Affordable Style: Ayla's Colorful Bedroom

I'm a little tardy to the party with this, but now that life is a smidge less chaotic, it's time to share. A few months ago my friend Ayla emailed me after she saw Meg's guest room transformation and wanted a design consultation for herself. She and her boyfriend have a master bedroom with high vaulted ceilings... and not much color. Here's part of her message to me:  "I really have no idea what to do. The only thing I would like to do is add some color without painting the walls and perhaps paint our dresser. I would like to try to make a lot of things or find decently priced items." 

She sent along a couple of pictures, too:

I am totally jealous of those high walls.

Anyway, Ayla wanted more color, so more color she shall receive. I should note that I emailed her the plan a long time ago, but it's still brand new to you:

>> The first step to adding color to a neutral space is to bring in some lively textiles. I chose turquoise bedding ($50) and a bold pattern on the curtains ($25). Both are from IKEA, as is the pink and yellow pillow that will break up the solid color of the bed ($7).

>> The wall above the bed can handle some big artwork, so I suggested a set of six colorful prints from Etsy ($45) in matching IKEA frames ($10/each). Bright scrapbook or wrapping paper would also work.

>> Ayla was open to painting her dresser, which is another easy way to add color while leaving the walls alone. I had yellow in mind as an accent the whole time I was sourcing products, so I think she should go whole hog and make that dresser yellow. Depending on the kinds of paint and primer used, that whole project can be done for around $40.

>> Bringing color in with lighting is another quick fix. This particular example is from Pier1 ($50), but she could also find a lamp with a cool silhouette at a thrift shop and spray paint it.

Basically, if you can't paint your walls or just don't want to, adding color and pattern anywhere else can make a huge impact. I don't have these examples in this design, but don't forget to consider area rugs and throw blankets, too.

In an unusual twist, this post took me so long to get ready that Ayla has had time to get started on the space. (I am totally on top of things.) Here's where it is now. Look at the dresser! Aaah!

I think it's really coming together! Hopefully she'll email me again if she decides to add anything else.

If you're in the market for a design consultation of your own, I'm still doing them for the low, low price of $0 while I gain experience. You can either leave a note in the comments, or send an email to paige.ronchetti [at] gmail.com. All you'll have to do is answer a few design-related questions and we'll be ready to roll. Feel free to hit me up if you have any questions.

So which part of Ayla's room is your favorite? How do you like to add color to your house? Anybody else do the neutral-wall, colorful-furniture thing?