I love transforming spaces – this time for two of my nephews. They are growing up fast! And they needed their bedrooms to reflect their changing interests and hobbies.
My nephew Markus messaged me a few weeks ago:
Hi Maria! Recently I’ve been thinking about my room and I think I want to minimalize it a little bit, by that I mean just remove the mural and paint it and maybe add some art instead. I was wondering if you have any ideas for that because I just want my room to look more mature 🤷🏼♂️
And since makeovers are my favourite thing to do, I replied “Of course”.
Here’s the makeover we did for his room 3 years ago:
See all the before and afters here
Markus is fastidious. His bed is always made, and his room always looks like this (above).
When we went art shopping, we stumbled upon a gorgeous charcoal comforter that just felt right with the artwork we’d chosen (which ended up having a travel theme).
Here’s the thing: a comforter like this has a bit more structure than your typical flat cotton duvet, so your bed always looks crisp and pulled together—no fussing required. And the texture? So good! It ties in beautifully with the greyscale triptych we found, creating a look that’s both cohesive and elevated.
Benjamin Moore Saybrook Sage HC-114
You can get a Samplize sample of this colour here. It’s part of my curated collection of the best muted cool greens here.
Here’s Markus 3 years ago:
And here he is now, all grown up at 15 (below)!
If you’ve been following me since the early days, you’ve watched my nephews grow up alongside me. They’ve all turned into such incredible young men, I feel so blessed to be their Auntie! Seeing these photos brings tears to my eyes I love them all so much! I have 4 nephews in total.
And another room makeover!
The next room makeover was also completed within the last month:
This is my sweet nephew Noah (who is now my indispensable handyman, gardener, and assistant—I honestly don’t know how I managed without him) has grown up behind the scenes of this blog. He is working for me while he’s on the waitlist to go to welding school.
You haven’t seen much of him here because, for many years, I wasn’t speaking to his mother, my sister Anita. That chapter in our lives still makes me sad, and every so often, when I feel a pang of regret about it, I find myself apologizing to Anita yet again.
Family relationships are complicated, aren’t they? But today, I’m so grateful for the love and connection we’ve rebuilt—it’s a reminder that healing is always possible.
Read more: My Sister and I are dating
Noah Boyes
As the go-to decorator for my family, I’ve been itching to transform Noah’s room into something special. His room was originally upstairs, but when other kids moved out, he relocated to a more private space in the basement. However, his matching bedroom set never made the move with him, so the new room was ready for a fresh start.
For months, I’ve been gently nudging him to let me work my magic, but he kept brushing me off, insisting his truck was his top priority.
Finally, one week while Mom was out of town visiting friends, Noah and his Dad decided to do some organizing in the basement (where his room is located). They decided to move the row of floor to ceiling cabinets in his bedroom into the room next door.
This created enough space to move his desk into his bedroom:
Next we needed to create a plan for this room because we needed EVERYTHING. So I opened my laptop to create a mood board and we found this duvet from the Pottery Barn. And after I chose the paint colour we found these bedside tables from marketplace.
They were perfect because the wood stain related to the ceiling that we left unpainted (Most men are very resistant to painting wood after all).
The secret to every beautiful room is a mood board. Learn how to build one here.
We found the upholstered bed from Marketplace as well, which ended up leading him to a retail store but it worked because it came with storage. Which meant we didn’t need a bedskirt (necessary if you have a mattress and boxspring sitting on a frame)
The best bedrooms look collected and not like we walked out of a furniture store with a matching bedroom set.
Next, I ordered the duvet cover which was going to take several weeks to arrive and we arranged to have the room painted:
When I walked into the room partway through to check on the progress, I noticed an opportunity to elevate the paint job.
I instructed the painter to include all the trim, doors, and even the random pipe along the ceiling near the doorway in the same color. That’s when I realized I missed including this tip in my colour drenching post. Doing this eliminates visual distractions like choppy or skinny trim that might otherwise break up the flow of a space, creating a seamless and cohesive look instead.
When my sister came home from her trip and saw the painted but yet far from finished bedroom she called and lectured me for about 20 minutes. The blue (with a purple undertone) grey looked bleak and uninspiring without any coordinating decor or bedding and she was horrified. I nodded patiently during the call and promised she would love it when it was finished.
And here it is now:
When Noah and I went out art shopping, he mentioned how much he loved the mountain scene he’d inherited from my late Uncle Olavi (see below). So I declared, “It’s official—we’re going with a mountain theme!” There’s something so special about letting a meaningful piece inspire the entire direction of a room.
Notice the Banff Springs hotel in the mountains (above) with the stag who lives in the forest. I like how the moody black image visually relates to the black TV. A close up of a branch and a wild flower (on the headboard wall) along with two birds and framed clouds that almost look like they belong to the cloudy forest scene.
I also loved the highboy and how it also relates to the ceiling, warms up the blue grey walls and the black pulls (above) also match the room. And a new live edge desk (also from a marketplace seller).
Here’s a closer look at the refurbished nightstands we scored on Marketplace. The paint colour feels completely custom—like it was made for this room! I just love those moments when everything comes together effortlessly, as if the design gods are smiling down on your project.
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Of course Lucy was with me during the after photos.
Noah confided that the first thing he does when he walks into his room is turn on all FOUR lamps. That’s the minimum people!
By the way you can get access to my styling school modules which include lamp tutorials and we’re currently on throw pillows (which are just as essential) in my True Colour Insider Membership here.
Let’s look at the before photo again shall we?
This past weekend my sister and her husband went to Maui for a week to stay at their timeshare. Noah has never stayed alone without them, he always opts to stay with Grandma (my Mom) when they’re out of town.
Until now.
He tried the first night and decided all was well, so he spent the rest of the week alone in the house.
Why is that, you might be asking?
Your guess is the same as mine 🙂
It truly fills me with joy to create spaces that no one wants to leave.
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Related posts:
My Nephew’s Home Schooling Room; Before & After
The Best Colour for your Child’s Bedroom Furniture (Before & After)
Beautiful! I love how everything just came together.
These are great makeovers – paint and styling goes a long, long way. Simple but not easy!
The rooms look nice, but they don’t seem very personal. They seem like hotel rooms, which are designed to be lovely. I would love to see more of their interests in the prints on the walls….like photos of places they’ve been, framed sports jerseys of players they like, any awards they’ve won, or a family photo. The essence of our homes is US so I love to see kids’ artwork framed and displayed as if they were master artists and family photos. In my own home, I framed some of my son’s artwork from elementary school, which makes me happy to see every day. In his bedroom, I framed a puzzle he used to do over and over again. In my bathroom, I hung a woven hat that was my mother’s when she was a child, and I also hung my son’s framed hand and footprints. So my point is that there’s no need to go buy a bunch of art prints when you can look at things you have and make them into art. And that also makes it more unique and interesting, with a story to everything.
Love this comment! Such great suggestions to help anyone reading with a makeover! Thanks, Maria