Guest Bedroom Updates: Ceiling Fan, Floor Decision, and Bedside Tables
Progress has been slow and steady on the guest bedroom over the last week. I’m at that point where it feels like all of the wood filling, sanding, caulking, and painting are never going to end. I’m trying to push through, but I’m getting pretty bored with it, and I really want to move on to the fun stuff!
But I did make one decision for the guest bedroom that I really love and wanted to share. This may sound strange, but it’s the ceiling fan!
I’m one of those people who generally hates the look of a ceiling fan, but I’m also a Texan, and so living without ceiling fans really isn’t an option. For me personally, I absolutely must have a ceiling fan in the bedroom.
I had purchased one previously, and it was one that I just settled for because I’ve never thought it was possible to find a fan that I really love. So I got a fan that was just okay, but then decided I could probably do better. But after searching through hundreds of fans online, I realized that none of them really thrilled me. So I headed back up to Home Depot to see what they had, and bought the least ugly one they had in stock.
Well, it turns out that I really do love it! Not only was it easy to install (I installed it by myself), but I really love the look of it…as ceiling fans go.
The fan blades are different colors on each side, and I used the gray-washed oak side. And the integrated LED light has three different colors/temperatures you can choose from with the remote — daylight, soft white, and warm white. I prefer the soft white. And I LOVE that this fan isn’t hanging from a skinny pole that can wobble when the fan is on high speed. So this is my new favorite fan. I should probably go ahead and get three more for future rooms before they sell out. The price is great at $139, and it comes in a really dark bronze finish as well.
I’m also trying to make a decision on the floor in the bedroom. I’m about 97.25% sure that I’m going to paint the floor rather than stain it.
My reasoning?
I really love area rugs, but wheelchairs and area rugs just don’t play nicely together. I don’t want to cause unnecessary struggles for Matt by insisting that we have a rug, and I don’t want to go through the headache (again) of trying to find the perfect rug in the perfect size and the perfect colors that’s also thin enough to not cause frustrations for him, so I’ve decided (well, almost decided) that I’m going to paint the floor.
I don’t want it to be anything too loud or too bold. In fact, I think I’ll just repeat the same colors that I’ve used in the music room, the hallway, and the guest bedroom already — Behr Polar Bear (the trim color) and Benjamin Moore Classic Gray (the wall color).
At first I considered staining the outer edges of the floor, and then painting just a “rug” sized area in the middle of the room where the bed will go. But the problem with that is that the room is so small that by the time I paint an area that is an adequate size for a “rug” to go under a queen size bed and extend the proper distance on either side and past the foot of the bed, it’ll pretty much take up the whole floor anyway. So I think I’ll just do the entire thing.
As far as patterns, I’ve narrowed my selection down to two. Since I have a floral wall, I think the floor needs to be geometric and simple, so this is the first of the two designs I’m considering…
But again, keep in mind that mine will be much more subtle with white and very light gray. In fact, they’re the same colors I used on the music room walls. Remember how subtle it was before I added the black Sharpie marker accents?
And the second design I’m considering is this offset stripe design…
Obviously, that design is painted onto a rug, where mine will be painted directly onto the floor.
Anyway, I started off with about ten designs, and those ended up being my two favorites. And now I’m having a hard time narrowing it down to my favorite. I’m almost certain that I’ve considered both of these designs for other things for other rooms in the past. They keep coming up because I keep being drawn to these same patterns over and over, so I don’t think I’ll get tired of either one of these designs being on my floor anytime soon. I just don’t know which one I like more.
So with the main accent wall done, the decision made on the upholstered bed, and the decision almost made on the floor, I’ve been trying to decide on bedside tables or nightstands as well. And I keep running into a road block there. As a reminder, here’s the accent wall with a very bad mockup of what the upholstered bed will look like against it.
I won’t have that exact bed, but it will be similar.
So…nightstands. I’ve looked at hundreds, and I keep coming back to this one…
I think the price is good at $301, but there are a couple of things that keep me from purchasing two of these. First, the color. I absolutely LOVE the color as it’s shown in that product picture above. But it doesn’t look like that in any of the customer-submitted pictures. In those pictures, it looks darker and…I don’t know…it just doesn’t look nearly as pretty.
Also, those legs. I love a mixture of styles in my house, but mid-century modern has never really been my thing. I have a hard time bringing anything mid-century modern into my house.
But I could deal with the legs, and probably even really like the legs, if the color and finish were exactly as shown in that picture. I just don’t have confidence that it would look like that based on the customer pictures.
So I’m thinking I’ll try to build something very similar to that, and that will give me the chance to get the finish I want, and also use a style of legs that fit my own personal style and taste a bit more.
