Lolita Charm: 10 Ways to Cute-ify Your Room

Monday, January 24, 2011

10 Ways to Cute-ify Your Room

Way back in 2009, I started writing the series It's Your Castle, about lolita interior decorating and home crafting. It's been a while since it had any fresh fodder! I tend to want to craft and redecorate mainly in the winter, when I am snuggled under covers and unable to go very far (three cheers for being snowed in!). Lately I'm not working on any huge redecoration projects, but I have lots of little ones to occupy my weekends! Here are ten easy cute-ifications for your bedroom you can do in an afternoon:

1. Line your drawers. This used to be a very popular past-time, but seems to have gone off the wayside - lining your dresser drawers. They even used to sell scented paper as a substitute for sachets. Typically they were a delicate floral. You can use floral wallpaper, scrapbook paper, or even just wrapping paper. That way when you reach the bottom of the drawers, you see pretty paper instead of the plain bottoms!

Who else loved the bedroom from Pretty in Pink?!

2. Line the backs of bookcases. Along the same lines as the previous - use pretty paper to line the backs of bookshelves! I have a very simple, white put-it-together-yourself kind of bookcase, which I hadn't been fond of, but recently found it useful for housing my wig heads and dollhouse for my Byul, Violet. All you need is a little double-side tape and perhaps a trip to the scrapbook shop and you're in business!

3. Add sheer, delicate curtains to bookcases. If you'd prefer a subtler look or wish to minimize ugly storage all together, it's very easy to add simple curtains. I got this idea from looking at snaps of Maki's bedroom, where she camouflaged her hulking PC with simple dot fabric. For bookcases, all you need is a spring-loaded curtain rod that fits along the top - add a length of sheer or simply cute fabric as a long curtain. You could also do this for large computer desks, or even as closet doors.

4. Display like things together in cute vignettes. Recently I re-discovered a mirrored tray and put it on my bureau, then collected together some of my favorite pink things like a pink ring box, Hello Kitty lipgloss, Victoria's Secret mints, and a pink bottle of perfume.

5. Put up a ribbon board of bulletin board to show off your favorite things. I am one of those people that collects and saves little pieces of paper or notecards - I still have letters my friends wrote in me in high school! The ribbon board above my desk is a collection of all things cute - samples of Angelic Pretty prints, my brand tag collection, notes from sellers on cute stationary, and even a ribbon printed with Baby the Stars Shine Bright's name. Making my own ribbon board was easy! I took an old painting canvas (and, thankfully, covered up one of the embarrassing paintings I did as a sophomore in high school) and covered it with a little quilting batting and rose printed cotton, wrapping it around the canvas and stapling it to the wooden frame in back. Next I stapled ribbons on to the frame and held the network in place with big pink buttons, stitched right through the canvas. Here's a tutorial for basically the same idea.

Ribbon boards have the added bonus of keeping all your memorabilia intact - no pin holes - but for those who prefer bulletin boards, I've seen a beautiful sample lately where a vintage lace table cloth is pinned over the corkboard for a delicate, cleaner feel. You can cover the thumb tacks with vintage buttons or cute deco cabochons if you like as well.

6. Canopies! I had a canopy bed when I was little and adored it - the first set was a carousel horse with heart-shaped balloons, the second simply lilac. As a ridiculous teenager I decided they made the room 'too closed in' and thusly my canopy bed went on to greener pastures. You might find a canopy bed at a flea market, but a simpler and cheaper option is a round canopy, often called a mosquito net. You can purchase one for around $20 - $30, or make your own with a large embroidery hoop and a lot of sheer fabric like tulle. Feel free to customize by adding roses, loops of pearl or ribbon, or even sequins. You could even drape your canopy around something other than the bed - like a vanity, desk, or comfy chair.

7. Window clings. If you can find them, jelly window clings look super-sweet on mirrors and windows. I have a set of strawberries and cakes from when Mother Garden had a US location, but they're becoming more popular lately. Look around at Valentine's Day - you may find some hearts!

8. Find yourself a jewelry rack/tree. Ever since I received my jewelry rack shaped like the Eiffel Tower this Christmas, I've loved picking out my most-loved pieces and displaying them in a shiny, trailing mass. Plus, it's easier to see your favorite items, and you'll never have to untangle a necklace when running out the door again.

9. Curtain tie-backs. Let the light in and add some adorability by making curtain tie-backs. Whether you choose something simple like grosgain ribbon (make sure to sear the ends against fraying), antique ropes of pearls, or even strings of faux roses, they'll add some pizazz. I love using pink satin for decor, so I'm going to make a few ribbon tie-backs with easy-to-use snaps.

10. When all else fails... cover it with roses. Or crystals. Or black lace. Find your favorite motif, bust out the DIY, and see what you can make. A great rule to live by: if you can't learn to love it, and you can't replace it, then just cover it up! For example: forget getting an expensive cake-shaped clock shipped from Japan and cover your ordinary wall-clock with silicone whipped cream and cookies. Get creative and get cute-ified!