Sunroom Makeover

The sunroom in my mom's "new" house was the room we'd planned on painting first. Ironically, it's the room we ended up doing last. After move in day, we realized just how much work actually needed done and it was a bit overwhelming. We decided to start with her bedroom so that at least she'd have a real place to sleep. 

We then moved in the most logical order we could think of, with the living room, guest bedroom, and office. Thankfully, the kitchen was freshly painted and the bathrooms just needed the walls washed for now. 

Then there was the sunroom. Without this room, my mom wouldn't have bought the house. It adds a lot of square footage to the house, as well as a place for a dining room table (there is no other place for one in the home), and beyond that peach door is her large, walk-in pantry. 

 Needless to say, this room (much like the rest of the house) needed a lot of help. I finally remembered to take a "before" photo, which I wish I'd have remembered to do for the rest of the house. In the photos above and below, you'll see that this room was half peach/half dark wood paneling.

 I'll be honest, by the time we got to this room we were so over painting. 

Like, done painting. 

We did the next logical thing: hire a painter. 

The large white wall had to be completely re textured because of the poor original drywall job.

 I love a good comparison photo...

 We picked a snowy white for the walls because I just knew this room should be light, bright, and airy. The metal ceiling got a pale blue for contrast. It is not terribly noticeable, which is what we were going for. We were aiming for a breezy, beachy sunroom without having to actually buy a bunch of decor that says "beach" and making it obvious. 

 The daybed is perfect for this space! It's the Indonesian daybed from World Market and it's fabulous. My mom already had the large Euro pillows, and we bought the covers for them at Ikea. The quilt covering the mattress is also from World Market. 

 Since this room is also her dining room and an extension of her kitchen, the microwave had to go in here. We searched high and low and everywhere in between for something to put it on. I'm happy with what we finally found. It looks clean and sleek in this little corner by the pantry door. The light fixture was hideous, so we chose a new one at Lowe's and it's PERFECT! 

Michael's had these crates on clearance, and it was the perfect touch.

 You can see the light fixture that was over the table in the before picture. The lights in this room were both plug in lights, so we had yet another challenge to meet. This distressed gray light from World Market was perfect, AND on sale. We are using some of her existing furniture that she brought with her. The pie safe and table came from her old home. Behind that door is her huge walk in pantry.

 I bought these wicker chairs on a Facebook buying/selling group and spray painted them gray. We found the ivory cushions on clearance at World Market, and the pillows on clearance at Lowe's. The ottoman I snagged at an estate sale, and the side table is actually a stool from Ikea. 

 I bought my mom this large, gray distressed wood tray from decorsteals.com and it's perfect above the daybed. That blue bead board table was from an antique store.

 The ocean photo is actually a picture my mom and dad took together in Morro Bay on one of their trips to visit me, so she wanted to be sure to use it. It's perfect in this room.

 This GREAT cart came from Ikea! One thing I knew we'd need to be heavy on in this room is greenery. I could picture this room from the very first time we looked at the house with the real estate agent. The bottom level of the cart holds my mom's shell collection.

 We bought this wood plaque at a thrift store and I painted it blue, and then sanded it a bit to distress it. It is mounted above the window air conditioner to bring a little color to that white corner. This room was an add on, so it isn't a part of the central AC with the rest of the house.

 The other light is also from World Market, and it is also a plug in light. In this spot, the old owners had a terribly ugly track lighting. Trust me, it was bad. We'd already removed it prior to taking the "before" photos.

I seriously want to go to my mom's every morning to drink my coffee. She told me that she tried to take a nap in here today, but couldn't because she didn't want to close her eyes. It was too pretty. Mission accomplished. 

Also, dear World Market, you're welcome.