Yesterday, Ben and I took on a project we are now very familiar with. We removed the carpet from our large guest room! The process took about two hours from start to finish. (I’ve thought about writing a post with instructions and tips for removing carpet, but it is so simple and there are already tons of resources out there. My only tips are to wear thick soled tennis shoes (in case you step on a staple), and to remove any and all carpet anywhere (show no mercy).

I’ve already written a “Before and After” about this guest room, but the only things we did then were paint and install a new light fixture. We bought the white Ikea bedding and yellow curtains specifically for this room, but everything else was randomly collected.

I knew I wanted to take the carpet out of this room, which led to more design dreaming about what this room could look like. I had this vision in my head of a vintage bed and breakfast, but with modern flair. I didn’t know how to describe it well, but I could picture the vibe. Turns out, all we needed to do to achieve the modern b&b vibe was take out the carpet! The collection of vintage pieces in this room felt a little odd with the beige carpet and black wall. But now, the hardwood floors really tie the whole vintage vision together. I’m in love!

Here are some before photos and progress shots.

The hardwoods in this room are in the best condition of the three rooms we have uncovered. The living room and office are also in good “condition” but will need to be refinished because of the dark spots in the middle of each room. I was relieved to see that the guest room didn’t have a dark spot! There is a little variation in color throughout the room, but I love the added character that shows they’re original to the house! We’re planning to refinish the living room, office, and stairs in the summer because of the dark spots. We might also refinish this room down the road for the sake of future people in this house, but it really doesn’t look like it needs it.

Now for some photos of the room after I re-styled it!

(The Star Wars string art was a gift that Ben’s best friend, Tim, and Tim’s wife, Jenn, made for us!)

And now my favorite view…

THE FLOOOOOORS!!!!!

I need to buy some hardwood cleaner to get the floors and trim looking cleaner and overall better, but they look incredible for only sweeping a few times!

I love how the vintage cane chair, Turkish kilim pillow, bird print, and shelf accessories are very vintage and muted. The black frame, sage shelf with clean lines, and white walls add the modern flair. The hardwood floors provide the combination vintage-yet-modern element that ties everything together.

I bought this chair last week at Goodwill for $5! I knew it needed a home on top of hardwood floors and in front of a white wall so the cane detail could be clearly seen. (Very specific, I know, but when I get an idea I try to make it happen!). I loved the way the vintage kilim pillow looked with the chair, and thought that the pair would look even better next to something that sage color. The next logical step was to paint something sage! I love how this shelf turned out. It used to be a cherry laminate with a frosted glass door on the bottom half. It was in Ben’s childhood room. We decided to take off the door and paint it sage (using paint I already had). I love the clean contrast it provides to the muted, natural tones of the cane chair and kilim pillow. This shelf is stocked with guest room goods, like extra blankets, a fan, and a box of “just in case” toiletries.

(There used to be a yellow armchair where the peach stool is, but it took up a lot of floor space. I wanted to provide empty floor space that wasn’t right in front of the door where guests can keep suitcases. When you’re styling a guest room, just remember to leave a space for guests to keep their things!)

Here are some waaayyy “before” photos of what the room looked like when we moved in two years ago. (It used to be a kids room. The paint and fan were cute for kids, just not for our grown-up guest room! I had a fan just like that in my room at my grandparents’ house! You can’t see them very well in this photo, but there are glow-in-the-dark stars on the ceiling. Those are still there, because we think they’re really cool. 🙂 )

So there it is! It is my new favorite room in the house. I love the vintage “Schoolhouse-esque” elements like the chalkboard, vintage fan, gold alarm clock, and gingham pillow. The vintage rug, art, and other vintage accessories bring in the bed and breakfast vibe I was hoping for. The black accent wall, white bedding, and clean lines of the frame and shelf provide the modern ingredient that keeps things feeling fresh. In every space that we have uncovered the original hardwood floors, I’m amazed that the room instantly feels like it has always been that way.

We don’t own this house, so we are very intentional about which projects we decide to do. My goal with projects in this house is to restore as much of the original charm of this 1910 craftsman, while also seeking to raise the value of the house with modern updates. We’ve painted every room a neutral color. We’ve updated a few light fixtures. We’ve uncovered a lot of hardwood, and plan to refinish it all ourselves. I’ve stripped painted trim and am working on restoring it. I’ve painted trim in rarely used areas of the house where the wood was damaged beyond repair and just needed to look better. None of those are difficult projects, and most can be done for the cost of a can of paint. (Or a can of paint stripper, in some cases 🙂 ) We aren’t planning to go anywhere anytime soon, but I recognize that we are not the last people that will ever live in this home. That’s why we only do projects that will add value to this house. If I owned this house, I might tastefully paint some of the trim. But, that would take away value from this house, so I’m not touching it! Instead, I’m taking paint away in spaces! Even if you own your home, keep that in mind as you work on home-improvement projects. Home-improvement projects are intended to add value to a house, not subtract from it. Do your absolute best work– if not for your standards, then for the people that will come behind you.

---

Thanks for reading! I’m going to go look at the guest room again, because I’m a little obsessed with that cane chair+bird print combo. Ben and I are about to leave for auditions for our community theater production of Annie. Then we get to see his grandparents, who are visiting Alta! What are you up to this weekend?

 

Sources:

I can only source a few things in this room, because almost everything is vintage!

White bedding: Ikea

Striped bedding: Ikea

Black frame: Ikea

Nightstand Lamp: Target

Curtains: Target

White pitcher: Hobby Lobby

Tiny Turkish rug: Won in a giveaway from New England Loom

Everything else is vintage!