Graham And Brown Bedroom Makeover

Graham & Brown took pity on my bleak bedroom and sent me out some wallpaper to use and review. It’s one of the last rooms in my house to get attention. I didn’t realize how boring and bland it looked until I started taking photo’s YIKES!

I actually vowed never to wallpaper again after a previous incident using what we shall now refer to as “The Cheap Paper” . It was more of a combination of Cheap Paper, husband helper and 2 toddlers)

My mother and I (My new sidekick) challenged ourselves to complete this makeover before School pickup. It wasn’t really a challenge as much as it was a necessity. It took us 2 1/2 hours – with a visit from an ugly spider (We had a selfie together), running out of glue (twice) a cup of tea break, and about 3 trips to the toilet (we are mums after all).

I think that’s pretty impressive.

Here is the paper we used its called Mystical (I am hoping it’s a dreamy name for a dreamy sleep tonight)

How was it?

The Paper was thick and easy to work with. We were able to put it on

then pull it off again

and put it on again

and pull it off again

without it ripping or creasing. (My lining-up lady is apparently blind). This is something I was never able to do with “The Cheap Paper”. I am not an expert on wallpaper (clearly) but I think it all comes down to the quality. I barely had to press it and smooth it down it was like it was naturally wanting to get stuck. (It sticks well to butts too so don’t sit on glued-off cuts).

The only thing that could have made the whole process better was a glass of wine and some chocolate.

I Love you Graham & Brown thanks for the memories…

Shop Beautiful Wallpaper and Home Accessories at Graham & Brown!

If you want to feel personally attacked by a collection of knitting and crochet patterns as I was, check out the “90s Mod Inspired” pattern lookbook from Yarnspirations.

It’s actually a great collection of patterns for folks who want to stitch up that Y2K look again (or for the first time). There’s an oversized, striped grandpa cardigan! A (crocheted) plaid messenger bag! A boxy argyle vest, and a rolled hem sweater the likes of which I bought in a store in the ’90s and knit a replica of later.

There’s also a section of “Prep School” patterns (think “Clueless,” they’re even called things like “As if” and “Betty”) including a granny square tie and crocheted wrap skirt, and a knit cabled pullover, beret and cardigan with blocky stripes. Other sections include casual collegiate, punk and mod, and academia.

Some of the patterns repeat among the sections but there’s a nice selection for people who want a little throwback for their back to school and fall wardrobes.

Since I had this sweater, we’ll take a closer look at the Caron Cropped Stripy Sweater. The one I knit from a pattern of my own devising in the mid ’00s was tonal blues, but this one calls for two colorways of Colorama Haze, a fuzzy self-striping worsted weight yarn.

The pattern comes in six sizes, with chest measurements ranging from 39 to 60 inches (that’s 99 to 152.5 cm). Clearly that’s a lot of ease at the lower sizes, since the smallest size is meant to fit an actual chest measurement from 28-34 inches, or 71-86.5 cm.

The sweater is a modified drop shoulder worked flat in pieces and seamed. That means the stripes probably won’t match around the body but it’s still a classic look. This one does have ribbing at the neckline, where the original sweater I owned and my re-creation had rolled hems throughout, but you can do it either way depending on your preference.

Do any of these projects remind you of clothes you might have worn or knit in the past? I’d love to hear about it!

Have you read?