the shades or does the extra creamy shades look nice?
Should I find lamps to put on the dresser or one by the side of it? Should I buy a doily for the dresser or junior chest?
You don't think that maybe a color like SW Navajo White or BM Lancaster White or MB Muslin would look nicer? You don't feel the wall is too lemony? Maybe I just imagined the look to be different but maybe it is still nice and I should leave the walls as they are? Is the vote for keeping the deep cream walls and that they do not look so bad like I keep thinking?
Do you think Sheer panels on a rod to keep open in the day time and close at night would add warmth or would it be a fire hazard with the heater vents under the windows?
After posting the pics and seeing the Panache and Elan White Blinds (the Architella had two patterns both in the daisy white... see one of the last pics where I posted both blinds on top of each other taped to my lamp to show you the other color I wonder if it would have looked better), I guess it was not a great white and that is why I went with the Panache Linen Blinds that definitely insulate my windows and keeps the light out but I just wish the color was a little lighter. But I am so happy others find it looks nice so maybe I just have to accept that they are nice enough.
I can't wait to take more pics when I have some time with all the decorative pillows on the bed (it is a FloBed Latex Bed)and my white phone and alarm clock on the little Rustic Ivory Iron table rather than the black phone and black/silver clock radio that is there now.
I am wondering if I should not put a picture over the bed since the bed's iron headboard stands for itself and just put a picture over the junior chest and one over the rustic ivory table? Or does anyone have an idea on how to accessorize the room? What color picture frames would look nice?
I have added a small doily on my dresser with two small glass jars with tiny candles in them that have pale green and pale lavender flowers on them. I had these in my master bathroom and they were too crowded there so I thought I would see how they would look on my dresser. I added my little off-white creamy ceramic container on top of the doily to keep my watch in which is working great for me.
I never had an armoire before and I just love it so much. I am glad it is a smaller version one so it fits nicely in my bedroom and does not overpower my room. I also am glad I invested in my first LCD TV. The other one was 15 years old and I gave it to my best friend since her TV broke. It would not fit in the armoire and was VERY heavy and big with a 25" screen. Now I want digital cable (still have analogue cable) eventually and I was offered a special deal that I would not be paying more for digital than for my basic cable if I sign up for one year. It is amazing that the cost of basic analog cable is $50 where I live for no special channels to just see the TV since there is no reception in my townhouse without cable.
I love my comforter so much and it is warm. I have a duvet cover over a down comforter underneath that makes the oversized queen comforter fit my bed better and I use both for warmth since it is cold in the winter time and I keep my bedroom not too warm at night since I like to bundle up. I love the ivory tone on tone look and I am glad I took a chance with the dry clean only comforter to wash it at the Laundromat due to the cotton and polyester fabrics seeming to be not a problem.
I love my plantation mirror that goes well with the plantation design on top of the shutter doors. I like my dresser that holds a lot of clothes despite only being 54" wide and 35" high. A bigger dresser would have not looked right there and not gave me the room for that armoire.

Alison my tiny walk in closets have no room for the dresser but it was a nice suggestion. That is why I did not get a footboard since I needed the room in front of my bed to open the drawers and to not make my bedroom look anymore crowded than it does. I love dark cherry furniture also but I knew that many pieces of dark wood in my bedroom would look so crowded and make my bedroom look small. I would less furniture or a bigger bedroom to go with cherry furniture or mahogany furniture that would have also looked nice with the ivory and cream look of my bedroom. My bedroom is only about 11 feet wide from the headboard to the other side of the bed. My bedroom only looks bigger since it has a triangle cathedral ceiling.
I like the drawers space the chest of drawers provides that I would not be able to fit on the wall there if I went with the smaller night stand rather than the pretty iron table I put next to be bed. So I feel this was the right move despite liking the Stanley prettier chest of drawers better but knowing it was too big for my bedroom and the Durham's chest of drawers looks better there.
I like the color of the Durham Furniture and I feel it looks grown up and serene and is so well made and the size of the pieces fit my bedroom nicely. It also matches and is not damaged like the Stanley Furniture unfortunately was.
I really like the junior chest and I feel by putting a floor lamp there it does not look like an oversized night stand but rather like a small dresser that balances with my chest of drawers on the other side. Am I right about this or would someone rather see a lamp on the junior chest? The smaller lamp I currently have when placed on that dresser is taller than the floor lamp so I switched the lamps and thought of this set-up.
I was going to get lamps for the walls but I had not found any that gave enough light when I want light at night to fold laundry on my bed. I also would need someone handy to install them for me and I want a lot of light since I have no lamps in the ceiling. I would also want it to have either a dimmer or a three way switch or two light bulbs like I have now so only a small light can be turned on for reading at night to get me tired.

