UPDATES IN THE GIRLS ROOM

Last time I thought about the girls room it was looking like this:

And we've made a little progress - yay! We painted the floor and the door, and added a bamboo blind and light shade.

The lamp shade is one we had in the old house (it's this one from Ikea with a simple diy diffuser made from an embroidery hoop) and the blind is one we bought before we moved in (it's not available anymore but it's a white bamboo venetian blind). It took us so long to put it up because our old plaster would blow and make big messy holes every time we tried to drill it with a standard drill bit. But then I discoved arrow head drill bit's...and oh my gosh! - they make beautiful neat little holes every single time. Like for real, I never knew drill bits could bring so much joy to a persons life! We got a set of three from screwfix for £6.49. They are designed for drilling tile and glass and I don't think they're supposed to last forever but they were definitely a good investment for our 80 year old plaster even if we have to replace them. 

We're planning to add some curtains, and maybe some trim like this, and the lamp shade is just a place holder until we find something that we and the girls really love. 

The room is feeling much so much fresher and cleaner but really it's just at the blank canvas stage. This room was feeling like a challenge for me because I want the girls to decide how their room should look but I also want it to feel cohesive with the rest of the house. When we first started to plan their room it was going to be full of bright pinks and bright whites to go with the pale blue wall colour that they chose - but after our vision for the rest of the house got so layered and neutral I got worried that their room might end up looking a little disjointed. 

My first mood board for their room looked like this:

The blue walls are staying and we still want to work in some pink with pillows, art and maybe quilts but we're planning to mellow it out with some neutral, wooden and metal elements

beige cushion - pink cushion - wooden elephant - quilt -blue paint

white paint - pouffe - basket - sheepskin 

I was having a hard time trying to imagine how the neutrals would work with blue walls until I emptied the room to paint the floor - it was really great to see the room as a blank canvas again. And then I saw this image and suddenly it all clicked and I felt like I could move forward with everything...thank you pinterest - you saved me again! I really think the girls will love their room just as much but hopefully it will feel much more connected to the rest of the house.

Has anyone else had a hard time making a room incorporate kids personalities and the vibe of the rest of the house? It's hard right?! Or am I just a control freak? Don't answer that - I'm scared of the answer! And anyone else trying to preserve old plaster? We've got a whole house of it so I'd love to hear some tips...but trust me, arrow head drill bits, so good!