The Flapper Bedroom

Next we move onto the bedroom.  I'm saving my favorite room for last (the bathroom), which is also probably the one that needs the most work.   

The bedroom design I have created I dubbed "The Flapper Bedroom."  I took my inspiration from the flapper lifestyle and fashion for this room.  Deep purples and blues were popular accent colors in the 1920s, though not so much in paint colors.  But at least one of the rooms in the apartment should have some deep, vibrant color plastered on the wall!  I would only paint one wall in the room a dark, vibrant color though.  You don't want to make the room feel smaller by painting everything in a dark color.  If you want even more interest, you can add a design to the wall in a high gloss.  It adds subtle interest to the wall and instantly makes it look like you paid for expensive wallpaper to be put up.   

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For the headboard, I would pick something tufted and soft to mimic the velvet ottoman from the living room.  These can be DIYed also.   

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Or for a simpler route, we may use a metal framed headboard and spray paint it metallic. 

Curtains in the 1920s were usually very ornate and utilized very heavy fabrics such as velvet or brocade... but that is also really expensive and we don't want the space to look too heavy.  So instead of putting up large curtains, my design is to bring that into the bedspread.  This bedspread reminds me of theatre curtains!   

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There is an overhead light in the bedroom, and it is original!  That's cool, right?  The problem is that many earlier light fixtures did not have lampshades on them.  Can you guess why? 

Lights were not as bright as they are today, so you wouldn't want to diffuse the light.  Ideally, you would put Edison bulbs in this light fixture, but those are not energy efficient and are very expensive.  

So to cover that light we would wrap pieces of lace around hoops and hang those.  And for an added element of drama, you can buy crystals at any craft store to hang from the hoops.  I wouldn't recommend hanging them from the lace since the it most likely won't be able to hold the weight of the crystals.  

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Another choice is to find an interesting old colander.  You can remove the legs and handle and affix that to the light fixture.  When you turn the light on, the light will stream through the holes, creating an awesome design on your ceiling.  The only trouble with this would be that it may block out a lot of the light, so it may not be the best at night.   

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The next big piece of furniture in the room is the dresser.  To amp up the drama (if you can afford it), painting your dresser white and covering it in mirrors gives it a glamorous modern look, while still bringing in the metallics of the 1920s.  

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The easier (and cheaper) route to go is to cover your drawers in lace (like a stencil) and paint over it with metallic paint.  When you remove the lace it will leave the look of lace on your drawers and you will still have the metallic feel.  If you can afford it, adding a mirror on top will bring in that bling that is so great with the other dresser design.   

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And of course changing out knobs is always an easy way to update furniture.  Glass knobs are very vintage!   

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You can also use an assortment of glass knobs to create a place to hold your necklaces.  Then they won't get all tangled up!  I always have that problem...    

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And for the finishing touches, adding a DIY hat stand, your best cloche hat, maybe some peonies (very popular in the 1920s), and maybe a distressed mirror (which you can also DIY!) finish out the look of this flapper bedroom.

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  What do you think we should we add to the flapper bedroom?


Previous Posts
Post 1: Inspiration
Post 2: Roaring Twenties Living Room
Post 3: Antique Kitchen