Jyyanks, I was just looking at the Durham Southampton collection and I really love the art deco modern look and size of the pieces that are not too big or too small and the size of the drawers. I love the color also. This set would have been my second choice or had been my choice if the Royal Cottage was discontinued. I wonder why the Durham Royal Cottage is no longer listed when it was listed on 12/03/07 on their site.

I am up waiting to hear from my friend who had to be rushed to the emergency room. I think I will go to bed but put the ringer on louder if he needs me.

Lynn,

A couple years ago we went and stayed at a wonderful little B & B in Santa Barbara.

We had stayed at several before and have stayed at several since but none of them compare to the little out-of-the-way B & B in Santa Barbara.

The reason? The room was so serene, so soothing, so un-busy, it made me relax (and at the time I really needed to re-learn how to relax! lol). Monochromatic does that to me.

Your new bedroom set and whole room reminds me of that B & B in Santa Barbara -- same soothing, serene feeling.

I wouldn't give your blinds a second thought--to me their coloring looks perfect!

Hoping that your mend from your accident goes smoothly, and with as little discomfort as possible.

Amity, Thank you for letting me know that the Monochromatic bedroom theme also relaxed you. I always loved bright vibrant colors until I saw this particular townhouse I bought 10 years ago. The soothing monocromatic theme throughout it with tasteful beautiful furniture the previous owner had in his home as well as the layout of this particular townhouse made me fall in love with it.

Thanks for letting me know you like the coloring of my Linen Duet honeycomb Blinds.

Thanks for hoping I mend from my car accident.

Hi Lynn,
I never though if the Southampton being art deco but now that you mention it, you're right. I bought my Durham furniture on a whim - wasn't expecting to buy it, didn't really have the money for it, but I am so glad that I took the plunge. It really makes my master bedroom feel sophisticated and elegnt rather than a room full of mish moshed furniture.

When I look at your room, the term "RESTFUL RETREAT" come to mind. I can see it accessorized with soft periwinkle, silver and fresh flowers. While sheer wispy curtains would look nice, I'd be paranoid about the heater thing too.

I hope your friend is ok. .

jyyanks, I do love your Southampton Furniture and it is very stylish and beautiful. I love the handles, the color of the furniture, the size of the drawers, the style of he furniture and the overall look and size.

I stayed with the Antique White Color since I had the Rustic Ivory Headboard and Iron Table from the store that sold me the damaged and mismatched Stanley. If did not have that headboard (which by the way I do love my headboard since it is so unique and looks pretty and feminine with pillows on it or nothing on it), I would have had to make a decision to stay with the off-white serene look or maybe go with what you ordered as a rich look to my bedroom. There was also one other Durham set I loved called Savile Row sold in a Mahogany color that I thought was rich and pretty but many of the pieces of the furniture were too tall for me or too big for my size bedroom. Your furniture would have looked nice in my bedroom also.

But I am glad I will finally have this ivory room I had wanted for the last two years and wanted before one day I meet someone and maybe get married and they do not want an ivory and cream bedroom so my furniture goes to the guest room.

I am still wondering if I could put sheer wispy curtains on curtain rods and keep them open around the Honeycomb blinds to avoid the heater vents or will this not look right. Also what color sheers? What color rod?

jyyanks, do you like the lamps or do you have other ideas for my bedroom?

I love the color periwinkle and fresh flowers. I have silver in every room in my home so that is why I wanted to go with the satin brass or a crystal that did not have much silver on it. I do love silver but I thought the ivory would look better with a told color but maybe I am wrong?

Lynnn, I sent you an e-mail but wanted to say here that I really like what you have done. I know you worked very hard and long on it, not accepting that which did not work for you, and I think that is so important. If we are not happy with it, we will never like it. It looks to me that you should be happy because from what I can tell, you accomplished that which you set out to accomplish.

Just a couple things, I would place a tray (maybe wicker) on the bed with a couple books, maybe a couple other personal items, a mint julep cup on the chest with some antique white roses and white dried hydrangea, or even faded pink roses. I think a crystal vase on the dresser would be good and you could even add some parfum containers, even if they are fastice. (Don't know if I spelled that right ?)

I think you need a piece of art work and right now, I cannot wrap my brain around what I would do, but I am sure you will come up with something wonderful.

Congratulations, job well done.

