Moving into a smaller apartment with less closet space, Marlon and I agreed that under-bed storage was a must. We looked at a couple of (mostly expensive) options until we settled on the affordable Ikea Brimnes bed, which has clean lines and huge drawers underneath.
Because our bedroom has limited space, we also bought the Brimnes headboard, which features a ledge and hidden shelving that we could use in place of bedside tables. 
Confession: I wasn’t totally onboard with this purchase. I agreed the storage was practical, but I had an irrational, possibly hormonally-fueled distaste for those two rectangles on the headboard and footboard. “Can we please do something to cover them up?” I grumbled as we paid for our purchases at Ikea. “Okay,” Marlon said. Smart man—never disagree with a pregnant woman.
With Little Mango on the way, neither Marlon and I were in the mood for elaborate DIYs. Our solution? Wallpaper!
Check out our quick fix and finishing touches, after the jump!
I’d been in love with the gorgeous wallpapers from NLXL for a while; after obsessing over wallpaper samples for about a week, we agreed on a scrapwood wallpaper by Dutch designer Piet Hein Eek. We chose wide planks with a white and gray wash to help keep our mostly white bedroom clean and relaxing.
Inspired by recycled wood, this wallpaper is gorgeous, thick, excellent quality and easy to install. It took us less than an hour to cover both headboard and footboards. I also found it to be smartly designed as the repeats of the pattern are easy to hide; you don’t see the same planks of wood again and again. I am totally in love with the results!
To soften the look, I propped up the his-and-hers silhouettes of my parents that I made, plus a pair of Indian miniature paintings from Udaipur, the first stop on our honeymoon. I know this will all be replaced by baby crap soon, but it’s nice to enjoy this display for a little while.
The finishing touch: lighting. We swapped our chrome bedside lamps for a pair of industrial-inspired wire cage lamps from Danish design brand HAY, which I found on Zalando. I love the slight copper sheen of the brass wire—just enough to hop on the current copper trend, but not too much that we’ll be left with a dated-looking lamp when this copper craze has passed.
These clamp lamps look as good at night as they do in the daytime. Marlon installed a dimmer on the power outlet so we can go brighter (for reading) or softer (for atmosphere).
I was delighted to find vintage-inspired light bulbs at our neighborhood hardware store.
Check out the fancy filaments! So in love with these lamps. They have just the right amount of romance to soften the industrial look.
With the bedroom done, our new home is complete! I’ve been going out of my mind with restlessness the last few days, but now I’m actually grateful for the post-due date delay. It’s given us that little extra time to make this house truly our own. It’s been fun, and I love the results!
