Room of the Day: A Dreamy Boho Bedroom for Tweens

Parents create a magical and cozy bedroom for their daughters with built-ins, fabric, lighting and more

Becky Harris September 15, 2016

Houzz Contributor. Hi there! I live in a 1940s cottage in Atlanta that I'll describe as "collected." I got into design via Landscape Architecture, which I studied at the University of Virginia.

Houzz Contributor. Hi there! I live in a 1940s cottage in Atlanta that I'll describe... More

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While their daughters Madison and Lillian were away for two weeks, interior designer Ginger Curtis and her husband, Eric, worked around the clock to surprise them with new bedroom decor. Using layers of soft linens, scrim, macramé, fringe, beads, tassels and feathers, she designed a dreamy room that holds everything two tweens need.

Before Photo

“After” photos by Sesha Smith of Convey Studios

Bedroom at a Glance
What happens here: Two girls — Madison, 12, and Lillian, 11 — sleep, play, read, lounge, do homework, laugh, chat and have sleepovers
Location: Fort Worth, Texas
Size: 156 square feet (14.5 square meters)
Designer: Homeowner Ginger Curtis of Urbanology Designs

BEFORE: The girls’ room was dark, its height was overwhelming, and the popcorn ceiling and matted white carpeting had to go. “I think of the floor as the fifth wall, and it’s the first thing I go for when designing a room,” Curtis says. “The color, the width, the size and the grain are all important.” She chose maple because of its organic natural look, beautiful pale color and subtle grain. These are 5-inch unstained planks.

Urbanology Designs

AFTER: Five-year-old Avery, pictured, delights in her big sisters’ new room (her room is a delight as well). “I wanted to put a dreamy filter on everything,” Curtis says. She kept the layers of whimsy in check by using soft textures as well as shades of white and dusty pinks.

“There was just this one little hidden window in here. I knew I had to highlight it with light, sheer drapes,” she says. She brought more illumination into the room with can lights, origami string lights, a beaded chandelier and the Believe sign over Madison’s bed. The lights are on dimmers so that the girls can create different moods at night.

Urbanology Designs

“The tent is the first thing that you see when you walk into the room and serves as a focal point. It was the hardest thing to figure out,” Curtis says. After finding that everything available was just too heavy, “too nursery” or too expensive, she experimented with lightweight woven scrim fabric and a dream catcher, and fashioned the canopy herself.

An ombré macramé wall hanging adds texture behind the floor cushions. “The girls love to lounge and chat here,” Curtis says. “They can pull the top cushions out to spread out.” This is Lillian’s favorite spot in the room.

Drapes: Restoration Hardware; round rug and floor cushions: Urban Outfitters; pillows with tassels: Anthropologie

To make room for the cushions, Curtis took out the closet door, since its swing was taking up valuable real estate. This created an opportunity to add more fringe, so she hung a macramé curtain in the doorway.

Along with the extra-high bunk bed and large chandelier, the tent helps bring the high ceiling down to size.

Paint: Bashful and Distinct Gray, both Benjamin Moore; ombré garland: KM Hallberg Design; macramé curtain: Ciocco Design Co.

“Everything in this room had to be hardworking and serve double duty. The closet is small, and we needed room for toys, clothes and homework,” Curtis says. Because the ceilings are so high, she was able to place the bunks up higher and create storage underneath. On the bottom is another floor cushion that can be pulled out for friends during sleepovers. She outfitted the cubbies with baskets for toys, shoes and clothing.

An Etsy artist made the tassels under the bunk bed. “I love to support small businesses because I have a small business,” she says. “There’s something special about these items from artists all over the country, and more of a story behind handmade items.”

Chandelier: Shades of Light

While the couple was creating a wall with enough support to hold up the floating bunks, Curtis had the idea to save floor space by building in the ladder. She added a bookshelf just for Madison so that she can grab some reading material on the way up to her bed.

The existing vanity area had a big, square builder-grade mirror. The couple painted the vanity, installed a round mirror with a brass frame and added globe lights with brass accents. Curtis painted the triangles on the medicine cabinet. Artist Jessica Shubert of Scripted Love Calligraphy made the customized banner over the door.

Urbanology Designs

Madison’s top bunk is her favorite part of the room. “It’s her own little private area,” Curtis says. The Believe light provides reading light. She left the railing off so that the photographer could capture this cozy area.

Urbanology Designs

Next to the bed is a homework station crafted from a wall shelf with a custom pegboard. Curtis made it from leftover wood from the project. “I love to get resourceful and create something original to balance the budget so that I can splurge on things like the coolest gold-and-pink chair,” she says.

Feather mobile: The Dream Barn; letters on wall: Restoration Hardware

Urbanology Designs

More fringe hangs from a branch over the dresser. The room was a labor of love, and the parents report that the girls are thrilled.

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