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Designing for a Teenager: Bright and Fun Inspiration

At Kelley Astore Interiors, we are just as eager to create bedrooms and spaces for children and teenagers as we are for adults. We talk a lot about the importance of a design being true to who you are, and arguably that is even more important for teenagers. We all remember what it was like being that age, and having a safe space for teenagers to unwind and truly be themselves is very important for their development.

A little while ago we had a client with a daughter wanting to redo her room with some gorgeous colors! We took these colors and created a completely custom room and bathroom for her. This young lady chose bright pink, apple green, and turquoise – I absolutely loved working with this bright gorgeous palette and had a lot of fun with this design. Keep reading to learn about each element and how we brought the room together.

Custom Window Seat & Extra Storage

When I saw the space, my eye was drawn to the large window sill and I immediately saw the potential for a lovely window seat for her to unwind, do her homework, and hang out with her friends. We got started on building this for her. We decided to install drawers beneath the window seat as well as bookshelves on either side for extra storage…we all know teenagers have a lot of stuff!

After the drawers were installed, we painted the window seat and surrounding bookshelves white. I then got to work on incorporating her beautiful bright colors of choice. We went for the apple green seat cushion and colorful throw curtains. We installed roman shades of matching colors. The apple green is the main color on the bottom and the bright pink is the main color on the top, which balances itself out and creates a cohesive look. This particular teenager did a lot of ballet and dance, so we made sure that her beautiful white tutu stayed on display – a practical and beautiful way to store it.

All the fabric is by Osborne and Little.

Bedding

To ensure that the color palette remained consistent, we opted for a turquoise headboard as the main color of the bed. Now the bright pink, apple green, and turquoise each have their moment of shine and no color overtakes the other. We used the same patterned fabric for her pillows as we used in the roman shades, once again tying the whole design together into one.

Custom Memo Board

Every young person needs a memo board for notes, reminders, pictures, memories, and inspiration! Ensuring that your teenager has a desk and a designated place of work will help them develop a healthy relationship with work and establish a work-life balance. We upholstered this board with Pindler turquoise-colored cotton, white grosgrain ribbon, and silver nail heads from Houles. We sourced the desk from CB2. Looking at how much she covered this memo board from top to bottom, we couldn’t recommend getting one for your teenager more!

The Design is in the Detail.

Every designer knows that the small details are what will truly tie a room together. Although she had chosen bright pink, apple green, and turquoise as her palette – if everything in her room were one of those three colors, it would look like a Crayola explosion…and not in a good way. It needed balancing to allow those colors to shine, and we chose neutrals and white. We went for a darker wood on the ground to help the colors pop. We painted the walls a nice neutral to ensure they didn’t look too hospital-like. We then took inspiration from her beautiful white tutu and began incorporating more white into the design. As previously stated, we painted the bookshelves and window seat white. We knew that we wanted to allow the window seat, memo board, and bed to shine, so we went with white, but played with texture. The rug on her ground, her desk chair, and one of the throw pillows on her bed are all a furry white texture. This gives consistency without detracting from the beautiful bright colors.

Interested in renovating? Get in touch today!

We had so much fun with this design and are eager to continue working with clients to help them create the home of their dreams. Whatever the nature and scope of your redesign, we take full responsibility for seeing that the entire project is finished on time and on budget and that all work is of the highest quality. We take the worry out of the process for our clients. Visit our services page to get started today!

5 Reasons to Install Stair Runners Today

When designing a space, a number of factors must be considered: function, aesthetics, comfort, and practicality. Depending on the project, each of these factors will be given more weight and priority. It’s a gift then when certain design choices are able to fulfill all the roles in one go, like stair runners. A stair runner is a strip of carpet that lines the center of a staircase, leaving the side edges exposed. Not only do they look amazing and tie a design together, but they are extremely functional and practical. Keep reading to find out 5 reasons to install stair runners today.

1. They make a space more welcoming

Carpet naturally has a warm and welcoming feel. The soft material brings comfort and reminds us that the home should feel safe. The cushioning beneath the feet softens each footstep, padding our treads. Therefore, having a strip of carpet run along the stairs warmly invites guests and home-dwellers alike to climb up and down the padded steps, into the heart of the home. Because stair runners leave the edge of the stairs exposed, they create another dimension, giving additional texture to the design. This draws the eye to the staircase in a welcoming manner and easily ties a design together.

