My Breezy Room

Modern Toddler Boy Room

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We’ve been talking a lot lately about when we should transition Graham from his crib to a bed. His second birthday is next week! I’m not sure I’ll do it quite yet because he hasn’t even thought about climbing out of his crib. But I’ve been enjoying working on his modern toddler boy room for when he’s ready! This post is sponsored by Dorel Home Products, but all opinions and ideas are my own. #Mainstays #BelieveInSleep

Most of what we’re working with here is what I already had on hand. There’s definitely a little more work to do. I ordered a HUGE poster for above his bed but it’s running behind so that’s an update for another day. The biggest addition to the room is definitely the bed itself.

I decided not to transition the crib to a toddler bed, because I assume we’ll need it again some day and I never bought the toddler bed kit. When he does move over to this bed, we’ll definitely be adding some sort of guard rail for safety.

The mattress is a Mainstays mattress from Walmart and it actually comes compressed in a small box that can be delivered to your door for convenience. It’s affordable (which is what everyone wants in a kid’s bed) but also made to reduce tossing and turning. Hopefully it will result in a lot of great nights of sleep for Graham – and me!

Graham “helped” me build the bed frame right before we decompressed the mattress. He was completely obsessed with hanging out in between the slats. Kids are weird.

You can see in the above picture how small the box is. And while it’s not the lightest thing I’ve loaded into my house (there is a twin size mattress in there after all), I was easily able to manage it up two flights of stairs to get it in this room by myself.

It’s definitely far more convenient than the time my sister and I tried to unload a full (not compressed) king size mattress and get it up a flight of stairs by ourselves. We were unsuccessful and the mattress hung out in a stairwell for a few hours until we could get help… So yeah, I’m pretty happy with the way they get mattresses into a box these days, ha!

The picture below was taken within minutes of it decompressing. We left it like that for 48 hours so it had time to fully expand. I’ve laid on it a few times and I think it will be great for Graham to use when he’s ready. It should also be perfect for him to stay in as he grows. I see us getting a lot of life out of this Mainstays mattress!

Decorating a Modern Toddler Boy Room

Then came the fun part, decorating! I want to keep his room simple and fairly neutral. I painted the walls a super light grayish white color earlier in the week and a picked up some sheets, a bedspread and a fun lamp that I think are perfect for a toddler or an older boy.

The toy box that’s also acting as his nightstand has been in his closet since he was itty bitty. I used to keep all of his book on a shelf in the corner (that still needs to be reconfigured), but it just became a game for him to rip them all off. So we’ll see how this way of organizing them works. I still have plans to get rid of the rocking chair and turn that corner into a reading nook with maybe a couple bean bags to hang out in.

I’d also love to add some shelving and some plants on the opposite wall above his dresser. His room doesn’t get much light, so fake plants would probably be best. And a toddler lives in this room, so definitely fake plants!

If you’re in the market for a mattress, I definitely recommend looking into the Mainstays mattress at Walmart and taking advantage of the ship to your door service!

Geometric Planter DIY

in Recent Projects on

Geometric Planter DIY | My Breezy Room

I haven’t been attempting many crafty DIY projects lately, but this is one I’m glad I took on earlier this spring. My mom gifted me a tomato plant last summer when we moved in, and it came in this green container. The tomato plant didn’t fair so well, so this year I decided to use it for succulents. I tend to have a bit better luck with them, and even kept last summers succulents alive indoors all winter.

It was pretty basic before, but rather than buy something new I knew this one could be cute with a little spray paint.

I just love how it turned out! It fits in nicely with the other textures and patterns on my back deck. And those plants are all much bigger now, I love watching them grow! When it starts getting cooler out I’ll probably replant them each in their own pot and keep them inside for the winter. Wish me luck!

For detailed instructions, head to The Weathered Fox and read my entire post about creating a DIY Geometric Planter design.

P.S. Here’s my advice for keeping succulents alive inside. And an even broader houseplant guide for beginners!

Adding Pineapples to Your Home Decor

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Adding Pineapples to Your Home Decor | My Breezy Room

As a neutral lover, I’m also a big fan of adding quirky pieces to your home. They add so much personality to your spaces. It’s a great way to insert your personality into current trends. I wrote a post for The Weathered Fox with over 30 ideas for adding pineapples to your home decor. I cover wall decor, pillows, planters (of course), doormats, bedding, kitchenware, and a few miscellaneous items that didn’t fit in a specific category! So if you ever come visit my home, don’t be surprised at all when it’s covered in pineapples. Because I found some pretty awesome stuff we all need! And bonus – most of the stuff I linked is from Etsy – so small business owners!

Read the whole post here.

Modern Rugs that Fit Any Style

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I am in love with modern rugs right now. There are so many awesome rugs out there, and even more not-so-awesome rugs. That makes rug shopping a little less than enjoyable at times. Add in the fact that the good ones are typically WAY out of my price range, and rug shopping can be downright frustrating. I’ve been looking for reasonably priced modern rugs that fit any style for quite a while, and these are what I’ve come up with.

These are affiliate links to link up all my favorite rugs, and prices are for the 8×10 size. Obviously I’m super drawn to neutral rugs and even the few that have color in this list can be neutrals, which is win to me!

As you look through these, I want you to think about what my designer friend Abby told me. Your rug is a statement piece, but then you should decorate around it like it’s not there. Of course you don’t want to pick a rug that completely clashes with your other decor, but most of the rugs I picked can truly be paired with any style despite their more modern patterns. Click the images to be taken to the product pages of the ones you love!

