Pretty in Pink

The shores of Florida in the days of James Audubon were filled with Flamingos in the wild but settlers and habitat invasion pushed them away to extinction in Florida. However, for the past 11 years, a small flock returns each year to the West Palm Beach water management district. Hopefully, the word will get out to others that it is great in Florida again and our shores will be filled with pink! They belong here like the pink tinged night sky at the end of every great sunset. It is no wonder that when you move to Florida there is a desire to be surrounded by lightness and brightness and a touch of pink! Let’s see how one homeowner spiced up the guest bedroom with a healthy dose of Hot Flamingo pink somewhere in the heart of the Villages.

• Paint
The walls were a nice shade of green and I did not think we needed to repaint. The reason this green works with the look is because the undertone was golden. This golden green added light to the space because the undertone was golden. If the room had been sage we would have repainted. Most sage greens have a gray undertone that sucks light out of a space. So then, if you do like green make sure that the green has a golden undertone or a blue undertone.

• Molding
We added seven and a quarter inch crown to the room and the white really pops against the green. The molding is seven and a quarter large because the ceiling is nine foot or over. We added a shutter to the space because a shutter makes the window look really finished. A shutter provides privacy but it comes with casement molding and that makes the window look more finished than just a blind. We asked the crown molding team to add a header to the top of the window and it looks even better and more finished.

• Artwork
The room needed art work that coordinated with the bedding. We found amazing water color prints that complement the bedding perfectly. The three pieces of art are from the Elizabeth Kershaw and the subjects are tropical flowers. Each picture has healthy dose of pink!

• Bedding
The basic bed in a bag structure is nice but it is only nice as a foundation for the bedding. We needed to add some contrast to show the floral print off nicely. The tropical floral print on the bed had pink in the flowers so we wanted to highlight the pink. The first layer of bedding is always a white cotton and washable coverlet. This is what guest will use to sleep under rather than the printed thick coverlet. The homeowner purchased some pink Euro pillows to create the foundation layer against the headboard. We placed the queen shams from the bed in the bag in front of the new Euros and the added layer makes it pop!
Finally, we folded the tropical print coverlet back to the end of the bed so that you see some of it but not all of it. The break in print adds the much needed contrast to the bed and allows you to appreciate the print even more!

• New lamps
I have written about blue being the most loved color across all cultures but it is also the most ignored color in color pallets, especially tropical. The tropical coverlet has touches a blue in the leaves. There is lots of green which is very noticeable and expected in a tropical pattern, but there is blue as well. We decided to play up the blue by adding in blue crackle lamps. The lamps look so good with the bedding and having the same lamp on each side creates a welcoming balance to the space. Tip: When you want a room with color, check to see if there is any blue in the space and play it up!

• Flooring
The flooring was already installed and it is engineered hardwood. The room was not really big enough for a large rug or even a 5×8 so we opted for no rug. However, if you really want a rug, find something that would fit at the side of the bed so your guest feet have something soft to land on and can be removed when the room is not in use.

P.S. –Attention, club presidents! I give free decorating programs! It is lots of fun and very informative. Call and schedule your club today or call Ruth your full service decorator at 352-804-2056.

Before and After Pics Below