Every home should have: Well organized bedside tables

Bedside tables are one of the first things one sees when getting up in the morning.  Therefore I think they are not only useful and necessary but they also play an important role in how our days are going to develop throughout the day.  A messy and sloppy bedside table will not exactly uplift our mood and fill us with energy,  instead it will most likely weight us down.  It's a good idea to always have on our bedside table something that would bring a smile to our face;  an important photograph, fresh flowers or a souvenir from a very memorable vacation.  Enjoy!

Client Before & After: Fresh+Preppy Bedroom

I love working on a room from start to finish – coming up with the design concept and feel and then executing.  This bedroom that I recently completed was a fun project.   This is what we started with:



The room needed some architectural presence and I thought that panel moulding/trim would be a great solution. As an example, I showed them Jen’s bedroom and they absolutely loved the panelling and decided to tackle the work themselves. They did an amazing job!


Photo: Leah Kirin

In the Before photo, you can see that the side tables were just too big for the wall with the king bed.  These ones from West Elm were perfect.

The ceiling fixture is one of my favourites that I blogged about here. It is just so pretty and suits this bedroom perfectly.



When I showed them this fabric (Thom Filicia for Kravet) for the headboard, they loved it! Paired with nail head trim, it looks amazing with the panelling.  (We used a different colourway of this fabric on roman shades and pillows in other rooms in the house, we loved it so much!)

The pillows and the striped rug from Crate and Barrel in a bold yellow/mustard colour punch up the neutral grey/white/cream palette.

We were all set to commission a painting above the bed but decided the room didn’t need one.


Photo:  Leah Kirin

I loved working on this bedroom with these clients. They were so trusting and wonderful – makes my job so much easier and fun! They said that they feel like they are waking up in a 5 star hotel every day! Love that.
I also worked on other rooms in their house and will show you their dining room in the coming weeks!

Have a great week!

Have a decorating dilemma and don’t know where to start? Contact me at vanessa@vanessafrancis.com

Fifty Upholstered Headboards to Love

I’m working on a principal bedroom with a client who is quite keen on the idea of an upholstered headboard but isn’t sure what style direction to take.  When it comes to upholstered headboards, there are a multitude of options.  Straight or curved? Patterned or solid fabric?  Nail head detail?  Button tufting? Wood frame? Or any combination.

You can either make the headboard yourself, have an upholsterer make it for you or purchase one from a furniture manufacturer or a retailer like Restoration Hardware, West Elm or Crate and Barrel.  Even Ikea has a couple of upholstered headboards.

DIY Headboards

Of course the most economical route to go is to make it yourself.  It’s fairly simple especially if the headboard has a straight top and is slip covered.  If you are handy with a jigsaw, then the possibilities are endless.  There are a number of DIY instructions and videos on the web:

1)   HGTV:  here and here

2)  Canadian House and Home:  here  and here

3)  Country Living:  here

4)  Design Sponge:  here

5)  About.com

6)  Be Jane.com

I’m hoping the following 50 (yes 50!) headboards will inspire you.

Simple: plain fabric + straight

   

 

Nail head trim

 

 

Button tufting

 

Gwyneth Paltrow’s bedroom – so pretty!

 

Wing-backed:

  

Carrie and Big’s bed from SATC 2 upholstered in Kravet’s Velvet Gate Tuxedo.

Straight with patterned fabric

 

  

Have always loved this simple yet charming slip-covered (I think) headboard by the talented Mr. Eddie Ross.

Curved 

If you can’t decide between a four poster and an upholstered headboard, you can have both:

                          

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

 

I saw this over at House of Turquoise and emailed it to my 16 year old God daughter who wants a black and white bedroom.  She “wants the whole room” so I will have to see what I can do for her!  (I personally think the headboard shape is a bit over the top.)

 

It was this headboard belonging to Michelle Adams, founder of Rubie Green and Lonny, that had me jump on the upholstered headboard bandwagon.  Love this fabric!

Graphic and over-sized:

With a wood frame:

 

(1 – Style at Home; 2, 3, 8, 20   - Elle Decor; 4, 25  - Samantha Pynn; 5, 9, 14, 40, 49 - Lonny; 6, 22 -  Massuco Warner Miller;  7, 27, 28 – domino flickr; 10 – Amanda Nisbet via Simplified Bee; 11 – via Nest Egg; 12 – bhg; 13, 37, 47 – Country Living; 14, 20, 4, 50 – House Beautiful; 16, 17 – Jay Jeffers; 18 – Sunset; 21 – via VT Interiors; 23 – Eddie Ross; 26 – Serena and Lily; 27 – Phoebe Howard; 28, 29, 44 – Sarah Richardson; 30 – via Delight by Design; 31 – Caldwell Flake; 32 – decorpad; 35 – Mary McDonald; 36- Palmer Weiss;  38, 45, 48 – via House of Turquoise; 39 – Rubie Green/domino; 42 – House and Home; 43 – Arren Williams; 46 – Stephen Gambrel via Simplified Bee.)

Some of these are stunning and as you can see there are so many options.  I think my personal preference is for a slightly curved headboard with a neutral fabric.  For my daughter’s bedroom (yes, that bedroom which hasn’t received much attention of late), I’m thinking tall and curvy with a more graphic fabric.

What are your thoughts on upholstered headboards?  What style are you drawn to?

If you need help decorating a bedroom or any other room in your home, please email me at vanessa@vanessafrancis.com.