Nathan's Cowboy room: Take 2

Boy oh boy...how hard can it be to re-style a room? Well, if the room happens to be inhabited by a boy, and it happens to be at the mercy of this mommy to give it a make-over, it's definitely in trouble! Those of you who know me personally will know that I can do frills and pink, and girly is something that is second nature to me. But, when I have to think 'frogs and snails, and puppy dog's tails', I'm challenged to the outer limits of my thinking! I found myself pulling my hair out trying to come up with a fresh take on my seven year old son's room, after having done my daughter's room. Things were looking a bit tired in both rooms, so I decided to freshen it up a bit. Getting in touch with my inner child is never hard, but when that child is a boy, it doesn't come easy!

Nathan has had a cowboy themed room for quite some time now, and I thought a change might be good. However, when you're sentimental like I am, it's not always easy to live by the mentality of 'out with the old, in with the new'. After much consideration, I decided to keep things simple and sensible, as a major change would mean spending quite a few pennies. And in a year or two he's bound to want to change things again. So, the decision was to turn his cowboy room into an explorer/adventurer's room by adding a few new touches to compliment what was already there.

The first thing I did was to simply move his furniture around. This has made a big difference, as the whole perspective has changed. We had a good old clear out, and added some finishing touches. My favourite must be his 'map of the world' wall. I found a very large map in a stationary shop for very little money.  At first I was merely going to stick it to the wall with Blu-tack (Prestik to some of you!), but it was too big and heavy and kept pulling away from the wall. So, armed with some scissors and diluted PVA glue, I set to work. And the result.....A map wallpaper mural!

I added some string and pins to create a 'flight path', and a little aeroplane which cheered up the wall nicely. Pictures can be a very inexpensive way of injecting a new flavour into an existing theme.

I'm always thinking of ways to recycle and re-use things I already have. So, when I looked through Nathan's book collection, I found an illustration in an old fifties publication of Roy Rogers, and thought it should be framed. Now, I'm not advocating that you treat precious old books like a stack of magazines in a doctor's surgery where no one cares what happens to them! This page was hanging by a thread as the book is very old, and I thought it needed to be preserved in a frame!

I also found an old frame in a cupboard, and used some transfers to make a picture. I like grouping frames with other objects when putting them up on walls. I think it adds more interest to the ensemble. What do you think?

Well, with very little effort, Nathan's room has had a bit of a face lift, albeit just a bit of Botox and not a whole nip and tuck! But, he is very pleased with the result. I'll leave you with a few pictures of the room as it stands now.

I hope you all have a fun-filled, rest full weekend! We're off to visit some dear friends in the beautiful garden of England that is Kent. I would love to hear from you, and what you've all been up to lately, so do leave a comment. Bye-bye for now!