Modern Rugs that Fit Any Style Under $300

Rugs under $300 aren’t usually known for their quality. But that being said I am actually surprised by some of these. Some of them are from stores I expected to have much higher pricing! My top 3 in this category are the connected stripe rug, the taji geo, and the izmir maze.

Modern Rugs that Fit Any Style Under $600

To me, $600 feels like a lot to pay for a rug – but not all of these are quite that high. They vary in price from $3-600. And for an 8×10 I guess it’s not that bad. I’m loving the texture and patterns these rugs have and I really love the traced diamond rug.

Modern Rug that Fit Any Style under $1100

I guess you get wait you pay for because these are my very very favorites. There is something so striking about the black and white of the commune rug, and I’m loving the pinkish color in the norrie. I am definitely going to work pink into my home decor somehow now.

I put this list together as a follow to my post about designing a living room. Jump on over if you want tips on making a master plan and how to put it all together!

Designing a Modern Living Room | My Breezy Room

Designing a Modern Living Room

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I realized it’s been a while since I’ve shared any areas of my home and how they’re coming along, so I thought you might want to see how I’ve been designing a modern living room for what I call our front room.

We live in a tri level house and this is the first room you see when you come in the front door. We do spend a lot of time here, because it’s right off the kitchen, but our main living room is actually down a flight of stairs and that’s where we watch TV and try to keep all the toys contained.

This room has been a long SLOW process. It was completely empty for about a year. We moved here from a one bedroom apartment and filling up 2 living room areas was a challenge. I was also pregnant with Graham when we moved in, so preparing spaces for the baby trumped preparing a welcoming living room.

One main thing here that made a huge difference was tearing down the old fireplace (see it here in it’s outdated Christmas glory) and building this shiplap fireplace. Guys…I LOVE THIS NEW FIREPLACE. But…whomp whomp…it’s not up to code and that’s why I haven’t officially shared it here.

We made a super rookie move and didn’t look up building codes and there needs to be a fireproof surround around the fireplace. Basically, currently the wood is too close to the opening. It’s one of those things that I feel like we are never going to have time to complete, so I’m not sure when it will be done. Check back in 10 years.

Designing a Modern Living Room

So my overall plan for this room is obviously a simple, modern design. I’m combining textures and patterns with a few statement pieces to stick with a minimal theme without being boring.

The black couch (a thrift store find) and shiplap fireplace are my main statement pieces. My goal with everything else is to add texture and make it feel fun and cozy. That would be the pillows, plants, baskets, blankets and rug. It’s funny how adding just a few of the right things helps everything come to life.

This past week I added the shelves and the rug. Before that, the mirror had been centered over the couch and it just didn’t look right. Since then I’d been wanting to play around with some shelves and envisioned them offset from each other like they are now. I run all my ideas by my sister (lucky her, huh?) and she wasn’t completely sure about that idea, but I’m glad I stuck with it.

I think it just adds a little more interest to the space.

The shelves are from Target, and I got all the small items on the shelves from Homegoods, but they need some more work. I still envision a drapey viney plant like ivy on the top shelf.

The rug is also from Homegoods, but I’m not sold on it. Actually I’ve already returned it. I didn’t love the color or the fact that some of the shapes resembled snowflakes. I’m loving this rug, which is a little surprising because of the pinkish color, but it’s just so good and I think it would compliment the other colors in the room well. The rug you see here just blended in a little too well while also clashing too much with the carpet in real life.

I’m really happy with how this side of the room is coming along. The opposite side of the room is still completely bare, but I’ve always got an eye out for the perfect set of affordable midcentury accent chairs and have plans for a bench + plants in the window.

How to design your living room

How to Design a Living Room | My Breezy Room

So the big takeaway here is that is really doesn’t take a whole lot to create a nice, pulled together space. What is does require, however, are the right things. And I know figuring out what the right things are can be a hard, but here are my tips. I used these while designing a modern living room, but these tips will work for any style!

Decide on your statement pieces.

Pick 2-3 items that you really want to stick out. For me its the fireplace and couch. Yours might be a crazy colorful rug or a bright colored chair. Or even a super fancy chandelier. Maybe you have a brilliant piece of furniture that really shines, it can be anything.

Consider furniture, lighting and tables.

Cover the functionality of the room next. Where are you going to sit? Where do you need end/coffee tables so people can gather and chat comfortably with a drink? Try to imagine yourself relaxing in that room with a book at night. Where does it make sense to add extra lighting? Do as I say and not as I do (because there is no extra lighting in this room yet) but floor and table lamps are a great way to occupy space and balance out your decor. And duh, they provide light.

Fill in with the basics.

Every living space has to have texture to pull it together. Basics are pillows, blankets, baskets, rugs and plants. These will fit in more naturally if you can find practical ways to actually use them.

Keep enough pillows on your couch to be comfortable to sit around, but maybe overload it to the point that you’d have to move them. When buying baskets, think about what you’ll actually put in them (maybe blankets and pillows that aren’t in use?). I’m always a huge fans of plants in baskets. And please please please, add some plants to your home! This is a game changer when it comes to making your home feel ‘done.’

Now you can add in decor.

This is where you add in mirrors and shelves and your small finishing touches. At this point you can decide what your room is lacking and how to make up for it. Do you need more color or something more neutral? Are things looking flat and you need to add some more texture? Is there a big area of the room that looks bare or out of scale with the rest of the room?

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