This $700 Bedroom Makeover Has the Coolest Curtains I’ve Ever Seen

ABOUT THIS BEFORE & AFTER

HOME TYPE: Apartment

PROJECT TYPE: Bedroom

STYLE: Colorful, Contemporary

SKILL LEVEL: DIY

RENTAL FRIENDLY: No

Oftentimes, traveling can spark interior design ideas. Apartment dweller Galina Efremova was inspired by a Turkish pillow and a Venetian chandelier for her bedroom makeover, which both add color in some clever ways.

Galina already owned her bed and nightstands, but she made a few additions to modernize and personalize her room.

She added architectural upgrades.

When Galina moved into the apartment, her bedroom windowsill had an outdated yellow tile, and she swapped that with a calacatta marble tile. She also added crown molding around her ceiling and picture frame molding to the walls.

Both projects were home-improvement “firsts” for Galina, and she said she learned a lot about grout and mortar for the tile portion, and in hindsight, she might ask a friend to help with the molding portion. “It comes in big pieces, and doing it on your own is a bit challenging,” she says. She says the molding adds “a sophisticated European flavor” to her bedroom, which she loves.

The curtain is made from extra chandelier pieces.

And speaking of European flair, Galina took inspiration from a trip to Italy for her one-of-a-kind window treatment.

“The red glass hooks are parts of the Murano glass Venetian chandelier that I bought, and I saw the parts being used as a window display in a curtain manner in a store in Venice, so I did the same on my window,” she says. It’s the DIY project she’s most proud of in the room.

She used a sample can of paint for a pop of color.

One last DIY project makes the room feel complete. Galina wanted to add some color (in addition to the fresh coat of white, Benjamin Moore’s White Dove) she added to the walls. She used a sample can of Valspar’s Bedroom Plum to create her asymmetrical accent wall.

“I went on a vacation … in July and bought a pillow from Turkey that is on my bed and loved the color combination that inspired me,” Galina says. And her best advice when it comes to color — and all decorating for that matter — is to do lots of testing before locking in to your final choices. “Try to put pieces and colors of the project together ahead of time,” she says. “I tried drawing and creating a collage to have a better vision of a final result.”

She says her additions to the room make the space feel taller, plus they remind her of her travels. “I see a beautiful reflection in the mirror across my bed,” she says. Her bed and nightstands are from West Elm, her bedding is from H&M, her lamps are from Target, and the grand total for the project was about $700.

Inspired? Submit your own project here.

Further Reading

We Tested (and Rated!) Every Sofa at West Elm — Here Are the Best for Every Type of Need

We Tested (and Rated!) All the Sofas at Pottery Barn — Here Are the Best for Every Type of Need

See How a Stager Used Paint to Transform a 1950s Living Room