The G’s came to me in the middle of 2021 with the intention to decorate their primary bedroom to last the rest of their lives. Both retired and full of life, they wanted a place that would feed their eclectic souls and be a comfortable place to relax and inevitably grow old. This couple is naturally drawn to objects that have meaning to them. Every piece of furniture and art on their walls has a story and I loved hearing them all as we toured their whole home. Regardless of the scope of the project, I like to walk through the whole house with a client to get them talking about what they love and don’t love about other rooms. So much information comes when they aren’t asked a direct question and are simply allowed to talk naturally about how they have built their home so far. Unavoidably stories of family, travels, hobbies or other values come out in the cracks. That is where the gold is.
Mrs. G was my primary partner on this remodel and was responsible for representing both perspectives of the couple. Primary bedrooms are an intimate space and merging the styles of two art lovers can be challenging. But these two have loved each other a long time and already knew where to acquiesce and where to assert their perspective. I learned a lot from them in that way.
Like many designers I often name our design style specific to each client. It anchors us to a vision. In this case, we named it Garden Party Eclectic. The personal nature of the items was more important than sticking to any prefab home décor theme so the pieces inside were often shopped from the art stash in the garage or from other places in the home. Then careful consideration was made on how to replace it in that empty space or briefly reimagine it as not to leave holes.
The G’s love color and as a quilter Mrs. G was accustomed to the patchwork nature of her art. We elevated that full-color palette and steered toward the nature outside the window. Bridging the garden outside with the relaxing space indoors as if they were connected by more than just the bay window. Despite that window, the room was fairly dark given that there are no south-facing panes and the ceilings are high. We updated overhead lighting, installed reading lights behind the bed and recessed two can lights in the bay window to brighten and help frame each of the spaces they would inhabit.
In the end, Mrs. G wanted a space where she could “ooo” and “ahhh”. Something bold and exciting, yet also quite livable for a long time. After a full day of hanging 20-plus art pieces and a custom valence, I welcomed the couple into their new boudoir. A gasp and tears followed as they told the story of each piece of their art I had selected and reframed to work perfectly for the room. A happy couple moved and surprised by their own bedroom is every designer’s dream. It’s why we do the work.