Grace's Gallery Wall

The gallery wall is finished and the house is still standing.  The joys  hanging anything in plaster walls.

This wall makes me smile.  It's filled with frugal finds and homemade creations.

One of the only things I specifically bought for Grace's big girl room was this print that reads:  She Lives Life In Her Own Little Fairytale. 

This describes Grace perfectly.  My sweet little girl has a brilliant imagination and has happily created her own fairytale.

What's more fitting to display beneath a fairytale print but a frog just waiting for a kiss to be transformed into a prince.

Fluttering around, beautiful pink stained glass butterflies made by Grace's grandpa (my talented father in-law).

In case she ever forgets her name, she has this wood GRACE plaque, again made by her grandpa.

Also, included in the gallery wall, ornate frames collected from Goodwill.  Each frame cost no more than $1.99.  I'd love suggestions for what to display in the smaller white frames, with the pink centers.

On the shelf, button artwork made by Grace herself and a Lalaloospy peacock.

This gallery wall is proudly displayed, just over her new big girl bed.

And, Grace's little dress is still proudly displayed it was just moved to a larger wall.

I should mention, in the fairytale Grace lives in, I feel like Cinderella...I'm off to clean her room so I can finally show off pictures of her transformed big girl room in entirety.

Gallery Wall

Grace's big girl room continues to evolve.

Though, I love this 3 dimensional display of Grace's first Christmas dress, the real reason it's hung here...on this wall...

is because, originally, GRACE was spelled out here in individual wood letters.  This frame was the only thing big enough to hid the 11 holes we had in this wall.  11 holes!

So, we finally patched the holes, repainted the wall and decided to hang a gallery display here instead.

We have plaster walls.  Wish us luck getting everything hung. 

And, yes, I find it ironic that we just patched 11 holes (!) in this wall only to put more holes into this same wall.

Grace's Big Girl Room - An Update

We are slowly making progress with Grace's transition from little girl room to big girl room. 

Eventually there will be a big reveal but for now, I'll share a glimpse of what we've accomplished.

I painted the back of her bookshelf pink, to which Grace exclaimed, I always wanted pink in my room.  I'll count that as a seal of approval.

I'm working on decorating the shelves.  Just like the rest of our house, the shelves will have a mix of homemade items (quilts, from the Queen of Quilts, a baby blanket turned monogrammed piece of art, the stained glass butterfly made by my father in law), thrifted items (the school house letter g in the picture above and the little silver rabbit) and pictures.

The chandelier I've always hoped to add to our house has been bought. 

And, thanks to my dad, finally hung.

One of Grace's first dresses has been mounted in an ornate frame and is hung above her new big girl bed.

The big girl bed was the biggest transition from little girl room to big girl room.  We finally got rid of her toddler bed and upgraded to a big girl bed.  Grace had fun testing out mattresses.

All beds need a headboard.  We found a $14 thrifted headboard  from Goodwill.

A few coats of white paint and the addition of a wooden embellishment (from Home Depot) gives the headboard some much needed character and charm.

The queen of quilts is making progress on Grace's quilt.

Which, when completed, will go so perfectly with the princess toile sheets we found.

But, the most surprising addition to Grace's room came from the generosity of a fellow blogger. 

The very thoughtful and generous Michelle from Heart Made Mess surprised me by sending an antique brush and comb set to Grace.  {Thank you so much Michelle!}

We are getting closer to the big reveal.

Decorate With What Makes You Happy.

Grace's bedroom is making the transition from little girl room to big girl room. 

Grace's little girl room remained fairly neutral in design, since it was originally decorated as a gender neutral nursery. 

Of course, now I have anything but a gender neutral big girl.  We've entered the phase of loving anything princess, pink and girly. 

This frame, or more specifically this print, unfortunately, does not fall into the princess, pink, girly category. 

I had considered removing the print and putting in a cork board to display pictures, cards or artwork but I had procrastinated.  For once, my procrastination paid off because, a few weeks ago, I participated in a summer house tour event, and I found the inspiration I needed from Cedar House Ranch.  Anita, the decorator and owner, shared her daughter's bedroom.  Above her daughter's bed, she had hung beautiful vintage white baby gowns.  

Cue the light bulb and inspiration I needed.  

I dug out Grace's baby clothes and found the dress she wore for her first Christmas.  This was a dress I loved then and still do now but, of course, tucked away in a box rarely gets appreciated...

 Until now.

Now this dress, pinned to some mat board covered in linen fabric, is proudly on display. 

It's pink, girly and slightly princessy so it fits Grace's expectations.  And, it brings a smile to my face that Grace's big girl room has beautiful tribute to the little girl she will always be in my heart.

Grace's Big Girl Room - A Work in Progress

Grace's room is making the transition from a baby's room to a big girl room. 

In the transition, though, I have to decide what to keep out and on display and what to pack away. 

My mom, the Queen of Quilts, had made this adorable sheep quilt for Grace.  This quilt covered her crib and toddler bed up until now.

Of course, both the crib and toddler bed are now gone, making room for a twin bed.  We bought this headboard from Goodwill for $14.95 with the intention of painting it white and adding a decorative wood applique that has a slightly vintage feel.

We found the perfect sheets for her new big girl bed from Home Goods.  Hillcrest Ballerina Princess Toile in pink for only $19.95.

Though her sheep quilt will still have a place in her room, it certainly won't cover her twin bed so The Queen of Quilts will be making her another quilt.  Grace and I got to go fabric shopping, finding the daintiest of patterns ranging in colors from pink to green and a touch of yellow.

The Queen of Quilts always adds a label to the back of each quilt she makes.  Something personal, something meaningful, something to mark exactly how special the newly made quilt is.   

For this quilt, I created the label myself.  I embroidred 'let her sleep for when she wakes She will move mountains', a quote I have seen on pinterest countless times.  A quote so fitting to be added to a quilt that Grace will spend many nights sleeping beneath.

A bed alone does not make a big girl room, so when I found this beautiful print by Laurel Denise, one that is so fitting for Grace, I didn't hesitate to buy it (especially when I found out it was only $15 with shipping).

And, we'll finally be adding a chandelier to our 100 year old house.  Home Depot has this sweet chandelier for just under $100.

 

Fortunately, I found a ceiling medallion at Goodwill for $1.99 a few months ago.  It will get a coat of white paint and will be hung along with the chandelier.

Grace's bookcase will be getting a coat of light pink paint along the back and the shelves will display more big girl items compared to baby items.  *And, yes that is a TV you spy.  When your husband says, as you are decorating the nursery, if there is a TV in the baby's room, I will help with midnight feedings, you add a TV to the baby's room.

And, there will be some homemade 3 dimensional pink butterflies fluttering around her room. 

Just like every other room in our house, this room will be filled with thrifted and flea market finds, home made elements and frugal finds.

I look forward to completing Grace's room and sharing every detail.