Starting with a blank canvas when decorating

Not until I sat down to write up my bedroom's story did I realize how similar its journey is to Daly's bedroom. We both started our bedrooms as minimal as possible (she stripped hers down after years of living in her home and I moved into a new home and only brought a few things into the new space) as reactions to our maximal, color-loving tendencies and have slowly slowly added to them over years. I believe Daly is closer to her final product than I am as there are at least two big things I know I want to change about mine. However, my bedroom has come quite far in the past three years, so I'm going to stop and share its evolution up to this point in time.

When we moved into our house in 2015 our master bedroom had dark brown walls and pink trim. Looking back, maybe I could have made this interesting combo work, but I really didn't want to. So, the first thing I did was paint everything white. In our previous house, we painted every room a different color and in the fall of 2015 I was feeling great love for the neutrals.

After painting the room white, I felt we had a blank canvas from which to start. The white was a nice backdrop for the few pieces of furniture we had in the room: 1) my great grandmother's dark wood and marble top dresser, 2) our bed (with just a metal frame), 3) two mid-century modern night stands from the shop, and 4) a cedar chest that belonged to my husband's family.

Pretty soon after that, my husband hung a tv on the wall and I started to add family photos around the tv to off-set its presence. Recently, my husband put an even larger tv on the wall, and I've started to add more family photos to off-set its presence. We don't watch tv in bed all of the time, but sometimes we do. There's something so nice about watching Forensic Files under your covers, okay?

*After painting the walls white. See great grandma's dresser there on the left?*

Adding a focal point when decorating: my macrame headboard

So the main thing that I knew I wanted to add to the room in 2015 was a giant macrame headboard made by our friend, Tasha Ball of House Sparrow Fine Nesting. You can read all about its creation here and here. The macrame headboard was/is pretty amazing. It not only covered the weird control panel (a bunch of switches that control all of the lights in our home– super cool in 1953!) above our bed, but it also acts as a focal point for the bedroom. It's the main event, no question.

How I slowly decorated my bedroom

After the headboard, we finally added window treatments–bamboo blinds and then eventually added simple striped curtains over them when we chopped down all of the scraggly bushes in our backyard and realized you could see through those bamboo shades from the street. Whoops. We certainly didn't want anyone watching us watch Forensic Files...talk about creepy. I like how the curtains and the pillows match though.

I feel like things stalled after these additions and I worked on other rooms in my house. We only added a plant or two and then about a year ago, I figured out the concept of layering rugs on top of carpet and brought in a cream and brown vintage rug from the entry way. I enjoyed adding a bit of interest on the floor instead of having just a sea of carpet.

Then just recently, I moved the Russell Woodward Sculptura rocking chair from my three-year-old's room to our room. We have a new baby on the way and since the kids will be sharing a room eventually, we needed to make space for a big girl bed and crib. Plus, I wanted a comfy seat in my room to rock and feed the baby in the middle of the night. Though the baby isn't here yet, I've actually really enjoyed having a chair in our room. We've never had one before and I've found myself sitting in it a lot–reading or just talking to my husband as he gets ready. I also recently added a small handmade clay mobile and a throw pillow I picked up locally. And so this is where my bedroom's story stops for now. Take a few minutes to enjoy some photos before I tell you its future.

*I love how the rug cozied things up and broke up the carpet.*

*My husband made this wall-mounted lamp.*

*I tape up family photos near my bedside.*

*I love love love this vintage square gold frame I found. I don't see square frames often.*

*The seashells are from our family beach vacation. The vintage clock is from local shop Jo & June.*

*More vacation shells. Caroline also added bits of concrete she found in the yard once she realized I collected things here.*

*Mementos from our honeymoon in Belize.*

*This is our colder month bed situation. Flannel sheets, wool blanket and down comforter.*

*Look at those knotty details! Thanks Tasha!*

*Still working on the cord hiding situation, but it's shaping up.*

*My House Sparrow macrame plant hanger is the only thing on this window wall. Keeping it simple or just incomplete? You tell me.*

How to finish decorating a bedroom

Over nearly three years, we've added a lot of texture to the room via a macrame headboard, vintage rug, and window treatments; however, we've yet to add much color. Everything is still pretty neutral with whites, browns, and creams dominating the bedroom landscape (Although Daly wants us all to notice and appreciate the rusts, turquoises and greens). I'm happy with my room, but I feel like it's far from complete.

That leads me to a few things I know I want to change/add. The first one is color. I want some color! I'm not sure what exactly, but maybe in the form of bed linens or the wall behind the bed or both. As for the wall behind the bed, I've been wanting to do something to it forever, but what? Paint it? Wallpaper it? I don't know. Any thoughts?

The second thing I want to add is an actual bed frame, not just the metal one the mattress came with. I want something wooden and simple and a shortish headboard as to not interfere with the macrame. Any suggestions? Help! (Daly here, yes, please help her. She can't stop talking about how she's never had a real bed. Ever in her whole life.)

The third thing that I'm unsure of is the wall of windows to the right of the bed. All we have on that wall is a macrame plant hanger with air-plants. Is this pretty and simple or is it incomplete? Maybe once I do the other two things, it will inform my feelings about this wall too.

In conclusion, I agree whole heartedly with Daly when she said that the "take it away and add back slowly" method is a winner. Being okay with a minimal, bare bones bedroom prevented me from filling up the space with things I didn't absolutely love and has allowed me to take my time in figuring out the direction of the space.

However, I'd love to move this train along now, and I'd love your feedback and suggestions on how to do so. Please leave me comments about my bedroom's future below or over on Instagram!