Room of the Day: A Sanctuary for Mom

“What’s so great about this project is that the homeowner wanted to do something for herself; so often women and mothers don’t ever get around to that, and it’s important,” says interior designer Kelly McGuill. After a big life change — her eldest daughter’s leaving for college — her client was ready to make some changes around the house. A little like putting the airplane oxygen mask on herself first, she started with her own bedroom, which felt too large, kind of empty and not pulled together. With McGuill’s help, she now has a calming retreat where she can put her feet up, read, unwind and start plans for redecorating other rooms in the house.

Room of the Day
What happens here: This is a retreat for a mother of 2 teenage daughters.
Location: Wrentham, Massachusetts
Size: About 400 square feet (37 square meters)

“My client wanted a clean feel in here but nothing too contemporary or stark,” McGuill says. The jute rug — made in nearby Fall River, Massachusetts — helped create a cozier space in the big room. “This rug has such great texture; it’s durable jute but it’s quite soft,” McGuill says. It pulls the room together and provides a chunky contrast to the fine Belgian linens she chose for the upholstery and bedding.


The brass chandelier with glass beads was one of the few existing elements in the room the homeowner wanted to keep. “It was meaningful to her, it added a little whimsy, and she loves blues; we picked up on the blues from the blue glass,” McGuill says. Another meaningful piece is the needlepoint artwork between the mirror and the window, which the owner had made for her grandmother many years ago, and which was bequeathed back to her when her grandmother passed away.

Wall paint: Elmira White, Benjamin Moore; rug: Bora Bora Sunrise, Merida; window treatment fabric: Ralph Lauren; bed, bedding: Restoration Hardware





While this is the homeowner’s spot for relaxing and reading, she can pull over the comfortable desk chair and use the ottoman around the table when her daughters visit.

The homeowner found the botanical artworks at Ballard Designs and fell in love with them. McGuill organized them in a neat grid that helps define the cozy seating area.

Buchoz Botanical Art: Ballard Designs; floor lamp, armchair: Restoration Hardware; chair fabric: Perennials


More gold and brass on the mirrors picks up on the chandelier’s metallic finish. McGuill had the bureau custom painted in a soft taupe. She wanted to avoid having the bureau, nightstands and desk match one another.

Bureau: Redford House


The homeowner and her two daughters are artists, and she wanted to incorporate personal pieces in her space. McGuill added picture rails and had family photographs and artwork from the three of them framed in a mix of black, white, gold and silver frames, with mats in shades of white. “When you layer them like this, they don’t have to be matchy-matchy,” she says. “Also, when it’s meaningful and personal, it all just sort of goes together naturally.”

The designer chose an unfinished desk. Its raw texture works well with the jute rug and other textures in the room.

Desk, lamp: Restoration Hardware





Items that McGuill did match things up are the nightstands and lamps flanking the bed, creating symmetry. She chose alabaster for the lamps over more brass.

“The room just makes my client feel good,” McGuill says. “It doesn’t have too much, and it’s not sparse either; there’s just enough going on in here.”

Desmond Table Lamps: Alexa Hampton for Visual Comfort; nightstands: Bungalow Classic

More:
Key Measurements to Help You Design Your Dream Bedroom
Browse more Rooms of the Day

URL: Room of the Day: A Sanctuary for Mom http://www.decor-ideas.org/cases-view-id-25764.html