When my husband and I purchased our Peaceful Penfold fixer upper, one of the things we both liked was the master bedroom. The house is a bi-level, meaning that when you enter the front door, you can either go up a small flight of stairs into the living area, or down, into the basement. However, the master bedroom, at the end of the hallway on the main floor, is positioned over the garage, creating a need for an additional three steps up into the room. It’s a unique feature of the home, and one I wanted to embrace.
As I’ve mentioned before, the house was built in 1977 by the Bells, who carefully maintained, but never updated the home along its 41-year journey. The master bedroom featured dark carpeting, heavy drapes, a large, heavy, light fixture and mirrored closet doors.
When we first viewed the property, prior to even making an offer, my husband casually mentioned that the master bedroom, with the stairs leading up to it, felt somewhat like a loft. That statement stuck with me as I began to choose finishes and furniture pieces to complete the room.
The original owners had a set of French doors leading into the bedroom, but they were solid doors which blocked the light and made the room feel much smaller than it actually is. There are three large, south facing windows that allow a steady stream of natural light to pour into the room throughout the day, so we replaced the old doors with ones that have a frosted glass panel insert. This provides privacy while still allowing the natural light to filter through into the hallway below. We also updated the closet doors and installed a light coloured, vinyl plank floor.
My goal was to create a bright and airy loft, with an easy going, costal vibe…how’s that for a mouthful? Towards the end of the renovation, just as I was beginning to feel as though we may never see the end of this project, my husband and I were chatting over a glass of wine one evening and he causally said, “You know what would make our master bedroom feel more like a loft……beams!”
And so, just when I was starting to think I might have swept up my last pile of sawdust, our contractor was called, measurements were taken, a quote was given, and a few weeks later we had four, beautiful faux beams hanging in our ‘loft’.
To ensure the room held true to its airy vibe, I chose white bedding and pale accent pillows. As you may already know, I absolutely adore the colour and texture accent pillows add to a room! I love to change and rearrange toss cushions and am always amazed at how such a simple change can make a dramatic impact on the feel of a room.
Anyway, I found the funky light fixture on a clearance rack for $10 and decided it would be the perfect accent to highlight the ‘coastal’ feel I wanted to incorporate. I integrated black accents throughout this home, which I continued into the master bedroom with a matte black bed frame, full length mirror and accent hardware. The sisal rug warms up the space and the modern style fireplace, which we hung on the wall, anchors the TV.
Our goal for this house was create a home that represented our family. I’ll be honest, there were times throughout the renovation when I seriously questioned our decision to take on such a project; but now, after witnessing our ideas to come to life, I’ve realized those goals weren’t so lofty after all.