Hannah's Jane Austen-Inspired Bedroom
I'm thrilled to finally share Hannah's Jane Austen-inspired bedroom with you, but it's a bittersweet reveal. This is the last room I'll design for her while she's still technically a kid and under my roof. Quite honestly, I'm just not ready for Hannah's childhood to be over. But time marches on, and creating the final iteration of Hannah's bedroom has been a fun way to keep my mind busy and to get to know her grown-up taste in interior design. The bonus is I love it so much that I'll keep it like this even when she moves out, which is hopefully never. I'm kidding of course...kind of.
Okay, let's get right to the reveal...
First Version
Three years ago, when the pandemic hit and shut everything down, I renovated Hannah's Timeless Teen Bedroom for the first time. I was emotional about it then too because she was entering high school, and I could sense the countdown clock on her childhood kicking into high gear.
I loved that room so much. It was light, bright, and filled with pops of color and character.
Second Version
My Hannah is nothing if not different though (in the best way possible), so it's no surprise that she started to get the itch to change a few things in her bedroom the following year. That's when I gave her a wallpapered ceiling and started adding layers like trim to the bed skirt and some darker, more textured fabrics.
It was a NYC meets English Cottage bedroom, and we both loved how quirky it was.
Third Version
Then Hannah went through a phase of wanting her space to remind her of Tennessee because for years we had talked about moving there, and we visited about three times in as many years. Needless to say, Hannah is very influenced by travel, and I want to encourage that, so I made a few tweaks. This was my all-time favorite version of her room with white shiplap.
Final Version
As time went on though, Hannah began discovering what she wanted to be surrounded by. I remember the conversations we had about how she would decorate her own home, and I would listen to her try to describe her favorite aesthetic as if she were a design client.
One weekend, while we were watching Pride and Prejudice together, it hit me that she was trying to describe an 18th Century Regency style. But I also recalled her saying she loved the Little Women house (we've seen all the versions), which was perfect because she already had vertical shiplap in her room, and I wasn't about to remove it.
So, the goal was to blend Early Americana Cottage with 18th Century Regency in order to achieve a room that reflected Hannah's grown-up taste but stayed true to our home's Cape Cod design.
I think we nailed the Jane Austen-inspired bedroom...
The Details
This dramatic glow up all started with a can of green paint. Hannah requested a gray green on her shiplapped walls, so I bought a few cans of Evergreen Fog from Sherwin Williams and got to work.
Painting the room gave it so much more depth, and Hannah said it felt cozy, like a blanket on her walls.
I also swapped out her inexpensive Amazon LED picture lights for these vintage, unlacquered brass beauties I scored on Facebook Marketplace.
They're massive in scale, so I built two floating shelves underneath each light, which not only helped the lights make sense, but it provided a solution for the awkward wall space Hannah and I had been trying to fill ever since the first iteration of her room.
Two other significant cosmetic changes I made were reupholstering her headboard that I made a few years ago, and painting her vintage nightstands Elderberry by Fusion Mineral Paint.
The nightstands were a Facebook Marketplace find, as were the marble lamps. I used my own DIY Pleated Lampshade tutorial to create new shades for the lamps, and a whole new vibe was born in here.
Her beautiful wood dresser was also a FB Marketplace find, but the antique mirror and fun, quirky lamp were both spotted at one of my favorite local antique stores, Granny's Attic. I love the tone of her dresser. It feels more like a color than a wood tone and compliments the rust-colored swallows on the ceiling wallpaper beautifully.
Bedding
We've tried quite a few bedding combinations over the years, as you can see, and this one is by far my favorite. The plaid blanket and block print quilt make my pattern-loving heart skip a beat.
Hannah loves this combination too, but sometimes prefers to have a duvet cover, so we occasionally switch up her bedding for a fresh look and a tad more warmth.
It's so fun to look back at all the different versions of Hannah's bedroom and remember what she was like during each phase.
I can't think about it too long though or I start to tear up. It has been such a joy to watch Hannah grow up and create beautiful, peaceful, creative spaces for her over the years. After all, it was her nursery that sparked my love of interior design and writing love letters to my family through our home. My heart swells knowing that she loves her room and finds peace and a soft place to land in a space I designed with the creativity God gave me.
Now I'm staring down the last few months of her senior year (she's graduating early), and I can hardly handle the passing of time. However, she is not leaving us right after high school, so I'm really happy her Jane Austen-inspired, grown-up bedroom is done and she can enjoy it during her gap year.
Well, that's it for Hannah's bedroom...all the versions, all the details, all the memories. Which one is your favorite? Don't worry, you won't offend me if you like an earlier version. I love them all so much and will remember them always.
Until the next room reveal,
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