Beautiful, warm and relaxing room! The monochromatic theme is nicely pulled together, Lynn, but I feel as if the satin brass is distracting in the lamps. I'd look for crystal with either silver or brass as far as lamps go. They look too chunky (sorry, that's the only word I can think of to describe the lamps) with the delicate feel of the furniture. I've bought a couple Lenox lamps at HomeGoods and the ivory and gold they are known for would look really nice with your furniture, too.

As far as other accents go, those are the things that should call out to you when you're shopping. Don't worry too much about everything being an exact match. It should blend as it builds up over time. You're definitely on the right track. I think the windows could benefit from a drape or panel but I'm not sure what. I'd look at JCPenney's online catalog for ideas. If I see something, I'll post it.

Lynn, I think crystal lamps are more in keeping with the serene look you have achieved in the rest of your room. The brushed brass lamps are nice, but as onourway2nc said, they are a bit jarring compared to the rest of your room.

DD1 just moved to a new apartment in San Francisco and I went out last week to visit and help hang pictures. In the past, she had a pair of crystal lamps that I loved...but she was tired of them so now they are in storage. :( They have been used in her bedroom and LR. She is now using a large, clear glass base lamp, a pair of table lamps with the bases covered in polished/off white shells and next to a sofa she has an creamy iron base lamp.

My point is, any lamp that is soft/light in color or is glass/crystal will continue the serene feeling in your room.

Here are a few pictures of her lamps. Notice her accesorries, they are silver, mirrored, and/or light colored to keep her apartment light and airy.

Someone mentioned a tray for your perfume bottles. I had her one made using picture from molding. I was able to use a piece of material she wanted under the glass and since it was custom, the size and frame she wanted as well.

Here is a link that might be useful: Lamps

I wanted to thank everyone since all of your suggestions are so helpful and I am starting to enjoy the color of my cellular blinds also seeing them as warm and fitting in with my room's serene theme I will write more tomorrow. Tonight it is so late and I am so tired. I had been wanting crystal lamps but I can't find a matching set that has one as a floor lamp and one as a table lamp. I did find scones. I love the satin brass so I will either keep them in the room or if I find nice Crystal lamps that are not too expensive, I will place the satin brass lamps in my spare small exercise/storage room since I do not want to return them to JCPenney as I find them very pretty.

I went to Fortunoff tonight and found crystal lamps I liked but they were not in stock. The lamp I went there for had a nice cream shade (was off-white with a touch of yellow that would have been perfect if the shape was not so big and square in person)but the lamp itself looked too bulky. So I bought three other crystal lamps home with white shades in different styles that I was not in love but were in stock but thought I would try them out for color and size. The two big ones were too bulky just like I thought they would be despite being crystal and the lamps shades were too white. One of them had a chrome base that I did not like near my headboard or Ivory comforter.
The small 22" high crystal lamp I loved but it was too small for my junior chest next to my bed and if I used it on the night stand, then I can not find a floor lamp to be that size and I found out that I really like lamps about the same height on both sides of my bed. I tried the lamp on my double dresser but there is not much room on both sides of the mirror and it made the dresser look too crowded. I decided to try it out in my storage/exercise room and it looks wonderful in that room. I am going to buy another one at 60% off since it came to less than $60 a piece and it is what that room needed so now I can return my friend's table lamps I had in that room. It only has a 60 watt bulb but it seems to work in that room due to the white Shangri-la on the windows and the mirrored doors and the small size fits perfectly on top of my big speakers on my two door file cabinets in that room that hold personal papers. I hate the big speakers and I wish I could buy a new stereo set but I have to many other expenses so at least they look good with the lamps on them.

The style of the lamp I am keeping was what one of the lamps I wanted looked like but was the 28" height I wanted with a 150 watt bulb. It was out of stock and I would have to order it and then I can't find a floor lamp that would be that height on the other side of my bed. It would be too tall on the Junior chest at 32.5" + 28" 60.5" tall while my headboard is 60" tall. I seem to like the lamps a little less in height than my headboard in my room I am finding out. I would then need a tall floor lamp on the other side or a wall lamp too high up for my reading in bed to read the switch.

Restoration Hardware also has a lamp I like but now I wonder if it will be too tall at 31.5" high based on my sample of lamps today and I would have to get the expensive matching floor lamp that I can see a lot of silver come through the glass in the pictures so I am not sure in person that would make me happy and the store is a farther away trip. I found I did not like having lamps that were more than a 1" height difference.

