$20 Tuesday - Room Rehab

 This post is a blend of two topics I have wanted to cover - rearranging rooms and using existing furniture in creative ways. Let me start out by saying that one major project I want to tackle this summer is transforming my mudroom into a cocktail room. Preparing for something like that takes planning and for me the starting point is removing furniture from that space. Many people would just take their furniture and put it on the curb (and I live for those people) but that is not me!

Instead I have started planning where those pieces are going and figuring out creative ways to make it work. One major item in my mudroom was my computer. Finding a new spot for that was hard. There was no room in the kitchen, I didn't want it in the basement, the living room layout would make it pretty impossible and I didn't want to do computer work in the bedroom. So that pretty much left 2 spaces, the closet or the guest room. Since the closet will eventually be our baby's room, I chose the guest room. Not to mention that the guest room is basically my favorite room of the house and will invite good energy and creativity!

The original layout was nice but there was absolutely no room for a computer! I forgot to take a before shot (which sucks) but I can tell you, there was no room. There was a hand me down T.V. stand (that everyone thought I was silly for taking) sitting in this room for a while, but did not have a T.V. So I decided to tackle this as my computer desk.

I started out by marking my space, something I have been doing for years and it helps immensely. I basically walk the room, count my steps by one foot in front of the other so I get the dimensions of the room. Then I do the same thing for my furniture. This allows me to create a rough to scale diagram. I use inches for feet and draw my room and then my furniture on a separate page.

Next I cut out my furniture pieces so I can move them around my room to find the best spacing option. This was one plan I came up with, but actually decided to go another route. I love making these diagrams, it helps create a space like you would not believe. It is not 100% accurate, but it is accurate enough to know what is going to work and not work.

Then I got to moving. It pretty much worked out the way I wanted with a couple of tweaks. The T.V. stand (although low) works for my computer and the existing chair (left by previous owners) is way more comfortable than the wooden chair I was using before. 

Now to get to the $20 I spent today. I knew that moving this room around would force me to put the guest bed up against a wall. I typically try to avoid that if all possible. But if it is absolutely necessary, then the feel of a day bed (in my opinion) needs to come into play. Which means I needed pillows! I went to ikea and bought 3 $4.00 pillows along with 2 new pillow cases (for some pillows I haven't used). It totaled $19.04. I felt confident I could make the bed look great pushed in a corner with a bunch of pillows!

Now that works for me. I could curl right up. It also let me display my awesome Wolf blanket. I basically got a whole new room today for $19.04 and I am loving it. So is Diesel…

Thrifty Tip: The key to really recreating and maintaining a home is to see the big picture. That is why my first post on this blog was about creating your palette. But it goes way beyond that. You have to be able to buy smart from the beginning. So many home owners buy things because they like it. There is nothing wrong with that! But if you are thrifty like me, you buy (or take) things because of their being. I am always the first to take hand me downs. Anything can be functional and beautiful by using creativity.