French Cozy Cottage bedroom makeover – week 2

Welcome to Week 2 of the One Room Challenge where I am sharing my rental friendly French Cozy Cottage Bedroom Makeover.

My goal was to add renter friendly charm and color to my boring beige bedroom to create a dreamy bedroom sanctuary.

Things are really starting to come together with my first project.

This pair of antique windows found me, by way of a favorite customer at my shop Loverly Cottage.

They were replacing windows at their home, so I ended up buying almost all of their old ones.

These were side lights, the windows that flank a front door.

Which means they are tall.

Well as tall as a front door!

I love that they have the original perfectly imperfect glass on the top half.

and solid wood panels on the bottom half of the window

These antique sidelight window will be perfect for the focal point on the wall opposite my bed.

First things first, I need to clean off any loose paint from the window.

I used my 5 in 1 tool to scrape, and scrape

and scrape some more…

These windows were old, but I loved the character of them.

There were a few places where the wood was rotten

so I filled in any major gaps with wood putty.

It only took a few hours for the wood putty to dry, then I sanded it smooth.

The paint color was a bit dingy after all the years of wear.

My goal was to brighten my room, so it was time to break out the paint!

I chose a soft white paint that I had left over from another project.

Action shot!

I must have been painting really fast during this picture

Can you see how much brighter the window looks with a fresh coat of paint?

I mean, look at the before and after.

Isn’t it amazing what a little left over paint can do?

Now, let’s bring back a bit of cottagey character by sanding with a bit of fine grit sandpaper.

The chippy paint that remained created some loverly dips, that will be highlighted when lightly sanded.

and VOILA, we added back some cottagey character!

Oh, but we aren’t done adding character, because I have been saving these sconces just for a project like this.

I painted them in a soft green and sanded them lightly.

These sconces will perfectly hold a pillar candle

or a jar candle

Oh, I can’t wait to light some lavender scented candles in my bedroom!

I secured them to the window with a screw, and washer, centered on the second cross bar

Or is that a cross brace, or cross wood?

I don’t even know what to call it!

How about “just above the second window pane”

Now that the sconce is secured to the window, they are ready to be installed.

Since I live in a rental house, I want to make sure that I don’t damage the walls.

Let me introduce you to my little friend, the 3M Command brand strips.

I used the velcro to securely attach the windows to the wall.

I added one pair to either side of the top of the window.

then added a pair midway down

I found the right placement against the wall and then slid my sideboard up against it for additional security.

Thankfully the windows aren’t heavy.

Does the sideboard look familiar?
It was one of the projects I worked on last year.

Remember what it looked like?

a diamond in the rough

If you want to see the process it took to unpaint it – you can check it out here.

I used it in my living room

As I started working on my mood board for my French Cozy Cottage bedroom, I searched thrift store and shopped on line, but just couldn’t find anything.

Probably because I already had the perfect piece.

One of the best decorating tips that I can share is to shop your house.

You will be amazed at what you can find!

I bet you thought we were done adding character?

Nope!

Check out this incredible vintage frame that I found.

I mean just look at that gold and green patina.

You’ll never guess where I found this beauty.

I found it on the side of the road!

It was attached to a medicine cabinet.

I know, I should have taken a picture.

But I was too excited with my find.

I added picture hangers to the back.

and then measured for proper placement

then added a screw to each sidelight window

see how the screw sticks out about 1/2 an inch?

I was able to hang the beautiful frame by attaching it to the secured windows!

No walls were harmed during this wall installation

I am sure my landlord is appreciative

Isn’t it a loverly?

A bit of cottage charm from the vintage oval frame and the lightly distressed windows.

She wants to be a famous influencer when she grows up.

Now you may be thinking that there isn’t much color.

Hey, it’s only Week 2 of the One Room Challenge!

I still have a LOT of work to do to create my French Cozy Cottage bedroom.

There are 6 weeks left to add some pops of color and more charm.

Just wait until you see my project for next week.

Until then, I will leave you with Miss Melody enjoying the lavender scented candles.

I would be so grateful if you would Pin this for later.

And share my renter friendly ideas for a French Cozy Cottage Bedroom with your friends.

Follow the journey from start to finish