*This post may contain affiliate links, but all opinions are 100% mine* 

Sorry it’s been quiet here at Well-Groomed Home.  My autoimmune thyroid disease required my attention for a bit and I genuinely needed some rest and relaxation after Harvey and all the construction we’ve been dealing with.  However, we really haven’t stopped working, so that relaxation time might come a little later than I’d like!  I finally finished all the details for my son’s room as he transitions from baby to toddler and I am so happy with how it turned out.  The flooring by Select Surfaces helped a great deal in completing the look of this rustic, vintage-themed room.

First, we installed our beautiful new laminate floors with the hand-scraped texture from Select Surfaces.  The color is Espresso and installation literally took us two hours in this 12×12 room with a walk-in closet.  It is SO EASY.  The edges are finished so nicely there’s no banging at random boards trying to “make” them go in; it just glides into the groove with minimal effort.  This is premium laminate (not that cheap flimsy and thin stuff) with a premium pad already attached to eliminate that hollow sound, so it’s really difficult to notice the difference between this and solid hardwood.  You can check out my “How To” post here for more details.  Or if you’re ready to give it a go, click here for ordering information.

  Okay, so we were very ambitious.  We decided to build a bed from scratch!  I always scour Ana White’s plans for new and exciting things to build, but this time I was looking for a rustic farmhouse bed…and of course, she has it!  You can check out the plan here. Once we got started and gathered all the materials, it really wasn’t too difficult to build.  After assembling all the parts I stained it with Minwax Weathered Oak and used Fast Drying Polyurethane to seal it.

The next custom item I wanted to incorporate was an indoor basketball hoop set at just his height.  I ordered the hoop off of Amazon and attached it to a plywood board covered with scrap wood and mitered corners.  It gives the bright orange hoop some vintage charm.

Under his farmhouse twin bed we made sure to leave enough room for storage.  Right now, his race track slides right underneath the bed, but in the future it can accommodate a trundle bed with a twin mattress for overnight guests. Toy storage was also a necessity. I used baskets from Target and an Ikea Pax bookcase to keep track of all those little boy belongings.

His ultra-comfy rug came from AT HOME (or Garden Ridge as I still call it) and his super tall giant growth chart was made using (you guessed it) an 8 foot board stained and marked with hashes to resemble a giant ruler.  I spray painted plastic address numbers with flat black to mimic the look of metal for a fraction of the price.

On the opposite wall I made use of some crates to store all those little (and big) vehicles.  He loves cars and trucks so I know this collection will grow!  The antique drink crate was purchased from Michaels and I painted it to look old and used.

I kept his ABC wall from the nursery, I just added some color to update it.  Also, his lamp was broken during the flood, but I saved the shade and made a new lamp out of a large jar filled with baseballs.  It adds another fun little vintage and sporty touch.  The rustic dresser hardware was a great find at Hobby Lobby.

We’ve come a long way since Hurricane Harvey and the Lord continues to provide blessings that help make our house a home again.  Below is a photo from when we returned after the flood.  Thankfully my husband stacked everything and we got his crib out of harm’s way (which until last week is where he’s been sleeping the past 6 months!!).  Now my wonderful child has a big-boy room that he can grow up in for many years to come.

BEFORE: 

AFTER: