Inspiration: Kate Young Room Tour

When interior stylist Kate Young moved into her Wiltshire home with her partner, two teenage daughters and the family Jack Russell, the master bedroom was fairly low on the priority list. It was only once the rest of the house was complete, she decided it was time to tackle this space properly.

With a love of monochrome colour palettes and bohemian styling, Kate set to work transforming her bedroom to include a small home office over four weeks as part of the Revamp Restyle Reveal Challenge, sharing the journey with her readers and followers.

Starting off with creating a mood board, the task allowed Kate to easily visualise the end result.

“The work was mainly cosmetic,” Kate explains, “filling in holes, painting walls – so we did all the work ourselves to save us money. If I had the budget, then I would definitely pay professional painters as I hate painting woodwork!”

She also saved money by cleverly incorporating second hand and vintage pieces throughout her space, creating a warm and timeless space perfect for both working and relaxing. “All the furniture except the bed was upcycled, even the desk and the light which were salvaged from a farm building!”

Of course, like any DIY project, it wasn’t without its obstacles.

“The biggest challenge was the upcycling of two vintage industrial lockers. I painstakingly stripped all the old paint which took hours and hours. I then applied the paint straight onto the lockers without primer! Big mistake! The paint reacted with the metal and within hours both lockers were covered in rusty spots! I didn’t know what to do so I messaged Bianca (French for Pineapple) as she is brilliant at DIY. She suggested using Zinsser primer and sealer then painting over the top which worked perfectly. Now I use Zinsser BIN for practically every upcycle I do, it’s the best!”

Her hard work was clearly worth while with a new layout which has totally transformed the look and feel of the room. “My bed now faces the big window which means I can open the windows, sit in bed and still feel like I am connected to the outdoors.”

Kate also found other surprising benefits to creating this beautiful space. “My bedroom is my sanctuary in the house. I suffer from anxiety and some days it is difficult for me to even get out of my bedroom so to have a room where I could relax and work in made a huge difference and enabled me to still be able to work even on a bad day.”

As for her workspace, she chose a Microsoft Surface Pro from AO. “It is such an amazing tool. I can use it as a tablet or a laptop which makes working so much easier. Plus, it doesn’t take over the room like a normal PC would.”

Her advice to others? “Spend time on planning, make a mood board! It can you a lot of precious time. I have learnt the hard way and have made a lot of costly mistakes due to lack of planning.”

Follow all of Kate’s transformations including her most recent challenge – a kitchen remodel! – over on her blog or on her Instagram.

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