It's no secret - Arizona is HOT. And I don't mean South Beach HOT. I mean dry desert heat hot. Some east coasters coming from the tropics may miss some of the outdoor living of days gone by. I know for sure we do - including our cat Sephora. We would spend mornings with coffee, afternoons reading or gardening, and evenings grilling and relaxing outside on our patio - which when we left Florida, was nothing like when we first moved in. It took time to live in the space, figure out what we wanted and how we wanted it, and of course, a budget to consider. Even though we're renting, those same considerations applied when I created our indoor garden room.
Painted room with about a half gallon of Clark & Kensington Paint + Primer - Ace was able to color-match from Benjamin Moore color deck color called Copper Patina (#619)
eeek! Whats up with this paint job??
Room Before - For sorting
The room was a storage place for small to medium wall art plus our kitchen bar stools (now in the garage) ... until I could figure out what works best on what wall here in our new space.
Move in day back in November.
Since the floor in this space is tile, it's an ideal space for not only plants to keep cool in, but I also brought inside our outdoor furniture. We had three metal (thrifted) outdoor chairs, and since the space is only 10x10, I only brought in two. But I didn't want to just keep the furniture black. Since the room was painted in a tropical waters aqua, I tried something different and went for gold. It works well with off white cushions. I didn't want to paint over everything in gold, and too much white isn't really who we are, so I added a gold band to two tall planters I also brought inside. Adding a small column as a riser inside the urn added height to the two majesty palms I picked up at Home Depot. Since this space is also for Sephora, having two uplights tucked into the corners give the space a nice glow at night (plus added drama from the shadows).
Our outdoor space here in AZ back in November a few days after moving in.
Although the space is nice, (SMH) no trees to give the space shade. And since we're in for some nasty wind storms, an umbrella wasn't going to cut it - So inside some of the furniture came plus some accessories relocated out front to the stoop.
Painting these metal thrifted chairs gold revived them and gave them new life.
After a fresh coat of satin black to clean up what faded,
I added a band of gold to the top of the urns.
BTW: Don't you just LOVE the prison walls? So many walls here were NOT covered with stucco, so we get to see the lovely cinder-blocks. Since we do still have some seating outside (plus Jeff's grill), I'd like to cover the walls with reed fencing rolls I spotted in Lowes.
Inside the urns are small garden columns.
I replanted the palms in containers larger than the ones they came in, but still small enough to fit inside the urn. For drainage, the containers have holes + rocks in the bottom. I use a watering can + a spritzer to spray mist the leaves. To help polish large leaves (like the figs) I use a mixture of water with what was left over in Jeff's mayo jar. Works like a charm (Thanks Becky for the tip!)
Garage move in day empty...
Garage move in day filled up... Those leaning boxes to the right are where the frames & wall art were, before unpacking and bring them inside to the room to get sorted and hung.
Over time, living in the space, sorting out space, a fresh coat of paint and a few ideas... the space was starting to take shape...
The gold mirror I had repainted with stripes and used in the living room (Read about
My Mirror Makeover). The printed panels (draped on chair in picture), I tried, but they felt too busy so I switched them for simple white window panels. Using the wood grid panels gave a garden trellis look to two walls. Using these en lieu of photos or mirrors (the closet doors are already mirrored) related more to a garden vs. just another room.
I spotting the brass open bookcase at Goodwill the other day gave the room
some height for smaller plants PLUS it blocks the prison wall view out
the window without blocking its light into the space. What I would like to layer the wall with are a few of the
West Elm glass bubble hanging terrariums.
In the meantime, I may try hanging 2 or 3 paper lanterns I have. I also would like to paint the trunk. That puppy has been around since I got it at Pier One back in 1995 and I've never painted it (go figure?)
Fashion + Decor Room Inspiration
INSPIRATION:
Black + White + Ocean Blues + Wood (relates to baskets in the room)
Graphic platters on silver tray from Goodwill ReDesign store in Scottsdale.
Dark planter basket also from the Goodwill ReDesign Store up in Scottsdale.
Smaller planter basket from local Goodwill. Small rattan table $3 from another local (church) thrift shop in Chandler.
Some printed Ikea pillow covers gave the chairs & room just enough added print, without it being too much for the space. Another layer of subtle print came from layering small woven rugs in the space. Texture comes from the baskets collected here in AZ from Goodwill. I used baskets for storage, for plant containers, for a table / riser and even for some wall decor.
The movers had broken one of our smaller TV's, but hopefully we can soon replace. I would like to bring the bedroom TV downstairs b/c it has a built in DVD player - this would be great for the yoga DVD's.
LOVE this petite blue glazed bowl I spotted for $2 at the Goodwill
on Power Road in Gilbert. I can add another succulent to it too. You can really see the texture in the bookshelf refinish in this picture...
An over-sized glass candle holder holds two memento shells from an
Anniversary trip to the west coast in Florida. The top shelf holds a
wooden fish (for Jeff) I painted white last year...
The bamboo platter gives a break between the window and the wall behind the shelves...
The above photo is actually reflection photo looking into the mirrored closet doors. They really help to expand this small space (10x10) and reflect light in the room.
And what's a garden in the desert without having some succulents in it?
More about how I made this little homage to Arizona over the weekend...
Today I smashed the top of my right hand against a chair and it's killing me (and that's NOT softly with a song! lol)
Sephora guarding my gear...
A simple $3 storage basket from Goodwill holds some workout gear...
The breakdown of the room comes to this:
4 Ikea woven rugs + 2 Pillow Covers $66
See how these small rugs are made into pillows @Pinterest!
Goodwill Goods (baskets, brass bookcase, bowls) $52.60
Using monthly 20% off coupon + shopping 50% off Saturdays helped save $$!
(BTW: Goodwill AZ will be 50% off this Saturday 5/5)
Clark + Kensington Paint + Primer $32
Plants from Lowes & HomeDepot Gift Cards $82.60
(Thank You Selma for the $50 Gift Card to Lowes I won @ your Olioboard "Let's Pick A Color" Contest!!)
Room total for transformation + reusing items I already had:
$233.20
($153.20 cash + $80 in Gift Cards)
We've all enjoyed going in the room to relax and play with Sephora. She LOVES hiding and sniffing the plants. She chomps (chews) on a few too sometimes, just like she would do in on the patio in Florida... I just wish the space had a sliding door to go outside :) That's the good thing though about renting - You can learn about an area, and make a house a home, but also learn more about those "must haves" for when you can go to purchase your own place again. Hope this inspires your to create an interior garden room of your own.
Thanks for stopping by!
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