A Family Steps Up to a Cheerful New Attic

A vibrant floral wallpaper in deep blue, bright turquoise and camo green beckons people up these stairs to the attic. Since moving from Holland to Portland, Oregon, interior designer Lynne Parker has been having a great time getting settled, being freshly inspired and decorating her home in a way that keeps her family cheerful on gray Pacific Northwest days. (You may remember her living room, which we toured a while back.) Once just a junky unfinished storage area, the converted attic is now a charming, hardworking room that serves as a sitting room, a guest room and Parker’s home office.

The floral staircase risers are inviting to the family and their guests. After painting the stairway, Parker cut the wallpaper so that the pattern would line up on each riser. The bold pattern entices like a fanciful flower garden.

The runs are painted bright white in a durable oil-based floor paint. Parker extended the paint to the surrounding trimwork to make a stronger impact. The oh-so-barely-blue walls pick up on the color of the flowers in the wallpaper print.

“When painting stairs, it’s important to do it right — have them sanded and primed, and get the best paint you can afford,” Parker advises. She used an oil-based product and stresses that it’s important to let the paint cure — dry and harden — for at least 48 hours before walking on the stairs. The designer says it’s been easy to keep the stairs clean by vacuuming them and wiping them with a cloth. “It really depends on the stage of life you’re in,” she says of the decision to go with white. Her children are teenagers and don’t tromp up the stairs to the attic in muddy boots or soccer cleats.

Stair and trimwork paint: Super White, Benjamin Moore; wallpaper: Brewster Home Fashions


A good friend of Parker’s created these silhouettes of the designer’s two daughters. They serve as friendly greeters to those traveling up the stairs. The bright turquoise frames pick up on the flowers below.

The wallpaper in this area brings in a small-scale pattern that’s quieted by its palette of medium to dark blue. The blues are a break from the Super White used throughout the home.


A comfy sectional sofa includes a chaise for putting feet up; a mix of throw pillows adds a burst of color. The room serves as Parker’s home office, so the grid of shelves is filled with projects, magazines, books and other inspirations. She scored the rustic coffee table at an auction in Champagne, France. A lacquered box from C. Wonder repeats the turquoise hue of the staircase flowers; she received the & Fork book as a going-away present when she left Holland.

Parker made the most of the slopes of the roofline. Though they could have presented a design challenge, here they make the room feel extra cozy, while the bright paint makes them appear higher. The five-paneled door leads to the guest bedroom.

The built-in cabinets with flip-down doors extend 35 inches deep. Since the office is in the attic, it’s good for business to have a staircase papered in a cheerful print that has the power to coax her upstairs.

Oregon Chaise Sectional: Scandinavian Designs; yellow pillows: Crate & Barrel; white leather pillows: Pottery Barn; bargello needlepoint pillow: Jonathan Adler; floor lamp: West Elm; wallpaper: Brewster Home Fashions

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The floral stairs don’t lie. The guest room is cozy and inviting, with a tufted headboard, plenty of great reading light and a mix of colorful pillows and bedding. The side tables were crafted from black leather boxes picked up at a vintage shop.

Afghan, duvet: Anthropologie; raccoon pillow: Woonwinkel; trays, lamps: West Elm

More: Impress Your Guests: 8 Tips for Gracious Guest Rooms

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