The key trends to get a modern farmhouse vibe in a guest bedroom
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PICTURE CREDIT: LOAF
Guys I've been doing my home decoration research this week! As you might remember, our guest bedroom is at "Phase 1" in the renovation journey. It's been plastered, painted and the furniture we had in our old flat has been thrown back into it to make it habitable, but it's not been styled yet.
I want a traditional, lived in, cosy modern farmhouse style in the guest bedroom when it's finished and I've been researching some key trends to incorporate into the room to make sure I achieve this kinda look. I'm sharing them here in case you too have a love for Modern Farm Charm interiors and need some inspiration to bring a rustic edge to your guest bedroom or master bedroom.
So without further ado, here's my modern farm charm checklist for our guest bedroom:
1. Ditch the metal bed frame for a wooden or upholstered head board
The first thing on my list to make our guest bedroom a little more farmhouse chic is to get rid of the white metal bed frame we have in the room currently which is more "contemporary" looking and swap it for something a little warmer and comfortable to rest on like a solid wood frame or an upholstered headboard. Wood and fabric textures in the room will bring a more traditional, homely vibe than metal. I've seen some solid wooden bed frames which I love the look of from a company called Bed Guru. This Eleanor High Foot Bed Frame (pictured below) is the one that's caught my eye as it looks like solid quality, with the sort of design that would age well throughout the years. I'm trying to keep in mind that Modern Farmhouse decoration is about opting for classic designs that will last a lifetime, not following trends as they come and go. Bed Guru have a whole array of options that align with this. So if you're on the market for a bed I'd recommend their offering.
The Eleanor High Foot Bed Frame, £299 for a UK Double, Bed Guru
The Matilda Bedstead, £399 for a UK Double, Bed Guru
2. Reinstate a picture rail in the room
Next on my list to do is to bring some more traditional features back into the room. To try get a more traditional look on this fairly standard box room, I want to install a picture rail all the way along the walls again, to bring the lost character back to the room and to allow me to experiment more with paint colours on the walls and ceilings in future years. Picture rails, Dado rails and Skirting Boards can be overlooked features of a home, but strip them away and you rip out the personality of the building. The good news is that if (like me) you live in a house that used to have character that has since been stripped away, these are super easy and affordable to reinstall. Websites like Skirting4u will be the best port of call to order up your materials, and if you (or your hubby) is handy, it's a fairly easy DIY. I paid a carpenter friend £50 to install a picture rail like this one in our small office and it brought character to the room instantaneously.
3. Fit a vintage fire surround with a nice mirror as my "getting ready" zone
I ADORE everything about this 1930s elegant home tour in Ideal Home Magazine
I've always loved the appeal of fire surrounds in bedrooms. I mean, obviously I will never need a real fire in the room, although that does sound dreamy, but there's something about chimney breasts that just "needs" a fire place on it. Does you know what I mean? I am keeping my eyes peeled for a vintage fire surround with a fairy deep(ish) mantel on it so that I can get it fixed to the fireplace, pop a mirror above it and use it as a standup vanity space.
4. Hang mixed wooden frames + country art
For me, another staple of any farmhouse room is having a mix of rustic frames with painted wall art or photos of good times. Buying art work transforms a space, but given we're on a really tight budget I can't justify spending hundreds of pounds on one piece (as much as I want to!). My solution to this lies right on my computer. I have files and files of photographs Neil has taken of our families, our weekends away, our shoots in the countryside for my blog, and I plan to curate some of the best and get them printed + framed. I've been collecting charity shop bargain frames made of solid wood especially for this. They are mounting up in our spare room crying out for some photos inside them, so one evening, I plan to make it my photos-for-the-house project and go on a print-a-thon! If you can recommend great upload + print websites I am all ears!
5. Vintage shop for a solid chest of drawers
PICTURE CREDIT: ANDREW BOYD FOR HEART HOME MAGAZINE
Have you guys seen the style of drawers I'm on about here, they are the pine drawers with lil key holes in the top that look a lot like this... I am OBSESSED with getting my hands on a chest of drawers like these, and I've seen a few antique shops in Henfield, Sussex which stock a beautiful selection. I won't be ditching the chest of drawers in the bedroom currently though, instead I plan to breath new life into them. I've had my chest of drawers for years and years and plan to give them a Modern Farmhouse upcycle with some lovely French Linen Annie Sloan paint which arrived at my house the other day, and an Annie Sloan Clear Wax over the top to seal it. I'm certain it will give it a modern farm charm I'll be head over heels for. It will be my first 'upcycle' so I'll have to show you how it all goes. Wish me luck with it!
Whilst decorating our guest bedroom is very low on our priority list what with our kitchen diner renovation happening right now, it's always good to have an idea of the things I want, just in case vintage markets come calling and I find and blag bargains for the room to style up later.
Phew, I can't wait until our house starts to look less like a building site and more like a home.
Thanks for reading,
Fi xo
If you're interested in more stories from our renovation, including the whole before shots of the house we bought, head onto the page about our 1930s house renovation ››