Anyway, that’s where I’m heading with this room if I can ever get past all of this wood filling, sanding, and caulking. Fingers crossed that I can get all of that stuff done today…or tomorrow by the latest.
Addicted 2 Decorating is where I share my DIY and decorating journey as I remodel and decorate the 1948 fixer upper that my husband, Matt, and I bought in 2013. Matt has M.S. and is unable to do physical work, so I do the majority of the work on the house by myself. You can learn more about me here.
Kristi, I really like the ceiling fan you chose. I may have to look into getting them in my house too. As for the bedside table, I can’t wait to see your version of the one you found online! I don’t know what to say for the painted floor. I love your floors as they are so much. I have to see what you do to see how I feel, and then it doesn’t really matter how I feel, cause this is you and Matt’s home. I do love it on the days you post! Makes my day all that much brighter. Have a good one!
I like the stripe pattern for the floor. The triangles seem too large and busy.
I live in FL and even have fans in the bathrooms. I prefer the white finish to make them less visually intrusive. I do like the shape of your fan.
The nightstand is pretty and sleek. I would much prefer hairpin legs. Currently looks too low and squatty. I like the stands to be as tall as the mattress.
I can’t wait to see what you do with it in the end.
First thing I thought of when I saw the legs on the nightstand is Ouch!!! Kicking those legs with bare feet when you get up at night in the dark. Hanging them on the wall sounds like a perfect solution. Also, so much easier to vacuum or dust mop under, bedrooms always seem to collect a lot of dust.
Kristi, I watch a lot of decorating shows and the one called Home Town did a checker board one. But not your standard black and white. Erin white washed (or stain) some of them and left the rest natural wood. Then she varnished the whole floor. I really don’t like the checker board but this floor looks awesome and not in your face. It’s subtle. I have a picture of it but can’t see where to add it here.
I saw that. It was awesome, and not ‘in your face!’
Oh, I really like the idea of a pattern which incorporates the wood! Light grey and stained wood. Your pinwheel pattern would look great like that.
Kristi, i like all your ideas, but i miss your post every week. Im waiting to see you posting currently again. You have good taste for ideas decorating all you do look fantastick. Say Matt hi from New York.
I really like the offset pattern for the floor. You don’t like the legs or finish on the nightstand. Sounds like you only like the rectangular drawers. An easy build for a pro like you.
To be clear, I LOVE the finish that is shown in that picture. I’m just not confident that the picture is accurate because it looks much different in the customer pictures. So I think that product picture shows it to be lighter than it really is.
Looking so good! The simplicity of the stripe pattern seems to me to work very well with your gorgeous wall without detracting from it.
Love the wide base of the fan and the tables. Not a fan of painting a design on the floor. I think you should let the beautiful wall design be the focus and just stain the floor and be done.Sometimes too many patterns are just too busy.
I’d prefer just plain stain and add a rug later after you finish your bedroom if you want. But of the two geometric designs, I’d go with the offset one. The triangle one is too dominant. Makes me think of linoleum. Feels cold for a bedroom. I do like the night stands. Have you considered floating them on a French cleat? Removing the legs will make the room feel larger. Just a thought.
Love the fan, good idea to pick up a couple more for future use in the addition rooms later on. As for the end tables I agree that making your own would be better. Not only can you get the exact size but also the correct finish. On painting the floor, I would either go with a solid color or the striped look. I think they would go better with your gorgeous feature wall. Looking forward to your next updated
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Glad to see a post. Why not do floors as you did the studio? I don’t have vision that you do but seems like for a small room it would just be too busy with the feature wall.
Well, there is always one in the crown Kristi. That’s me. If the bed is simular, tall and bright and you pin tuff it…..I think the triangle light floor. I see triangles in the headboard as it is. A simiple, quiet and not in your face pattern repeat. “Classy” and not over thought, 🤔😉
Think I rexted in the wrong spot….oops. Little ole mature lady here.
Kirsti-Love how the room is coming together! Of your two floor options I’d go for the offset stripe. As for the side tables, why not build them to look like the inspiration piece but leave the legs off and mount directly to the wall? I missed where you made the decision about the bed – are you remaking one you have or buying? Look forward to your posts, they keep me motivated to continue with my own projects. 😉
That’s what I was thinking, something wall-mounted! I just got a couple of Eket cabinets from Ikea that I’ll pretty up a little bit and hang next to my bed. My master bedroom is small, and I think it will do wonders to open up the space! Here, in Kristi’s bedroom it’d do great to showcase the wall!
I’ll be using the bed that I made years ago for our previous master bedroom. It’s a queen size, but it’s stained wood. I’m just going to add some padding and upholster the frame, and then add new legs. Then I’ll upholster a new headboard to match.
