Our Fixer Upper: Dressing Room

via Lily All Sorts

Let's talk about what is sure to be the most fabulous room of the house: my dressing room.  When I bought my first house and had an extra small room, I decided that it would be best used as a walk-in closet/dressing room.  I was also not married yet so I pretty much had free reign to do what I wanted with the house (which is also probably why every room ended up being a different pastel color- you live and you learn!).  As I have told many people, once you have a dressing room, you can never go back!  It is so nice to have room to display and organize all your jewelry, accessories, and clothes, and I really think it helps you get more wear out of things because everyting is easy to see.  Besides that, it is a great space to get ready so that I don't occupy the bathroom and my husband can pretty much have that to himself!  In our new house, my dressing room is going to be quite a bit bigger than it is now.  Take a look at what the space looks like now below:

This is just one of our several extra bedrooms in the new house and it is perfectly located between the guest bath (where I will be relaxing in the clawfoot tub often!) and our master bedroom.  For some reason this is the room of the house right now that is the most "blah" to me.  Probably because of the dirty old carpet that has definitely seen better days, but the bright turquoise walls and mismatched trim don't help!  The natural light in this room is AMAZING and there are so many beautiful big windows that I love!

Here you can see the entrance of the room- it has a unique layout which I liked.  There is also a little closet which I plan on making over and utilizing somehow (maybe as a shoe closet!).  Some fresh paint will do wonders in here, but the biggest difference will be made by the new flooring.  We plan to do a dark hardwood in here that will also flow into the halway and master bedroom (all of these rooms have carpet or are missing flooring now).

I also love the unique molding around this room and on the ceiling! I plan on changing out the light fixture for something more modern  (you can see all my fixture picks at the end of this post!). There is a great view of the entire backyard, so I can watch the dogs and make sure they aren't being mischievious (which they almost always are!).  My inspiration for this space is much different from my dressing room now.  I'm steering away from super girly and going for a more modern and neutral feel.  Take a look at some of my favorite designs below:

via Pinterest

I love the simiplicity and layout of this space.  I definitely want to do a furniture piece in the middle of the room like this to store my jewelry and smaller accessories in.  That will also allow me to drop a pendant/chandelier light fixture a bit lower to create a real focal point of the space.  I also like the sleek shelving across the top of the clothing racks- a great way to sneak in extra storage!

via Pinterest

I adore this soft, neutral color palette!  I love the gray tone of the built-ins and the soft flowy curtains.  

via One Kings Lane

One of the photos that inspired my idea for the shoe closet! I especially like the pop of color she chose for inside he closet and on the door.  I think this would work perfectly for that small closet in this room. 

via Pretty Stuff

Another great neutral color combo with amazing, flowy curtains!  I really like the combination of different built-ins in this room that all fit each space perfectly.

via Refinery 29

An inspiring little corner of a super simple and chic closet.  I love the sconces and combination of different built-ins.  I hope to have lots of different shelving options in my space too!

via Solid Frog

I love the way they used old furniture pieces in this closet for both display and storage.  I'm hoping to use as many antique and vintage pieces as possible and then supplement with some more modern Ikea fixtures where needed.

via Lonny

Just one of the spaces that inspired my color palettes for this room!  I'm pretty sure I'm going with super pale blush walls with tons of gray, wood, and neutral accents.  Do you like the dark gray trim too?  

via Decorpad

I want to use whatever furniture piece I get for the center of the room for jewelry storage- both on top of the piece and inside of it.  I love this idea of organizing jewelry inside the drawers using vintage dishes, trays, and bowls!

via Coco's Tea Party

Another important element of this space: the vanity!  I am undecided about whether I should use a vintage desk/ antique piece for this or go with something super clean and simple like Ikea's "Malm" dressing table (see below for pictures).  I love this super glam midcentury desk above especially when paired with the giant vintage mirror.

via House and Home

Here's one example of the "Malm" dressing table in action.  I do really like the minimal look of it and it does have quite a bit of  table space for getting ready.

via Pinterest

It also has a ton of storage in the big pull-out drawer- perfect for all your makeup and beauty supplies!  I don't have a ton of makeup right now so I could very easily contain everything inside this.

via Pinterest

I love the look of this built-in with glass doors and the tone of the wood.  I also like the distressed wood beams in here.  There are actually small wood beams across the ceiling of my dressing room but they have been painted white.  Perhaps I could sand them down to reveal some of their original color. 

via Take Over Time

The Pax storage system from Ikea seems to be exactly what I would need to create some custom storage in the room.  I will probably stick to mostly hanging space with one block of shelving/drawers like above.

via My Domaine

Another amazing shoe closet inspiration!  I love the mirrored door and back wall and I also love the unique black and gold bar shoe racks.

via Lily All Sorts

I adore this mix of shelving and clothing storage.  I definitely want to utilize all the space available and I like the idea of a lower clothing rack with lots of different shelves above it.

via Number-Nineteen

A more masculine space but I love the moody, neutral colors and antique elements.  I really like how they used an old vintage wardrobe and then attached a clothing bar to the right of it, extended to the wall.  If I can find the right pieces, I definitely prefer the look of a mixture of antique storage pieces with newer shelves and built-ins.

This space is super inspiring because it's so clean and minimal and I love the modern feel.  I like the long shelf across the top for extra storage and the antique cabinet is the perfect dose of vintage in this super modern space.

via Avenue Lifestyle

I do like the cluster of free-standing clothing racks and these exact ones are actually only $9.99 at IKEA, so I could afford as many as I needed!  Even if I decided to eventually do some different built-ins these free-standing racks would be a great temporary option and I could always use them for the shop when I was done with them.

via Poppytalk

This is a great storage idea for shorts and pants (which I am just messily folding and stacking right now in my current dressing room!).  This would definitely help me keep everything more organized and visible, and all the supplies are available at IKEA (I see an big IKEA shopping trip in my future!).

via Hooked on Houses

A great example for what I'm picturing as far as the layout of the room.  I definitely want to do some kind of storage/dresser in the center for my jewelry and accessories with a hanging pendant/chandelier above it.

via Apartment Therapy

This is exactly what I'm picturing as far as color palette for this room.  I love the pale pink walls, neutral trim and curtains, with pops of jewel tones.

via Stylizmo

I also like this super modern and clean vanity space- I even like the old-fashioned vanity lights on each side of the mirror.  These lights are super cheap now (as in around $10!), and I like how they really define the space and make the vanity more of a statement area.

via Ikea

Another photo of the PAX storage system from Ikea.  I definitely want some drawers in my built-in and I just love these drawers with clear fronts.  These are what sold me on this storage system- they are so expensive looking (without the price!) and they allow you to see everything that is inside!

A more industrial look for storage that I also really like- I love the combination of shelves, piping, and cubbies.  

via Decorpad

This closet is completely stunning and super glamorous.  I probably couldn't afford a single thing in here, but I do love the overall layout of the room, especially the furniture in the center with storage shelves on the back.

via Fresh American Style

More inspiring jewelry storage- this is exactly what I'm picturing for inside the drawers of the center furniture piece.  I definitely want to get different dividers and organizers so that everything is perfectly placed inside.

What do you think of the overall design for my dressing room?  I can't wait to get started on this space but I have a feeling that with all the other projects this might be something that gets put on the back-burner for a while.  That's ok though, it will just give me more time to find all the perfect furniture pieces that I need!

xoxo

Emily

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