Guest rooms and a little bump in the road with ours!!

Guest rooms are like powder rooms in my book...I think they should be special or at least given some special attention. Let me start this post by saying you can only do what you can with the space you have.  You do the best you can but I think it is so important to make your guests feel special and welcomed.

So, we have kind of a different situation. Our guest room happens to be one of the best rooms in our house. It has high ceilings, beautiful views, hardwood floors, a very natural feel. We also went ahead and redid the little bath because, well we could not have our guest showering with a cracked shower pan and broken tile, could we?

We would have loved to have transformed this space into our master but it just was not feasible. While it is attached to our house you have to walk outside to get to it. We would have needed to connect it to our house. Two other prominent issues being the bathroom is not big enough nor is the closet. We would have needed to borrow all of this square footage from my son's room and he just did not have the space to give. And, we had already spent so much money on big ticket items (roof, driveway, doors, flooring, etc.) it was just not doable...but it pains us because we love this room.

So, long story short, our guests have a pretty nice room to stay in. So, if  any of my friends are reading this, come visit, before this crazy girls changes her mind and decides she wants to do another fixer upper!!

The funny thing is that this room was done on a pretty small budget...and it is my favorite. Most of the furnishing were left over from the other areas in our home and was  put together in the most cohesive way possible.

But, it was probably not always such a nice guest room to stay in.  This is what it looked like before we purchased the home. Not super inviting. But it had good bones. I mean look at the ceiling!!

The biggest issue and the reason it has not been "finished" this past year is due to the number of windows that needed to be covered...this was a big expense that I was dreading. And, this is not because I do not love window coverings...oh, I do!!..it is just because they are so dang expensive. Look at all of the windows that need to be covered.

 

Let's just put it in perspective...these custom dining room drapes in our dining room...which I absolutely loooove... cost approx $3,800 (see below). The area measures approx 130 x 96 (to give you an idea) and obviously we wanted some additional fabric on each side (no fake mini drapes here, ya'll!)This included custom Kravet hardware, linen fabric, labor and installation.

 

Back to the guest room...the smaller windows are 50 " wide and the larger ones are 100"wide. So, I needed to cover 450" of windows!! This would have cost us at least $15,000 if we had gone the custom route. So, that was not really an option. However, the holidays were quickly approaching and I had to get something up on those windows. My sister and her husband were staying with us and I think it is only fair that they have some privacy and are able to sleep in without the sun pouring in at 6 in the morning:)

So, I had a couple of options. Originally, I was thinking about woven blinds. We ordered some through Home Depot (Bali) for some other rooms in our home and I am super happy with them but they still are not cheap (approx $200 to $500 per blind depending on the size...see below in our kitchen dining nook).Woven blinds are a great look but I prefer them partnered up with drapery and especially in this circumstance it would look so much better. And, that would have doubled the cost if I was doing both (blinds and drapes).  I think only woven blinds  would have been just too much of a good thing..in other words a sea of heavy woven blinds.

I also checked out the Home Depots' cut -to -size woven blinds (seen below in our guest bath). 

They were appealing because they are light weight and light looking and less expensive. While I am happy with them in that particular location they would not have held up long term and with so many windows going up and down...it would have been too much wear and tear. Also, where it is cut on the side by the employees is not a perfect cut and is a little ragged looking. But, hey for $35-50 for each one...not sure if you can beat it. But, with the number of blinds I needed, it would have added up fast. Also, I would need 2 next to each other for some of the windows (because they come in limited sizes) and they would not abut to one another due to the hardware. So, it would look weird and there would be an opening...so it would contradict the reasons why I was getting them in the first place...privacy and early morning sun. And, it would look weird!! Too many cons!

I am normally such a planner and like making decisions but I was stalling on this one!!So, 2 weeks before our guests arrived, I needed to bite the bullet and do something. So, I ordered drapes from Restoration Hardware in their fog linen color. Because, I did not have time to go get a sample, I could only hope that this gray color would work ok. Thank goodness for gray...it is usually hard to mess that one up. And, I put a rush on them and they got here with a few days to spare!! And, I was a quite nervous...was this all going to come together?...And I hoped all of the measurements were right on. So I had them installed with my fingers crossed. I figured I could at least make a portion of them work and add some temporaries if needed (may have made for not so happy guests:).

I was so happy with them. I hung them all at the same height and they are so pretty and easy to work. I could not be happier. So while they are not custom they have the look I was craving for a fraction of the cost ($3,200) and that works just perfect for me. Here is a look at the room now.

 

 

 

 

And the little guest bathroom that had potential...

 

 

And after...

I would love to know how you make your guests feel special.  Here are a couple of things that I do just so our guests feel welcomed.

*Clean, clean, clean. Cleanliness...the room itself  and the areas around it.  If this means that guests are staying in one of your children's room...I would try to really organize and get rid of some of the clutter.  Just try to make it as clean, organized, and enjoyable as possible.

*Fresh flowers or a pretty orchid.  This does wonders.  Something so simple but so welcoming saying to your guests I am so glad you are here.

*Nice hand soap in the bathroom and decent shampoo and soap.  I know many people travel with their own these days but many do not, as well.

*Clean and fresh towels and a few extra of them.  It is sometimes awkward having to ask for extra ones so you may as well just go ahead and provide them.

*Also, because it was the Holidays I added a wood Christmas tree on the night table and some fresh white roses with some greenery.  I did  not want to go overboard...just something simple and a little statement to say "I am so glad you are here."

Any tips that you have...I would love to hear!! 


Have a great weekend!!

xo,
Paige