This post has been a long time coming, and I decided it is time to finally reveal a room I have been working on for a few months now. This little space on my floor has always been an awkward space that gets filled with clutter and was a room with little purpose. I always called my office, but I never actually spent any time in there. With the upcoming move, we are all looking at the rooms in our house to see how we can update them. This project is not 100% finished at the moment, but I am really happy how it turned out so far. I still need some of the trim to be painted, a few books need to go away and a good vacuum, but this space has completely changed!
The last time I touched this space was back in middle school when we first moved into the house. I chose baby blue and brown as my colors and I promise they were the “in” colors at the time!! The dark brown made the space look smaller and things got lost in the space. The artwork on the walls was mix matched and the space was just so blah.
Everyone knows my obsession with the TV show Fixer Upper, and after a few episodes one day I saw the magic of a fresh coat of paint. In the basement I found some paint from a left over project and started to prime over the brown color. Of course I started to paint at 8pm and was up all night covered in paint on a Friday night.
I started by removing all of the furniture from this room to start fresh.With everything out of the space, it was easier to envision what I wanted the space to look like. At first I wanted to paint the space white, a complete opposite of the dark brown that was there before. The space gets very little natural lighting so I needed to stay away from dark colors. I then decided on a Behr Ultra Eggshell color that wasn’t completely white but still had a bit of color. 
The cabinet is something my parents have had since before I was born! It was painted pink for my baby room and last year I painted it grey to match my guest room. I decided the guest room was overwhelmed with furniture and decided to bring it out here. I am not sold on its current color and will probably paint it again. Just haven’t decided what to paint it yet.
The mirror was a last minute purchase at the town rummage sale. I walked past it and I needed it. I knew it was what the space was missing. The mirror opens up the space and allows the natural light to bounce off the walls. Did I mention this mirror was only $5?? I spent days in HomeGoods trying to find a good mirror or statement piece that fit my budget. Just another reason why you should always shop in thrift stores, GoodWill or antique stores to find a piece no one else has for a reasonable price. 
This became my new favorite wall! I knew I wanted to create a gallery wall above my desk. I took every piece of artwork I had and put them in a pile on my floor. I decided to go with a black theme with my artwork with bits of color. I framed the post card you get with Kate Spade purchases and put up my artwork that matched. Again, I wanted this space to be simply so I tried to add a gallery, but not have too much crowding the wall.
The desk is my Great Aunt B’s that has been in my family for a long time. The desk is not practical at all and no one wants it- but how can you get rid of a family heirloom??The desk is in amazing shape even though of its age. My mom suggested we paint it white but I love the small details, even the water marks and fading over the years. 
Desk Accessories
One of the hardest parts of not being in school anymore is not going out an buying new school supplies every fall. Not being a student did not stop me from going to Target to pick up a few supplies though. I love the chic office supplies Target always has and purchased the Oops eraser for some desk art. The clip board is from the dollar bin at Target from earlier in the summer and the planner is also from Target.
This planner is from Target and only $12! I was going to get my usual Lilly planner, but I needed a planner ASAP one day and this one ended up in my shopping cart one day. It reminds me of a Kate Spade one but only a fraction of the costs. It has each day separately with times, to do lists, and some cute quotes. Since I am no longer a student, this is all I need to keep track of doctor appointments and lunch plans with friends. 
Like all adults, I now pay bills. I try to pay everything online and set up automatic payments to avoid fees or headaches. I got this little organizer for a few dollars from Target and I like to put all of my monthly bills in it so I know what I still need to pay. Even though I am new to adulting, I still have a handful of bills that need to get paid every month. If I don’t stay organized, they would never get paid!
When I first came home from college I had boxes of books from college. In this space I wanted to have them on display. I worked really hard in college and wanted to put a small fortune of books on display and not hidden. My mom helped me one day to put the books away in the bookcase and she now understands why I was so tired in college. I was always reading a book and then writing a paper on it!
This little side table is for added storage since my desk doesn’t really offer it. To prevent over crowding on my desk, I have my pens, markers, and a small filing system for my paperwork on here.
One of my biggest priorities before I started this project was downsizing. I got rid of everything I could, I donated office supplies to my job and tried to have very little on my desk. It is amazing how much more room I have when I no longer have 10 of the same thing or a desk drawer stuffed with extra post it notes!
I will continue to make changes to this space, fix the trim and add my personality to the space more, but I love the results so far!
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