Ok, I finally have some remodeling photos to share. We had a surprise snowy day yesterday, and the light reflecting from the ground into the bedroom inspired me to tidy up and take a few photos. The difference from what we started with is not insignificant, I would say. In this post, you can see examples of milk paint applied over the original latex, our new oak hardwood floors, and a few other aesthetic touches and functional improvements in our bedroom remodel.

Check out the comparison below for ideas for your own remodeling projects!

(A Little More Natural) Bedroom Remodel

It’s been an interesting experience working on a very conventional home. I honestly don’t have much experience with drywall and all that stuff — I pretty much skipped all that and got right into natural building before ever doing much conventional construction. Anyway, our goal from the beginning was to incorporate as many “natural” elements into our house remodel as we could, within reason. We weren’t going to tear out fiberglass insulation and replace it, or do anything crazy like that. Most of the changes have been aesthetic, and there’s been a number of functional improvements throughout the house, too. We chose as many natural materials and non-toxic products to achieve our goals.

Check out what this bedroom looked like before remodeling, and the final product!

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Remodel Design Ideas…

Here’s a bit more about some of the changes we made:

• We tore out the carpet, and put down oak tongue & groove floors (from a local company) and used a natural VOC-free linseed oil-based floor finish
• We painted over the existing latex paint with Safepaint, a special milk paint formula designed to go right over existing synthetic paints
• We installed a second window on the west side of the room for better air movement and light quality (see ‘Light on Two Sides‘ in the essential A Pattern Language)
• We blew cellulose into the interior walls to improve sound quality and privacy
• We moved the door so that it opens into the corner, instead of eating up extra open space
• We installed oak Shaker-style pegboards that we made ourselves, for lots of functional hanging space
• We made and put in thermal curtains to improve heat retention in winter

I’m a big fan of bright spaces, and the yellow milk paint made a huge improvement in that arena. The Safepaint worked beautifully, and the coverage was excellent. There was no problem with the paint adhering to the latex. The new floor… well, who doesn’t love a good hardwood floor? It was an immediate improvement, and the Rubio Monocoat finish went on like a dream. I love how the grain comes through in all of its glory.

The Shaker pegs required little in the way of material or cost, and even when the pegs are not in use they enhance the quality of the space. It has as much to do with incorporating actual wood into the room than anything else, I think. Before that, there was no exposed wood in sight. (We opted not to replace all the window trim and baseboard because of the extra resources it would have demanded, so it’s pretty standard home center stuff…. you know, cheap laminated pine stuff that you would never leave unpainted.) Having wood in your space just feels good, ya know?

April and I had to consider how to configure the space itself for the baby on the way, too. We have lots of improved storage in the closet now with all the cedar shelves that we installed, and these mini pegboard shelves are great for hanging and storing small baby items. The thermal curtains April made are great for keeping warmth in at night in wintertime, and they also block out a lot of light during the day for nap times.

Last but not least, here’s a look at the cosleeper I built… and darn, I wish I had a comfy sheepskin like that for myself!

All in all, I’m really happy with the results of our bedroom remodel. In future posts, I’ll share some of the changes and improvements we made to other rooms of the house.