Oh, and the wall mounted nightstand idea is fantastic! I never would have thought of that!
I love as always the direction you are going. The night stands look simple. Build and stain to your preference. I do have question regarding the head board. I remember you writing at one time that Matt preferred a strong side to the head board for help with turning in bed. I am certain your headboard will be strong. However will the sides be a bit larger for grabbing onto or are thinner sides easier for Matt?
Always a brighter day when you post!
Sheila F.
The fan is perfect, the wall divine, and whatever you decide on the bedside tables and headboard will be great. And although I wouldn’t choose either design for the floor, I’m sure you will make it work. The wall is so beautiful I’d do a lt. gray wash on the floor and call it done, but I don’t have your vision!
I live in Texas and need ceiling fans also, but I replaced all of my large bulky ceiling fans with retractable blade ceiling fans. I purchased them on Amazon, Ebay and Houzz. They come in so many different styles and metal finishes. All of the ones I purchased were under $200 each. They look great and provide the same air flow without taking over my ceilings.
I love this room! I wouldn”t add a painted floor design though, for I fear it will take away from the wall and bold yellow bedframe. Can you add a small bedside rug for your side of the bed? Your bed coverings & window covetings will be importantand beg for a print. I miss your daily postings! This quarantine because of age etc is getting tiring. I look forward to your postings . Thanjs!!
I was going to say the same thing about retractable blades. That’s what we have in San Diego and I love them! Most people don’t even realize they are ceiling fans. The one in our master is a “fandelier” with lots of bling- also from Houzz.
I’d never heard of retractable blade ceiling fans before, but now that I’ve googled them and the fandelier, I’m amazed: where have these been all my life?
I saw one that reminds me of Kristi’s style: https://www.litfad.com/acrylic-bowl-4-blades-ceiling-fan-light-modernism-living-room-led-semi-flushmount-in-white-with-remote-control-36-wide-s-208775.html
Both of your floor options would look good but I especially like the off-set stripe. It is a nice foil for the gorgeous wall paper. The narrow stripes don’t fight but make a good contrast.
I have four of those ceiling fans. They are great.
We have a ceiling fan very similar to that, also from Home Depot. We love it so much that we went back and bought two more that are also similar, but not identical to each other. One is a bit smaller for our guest room. I am not a ceiling fan fan haha but they are simply practical. We get so many compliments, that is no wonder they sell out so fast. Lowe’s also had so similar ones, when we were shopping for fans five years ago. We live in MN, where we can get hot and humid weather in the summer. We reverse them in the winter to bring the heat down from the ceiling. They run 24 hours a day, 365 days per year. Usually at medium speed.
I like the offset stripe the best, but agree with some others on letting your accent wall shine and leave the floors stained. It will be easier to paint over them if you decide it’s too blah. I think an offset navy and white stripe pattern will look great in this room. Maybe on part of the bedding?
I heard of a good idea when trying to decide between two things, flip a coin. Sounds silly but it does quickly tell which one you’re liking a little bit better. If you find yourself disappointed with the answer you know you really did prefer the other without realizing it.
Hi Kristi.
Your fan is a nice option. Sleek.
I like the bedside tables a lot!
But 300$ seems expensive–as i am so frugal. You could whip 2 out in NO time AND to your liking👌.
I’m not a huge fan of painted floors. A lot of work! But if I had to choose one, the off-stripe would let your wall sing, as the design isn’t as large and distracting.
I love hearing from you Kristi. I miss you! Thank you for bringing us along on your design journey. I learn SO much from you!
My daughter and SO make all kinds of wood products including custom cabinets that resemble the one you are thinking of. Different woods available. Pics on their Insta page here https://www.instagram.com/blackwalnutwoodpgh/ or go to their Etsy shop here https://www.etsy.com/shop/BlackWalnutWoodshop in case you are interested.
Kristi,
Have you considered this Low Pile, washable rug? The ratings are excellent.
https://ruggable.com/pages/clean-rugs/?utm_source=google_adw&utm_medium=cpc&gclid=Cj0KCQjw6575BRCQARIsAMp-ksOcx3lpNI9hAzF1M2nksFFhw-kUbC901GahaYvkAU2MZDLz9c-dQFIaAldDEALw_wcB
I would certainly consider something like that in a living room or bedroom. Unfortunately, I just don’t think any kind of rug is an option for a bedroom that will be used by Matt.
Love the thought of a painted floor. The “pinwheel” design in light colors or tone-on-tone offset stripes; you can’t go wrong! Try taping out a portion of the pattern on the floor near the wall mural – one of the designs will “speak” to you!
Another vote for wall-mounted nightstands. Wish I had done that in my master BR – – Hmm, may just have to make that happen.
