Just like in all the best fairytales, 4-year-old Selah enjoys the vantage point of a princess from her awe-inspiring attic room. It’s a dreamy vision in pastel pink with all the hallmarks of a creative mama who combines motherhood with a career as interior designer.
Else lives with her husband PJ and her two children, Selah (4) and Jack (1), in the charming, cultural city of Leeuwarden, in the north of the Netherlands.
Naturally, Else’s vocation and flair for design made her the natural choice of Project Manager for Selah’s bedroom makeover. The assignment entailed an element of construction, but the entire renovation was still achieved in a matter of weeks. The room started life as an open space, so the initial stages involved creating partition walls and fitted wardrobes. Then the real fun began as Else added character and personality with her unique sense of styling.
Let’s head to Selah’s attic and explore the products and finessing that took this blank canvas to a work of art in gentle blush.
Our first peek into this charming corner of Selah’s ‘in the eaves’ bedroom tells a story of stylish simplicity in rosy hues. Else consulted her then 3-year-old at the outset of the project and gave her the ultimate decision on the room’s primary colour. Fortuitously, Else shared a love of the same powder pink, a shade that fits in with the rest of the family house’s fresh and modern design. The exact tint is Humble Blush by Flexa paints, a soft and soothing colour with all the qualities of a neutral but all the girlie pizzazz of pink. The neon heart lamp adds a rebellious touch to the unblemished walls, and there’s deliberation in the matched spots of the leopard cushion by @hm_kids and the high-gloss, green plate from @hemanederland. There’s order in this bedroom makeover, too, evidenced by the recycled crates refashioned as a bookshelf.
The sleek and modern bed by @petiteamelie is one of Else’s star buys and one of the first investment pieces for Selah’s room.
This particular shot captures the angles of the room perfectly, showcasing the paint treatment and how it creates a cosy canopy and a multifunctional nook for naps and study. To a child, it must be like sleeping beneath the comfort of a giant pink marshmallow.
It’s an image that also reinforces Else’s design tips for other parents considering a room makeover. She advises that basics are chosen with care and consideration and advocates a light floor, a maximum of three wall colours and a good bed. Sound advice indeed. Vibrant Annemiek Multicolour wallpaper from @kwantum_nederland underpins Else’ final piece of advice. ‘Get the basics locked down. From there on, go wild!’.
The Little Architect desk and chair in rose from @fermlivingkids were another must-have on Else’s shopping list. Again, she favours the simple but smart design, and it tucks so neatly into the alcove created by the partition wall. A strategically placed minty table lamp from @presenttime_official_ makes the perfect partner, mirroring the orchestrated clash of green and print in the botanical print wallpaper.
A paper giraffe animal head by @assembli.nl represents an interior project in its own right and presides over the mini-study in a matriarchal manner. Then, there’s Mr Leopard, H&M Home’s infamous cushion floating on another of its kids’ interior decor staples, the lesser spotted cloud pillow.
Among Else’s interior design tips is the notion that you can never have too much closet space. These built-in wardrobes were one of the first items on the to-do list and are designed to work with the sloped ceilings of the attic room.
The delicate girlie pink palette is carried through with conviction in the room’s soft furnishings and other incidentals. A splash of lemon in the cushion by @jantienbaas gives the feminine palette a sassy edge, and the same zesty treatment is given to the DIY doll’s crib with a limey mustard blanket casually strewn over the side. There’s another dash of sugary pink in the thrift rocker chair teamed with a complementary pastel blue whale cushion from @kwantum_nederland. Else recounts when she discovered Selah sitting in her rocking, telling a story to her stuffed animals. This is not just a room for sleep. It’s a room for self-expression and make-believe. It’s a space for play, just as the wall-hanging by @hello-mado commands.
Selah’s room’s sense of playfulness and movement is reinforced by a garland of celebratory flags and a delightful swooping swan by Jantien Bass in the same fabric as the cushion. Even the botanical wallpaper hints at living things, perhaps made more vivid by a lush plant in a candy pink pot by @sissyboy1982. The ladybugs are preserved in perpetuity in a precious peachy poster print inviting more natural influences into the room design and taking pride of place on an industrial metal sideboard from IKEA.
Else is a firm believer that by getting the basics right, you open up the possibility to add detail whenever you like. And it’s that layer upon layer of detail in Selah’s room that builds to deliver the overall finish. We adore the sentiment in the typographical poster by @zilverblau and see more of that much-loved cotton candy pink shade that binds Else’s and Selah’s makeover aspirations.
Despite this love of pink, Else always seems to balance the total girlie immersion with a pop of contrasting colour. Take, for example, the baby blue Maneki Neko (beckoning cat) or the canary yellow geometric bird, both from @kwantum-nederland.
We ask Else how she thinks the room will change as Selah matures, and her answer is ‘probably the colours will change’. For now, it’s the colour that Selah appreciates most about her room. It gives her a warm and comforting feeling when she is lying in her bed, and after this room tour, we can see why.
Thank you Else! @elseanna
SOURCE LIST
Bed: Petite Amelie I Wallpaper: @kwantum_nederland I Rug: @kwantum_nederland I Swan mobile: @jantienbaas I Flag bunting: @aliexpress I Bicycle: @veloretti I Play wall hanging:@hello.mado I Whale cushion: @kwantum_nederland I Pink chair: thrift shop I Closet: diy I Doll bed: diy I Sheep skin: @ikea I Sideboard: @ikea I Yellow round lamp: @aliexpress I Giraffe trophy: @assembli.nl I Desk + chair: @fermlivingkids I Green desk lamp: @presenttime_official_ I Cloud and leopard pillows : @@hm_kids I Crates: @hemanederland I Neon heart lamp: @karwei I Green plate on wall: @hemanederland I Pink paint : @flexanl (Humble Blush)
Have you also decorated a nursery or kid’s room recently? We would love to see it! Add the tag @kidsinteriors_com on your Instagram post to get it noticed and #kidsinteriors_com for an extra chance of it being considered for a repost.
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