$100 Room Challenge- projects, details, and budget

We have been busy working on a makeover for the Boy’s Bedroom. And all for $100 or less.

What’s that about you ask? It’s the $100 Room Challenge hosted by the lovely Erin of lemonslavenderandlaundry.com What’s the $100 Room Challenge? The rules are simple: One Room. One Month. $100. Just the type of challenge that this budget loving-DIY-crafting-make-do kind of girl loves! Count me in!

Let’s take a look back:

We’ve been working for a couple of weeks now so if you’ve missed any of the posts so far you can see them here:

• Week One- The Ugly Before Bedroom 
• Week Two- The Boy’s Bedroom

What’s been happening?

Unfortunately this week we have not gotten a lot accomplished for the Boy’s bedroom makeover. We had a lot going on with my regular day job and we’ve been working the side-hustle too. What side-hustle you ask? We have an Etsy shop -Bridgehill 5 and Dime- where we sell vintage items that I have curated and rehabbed when needed. I would so appreciate it if you check out and follow our Instagram page for the Etsy shop here-@bridgehill5anddime-

Thanks! 😉

What have we been up to with the makeover?

While we haven’t been able to tackle any of the big projects for the Boy’s bedroom. There have been lots of small projects completed and a few little details that have been put together. Let’s take a quick look:

A little stain and time can make a big difference

This old CD rack was in the Boy’s bedroom before- it was sitting on the dresser taking up much-needed space. It was that old Yellow-Gold color of pine from the 80’s/ 90’s. A quick clean, a sanding and a coat of stain changed the color from Gold to Carmel. I then stained the plywood backing a darker Brown Espresso color. A subtle difference- but the Boy and I both really like it. A couple of D-ring hangers attached to the back and we were able to hang the shelf on the wall. We had all of the supplies in the garage- stain, plywood, and hardware. Zero cost and a Project complete!

Keeping costs down is easy when you use what you already got!

I LOVE this mirror! It’s big. It’s metal. It has that masculine-industrial look we wanted for the bedroom. And you know what else? We already had it in storage! This mirror was at our old house in the Boy’s bedroom. When we moved here he wanted his room super simple and different from his old room. Before this makeover, we had used a garage sale mirror in the bedroom but this one is much better. I believe when I had found it years ago, that it on sale for around $20. But pulling it out of storage made it a zero cost element for the bedroom since we’re using what we already had.

Adding an Art Gallery wall

We started on the Art Gallery Wall on the one large wall in the bedroom above where the Boy’s bed is. It’s not done yet, a couple more projects are in the works and not completed. On the left side, you can see the framed Picasso poster of Don Quixote that the Boy just loves. He picked out that poster when he was in elementary school. He loves the story of Don Quixote and this drawing.

Just above the Picasso on the left side, you can see an empty picture frame. The Boy and I have a plan for that frame. A project that the Boy is doing with items we got for free and a .50 cents thrift store picture frame. Stay tuned!

A Piece of DIY Art- Part Two

This skeleton poster was also in the Boy’s Bedroom before, here and at the old house. It was a DIY that I did years ago when the Boy had seen this poster and wanted it for his bedroom. I decoupaged it to a thrift store canvas that I had painted Black. Over the years the poster puckered and the black needed another touch-up coat of paint. For a quick update I took the afternoon to paint the canvas another coat of black paint, and when that was dry- put on another coat of Modge Podge. While that was drying I used scrap wood from the garage to make a simple frame. Just like I did in the last $100 Room Challenge for my Bathroom. Check out my post -DIY Stenciled Artwork- for the details. Cost for this project? Zero again! All supplies were on hand and another project from the list complete.

A fun and fashionable way to kick up the Geek

Letterboards. They’re everywhere and very trendy. They can also be very expensive. Looking around I was able to find this one at a discount store with the back to school supplies. It was $5 and it has Black felt- which the Boy really likes. The Boy chose this Star Wars quote to display. It’s a running joke within the movie franchise. And although all of these characters don’t all say these exact words- it is the Boy’s preferred wording of the line. We’re kinda Geeky with the Satr Wars over here.

Inexpensive does not mean it will look cheap!

Both of my children like to listen to Podcasts. They listen to Podcasts of other people playing roleplaying games. They love them. I don’t get it, and that’s okay. This poster is from one of those Podcasts that they listen to. My daughter had gone to see them play/perform live and got this poster, then stood in line for the cast to sign it for her brother. It was one of the new elements that the Boy wanted to have in his bedroom makeover. We decided to frame the poster and hang it as a part of the gallery wall.

Looking around for an inexpensive option we found this poster frame at Target that was only $16.99. Kind of a big chunk for the budget, but what we both really like about it is that it’s plastic and light but wide like a heavier frame. The poster measures 17″ x 27″ but we got a larger frame 20″ x 30″ frame so that we could have the poster matted in the center of the frame. I thought that I had a piece of large cardstock in my stash, but it wasn’t quite big enough. Instead, I decided that I would just paint the cardboard backing of the frame with Balck paint and have the poster float on top of it. Now we have the look of a matted piece but for the price of a coat of paint.

Don’t forget to shop those garage sales!

My son doesn’t really need any new accessories for his room. But small decorative details are always fun to freshen up a room. What better way to decorate on a budget than to shop garage sales and thrift stores? Such an easy way to keep your decor costs down. When I saw this wood tray at a garage sale I knew that we could use it for the Boy’s bedroom makeover. I bought two of the trays each for $1. This one is on his bedside table to hold his wallet and such. The other will be used on the dresser to hold other small odds and ends.

At the same garage sale, I found this small lidded wood and paper box. The Boy loves wood boxes, he uses them to hold small items and collections. He has been collecting them for years. While this one is not all wood, it does have this striped wood pattern for interest. And only $1!

Check out that Clearance aisle!

If you’re anything like me- you’re always looking for a bargain. One way that I do that is I am checking to see what stores have put on clearance on every shopping trip. When the Boy and I were out running a few errands we found these super cute galvanized metal Goat bookends at Target. (Our Target had them on clearance, but on this date, they are still available on the website.) He was drawn to them and picked them out for his bedroom makeover. The best part? They were on clearance for just $9.98 for the set!

Thrift store treasures

I love to thrift. Or go thrifting as I like to say. I will buy just about everything at a thrift store. But I do draw the line at anything that can’t be washed and cleaned completely. You can find some amazing things at the thrift stores, and at great prices! I found these two galvanized metal magazine holders for just $2 each. They’re strong and sturdy and add another masculine touch to the room.

Making something new from something old

I mentioned in the Ugly Before post that we would be making curtains out of old denim jeans for the Boy’s bedroom. That plan is coming together very nicely. I took and cut up 10 pairs of old jeans and jean shorts. Which took a bit longer than I expected, but was also kind of satisfying at the same time. Then I cut them again into long strips to be pieced together. Here you can see all of the lovely Blues that will make up the curtain panels. Next week I hope to have a completed panel to show you.

Until next time- Thanks for stopping by my little blog. Check out all of the other posts by my Blogger friends in the $100 Room Challenge below.