Boys' Room Reveal + A Stencil Giveaway!

A stenciled room makeover - again!

After 8 months since my first stenciled room makeover, (which was followed by another a month later at my grandparents' assisted living home), it was only a matter of time before using Cutting Edge Stencils to transform another room in our house!

Colin and Mason's room!

After bunking the beds we had an entire wall to play with. My hope for this room was that it be a fun, open space where our imaginative wild things could let loose and be themselves. And like most wild things, they love being in their natural habitat where they're simply free to be. Our house backs into woods filled with all sorts of wildlife, and the kids enjoy finding interesting things back there every day. The Birch Forest stencil just seemed too perfect for bringing a bit of the carefree outdoors in!

As with the previous walls I've stenciled, this was a piece of cake! Cutting Edge Stencil's sheets are 26" x 48", which makes rolling the pattern on super easy! I blue tape the corners and edge of the stencil in place, use a foam roller, (with a bit of paint, not too much or it cakes inside the small details of the stencil), and roll the paint on in a matter of seconds. When finished with one area, I lay the roller down on the paint tray, gently peel off the stencil sheet, and line it up in the next spot.

Here is a quick tutorial video from CES that shows these steps in action!

 

This stencil is really the only major thing going on in the room! I considered a few different options for toy storage, but when this petite mid-century cabinet turned up at a yard sale for $30, I decided to reuse the guys' bookshelves which were previously painted blue, to flank the little piece. I love these pieces as a unit and it's exactly the right amount of room for their toys and books.

The funny little LED lights are exactly like the clip-on lights we have in our master bedroom. I found them at Lowes and sprayed them gold, (just like I did to ours). They don't ask for a lot of attention in the room which is just what I was looking for. :)

With so much going on on the opposite wall, I wanted to keep the beds simple. White comforters and homemade quilts from the boys' Nana, (my sweet Mother-In-Law), do the trick just fine. I also hung wire file baskets on the walls for bedside books, and hung simple reading lights, (both from Target), so my guys can have some quiet reading time at the beginning and end of the day. Our Colin's reading light goes on long before the sun comes up - I LOVE that he has this space to quietly read and play before getting ready for the day. It fills my heart to see this room getting loved and used so well.

Mr. Fox here came from H&M and I swear I catch him winking now and then. Such a sly guy. I found him in store on super sale for $5! I've looked for him online with no luck, but this guy is available, as well as his friends, Owl and Wolf. Love how these gorgeous pillows double as art!

This mid-century wicker chair is by far my best freebie find yet! I saw it sitting outside a thrift store with a modest price tag of $10, (!!!), but when I went inside to pay they told me I had accumulated enough customer loyalty points to take a piece for free!

Life is so much more fun with pattern, isn't it?!

If you agree then we've got a huge treat for ya! The ridiculously gracious team at Cutting Edge Stencils has offered to give another one of our readers a complimentary stencil of their choice! Last Spring we partnered together to give away a stencil, and our lucky winner, Julie, did this with her prize:

It's amazing what a little bit of pattern can do. You can turn any ordinary piece of furniture, or an entire room, into something extraordinary! We are completely smitten with Julie's use of pattern here and it's a great reminder that even if you're not into an allover wall pattern, there are still impactful projects you can do with a stencil!

1. Check out Cutting Edge Stencils and pick a favorite pattern
2. Leave a comment below with the name of your favorite stencil
3. That's it! For bonus entries you can like their Facebook page and follow their blog.

We'll take entries until Thursday, October 1 at 12 noon EST. We can't wait to see which patterns catch your eye!

Thank you all so much for stopping by!
 

Heavy duty toy-shelves (hung in drywall!)

Hi All! Fall is happening in Northern Virginia! The air just smells delicious. Even with a 30 degree temperature drop to the 30s this past weekend, my favorite part was sitting around a fire pit, snuggling under blankets, and roasting s'mores with my family. This season is short but oh, so sweet.

Today I'm excited to share that we've got brand new toy-shelves! We were previously using the IKEA TROFAST toy storage system. It ended up not being the most practical toy storage for our family. The stacked bins made it really hard to see what toys were where and as a result I felt like the kids weren't enjoying playing with their toys as much as they should. Then it hit me - if the toys were out in the open, perhaps they'd be played with more!

Before, with the IKEA TROFAST storage system

Before, with the IKEA TROFAST storage system

Now, with custom made, open shelves

Now, with custom made, open shelves

After running the idea by my husband Matt, and getting one thumb up, I was ready to begin! I measured the wall space where I wanted to build shelves, and went out to buy a couple 1" x 12" shelves, (which I cut to 60" myself at home), and brackets. I stained the shelves in Hickory wood stain and then got to work with hanging!

Matt was kind enough to help me with this project so I could take pictures of some of the steps. Since we don't have studs in the particular section of wall we used, I think this is a good opportunity to address how to hang heavy shelves without using studs, (well, I did have one stud...get it...)!

 Measure and mark with a pencil where you want your brackets to hang, then mark the holes where your anchors and screws will go.

 Measure and mark with a pencil where you want your brackets to hang, then mark the holes where your anchors and screws will go.

Make sure you use a level several times to make sure your brackets are lined up straight.

Make sure you use a level several times to make sure your brackets are lined up straight.

These drywall toggle anchors are not jokin' around and are what you want to use when hanging anything substantial into drywall.

These drywall toggle anchors are not jokin' around and are what you want to use when hanging anything substantial into drywall.

Check em' out!

Check em' out!

No electric drill needed for this project! Just a regular screw driver gets the toggle anchors securely into the wall.

No electric drill needed for this project! Just a regular screw driver gets the toggle anchors securely into the wall.

Screw them into the wall until they are flush with the surface.

Screw them into the wall until they are flush with the surface.

Once your toggle anchors are in, place the bracket over the anchors and screw the screws into the anchors.

Once your toggle anchors are in, place the bracket over the anchors and screw the screws into the anchors.

Again, a screwdriver is all you need for this job, no electric drill needed!

Again, a screwdriver is all you need for this job, no electric drill needed!

Then lay your boards on top of the brackets and use shorter screws to attach the boards to the brackets, (from underneath, as seen in the picture).

Then lay your boards on top of the brackets and use shorter screws to attach the boards to the brackets, (from underneath, as seen in the picture).

All done!

Basement6.jpg

Those toggle drywall anchors are what dreams are made of - no more worrying about studs or tossing projects out just because the studs aren't lined up where you need them! These babies hold up to 100 lbs each! Not too shabby.

To round up some of the smaller toys I found some old metal containers at the Old Lucketts Store, (rt 15 North in Leesburg, VA). 

Looking at these shelves, you would never know we have a daughter, too... But, this new 'system' of keeping everything out in the open has been a home run for us! The kids have been playing so well and creatively together - something I thoroughly enjoy watching or being a part of myself!

And if I have any work to do, I get to sit right there with them in our little built in office!

View as you come down the basement stairs. So grateful for this space to play and kick back!

(If interested, I've added the rest of our basement onto the Spaces page, seen in the menu bar!) 

I know not everyone is looking for toy storage solutions, but hopefully this post is useful to anyone needing to hang shelves into stud-less drywall! I was pretty excited about this discovery - it's like a whole new world opened up!

Thank you all so much for stopping by!