2. They add traction

Stair runners don’t just make a space more welcoming because of how they look and feel, they give so much traction to the staircase that guests and home dwellers will physically feel safer walking up and down the steps. According to the National Safety Council, up to 12,000 deaths occur at home per year in the USA due to accidental falls on the stairs. If the staircase was designed with slippery wood and you’re wearing socks, it’s no surprise that a fall will take place. Adding stair runners helps prevent this. They are especially good if the home dweller is more at risk of a fatal fall, such as an elderly person. They’re also very good if there are a lot of children quickly running up and down the steps, as children love to do. They make stairs so much safer, which feels more welcoming.

3. They’re an easy way to cover up damaged stairs

If you’re renovating a space or looking to spruce up a design, stair runners are a cost-effective way to cover up any staircases, not in prime condition. If the wood on your stairs is particularly worn or scratched, simply cover it up with a stair runner to make it look good as new! Naturally, people walk in the center of the stairs, so this part will wear out the quickest. Easily make it look new with a stylish stair runner choice.

4. They protect the wood underneath

If your home is newly renovated and you’re not trying to cover up any wear and tear, perhaps you’re more interested in protecting against wear and tear. Stair runners do this as well. If you’ve chosen a nicer or more expensive wood for the staircase, you don’t want it to get scratched up by rough shoes or heavy lifting. Stair runners are here to save the day! Lay down a strip of carpet and protect the most vulnerable part of the treads.

5. They offer a stylish and cheaper alternative to carpeted stairs.

The final reason to get stair runners installed is for how amazing they look! They give a fun opportunity to add some color and texture into a design. If you’ve just purchased a home and were hoping for carpeted stairs for the safety reasons discussed earlier, stair runners offer a cheaper and easier alternative to getting the full staircase carpeted.

Get yours installed today!

The stair runners pictured here are all sisal runners. Sisal is a woven material from natural plant fibers and provides a lovely texture. Additionally, sisal doesn’t get worn down as much as traditional carpeting. If you’re interested in installing stair runners and are not sure where to start, head to my services page to book a free consultation today – you tell us exactly what you want, and we’ll get the job done for you!

Shop The Look: Young Lady’s Bathroom Transformation

I’m excited to share with you the final product of a Young Lady’s Bathroom transformation that we completed just before Thanksgiving in 2021!

The Before.

We took a few pictures before the bathroom transformation took place, and while there is nothing necessarily wrong with it, it was clear that a little bit of TLC would truly transform the space. Here, I feel the vertical stripes on the walls made the already-small room appear much smaller than it actually was, creating a slightly claustrophobic atmosphere.

The Colors.

The color palette is much more important than you may initially believe when it comes to bathroom design. In this case, I decided to opt for a rather simplistic color scheme, combining a bright white shade with pastel blue hues. These shades are commonly featured in bathrooms – and for a good reason. This is because they give the room a clean and hygienic feel, which is perhaps more important in the bathroom than anywhere else in the home!

In this instance, we painted the walls in the stunning Lily White shade from Benjamin Moore. As the color white is light-reflective, this instantly makes the bathroom look bigger.

Tiles.

My favorite part of this bathroom transformation is, without a doubt, the tiles behind the vanity. Handmade by Marble Systems, they feature a simplistic yet effective blue and white geometric pattern that adds a new dimension to the bathroom. We also installed unique ‘raised’ shower tiles in the back wall of the shower, which added a further dimension to the space.

It goes without saying that tiles are the perfect choice for bathroom decor since they are easy to clean and resistant to the build-up of moisture. This makes bathroom maintenance a breeze! In terms of maintenance, we also decided to install a glass shower door, removing the old shower curtain previously hung by the owner. Again, this is much easier to clean and gives the space a more modern-finish, perfect for a young lady!

Mirror & Vanity.

As mentioned previously, the vanity became the focal point of the room once we added the handmade tiles. Here, you can see the prep behind installing a mirror within the space. We used blue tape to measure out the exact location of the mirror and sconces, which were then installed upon the tile for a clean, professional finish.

The vanity is painted white in order to match the rest of the space. However, it has a stunning marble countertop, which helps bring a bit of luxury into this bathroom and pairs nicely with the silver furnishings dotted around the space, such as towel racks and plumbing fixtures like the shower and faucets. The vanity is also on the larger side, with ten drawers meaning there are plenty of storage options for the user – whether she chooses to store make-up or toiletries in the space.

Once we had installed all of the fixtures, lighting was the step of the process. We chose to hang two wall-mounted lights in the bathroom, which are both sophisticated and practical.

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