English Cottage Girls Bedroom

Revealing a soft and sweet English cottage girls bedroom layered with vintage accents, colors, patterns, and textures.

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I am so excited to finally reveal Avah’s English-inspired cottage bedroom!

If you are new to blog, I have participated in the Spring One Room Challenge over the last eight weeks. This biannual design challenge involves spending eight weeks transforming one room in your home.

Avah’s room is the first full-room makeover we have done in our new home, and I am so excited about how it turned out!

We are still waiting on a few items for the room to arrive in the mail, but it could be another couple of weeks, so I wanted to share the reveal now!

Let’s jump in and see the photos from before!

Before

Avah’s room is small, but the only space we have to double as a guest room. When we moved, we brought our DIY Murphy bed (a big hassle), and Jordan said it never leaves this house!

The big challenge was creating a built-in look for the Murphy Bed that feels natural and doesn’t detract from the room. Ultimately, it was worth the trouble and added a unique focal point.

After

My vision for this bedroom makeover was an English Cottage style that feels soft and sweet. One thing I wanted for this project was lots of color, textures, and patterns layered in—the opposite of what I usually do!

Color Scheme

The focal point of the bedroom design is a vintage-inspired Poppy Sprig wallpaper which pulls in a mix of yellow, blue, and greens on a cream background. The small print floral pattern feels sweet enough for a little girl’s room but will age well as she grows.

One of my best decisions was to hang the wallpaper from floor to ceiling. Initially, I planned to add a chair railing and use wallpaper on the top half of the wall. Although it was an expensive change, hanging full-length wallpaper made a big impact on the design.

Multiple colors in the wallpaper allowed for tons of wiggle room when choosing a paint color. After sampling at least ten paint colors, I decided to go out of my comfort zone and use a subtle golden yellow (SW Whole Wheat).

This yellow color feels sweet, calming, and very “Cotswold cottage”. Going all in by painting the Murphy bed wall, baseboards, and crown molding brought the room to life.

This was my first time using wallpaper and colored paint in my home, and I am so glad I took a risk. It makes the room feel elevated and high-design.

Murphy Bed Accent Wall

A Murphy bed accent wall is a fantastic way to maximize space in our small home. A primary goal of this project was to get the Murphy bed to seamlessly blend into the room when not in use. I think we accomplished this goal!

I created the facade of shaker panel cabinetry on the front of the Murphy bed to blend in with the inset cabinets on the bottom of the built-ins. The simple bun knobs feel cottagey and were a very affordable option.

Adding built-in shelves and cabinetry around the bed provides additional storage and display space, making the room functional and aesthetically pleasing.

This accent wall adds character to the room and highlights the sleeping area when the bed is pulled down.

Windown Treatments

I opted for a cordless Roman shade because Avah’s room is small, and I wanted to avoid damaging the wallpaper.

This small print gingham blackout shade from Two Pages is the perfect fit. I toyed with the idea of a DIY roman shade but ultimately decided to invest in better quality. With the addition of a blackout liner, it was around $150, which is about half the cost of other custom shades. The small print gingham was another opportunity to layer in a fun pattern.

Vintage Finds

I am most excited and proud of the vintage and secondhand pieces I found for this project. Mixing vintage and found items makes a room feel lived-in and comfortable.

This scrubbed English pine dresser was a lucky find at a local Vintage show. The scalloped detail on the bottom and large wooden knobs make it a perfect fit for a cottage bedroom.

Typically, English pine dressers cost $1,400-$2,000, but I found this one for just under $700! It adds a beautiful old-world European look to the room.

I have recently fallen in love with these old-school rocker swivel chairs. They are a dime a dozen and so well made and comfortable. I found this chair on Marketplace for just $50! It has recently been reupholstered, but I plan to update it at some point. For now, the pattern and color work really well with the room!

This adorable vintage milk glass sconce was a lucky find at my local spot. Adding a lampshade from Amazon was all it needed. I plan to do a fabric cover for it soon!

Finally, Avah’s vintage Jenny Lind toddler bed is a hand-me-down from her cousin. I am looking for an affordable English Pine Bed for when she grows out of this one. An English pine bed was not within the budget for this makeover, but this little bed feels so darling in the room, and she loves it!

Design Details

It’s those little details that take a room to the next level. One of my favorite additions to the room is the crystal knobs on her closet doors. It was a simple swap, but it makes all the difference!

Small ceramic hooks behind the door are perfect for hanging outfits, towels, and other items.

Scallops always feel sweet and feminine. I sprinkled these details throughout the room in the lighting, rug, and a scalloped tray on the dresser is a perfect spot to display her bows.

Conclusion

I am so happy to have this project completed on our to-do list. It turned out better than I imagined, and Avah loves her new cottage bedroom.

There were a few things I wanted to do in this room that we couldn’t fit into the budget this time around. For example, I planned to add nickel gap paneling to the ceiling, but this would have extended the project by a few weeks.

Honestly, the Murphy bed wall was enough of a project this time! Being realistic about what you can accomplish and knowing when to call a room “done” is important! I am so proud of the transformation from where we started with this room!

Comment below and tell me what you think!

Be sure to check out the other project reveals, too! You can find them at the One Room Challenge Blog.