When we moved into our house last November, one of the things that most excited my heart was the fact that I now had a guest room. When you have family traveling 1000 miles for a visit, that is a definite bonus! It also really got the creativity flowing through my veins because a guest room provides the perfect opportunity for a departure from the ordinary. Conservative design flies out the window leaving room for fresh and funky with a little kick of eclectic. Of course, when one moves into a new home, the first thing a woman wants to do is to put her own mark on her new home. I really had to kind of calm my anticipation because the most important ingredient in frugality is most assuredly time…and lots of it. For me, it has been about 8 months, during which time I have been slowly but steadily collecting treasures to transform my blank box of a room into a warm, inviting place of respite for my loved ones.
The first things that I started collecting were magazines. I really needed some inspiration…some direction for this blank canvas of an empty room. As my frugal-savvy sisters have shared in the past, you can get magazines from thrift stores, junk shops, garage sales and we have found, when you put the word out, people just give them to you! So, I got my hands on a GEM of a magazine…it was the COLOR issue from the editor’s of Fresh Home Magazine…and there it was, my inspiration! It’s actually a living room design but I absolutely loved the traditional architecture of the room with its crown moldings and trims. I love, love, love the color…I’m obsessed with blue. I love the juxtaposition of traditional French chairs and the modern silhouette of the couch. I love the clean, white lines of the pottery and lamp. I really loved how the curtains lent a real freshness to the room with the citrusy green popping off of the crisp, white background. I really honed in on those drapes. This would be my jumping off point.
I knew that this would not be an easy task. The drapes in my inspiration room are floor-to-ceiling custom drapes…$$$ So, I was off to every fabric source in my area and it was then that I had a cold dose of reality. Fabric is expensive…like, wow. The other problem was that I was finding a lot of olive green with a cream or beige background…not what I was wanting at all. I had just about decided to either give up or settle for something that was less than stellar and not what I really wanted…..
If I may interject here, this is a definite trait of poverty mentality. You settle for less because you have resigned to, “well, this is as good as it gets” …in an almost Eeyore-like tone in your mind. Don’t go there! Do not give in to the spirit of resignation! God knows the desires of your heart!
“7. Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. 9. Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11. If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!” Matthew 7:7-11
You see? It’s true! God knows the desires of your heart and He cares deeply about everything from the smallest details of your life, such as finding new makeup or shoes, magazines for inspiration or fabric for curtains. He cares just as much about the minutia of our lives as the big, life-changing stuff like moving to a new home, finding a job or meeting the right person to spend the rest of your life with. Whatever you are seeking, from the colossal to the minuscule, Abba Father cares!
Ok, so, back to my curtains. This is how my Abba blessed me. I was browsing the home goods aisle in TJ Maxx one day, when I came across these amazing sheets. There were 2 sets of full sized sheets with a lime green background with a funky white pattern. The other set that caught my eye was a pale green queen set by Kate Spade. Granted, these were not an exact match, but they were exactly what I needed to mimic the fresh feeling of my inspiration room. All 3 sets cost around $130, BUT I got so much bang for my buck! I used the two flat sheets from the patterned set for one window. I absolutely love using curtain rings with gator clips because there is no sewing involved. So easy! I then cut the queen flat sheet in half to make 2 panels for the french doors at the entrance of the room. I really wanted to add some of the patterned fabric to the solid panels…this part was a little challenging, but I had so much fun. Even with a huge learning curve! ha! I took one of the fitted patterned sheets and ripped the entire seeming that held the elastic in place. I then cut it in half and attached a patterned border to the solid drapes. My grandmother let me use her sewing machine and I definitely think that I will be praying about getting my own machine in the future. Let me tell you, this was way outside my comfort zone, but I so enjoyed the opportunity to stretch and grow and use my creativity. Here is the end result. I hope you are encouraged and inspired! God Bless!!!! ~Shanna
This was my inspiration for the guest room. =)
Shanna, as good as you are at finding treasures, decorating and being “all frugul like” you’re even more gifted in sharing your excitement through your writing! Thank you agian for sharing with us the fun you have turning trash into treasures. I love you! Auntie