Luxuriate The Florida Way

Twice a year the family will descend upon your home, and there will be controlled chaos, but you will love it! Those times are fast approaching and if you are fortunate enough to have two guest bedrooms then why not make them both inviting and luxurious. Websters dictionary defines luxury as a condition of abundance or great comfort and ease. Most of my customers like making their guests feel at home and they like the rooms to have a Florida vibe. If the guest bedroom is big enough, you can place a king-size bed in the space for your guests so that they may luxuriate in a room that invites them to linger and encourages relaxation. Let’s peek into the second guest room of a Gardenia model that invites the guest to stay a while with a few extra touches that really say, “Welcome to Florida,” somewhere in the heart of The Villages.

  •  Fresh paint
This room is at the front of the house, and it is a bright room. Therefore, the wall color can be a bit more saturated, and the room will stay light and bright. The homeowner chose Rainwashed SW 6211 which is a neutral blue with a grey-green undertone. The grey undertone keeps the paint neutral, and the green undertone softens the blue taking it to the level of neutrality. A neutral blue is a blue that will go with everything! If you have a room that is darker, but you like a neutral blue, you could choose the lighter counter part to Rainwashed and that is called Windowpane 6210.

  •  Shutter
It is important in this guest bedroom to treat the window right. Usually, in the middle of the cul-de-sac there will be a large streetlight that fills the room with light at night. A shutter will get rid of that light, but it must cover the entire window. Some people will cut the shutter off to leave the arch uncovered and the light still illuminates the room. When you cover the window all the way around the window looks finished and you can block out the light completely.

  •  Flooring
The homeowner had new flooring installed and it is luxury vinyl. The key to a good luxury vinyl is that it should look real. This luxury vinyl is called Sahara Sand and it looks real. The color of Sahara Sand is a warm tan with a hint of grey.

  •  A Rug
The rug is a 5×8 wool rug that is a deep blue. We decided that since the bed was king-size, we would place a 5×8 rug at the base of the bed for softness and a pop of color. This allows the guests to enter the space on a luxurious soft rug.

  •  Headboard
This bed is an adjustable bed and since it is a king, we did not want rails and a footboard. The homeowners had a beautiful iron headboard that was fit for a king-size bed, and we decided that would work for the space. Since the bed does not have rails and it is adjustable, we decided to attach the headboard to the wall. The handy man used two C clamps to wrap around the posts and attached the C Clamps to the wall which holds the headboard firm and steady. Now when the mattress moves the headboard will stay put and making the bed will be easier. Cleaning under the bed will be a breeze…. for the rumba.

  •  Speaking of the Adjustable bed
Adjustable beds are great but without rails you can see under the bed. It is not very attractive, and it can be a problem that is difficult to solve. A regular bed skirt will move beneath the mattress when the bed is adjusted. We solved this one by using a bedspread. This king bed was set up a bit high and it looks great but the drop from the edge of the mattress to the floor was quite large. The challenge was to find a bedspread that would work without having one custom made. We found a bedspread online that fits the bed almost perfectly. This bedspread is washed linen, and the skirt of the bedspread starts at the edge of the top mattress and drops to the floor almost perfectly. The gathering adds luxurious softness to the space and thoroughly hides all the mechanics under the bed. Even if you had to purchase this bedspread and have it hemmed it is still must less expensive than having a custom bedspread made.

  •  Decorative bedding
We placed the gathered bedspread on the bed, and that created a neutral base of bedding that would need some added color. The homeowner wanted this bed to be extra luxurious and inviting. We accomplished this by placing four Euro pillows along the back headboard. The print on the Euro pillows is a lattice work of white and bright teal. The large king shams have the same print as the bed scarf at the base of the bed. Finally, we chose one decorative pillow with a turtle in the print to pull it altogether. The bedding can be stored in a large seagrass basket on the wall below the TV. If you have lots of bedding be sure to provide your guests with a place to store the bedding at night.

  •  Large lamps
We placed two substantial lamps in the space so that the guest would have plenty of light at night. The lamps coordinate with the bedding and art above the bed fabulously. A little convenience for your guests would be to put your lamps on remote controls. It is so nice at the end of the day to just push a button and the lamps turn off.

  •  Nightstand with charging
One of the largest underestimated conveniences for guests is to provide them with plenty of places to charge their electronics. Often, it is not unusual to charge your I-Pad, phone, and apple watch each day. Two guests with three items each would need six charging places. This can be accomplished by buying side tables that come with a charging strip or you could add one to the nightstands for your guests.

  •  Mirrors behind nightstands
We hung a mirror above each nightstand so that the lamp light would be reflected back into the space. The mirrors also help finish the large wall by blending with the black metal of the headboard and the black frame of the artwork. Mirrors above nightstands add so much to a space because there is always something reflected in them. I like that you can see the pelican, “Here’s Looking at You” reflecting back into the space.

  •  Large art above the bed
The picture above the bed pulls you into the space because it is a beach that anyone would want to visit.
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Before and After Pics Below