A Young Lady and A Room...A Makeover Story

Hello friends.....I know I was AWOL last week, but I have a good excuse.

I was on a mission...

I drove home to New York with the hope of giving a new girl

a new room.
Please allow me a little narrative here
;->

My niece Ashleigh, is my sister Joanne's only child.

Ash's father died when she was just a baby and my sister, along with support from my Mom, has raised her alone.

Ashleigh gave me permission to tell you her story.

High school was not a successful experience for Ash, she left before getting her diploma.

After a few part time jobs in shopping mall retail, she soon realized how valuable that diploma was.

Back to school she went and with some determination,

 she earned her GED.

However even armed with a GED, Ash found it very difficult to find a rewarding

job that she could make a career of.

It's tuff out there!

I asked Ash why she recently decided to go back to school again.

This is what she told me....

"I decided to go back to school because I wanted to do something with my life. I wanted to be able to have a secure future and a career so I could support myself and not depend on someone else.

I'm determined to finish with straight A's, because I know I can do it.

I didn't get to walk across the stage in high school...I didn't take it seriously.

My mind is set on following this through to the end.

I'm near completion on my Medical Admin. Assistant degree and plan on continuing my studies in Medical Billing & Coding to make myself more valuable in the workplace."

Well Ash is not only doing this, but she is doing it with all straight A's!

She continually makes the President's List

and has a new found maturity and respect for education.

I am very proud of her.

So when Ash asked me to help her redesign her 'little girl' bedroom to reflect her new 'can do' attitude,

 I said 

"I thought you would never ask!"

Let the fun begin......

This is Ashleigh's room before any changes.
Why do little girls always want to paint the trim a darker shade of the wall color??

At first I thought this was just yards of blue painters tape...nope

just yards of painted trim.....

My sister sent me these photos of Ash rolling on the new paint colors.

Keep it rolling girl!

YIKES....that's a lot of blue!
One of the first bit's of advice was to buy white simi-gloss and
PAINT THAT TRIM!!!
All of it

Ash's furniture is very pretty, but a little bland.
The new room needs some style and color.
Ash and I decided on Duck Egg Blue for the base of the dresser with Paris Grey drawer fronts.

Her dresser has a leaf relief design,but the monotone color is hiding it.

I'll take care of that.

Love the cute bun feet.

She will get some feminine bling also.

Let the painting begin!

I brought all my ASCP's with me and decided on Cream for her desk.

I embellished the piece with some Henrietta dry brushed over the leaf design to 

make it stand out more.

Can you believe this house has these fabulously gorgeous original glass knobs and plates throughout the whole house!!!

I thought about going home with one set in my bag, but figured the gaping hole in the door

would give me away.

Sis...call me if you EVER contemplate changing these out!

We had fun shopping for little extras for her new room.

I created a old fashioned bunting made from vintage hankies, fabric glue and grosgrain ribbon.

NO-SEW Bunting!!!!

Look how sweet the mason jars look sitting on Ash's radiator.

Very country vintage style.

I think they are Ash's favorite feature.

Close up of the cute bun feet on the dresser.

Lovely Henrietta chalk paint.

Hobby Lobby is one of the best places to find wonderful knobs and pulls.

If you don't have a Hobby Lobby near you, you can shop online.

The selection is great.

We fell in love with these sweet glass hearts.

I accented the relief with a dry brushing of Old White.

It was so hard getting good photos..it was rainy and dreary the whole time.

Ash's bed was repainted in Old White and aged using a mix of clear and dark wax.

Of course a little distressing was needed to achieve an aged-worn look.

Now just a warning..this is not a WOW kind of reveal, but more of a 

Ahhhhhhh....

Ready to see the finished room?

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Well come on in..........

Before I arrived Ash, her mom and step-father ( thanks Dave!) painted the walls.

Three of the walls are a very pale green and one is a pale buttery yellow.

As requested (by me) all trim was painted white.

The furniture is no longer all glossy and matchy-matchy.

That's Ash as a baby...so cute.

Handy baskets now will help keep her organized.

I  found this whimsical bird box at the local Michaels for $5.00!

It makes a great stationary organizer on her desk.

The colors are perfect.

The bird theme is repeated around the room.

Birds fly and Ashleigh is flying high....yup, appropriate.

it was so humid that week, the N fell during the night when the adhesive backing weakened from excess moisture!

The large letters were found at Hobby Lobby. 

I decoupaged them using pretty scrapbook papers and Mod Podge

 (or as Joanne kept calling it Mosh Pit).

My little side table sits next to her newly painted bed.

The sweet ornate birdcage was found at TJMax 

I love how the the papered letters now mimic the quilt I found on sale at Kohls.

I let some of the original gold show through when I glued the papers on.

Such an easy project.

Now Ashleigh has a wonderful workspace for her studies.

I extended the curtain rod past the window casing and replaced the short drapes with longer crinkled white cotton panels. 

A pale yellow quilt and shams replaced the dark comforter Ash was using.

The quilt acts as a kind of throw.

Ash can use it on cooler nights or keep it folded at the bottom of the bed when not being used.

 To add a touch of glam to the space, I added a gold frame to hold Ash's family photos.

Every gal needs a little gold in her life.

Ash found this fancy frame in Hobby Lobby for her treasured photo of her dad.

Perfect sentiment for Ash.

These clay tags are so easy and fun to create.

Ash said the bed is now exactly how she envisioned it, vintage and gently worn. 

ANG are Ash's initials

I took this photo prior to the 'N' falling to the floor.

I think the blue braided rug gives the room warmth and a definite country charm.

Ash found the lamp and shade buried in her closet.

By going with a solid quilt, Ash now has the freedom to 

make bedding changes in the future without investing lots of money

in changing everything out.

We are still on the lookout for some pretty throw pillows to bring in 

some additional color. 

If I had only had my sewing machine........

Close-up of one of my decoupaged letters.

Let's recap.....

This is what Ash's 'Little Girl' room looked like before.....

And here is the after...

Ashleigh now has a real grown up space to enjoy.

I hope she smiles every morning when she wakes up to her new room

And her new life

We are so proud of you Ash! 

Until next time...be kind and stay creative.

Sharing this week with:

Hope Studios

Savvy Southern Style

The Shabby Creek Cottage

Miss Mustard Seed

Perfectly Imperfect