I also like a white wall type of lamp but my two friends do not want to install it for me and feel I should stick with lamps I can move around in case I have to move my bed. It comes with no shade or a shade I do not like. I am finding out bright white near my bed does not look that great probably because nothing is white in my bedroom but the doors and ceiling and trim. I would have to add white decorative pillows to my bed to make a white shade go better.

I could get a wall brass plate with an extendable arm but again I am not handy and I am thinking I will stay with the table lamps despite the room it is taking up room on my table.

I am finding out that I really love the two chains on my two lamps in my bedroom. I like the 60 watt bulbs they take making each lamp 120 watts. I like the way both are around the same height. I like the rich satin brass color. I like how the top of the lamp's brass knob does not get hot since the bulbs are on the sides. The lamps I bought today that had 150 3-way bulbs got so hot on the top connector crystal piece. But I wish the shades were less wide and less gold.

I am not liking silver near my headboard that is bringing out a grayish color instead of the creamy color my brass lamps are bring out. I did love the pure crystal against my headboard when the silver was hidden so if there were too floor lamps that were all crystal with not much silver showing and were dainty with off-white/eggshell shades, I would prefer this but so far I am not finding anything like this but in very expensive prices over $400 a piece.

I either may go take a look at the Restoration Hardware lamps or I may work with what I have and just know that my honeycomb blinds already make the room not pure shabby chic but close (and thanks to all of you, I now like the color of my blinds in my bedroom) and the satin brass is rich looking and pretty.

I can always get a satin brass decorative rod to put some sheers on. I think I just need different lamp shades but even with the ones I have, it is not a bad look. I guess nothing is perfect in life and I wish now I just bought two Junior Chests (equivalent to bachelor chests that are oversized night stands) so I could have lamps match on both sides but I wanted more drawer space so I bought the chest of drawers and I was kind of stuck with the little Iron table that I had already bought from the store that sold me the damaged Stanley Furniture that I returned.

So I could go with crystal and have the lamps different size heights or I could go with what I have and get less wide shades in a less golden color or keep what I have and get back to work. :) I'll see if I can send in some pictures I took when I have more time.

Maybe I just need cream or eggshell or off-white shades similar to what I have now. Square shades looked terrible in my bedroom I found out but the tiny square shade in white looks wonderful in my spare room and so does the silver and crystal colors.

If I can't find anything, I will live with my ivory shade that comes across golden and darker than I imagined it. It is padded, made well, and gives a nice glow but I still think a little bit lighter cream would look nicer in my bedroom. The shade does match the lamps very well.

I have more to say but I must get some sleep. I really love my bedroom in how it is so peaceful to sleep in.

Now I am confused. A friend of mine came by to help me pack up the lamps. He loved the tiny 22" high lamp on my bedroom little table and did not think the shade was too white and felt the 5" base was much better than the 7" base on the table now. He feels I should see which Fortunoff has the 28" similar styled lamp with the dainty 5.25" base and if I put that lamp on the little table the tiny lamp could go on the Junior Chest and they would be the same size. I am just confused and it is worth it but time consuming to decorate. I will try to post pics when I have time. I still like a softer white shade.

I just came back to this thread and realize a picture above my chest of drawers would look nice and the sheers I plan to buy. I will update everyone when I have time to buy what I need. I love a particular picture I saw on the Country Curtains Site. I love my crystal lamps. I now am in love with my Durham Furniture and just wish I bought the white Architella black out blinds rather than the Linen color.

Lynn: I think your room is just beautiful. The wall color, the shades, the furniture, the bedding: all as perfect as can be. I agree that you should switch out the brass lamps for the crystal lamps, and I echo everything Patricia said. Then I think you should just stop thinking about it and live in and enjoy it. You've put together a lovely room.

Thank you Organic for your kind words and letting me know you like my bedroom.

I love the linen color black-out blinds in the day time but at night they get darker and more brown and that is why I need sheers to hide them. If they were white, I would leave them alone since sheers add dust and I am trying to keep my room clutter free to help me sleep at night since I have allergies to dust.

But you made my day and I do love the crystal lamps I have now in the room.

I just got an email from redfox that my links do not show the Durham Furniture. When I click on my first link in this post, I see the Durham Furniture that is an Antique White and includes an Armoire. I still kept my Wesley Allen Iron Headboard and Iron 18" round table.

Someone was requesting pics of my Armoire so I am replying so this post with the links to my bedroom (that is even prettier now with the new crystal lamps on the dresser and the bedside tables with silk flowers) and will post more pics with my bed made with the pretty pillows when time allows.

I found my old post. I again thank everyone for helping me make my bedroom a peaceful retreat.