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Hello home, girl!

making a home on a tiny budget.

09/30/2021

How to make a decorating plan for your guest bedroom

Do you change your mind often and struggle with making decisions? Is creating a decorating plan particularly difficult for you? If you answered yes to any of those questions, this post is dedicated to you!


After participating in the Spring One Room Challenge earlier this year, I decided to give it a go once again for the Fall edition. I think I’ve lost my mind a little bit after the massive project that was the dining room! This time, I’ll be tackling our guest bedroom. I’m hoping it’ll be more fun this time around because there will be no renovation. The focus will be on the decor!

So what does that have to do with indecisiveness? Ummm…EVERYTHING! I, too, struggle with making decisions. As a result, creating the mood board (or what I sometimes refer to as a #shmoodboard) for the guest room has been a journey. 

I’ll walk you through the process you will need to take to create a decorating plan!

Our 11 x 11 guest bedroom. White walls and white furniture.
Our 11 x 11 guest bedroom.

Considerations for the guest bedroom

Before creating plans for your guest room, analyze the needs for the space. 

For example, first and most importantly, our guest bedroom is my dad’s when he visits. At this point, he now uses a walker. On top of that, my dad has always been clumsy! Therefore, he has to have clear walkways and absolutely no fragile items to potentially knock over. There has to be plenty of space for his walker. Accessibility is of the highest importance for the guest bedroom!

Secondly, our guest bedroom is probably the same as yours: it serves as extra storage. All the things that I have no idea how to store ends up in the guest room. Extra linens, craft supplies, coffee table books that don’t fit on my bookcase — these are the items that make you ask, “What do I even do with this right now?” My plan must accommodate those miscellaneous items.

Thirdly, I will be keeping my late mother’s items in my guest bedroom. Specifically, I’m keeping her clothes and purse in the room. When she was alive, the guest room was called “Mama’s room.” I refuse to put her away in the attic.

Before the wallpaper was installed. The entire room transformed with the wall covered.

What’s the inspiration?

After you determine what you need, you have to get inspired. What will drive the look and mood of your guest bedroom? Like our dining room, our guest room is inspired by artwork and patterns. I installed this wallpaper a few months ago to get myself out of a creative funk. It is definitely from where the boho vibes originate. Moreover, there are some gorgeous pieces of art that inspired the vibrancy that I want the guest bedroom to radiate. I found the perfect piece of art to complement the others pieces that I will reveal in future posts.

So, what will inspire you? Will it be art, textiles, or a piece of furniture? Will it be a song, a photo, or a book?

opalhouse coral ikat wallpaper #boho

Boho vibes

The boho style, short for bohemian, is a style that celebrates a mix of textures, earthy colors, rattan and caning, and plants. For years, I struggled to pinpoint my taste which made decor shopping difficult. Now that I am aware of my love for all things boho and mid century modern, I know how to choose pieces that will make sense in the guest bedroom.

Setting the moods

Okay…so this is where it gets real. It’s time to curate items on one medium, a mood board, to visualize how everything chosen for the room would look together.

One Room Challenge guest bedroom mood board featuring pink ikat wallpaper and blue shibori curtains.

Guest bedroom plan 1

This iteration of the #schmoodboard was me trying to pretend the wallpaper was pink and not coral. I thought navy curtains would look great. However, this mood was very off because of all of the blue muting the excitement of the room. Plus, the curtains were too expensive for my budget.

One Room Challenge guest bedroom mood board featuring black velvet curtains and animal print pillows.

Guest bedroom plan 2

This is me thinking, “Let’s be conservative color-wise.” Yep, this is my version of conservative! *shakes my head*

I kept it neutral by introducing black into the room. When in doubt, black it out! But this #schmood wasn’t meant to be. It was feeling a little too safe.

One Room Challenge mood board featuring pink ikat wallpaper and red, blue, and pink flowered art.

