Rivera Home Reveal: A Colorful and Yet Calming Master Bedroom
While the Rivera’s study is my probably my favorite room in the house, their master bedroom felt like one of the most important rooms to design. When walking through it for the first time, Meka shared with me, “ I just want it to be a place where I can come and unwind.” As a busy mama of five who homeschools from around her kitchen table, I knew that this master bedroom had a to be a peaceful retreat. Though I wanted Jonathan to be comfortable and to enjoy the space; with him being deployed, sometimes for months at a time, I felt that this space should be tailored a bit more towards Meka.
To be honest, it was a bit of a challenging to put the design plan together. The Rivera’s gave me full reign for the design of the space (new bedding, new window treatments, new lighting, etc.) however they asked that I keep the main pieces of furniture (i.e. the bed frame and dressers). While these pieces of furniture are beautiful they defiantly lean traditional. Knowing that Meka would want lots of color and pattern, and I pondered how I could work with these pieces while freshening things up. In the end, I pulled my inspiration from a bedroom that Emily Henderson had designed for Target a couple of years ago, but took the Rivera’s bedroom on a more island/retreat route.
THE FUNCTIONAL NEEDS:
STORAGE: Walking through the master bedroom for the first time, I knew that I wanted to take away some of the existing furniture; but that I would also need to be mindful of storage. Though the Rivera’s have a couple of closets in the space, keeping the long dresser would be important, as would making sure that the new side tables had storage.
A FRESH COAT OF PAINT: the Rivera’s went ahead and gave the bedroom a fresh coat of paint.
LIGHTING: Really, the lighting wasn’t bad in the master bedroom but walking through, I knew that we would need to brighten things up. In the end we did this through the addition of new table lamps, a mirror, and brighter finishes and furnishings.
THEIR STYLISTIC DESIRES:
COLOR PALETTE: If you haven’t guessed it already, Meka is ALL ABOUT some cobalt blue, golden yellow, gray and white! While I usually like to change things up room to room, we decided to go with the same color palette as the living room because well.. this is Meka’s (and Jon’s!) space! With Jon sometimes being deployed at sea for months at a time, I wanted to create a master bedroom where Meka could wake up to feeling rested and energized. Similar to other rooms in the house, we kept the bones of the room neutral while making a statement with the decor, particularly the bedding!
PATTERN: Like I said, Meka loves some pattern! So we incorporated a lot of it in the master bedroom. While she wanted to go a bit bolder with the area rug, I decided to keep it subtle as I knew she wanted to go BOLD with the bedding and window treatments. I love how it all turned out though would have preferred to use a smaller print on the curtains (i.e. this or that).
SIDE TABLES: While we kept the bed-frame and dresser, we decided to bring in a set of matching side tables to help. These side tables served a multitude of purposes such as: creating some balance (they anchor the bed), lighting things up (they’re made of lighter wood), freshening things up (they feel a bit more modern than the existing furniture), and they provide storage!
BEDDING: One of the top priorities for the master bedroom was getting new bedding. Knowing that Meka loves color and pattern, I tried to incorporate as much as that into the bedding as possible while making sure it wasn’t too overwhelming. At first I looked at some more traditional bedding with subtle pattern. While it would look good with the furniture, I figured that Meka would something a bit more contemporary. We looked at this and that but in the end, went with this gray striped duvet from Target and then layered it with pillows, sheets, and a quilt.
FUN ACCENTS: When it came to the Rivera’s master bedroom, we kept things simple adding in some colorful books, white ceramic pieces, candles, and greenery. The accent that had the biggest effect on the room though, would have to be the pair of blue lamps, resting on the side tables!! Y’all, what a difference they make! Before, we had sourced these, which were nice and all but waaay too small. When I saw these on the shelf at Target, I knew it was meant to be. As soon as I placed them in the room, Meka was jumping up and down in excitement!
A PEACEFUL RETREAT: Most of all, when it came to the master bedroom, the Rivera’s were looking for a peaceful retreat. I wanted their master bedroom to feel like them (with neutral tones mixed with pops of color) but also like they had gone on the most amazing, relaxing vacation to the islands and that they then brought that same vibe back home with them. To do this, I incorporated faux flowers and greenery, scented candles, and fun artwork. I also invested in the bedding, stepping it up with the layering of pillows and throws. Showing Meka the finished result was like love at first sight.
Etched Pillar Candle Holder | 2. Wooden Geometric Cabinet | 3. Golden Curtains | 4. Round Brass | Mirror | 5. Blue Quilted Bedding | 6. Pinstripe Duvet | 7. Diamond Patterned Sheets | 8. Fiddle Fig Stem | 9. Bird of Paradise Stem | 10. Marble Picture Frame | 11. Blue Ceramic Table Lamp | 12. Moroccan Area Rug
Interior Styling: Making Room for Peace | Photography: Luke & Ashley Photography
“I feel as if I stepping into a spa,” our client recently remarked. “It’s just so peaceful and elegant.”