A LADY NEEDS A BOUDOIR
And that lady is me.
There’s a little room upstairs in our house that I use for dressing and getting dolled up in. I might even consider it my sacred woman’s space. It smells of a heady mixture of perfumes and my clothes are draped about. A large oval gilded mirror hangs on the wall, and another sits atop the desk I use as a dressing table. When I walk into this tiny room, I feel enveloped by the feminine and even a little luxury.
Sounds heavenly, doesn't it?
Lawl.
While technically all of the above is true, in reality, this room is a bizarre mess of boxes and home to a jumble of artwork that doesn't work anywhere else in the house; in essence, it's a dumping ground.
All said, I still love it. And lately, I feel very strongly that the right thing to do with this room is embrace its cave-like feel and make it warm, layered and feminine. As a re-deco is in order, I thought I would share my plans with you.
I was initially thinking a bubbly pink, a la Luke Edward Hall’s popping London studio and living room, was in order for the walls. (I think it’s safe to say LEH has the most divine colour sense of all time, so I am more than willing to take queues from the spaces in which he spends the majority of his time.) But rather than slathering the walls pink, I'd like to include pops of the cheering colour here and there.
Because the ceilings upstairs are only about 8 feet high, I’d like to hang a venetian blind in a rich printed fabric like this one from Brunschwig & Fils, of which I cannot get enough. Would also like to create a lampshade and pillow or two from any divine leftover material.
Of late I'm embracing the freshness of greens, so I would pull a lighter green tone from the fabric's leafy detailing for the wall colour. While not my usual palette, it's fitting with the thinking cave-like feel I'm hoping to *someday* achieve.
The desk does the trick as a dressing table, but I’d love to add a skirt around it to really cultivate the feeling of a totally fab boudoir. I'm thinking a natural linen with a glass top will look laid-back and luxurious.
For light, something ornamental and slightly obnoxious is the ticket, I believe. Loving the idea of having a room in which I can really gild the lily, so to speak.
The vanity wall is in dire need of some makeup as it is currently covered in holes and home to one very large origami giraffe head and nothing else (yes, true). Picture antique china, in varying shades of blue and pink, caressing the wall in shapely fashion. Hot, hot, hot.
Finally, I wish to flank the dressing table mirror with the original mood lighting: candle sconces with a dash of that Luke Edward Hall pink.
I can't say exactly when this sultry transformation will happen. Of course, I hope it will be soon and clearly, I am prepared. In the meantime, however, a slew of poshy ladies rooms for inspiration.