Guest bedroom plan 3

“Hey! I found the art that feels so meant to be in the guest bedroom! Whoaaaa… it’s pricey (for me). Anyways, we like these curtains! It’s neutral without being serious!”

The #schmood was still off because the room was still too neutral for my tastes. Afterwards, my inner dialogue then included many curse words in frustrations for not getting the #schood exciting enough.

One Room Challenge guest bedroom mood board featuring coral ikat wallpaper and rattan room divider.

Guest bedroom plan 4

I then decided to see the wallpaper as coral and not pink. I leaned into the boho vibes and considered earthy colors.

In this board, I feel like we’re getting closer to the right #schmood…

One Room Challenge mood board featuring coral ikat wallpaper and black and white striped curtains.

Guest bedroom plan 5

Let’s try to add a little bit of spunk back in the space! After adding stripes, I began to like the reintroduction of the neutral black in the room, but in an unexpected way. I’m enjoying this #schmoooood!

Throughout this process, I learned that we have to tinker with the decor plan to get it right. You have to change one piece at a time to see how all of a room’s components work together.

Conclusion

In review, to create a decor plan for a room, I suggest the following plan:

  1. Analyze your needs
  2. Seek inspiration
  3. Create several mood boards

In the end, is mood board the official decor plan? NOPE! I’ve ordered many options to try out to see how they will look in the actual guest bedroom. My fellow indecisive folks out there, know that’s it’s okay you ordered 3 sets of curtains, 4 pillows, and two blankets to try out. It’s all a part of setting the right mood.

Sincerely,

Felicia.

PS: Check out all of the talented ORC participants here! Also, let me know which #schmood you liked the best!

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Reader Interactions

15 comments

  1. Erin Fahs says

    09/30/2021 at 9:47 am

    Excited to follow along with your Fall ORC project! You’re so right on the process and being flexible. I’m tackling a fireplace this fall but renovating our guest room / office is on my list for a future ORC!

    Maybe helpful? I bought these velvet curtains on Amazon (https://amzn.to/3AYJFBR) and LOVE them. They look opulent and offer great room darkening.

    Reply
    • Felicia | hellohomegirl says

      09/30/2021 at 11:54 am

      Hi Erin! Thanks for following along. I’ll definitely check your fireplace out! And thanks for the recommendation!

      Reply
  2. Sharda says

    09/30/2021 at 11:36 am

    You’re talking to a known indecisive human, here. I enjoyed this post; especially, as a visual person to see your boards. Room 2 was my fav then you hit me with that art in Room 3, but I’m very attracted to Room 4. It’s the lightness of the colors. I can’t wait to see the end result, but it’s definitely all about thr journey for me.

    Reply
    • Felicia | hellohomegirl says

      09/30/2021 at 11:53 am

      I’m glad you enjoyed this! Number 4 is a good one. The journey is fun and, at times, frustrating. But overall, it’s exhilarating!

      Reply
  3. Carly says

    10/01/2021 at 9:44 am

    I love this progression, and I feel so much better about the million different variations in my own photoshop files! That artwork is amazing! I love Plan 3, maybe with Plan 1’s curtains (sorry to make Plan 6!) Looking forward to following along!

    Reply
    • Felicia | hellohomegirl says

      10/01/2021 at 9:58 am

      Thanks Carly! I love the mixing of plans! 😂

      Reply
  4. Chantelle says

    10/02/2021 at 1:25 pm

    You weren’t joking when you said you had a mix of plans 😂.. it’s all good.. moodboards are inspiration and are great to have as a guide . Look forward to see the direction you go

    Reply
    • Felicia | hellohomegirl says

      10/02/2021 at 1:40 pm

      Thanks Chantelle!

      Reply

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Welcome to hellohomegirl.com, my passion project about the musings of home decor, DIY, homeownership, and life. Here, you'll find helpful tips to creating your home with a lot of heart and a tiny budget.
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