Sailing Away

Christopher Cross proclaimed in his famous song that, “Sailing took him away to where he always thought it could be….” And I think it could be Florida. Many people sail, drive, and fly to Florida this time of year to escape from the cold and dreary of the North. Our seasonal friends will be welcoming visitors during their stay and occasionally I meet someone who does not desire blue and beach theme in their house. Although I think that is lovely and I create that much of the time, I have a snow birding couple that loves sailing and all the things about sailing. As we put their villa together while they were away sailing, we leaned heavily on the request to present the home with a sailing forward attitude. Let’s peek into a guest room that invites even the most sea worn sailors to drop their anchor and enjoy some rest and relaxation somewhere in the heart of The Villages.

  •  Popcorn free
Usually, I am not bothered by a popcorn ceiling, but this ceiling was ordered with extra popcorn and with the ceilings so low the extra popcorn had to go. All the ceilings were scraped and the knock down texture was reapplied. The ceilings received a brand-new coat of Extra White 7006 and the house looks so much brighter. If your ceilings are high, the popcorn is not as bothersome but on a low ceiling it is in your face and it seems like that is all you see. Popcorn is not expensive to remove, and it is a worthy investment in the home.

  •  Leave the wall color
The wall color was a darker grey and we liked it, so we did not change it. The room and the villa were well lit with natural light, so a darker color worked well in the guest bedroom.

  •  Focal Wall
The original bedroom had no headboard. In the world of design that does not work well because the eye wants to see something large or visually impactful on the focal wall. The focal wall is usually the largest wall and that is the wall where we added a seagrass headboard and bed surround.

  •  Queen bed Seagrass
The addition of the seagrass headboard and bed surround made the room come to life. The coolness of the grey walls complemented the golden tones of the seagrass bed. One thing you see in the ocean as a sailor is seagrass. The woven seagrass added texture and warmth to the space and started our sailing journey off right.

  •  Fresh white bedding
The bed is made for ease of use, so the bedding is simple and washable. We started with white bedding as our base. White bedding is like foundation garments for a lovely outfit. We added two large white Euro pillows standing up against the warm golden seagrass bed. The thin cotton white coverlet covered the sheets and blankets so that the additional bedding would pop. We added solid green pillows against the Euro pillows and the matching green coverlet was folded and placed at the bottom of the bed for a pop of color. Finally, we finished the bed with a grey lumbar pillow. The bed looked pulled together and inviting. Again, everything on this bed is washable and inexpensive so that everything can be cleaned in between visitors.

  •  Art
The boat above the bed made the focal point complete! The brown frame with touches of gold started to reinforce the warmth and use of gold in the space. The boat nestled in between large pockets of grass looks so inviting for an afternoon sail. Or perhaps, the sailors are just beyond the boat having a picknick on the beach. Either way the picture begins to ignite the senses to a love of sailing. There is a complementary sailing picture in a traditional golden frame on the wall left of the window that begins to move the eye around the room. Finally, the picture above the table on the wall opposite the bed is a print of pelicans roosting on dock pilings by Art Lemay, which would be a common scene at a boat dock. The grey bodies of the pelicans and the golden tuft on the tip of their head are perfectly complemented by the grey wall and are such a great addition to the space.

  •  Mirror
The mirror was in the room originally, but it was hanging opposite the bed, and it did not do much for the space. We moved it to the wall that was right of the window and upon entering the room you see light and yourself. The beauty of the frame is now noticed, and the mirror looks like art as well as having a great function in the space.

  •  End stands
We kept the end stands because they were black and neutral in the space. The black worked well with the seagrass bed, and they complemented the small table opposite the bed.

  •  Lamps
The lamps are alabaster stone, and they look amazing! These were such a great find because the alabaster ties into the hull of the boat and just ties it all together in big pretty sailor’s knot!
I would not have thought of these for the bedroom, but we tried them, and they are lovely.
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Before and After Pics Below