A Sneak Peek at Our Bedroom and CB2 Midnight Jungle Bedding

Disclaimer: I acknowledge it didn’t take long for me to land on this CB2 Midnight Jungle bedding and graphic rugs. However, at our last apartment, we decorated furiously and had it photographed for Houzz just a month and a half after moving in. That’s typically how I’ve operated in every place I’ve lived. But, I’ve accepted that now that I own a home, I need to chill out and let the process flow at a more reasonable pace. Not every light fixture has to be switched out today (okay, maybe they do…) and the exposed brick we’re dreaming of can wait a few months or even a year.

The bedroom, however, is one area that I wanted to get in order as swiftly as possible. If nothing else, a pulled together bedroom makes me feel as if my day is starting and ending on the right foot.

WHAT WE WERE WORKING WITH IN THE BEDROOM

To be totally transparent, I had NO idea where we were going with the bedroom before we moved in. I honestly thought we might be using the same bedding again, and certainly the same furniture (spoiler alert: we used mostly the same furniture).

For context, our bedroom is about 10’10” x 10’8″—definitely not a big space. However, it does have a hallway leading back to it after you’ve already entered through the bedroom door (that’s where my 2 closets are) and one wall is entirely windows (well, sliding doors) to the patio). That’s all to say, it seems bigger than it is.

When we moved in, a lot of the furniture conveyed with the unit. The owner of our building had renovated all 4 units to be used as luxury Airbnbs. That idea must not have done so hot, because he quickly turned them around to sell as condos. So, we ended up with like-new furniture that we could take or leave—or sell. In the bedroom, that included custom blackout drapery in a bold black and tan greek key motif, a mirrored nightstand, and a taupe linen upholstered headboard and bedframe. These accompany our 2 vintage dressers, which made the trip from our old place.

PRODUCT LINKS: CB2 Midnight Jungle Bedding / Black and Taupe Pillows / White Coverlet and Shams / Black Lamp Shades / 6×9 Poly and Bark Rug / 2’3″x8′ Poly and Bark Runner

 

 

DESIGNING AROUND THE DRAPERY

The element I hadn’t considered when thinking about our bedroom decor prior to moving in was that drapery. That very loud, very necessary drapery. While it perhaps isn’t exactly what I would have chosen, I didn’t mind it and felt that it was something that I could design around. I framed the greek key drapery as a challenge to do something new rather than something I just had to live with.

Ever since, well, forever, I’ve always designed with a lot of COLOR. This drapery gave me a reason to go without. I had to go neutral. I realized quickly, however, that I did not need to give up print just because these drapes are SO loud. I tried looking at plain jane solid bedding, but then I stumbled across the CB2 Midnight Jungle bedding. Its organic, toile-inspired sketches and somewhat bizarre drawings seemed like they’d be an excellent foil to the harsh lines of the greek key. Plus, we had a credit leftover from the wedding that would more than cover the bedding.

 

JUMPING OFF FROM THE CB2 MIDNIGHT JUNGLE BEDDING

Once I had the bedding in hand, it was 100% clear that it was exactly the look I was going for. Sophisticated, sleek, mature, and a bit masculine. To add a bit more interest to the Midnight Jungle bedding, I added small hatch print black and taupe pillows from CB2 (wedding credit, y’all). As a base, I snagged this super budget-friendly coverlet and shams from Overstock.

The decision I obsessed over in the bedroom was the rugs. I needed to find rugs that were available in both a runner and a 6’x9′ size to accommodate for the room itself and the hall (I could have done different, but we already have A LOT of different rugs going on in our 849 square feet). I tried a sisal, I contemplated a deep red vintage-inspired Persian rug, and I eventually ordered 2 Poly and Bark rugs from Wal-Mart of all places (if you ever find a home piece on All Modern or wherever, search for it on Wal-Mart before checking out! Oftentimes, they have lower prices and you can return it for free in store.) I tried out both this Moroccan-inspired print, as well as this more geometric, line-driven style.

Honestly, both of these rugs worked. It came down to deciding that the geometric lines of the one we chose were a bit more unique. I love a Moroccan rug, but it’s done a lot these days and I wanted something just a bit more original.

 

THE FINISHING BEDROOM TOUCHES

To the bedroom, I’ve added a wooden mirror that I found on a Target clearance rack years ago, two glass bedside lamps that also conveyed with the unit, plus black shades to draw in our look, and this gorgeous canvas wedding print. There are 6 large-scale frames in a gallery on one wall (also conveyed) that currently are home to random architectural sketches, but that we will fill with something more meaningful to us at some point.

Currently, we’re debating between a black fan and a dark bronze fan (could dark bronze be a bit softer?) and whether or not to get a chair or footstool to give Adam somewhere to throw clothes and whatever (our trunk doesn’t fit in the bedroom anymore). Stay tuned for the thrilling conclusion to both of these bedroom decor decisions.