Here’s another idea for your floor– what about a Greek key design around the perimeter? Love your new fan, too!
Seems to me a patterned floor would just complicate the room. The wallpaper plus a busy headboard in a strong color is already quite a lot. I am pretty sure ubiquitous pillow choices will be coming as well, adding more pattern to the mix.
Considering the long-range view, once your own master bedroom is ready for occupancy, wouldn’t area rugs on either side of the bed be an option to add texture? I am assuming Matt won’t likely be using the room at that point? But, if he needed to, area rugs could be stashed for the time being until guests are staying with you.
This was my thought too.
A patterned floor against the patterned wall would just be overwhelming in my opinion.
The wall is a show-stopper, let it be heard.
I would be tempted to paint all the walls and, I think, even the trim and closet doors the same dark blue as the feature wall background. With the big yellow bed, table or wall lamps, art with lots of white on the other walls, window treatments and a chair/bench (orange? poppy red?), you should have enough bright, non-blue items to keep the room from being a dark cave. It would be dramatic and would highlight the feature wall. I can picture three related large scale but simple abstract pieces on the wall opposite the bed, to add white but to also balance the delicate flower mural. And I love the idea of the legless bedside tables.
Why is it so easy to “decorate” someone else’s house and so hard to do my own? 🙂
What about repeating the wall pattern from the music room on the floor?
In case this is of any benefit to you, aside from painting directly onto the floor, many of us decorative artists use cambric cloth to make floor cloths. This material is used to make common roller shades. It’s less of a committment and can be moved to other rooms, should you ever want to do that.
the night stand is cute but is veneer. If you make is it will be solid wood and quality made. I just love your wall by the way!
Your vision stuns me! Thank you for sharing with all of us. It’s a treat to read your posts!
I think that the “wallpaper” is too, too, TOO lovely (<3) to have any other pattern on the floor. Plus, it's just a habit that is causing you to "need" to see a rug on the floor (around these parts of the world it seems so, so weird to see a rug used in summer, took ages to get accustomed to it from the internet photos)! Plus, as you said, the effect will not really be re-created since you would have to paint the entire floor. Plus, you made such a good work repairing all the floors in your house, and this would be the only (rather non-obvious) exception. Plus, it's the guest room, so as soon as you go into your actual bedroom you will add a rug in here… But if the question is ONLY A vs B, I think I prefer the stripes, they are less busy.
In other details, I find it adorable that the nightstands and the fan seem to match – is that actually the case?
I love the little rug in front of the end table you were considering. How about diagonal stripes instead of offset stripes. Also stripes of any kind will likely save hours and hours of masking before painting.
I love the fan! I am looking for one now and maybe that is the one!
For the floor, I recall seeing older grand homes in Philadelphia where the hardwood floors had all sorts of designs in them, all laid out with the hardwood direction (like herringbone!) and ribbon frames in different stain colors. Your floors will look great.
That fan is slick! Love it! I like the bedide table but I agree that it might be a ‘toe breaker’ in the middle of the night. Love the idea of building something and mounting it on the wall. Much easier to clean under, as well.
Kristi, how much light does that fan put out? We very much need a new one for our bedroom…it just puts out this barely there gloomy light. I need LIGHT!
If you want a lot of light, this one wouldn’t be a good option. It puts out enough for me, but I don’t need a lot of light in a bedroom. I prefer just natural light during the day, and just enough light from a lamp at night to be able to to work on my laptop comfortably without eye strain.
I so appreciate your practicality and matter-of-factness about the necessity of your ceiling fan. It drives me crazy when I read blog posts where the decorators just blithely assert that the ceiling fan should be ripped out in favor of a crystal chandelier (or whatever is their favorite sort of lighting) without considering the energy use implications. I admit there are some really ugly ceiling fans out there but also attractive and functional ones like the one you purchased.
Kirsti- the end tables remind me of Ikea storage units and bath vanities. What about getting one that just hangs from the wall- no legs whatsoever? I think it would have nice clean lines that don’t take away from the other design features in the room. Also, no legs is very practical for cleaning!
Just a thought-
Gwen
I have been thinking about bedside tables and I think something like this mirrored one would be lovely in your guest room: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Noble-House-Siryen-Modern-Mirrored-Side-Table-with-Gold-Iron-Frame-13124/308447932. If you decided to DIY it, you could make the frame out of wood and then paint or gold leaf it. I think I once saw a flexible gold veneer tape–but it was a long time ago and I wasn’t in the market for it.
Thank you for sharing the fan information. I have since installed 2 of them in the 44″ size by myself. They were easier than some basic flush ceiling fixtures I’ve installed. I also do not like ceiling fans but these are pretty sleek and put out enough light for small bedrooms.