Today I’m excited to share a tour of my ’80s-style bedroom. I’ve been talking about this post for quite some time, and I really wanted everything to be perfect before posting an official tour. Then I realized that it was more important to share the space than to wait for it to reach a level of design perfection, or to wait until my budget matched my taste! Does your interior evolve over time? Consider this an ever-evolving space, with this being one phase of the process…
This room is filled with retro items and DIY projects, as well as some strategic purchases. See the neon peach bowl next to the bed? This item is from CB2, and I originally ordered it to be the centerpiece of my living room. When it arrived, it was brighter than I thought it would be–in a good way! And when I held it up to the blue walls of the bedroom, I knew that it would set the tone for the entire space.
Before I decided to make neon a major part of the room, it looked a bit like a bank lobby in here. I created the artwork over the bed (shown above) with marble contact paper and other paper scraps. To enhance the “marble” effect, I stacked marble floor tiles on various surfaces, leaning them against the wall, or laying them flat to create platforms for other decorative items. These details are still in the space, but it’s nice to bring in some bright color too!
Remember the retro fish figurine above from this post? I gave the piece an update with some mint and neon orange acrylic craft paint. Here are some other details…
Learn more about the modern DIY hanging vase here. Let’s just say that neon paracord is my new best friend!
The neon fruit below is from the ’60s. I bought it an this year’s Texas Antique Weekend festival, and the dealer said they’d originally been in his childhood bedroom. And that they glow under a blacklight! Read more about my antique festival adventure here.
As you can see below, I’m a big believer in having tropical greenery on hand at all times. I buy a lot of my palm leaves from my local grocery store/market, which has a bucket of leftover greenery available for purchase (at very reasonable prices). I’d love to have a potted palm in here, but as you can tell from the pics, this room doesn’t get as much light as I wish it did!
My hubby and I buy a poster together every year at the Flatstock poster show, which happens during South by Southwest. This past year, it was this cat poster by artist Jason Munn. I chronicled my purchase of another Jason Munn poster in this post. The mirror in the image below is a DIY project from MyDubio. This site has some seriously amazing and easy-to-execute modern DIY projects. Be sure to check it out!
Here are a few more shots of the space…
Lots of DIY projects here, including this monochromatic teal painting and this easy-to-build round shelf, both of which I created for Decoist. As you can see, the room is a true labor of love. It’s also filled with bargain purchases, such as the bright yellow Target pillowcases that I got for under $3 apiece on clearance, as well as the white blanket that covers our bed until we replace our current duvet cover. Improvising is key.
Thanks for letting me share… I’d love to hear about your design projects! Leave me a comment below!
Dat cat print!
Thanks! I’m a big fan of the artwork of Jason Munn. Anything with a mini-blind motif!
Love this post and love the cat poster! The apartment looks great. I have an opportunity to redo a bedroom and am thinking of going 80’s. I have a couple of Carlos Sanchez posters, one featuring Deco rams and one featuring a Deco panther that were Christmas gifts back in 1989. I’ve tried to find more of them, but even with the internet, I find very few. Thanks for the inspiration!
Thank you so much for your kind words, John! Your bedroom redo sounds amazing, especially with those Carlos Sanchez pieces. Feel free to send pics when you’re done!
Your bedroom looks fabulous!!! I love the cat poster. and the black shelf unit in the corner (I have a patio table almost like that). My home is a work in progress also. I have a chrome etagere that I bought in 1984, which we finally bolted to the wall in the foyer, which will be the final placement for it. I’m also having furniture reupholstered in 80s design materials, little by little. I’m also painting a wall in my hobby room with Memphis-Milano style graphics.
Thank you for your kind words, Jan. Your home sounds AMAZING! You had me at “chrome etagere” : – ) Keep me posted on the progress, including your fabulous hobby room!
I’m very late to the party here, but I absolutely love everything about this – the pops of neon colors and ’80s inspired artwork without going overboard.
When a lot of people think of ’80s interior design, they think of only Miami Vice pastels or floral prints. But in reality, I think there were a lot of different looks and versatility during the decade. I’ve seen jewel toned furniture displayed in a room with mint green paint and pastel artwork on the walls in vintage IKEA catalogs. I’ve seen all white or black and white with pops of color.
I’ve recently started to add ’80s touches to my own bedroom. I decided I really wanted to incorporate more color and a more cohesive look. I found a great pair of pastel “paint splatter” print pillowcases on Etsy and then purchased a peach-colored comforter that matches one of the shades in the print perfectly. I have a pillow coming this week from Amazon with a squiggle like blue pattern to use as a throw pillow on the bed. Last weekend I bought a waterfall shaped nightstand at HomeGoods (for only $100!). I may paint it white but am kinda liking the natural light wood color for now.
I also purchased a chair from IKEA that was originally introduced in 1983 but brought back last year. It’s black…I may spray paint it a pastel or bright shade using Rust-Oleum paint. And I have a framed Patrick Nagel poster…still deciding where to hang that. My bedroom has sloped ceilings so that reduces the amount of useable space for artwork.
Planning on posting the final results to my own blog soon!