I am super excited to share our modern and cozy bedroom in our Los Angeles home.
To give you a little back story, my husband and I have owned our 1930s LA home since 2012. Since then we’ve updated nearly every inch of our house while also striving to maintain some of its original character. Projects have included new kitchen cabinets, hardwood floor, bathrooms, and even a beautiful, faux concrete fireplace that my dad built from scratch.
Over the past couple of years, I’ve felt my personal taste evolve from the “all white everything” aesthetic I wanted at age 26. As such, we have been slowly upgrading and investing in nicer furniture from the pieces we purchased in 2012 when we first got married.
One of the last rooms to get a refresh was our bedroom. It took nearly a year to come together, but I am so in love with it and how it turned out.
LA Home: Our Modern & Cozy Bedroom
Below you’ll see side by side comparisons of our bedroom. Although I did and still do love a neutral bedroom, the pillows and wallpaper felt outdated and none of the ivory shades ever fully matched in real life.
My goal when designing our bedroom room was this: to be a little adventurous with bolder wallpaper and a splash of warm colors and prints while maintaining clean, crisp neutrals found in other parts of our LA home. I love the combination of clean design with mid-century modern, and wanted the room to capture that while feeling more elevated than the existing decor.
Finally, I wanted our updated bedroom to feel less girly and more of a masculine and feminine mix.
I was really on a mission to have this space feel like an elevated haven with cozy but bold modern details, so I enlisted the help of my friend and interior design Robyn Melrose of Maison Melrose Interiors for final design advice and her professional opinions.
Inspiration & Design
The initial design inspiration for our bedroom came from two different things: wallpaper and the fabric of the large pillows on the bed.
I had been searching for probably six months for the perfect wallpaper by the time I spotted this black and white pattern from Erica Tanov from an Instagram ad. So I ordered a swatch and knew instantly it was the wallpaper I wanted for our bedroom because it was somehow simultaneously bold yet minimal.
I also knew I wanted to incorporate fabric from Designer’s Guild, a massive textiles store I happily stumbled upon and fell in love with during a trip to London in 2019. At the time, I bought a pre-made pillow as a souvenir and told myself I wanted to come back some day to buy fabric for a future project. I had no clue what fabric I wanted, or what I was going to actually do with it.
Coincidentally as I started this bedroom refresh, I already had planned and booked a trip to London. I realized it was the perfect opportunity to make this little dream of buying Designer’s Guild fabrics a reality.
I knew I loved my graphic Jacobsen wallpaper swatch, and I knew I wanted fabric from Designer’s Guild. After several texts via multiple time zones with Robyn, we finally settled on a stunning velvet fabric with varying shades of olive, pink, and black.
I’ve also been gravitating toward rich rust for some time now, so Robyn helped devise a plan to weave it into accent pieces via the rug beneath the bed, a coordinating bedside carafe, and a stylish leather charging station for Matt’s nightstand.
The Color Palette
There were a few pieces that were non-negotiable when updating our room: I needed to keep the Room & Board Kenwood Nightstands we recently purchased, along with the CB2 Rialto Bench at the end of our bed and our dark mahogany dresser.
Although I wanted to incorporate color into the room, I didn’t want it to feel dark or heavy, as we get beautiful sunlight in this room.
We kept the ceiling the existing paint color, and by recommendation of Robyn, painted the walls to closely match the background of the wallpaper. Although a small change, it provides a subtle thoughtfulness that feels more intentional between the two.
The ceiling color is String of Pearls by PPG and the wall paint color is Glamour White by Dunn-Edwards.
Our Bedroom Furniture
I wanted the bed frame to feel like a statement without competing with the fun pattern of the wallpaper.
The tall headboard of the Studio McGee Northcott Bed fills the wall better than our previous frame, and the round corners mimic those of the CB2 Rialto Storage Bench at the end of out bed and the gold West Elm wall mirror above our dresser. The result is a subtly cohesive design element that also plays off the rounded ceiling corner details in our 1930s home.
Our Room & Board Kenwood Nightstands provide symmetry to the sleeping area, and help to brighten the room opposite our mahogany dresser and chest of drawers.
Our Bedding
I am a big believer in investing in a quality mattress and bedding. After all, your bed is something you use every day and so when talking about cost per use, buying a great mattress and luxury bedding is absolutely worth it.
We purchased a Casper mattress several years ago and we’ve been very happy with it.
I wanted our new bedding to look and feel like I was sleeping on a cloud, with crisp white linens reminiscent of a luxury hotel. We already owned and loved Boll and Branch sheets (and I swear they have made both of us sleep better), so invested in a second set. After tons of research on the best comforters, the Boll and Branch Midweight Down Duvet Insert was the winner. The Boll and Branch Signature Duvet Cover completes the look.
To break up all of the white, a Casaluna knit blanket stays are the bottom of our bed for some contrast and added texture.
And of course, I had to keep my fluffy Mongolian Lamb Pillow. I love the airy texture and coziness these pillows add to a room; we have a few in our home.
Primary Bedroom Details
Other than the wallpaper, my favorite thing about our bedroom is the large velvet pillows on our bed. These are such special pieces to me since the fabric was picked in London, shipped to the US, then made in LA with a local seamstress. Every time I look at these pillows I’m reminded of that London trip; they’re wonderful souvenirs and memories.
To bring out the rosy tones of the pillows, I added pink Mitzi Bethany Table Lamps on both nightstands. I love mixing metals and the gold of the lamps complements the West Elm Streamline Rounded Edge Wall Mirror.
I added in an extra layer of color through rust accents with the striped area rug, Maison Balzac J’ai Soif Carafe Set, and a Courant Catch 3 phone charging tray in saddle.
One small yet very impactful thing we did was swap out the light switches in the entire house to these industrial switches and dimmers. The quality of these metal switches is exceptional. They elevate our space and make the mundane task of turning the lights on and off more enjoyable. I feel like I’m at a fancy hotel with these!
Shop Our LA Bedroom
I wanted to take my time decorating our bedroom. It’s a space for retreat every single night, and I wanted it to feel warm and cozy while also feeling elevated and modern.
For the most part, our LA home has been very neutral with shades of with, gray, and brown, but it’s been fun injecting a bit of color into this room.
In the past I have always wanted to rush finishing rooms, but with time I’m finding great satisfaction in obsessing over every little detail like paint tones and light switches.
I love walking into this space every single night. It’s the perfect blend of feminine and masculine and it’s a room I’m really proud to share.
