"Extreme Room Makeover" - Teenage Style!

When Olivia turned 5, we had just moved into our house in Fremont, and I wanted to decorate her room. I bought an adorable quilt from Pottery Barn Kids, painted and hung a wallpaper border. It was darling.

This was the day we said good-bye to our house in Fremont,

and the only picture I could find of her room!

Fast forward a few years, and she started begging for a makeover. She wanted something "more grown up . . . more teenager-y". When she turned 10, we ditched the cutesy quilt and replaced it with a bold polka dot comforter set, but the walls still screamed "little girl"! I kept promising her we'd paint.

Then we decided to move!

Olivia picked out her room in the new house. Her choice?

She opted for a smaller bedroom and closet than the other options, because this room had its own bathroom attached.

When we first saw the house, we thought this room had a 1/2 bath, not a full.

It's an itty-bitty bathroom—when the door is open, the shower is out of view.

But it's all hers, and she loves it!

We promised her that we'd redo her room this year, in honor of her turning 12 and graduating from Primary at church into the Young Women program—a big step for her. But we told her that whatever we did to her room now had to last her until she leaves for college in 6 years (did I just say that? Is she really leaving for college in 6 years????)

For almost a year now, she's been poring through PB Teen catalogs, trying to picture various bedding sets and room designs. Some seemed too trendy, others too bright, others were still too "young" to last through high school. A few weeks back, she landed on this.

The set seemed to be the perfect combination of fun and bright, and something that she won't outgrow too quick.

Then came the task of picking a paint color. She wanted something bright. I wanted something tasteful, yet feminine. We brought Steve in on the planning, and he quickly came up with a color scheme that sounded perfect.

Over the weekend, we transformed the room.

Three walls are a blue-ish lavender color. The wall where her window and mirrored closet are is a chocolate brown.

We splurged on a plush brown rug for the floor, it looks great!

We bought the mirror to hang above her dresser, filling up a blank wall and adding some style.

We still need to hang a few pictures and re-cover a bulletin board to break up the wall between her desk and bed.

Her bathroom is a bright pink. And I mean BRIGHT!

We may do away with the monkey artwork. . . a remnant of younger years.

She'll have no trouble feeling cheerful being in there as she wakes up early in the morning, although she may have some trouble when it comes time to learning to tastefully apply makeup . . .

When all was said and done, I couldn't believe how beautiful it turned out. The pictures don't do it justice. It literally looks like it belongs in a magazine. I have to give Steve a lot of the credit here - he has such an eye for colors and design, and is able to pick out little detaily finishing touches to tie it all together (he picked out the pink lamp on the nightstand . . . it ties in the bathroom color and the pink on the quilt perfectly!)

Olivia is floating on Cloud-9, and has promised to keep her room as neat and tidy as it is today for the rest of her years here.

I won't hold my breath!