Slow Decorating in the Guest Room

When Kati got married in May 2019, her room became our guest room. I called it my "consolation prize," this new room to decorate. I had purchased a pineapple post bed on Facebook Marketplace that spring, and eight days after the wedding, Bekah and I set up the bed and jumped into redecorating the room.

The bed and coverlet were new. We shopped the house for everything else.

May 26, 2019

We have been slow decorating that room ever since . . one little bit at a time, buying a few pieces, tweaking here and there. 

We found this chest of drawers at a local antique store. 

Bekah spotted this little table at another antique store, a bargain at $36.00!

The little stool was buried under stuff in another antique store. It was the perfect little landing area for a purse or a bag as you enter the room. 

Last summer, I found the the lovely matelassé coverlet and shams, also a fabulous bargain at $18.00! 

 Ron made shutters for the windows in the spring of 2021.

And then there was the succession of chairs . . . 

I bought this one on Facebook Marketplace. It had a tan slipcover which was not the right color for the room. The original fabric was a little luster that didn't fit. I could have had it reupholstered, but the chair was actually too big for the space so we moved it to the library where it became Ron's office chair while he worked from home. (When he went back to the office, I resold the chair on Marketplace for the same price I had paid.) 

This chair was another Marketplace find. Even though the fabric was faded, I liked the style and size of this chair and intended to have it reupholstered. But, it has since moved to the library . . . 

. . . because about a month later, we drove by an antique store and saw this chair in the window display. 

Close-up view shows true color

I loved the style and I was pretty sure it was a Johnston Benchworks chair (high quality furniture maker which is no longer in business), so we went inside to check it out. It was Johnston Benchworks and it was $99!

Sold! 

The fabric on the arms was dingy, but the red check didn't fit my vibe for the room anyway. 

If you have a quality piece of furniture, reupholstering it makes sense, and it is usually economical. Our living room sofa is also a Johnston Benchworks piece that we purchased from a friend. When the fabric became worn, we had it reupholstered because we couldn't buy a new sofa (especially one of comparable quality) for the price that we paid. 

We planned to reupholster the guest room chair over a year ago, but there were a few obstacles. Last spring, however, I was able to order some discounted fabric through a friend from a company that was discontinuing their furniture line. So instead of ordering fabric only for my guest room chair, I also ordered fabric for the loveseat in the library (the same loveseat that was in The Farmhouse kitchen) and the wing chair that is now in the library, and we'll have those two pieces done later this year.

Are you tracking with me? Following all of those chairs around the house? 🤦🏻‍♀️😂

Back to the guest room . . .  

This is what it looks like today. 

My sister gave me the rug. I'm not sure if it will stay here because the cream colored background is bothering me a little. We'll see. 

And now this corner of the room fits with the rest, with its newly upholstered chair and the shelf that my sister also gave me.

On the list of house projects for 2023 are fishtail swags for the guest room windows, but I haven't even chosen the fabric yet. I'm also on the hunt for a small table to sit beside the chair to hold a guest's book or drink or phone. Other than that, I feel that the guest room is done! (As much as a room is ever "done.") 

We are eagerly anticipating having some special guests in this room soon!  

Sometimes it sounds like fun to decorate a space all at once, but I really think that slow decorating is better . . . collecting things over time, looking for just the right pieces, tweaking as you go. What do you think? How do you decorate?