In last week's article I introduced you to the phases of our master bedroom in our beautiful old home.

I mentioned that window #2 looking out onto our laundry room had been an annoyance.  It took me a couple of years to find the solution and the time and funds to correct it.  I was busy with my design business and, like the cobbler with no shoes, I rarely had time to think about my own house!

I had made a wall-mounted canopy for a client's bedroom, and decided that would be the perfect solution to that one icky window in our room.  Making this change would also allow us to have larger night tables, which, as voracious readers, we both wanted, and it allowed for our bed to be in front of our fireplace instead of at an angle to it.

That's how the canopy came to be.  At first we felt a little weird about it because it seemed so, well, fancy! Fancy doesn't exactly describe Michael or me.  Earthy, maybe.  Outdoorsy, perhaps.  But.... canopy it was. Having the canopy cover that odd window allowed us to center the bed on that wall.  The fabric from the canopy was lined, and no one would ever know that window was back there.  That only left us with one small single window in our room, but it worked out fine.

Everyone who walked into the room loved it, so that made it a little easier for us to get used to.  

We were enjoying the buttery color on the walls and kept that, added new faux silk bedding and drapes, and changed out the pillow shams to a pretty floral.

We also added a custom made oak headboard to tie in with my great grandmother's Eastlake Style dresser.  I had found a carved piece, likely off a standard size bed or armoire, of the same style at Scott Antique Market.  Cornerstone Cabinets made it into a king size headboard for us. With the screen between the bed and the canopy, it made for a very lush look!

We kept that combination until 2007 -- 12 years!  The bedding was getting ragged, the color was becoming weary, and my creativity was growing to the point where I wanted to make something extraordinary for our precious place.

This time I let Michael choose the wall color (gasp!).  A soft powder blue was what he selected.  

Alright.  I admit it.  I'm too much of a control freak when it comes to color to not have at least narrowed it down for him to several shades I could live with, but I let him make the final selection.  Not only did he choose, he did the painting while I was away one weekend and, I have to say, it was so serene and beautiful when I walked in, it took my breath away.  I've never been a "blue person", but I am now converted.

It was another two years before I was able to change the bedding, drapes and canopy, and have, in fact, just completed it.  I was so inspired by Arwen's room in "Lord Of The Rings" that I searched the Internet to find photos of it and was thrilled to see painted silk used in the set design.

At this time in my life, I am in the beginning stages of an art exhibit featuring my painted silk and watercolor designs, and with that energy bubbling within me, I knew I wanted to do something really special for our room.  I also knew I wanted to combine a very leafy green and plum color with the blue on the walls, so I got busy.

I had used a beautiful gauzy fabric, yards and yards of it in a client’s room, and fell in love with its price and softness.  I combined the gauze with some silk velvet, which I dyed the green I wanted, and a mottled blue, green, and plum silk that I also painted on habotai silk.

I also painted a design on habotai to make a single pillow coverlet, eliminating multiple shams for much easier bed making.  Honeysuckle is my favorite wildflower and so I incorporated it into the design on the canopy and the pillow cover.  I also dyed solid velvet the plum color I desired and also dyed fringe to suit my needs.

Bear in mind that as a silk artist I have the supplies and facility in my studio to take on such a project.  It's not for the novice, for sure.  But I wanted to go the extra mile on this design project and make something really special.

I will let the photos tell the rest of the story.  We are very happy with the outcome and treasure every minute in our room.

Have a look at your master bedroom.  Is it what you want it to be?  I challenge you to dig into your creative mind and take some time to get a vision for what you would like to feel when you are in your bedroom.  If you have trouble getting a vision, hire a designer or artist to kick-start your process.  It's worth the money to spark your excitement about what you can achieve in creating your special environment.

Let yourself have fun with it!

Nighty night!