Ugly Progress is Still Progress

We're finally tackling our bedroom after almost seven years of living here. Besides the laundry room (which is terrible, and probably always will be), our room has been the most neglected space in the house. The layout has always been a little tricky with five windows- and all in the corners. Storage is an issue too, since there is one small closet to share and no master bathroom. So even though it's never going to be ideal, I've decided it's time to do our best with what we've got.
Finding a good "before" of our bedroom was close to impossible. I finally found this one of Lydia as a newborn...

...and this one of Benjamin on his last birthday. My friend helped me strip the wallpaper border and paint it several years ago, and then we just lived with this color (which I take full responsibility for, and even liked at the time for it's Wendy's Frosty-like color). But it was all wrong for the space, and didn't inspire any further action on my part.

Paul and I also made the headboard a few years ago, before his Mom made us this beautiful king size quilt (she let me pick the fabrics and the design). The headboard and the quilt have always clashed, so I'm planning to recover the headboard with a soft blue linen tablecloth I found at Home Goods for $9. It's just draped over for effect here. We also painted our room, and it's much lighter and brighter and calmer. Don't mind the laundry basket sitting there; that's just our normal decor. ;)

And so is this pile of junk stashed on the other side of the bed. I removed the mismatched bookshelves that were flanking the sides of the bed, and replaced them with new matching nightstands and lamps. Hence the piles of displaced books. I kept those pieces small so we'd still have room for the other furniture that needs to stay, like the dresser...

...and the new bookshelves Paul helped me build to go under the windows on either side of the dresser. I found the plans on Ana White, and they'll fit perfectly along that wall that has always been unused dead space. They're nice and low too, so they won't block the windows at all.

The other side of the room recently got a newer, smaller desk to replace the (free to us) hulking file desk that used to live there (that file desk got demoted to the garage, where it serves as our new workbench!). I wish we didn't have to have the computer in our room, but there just isn't a better spot for it in this house. We still need a smaller chair for it though. The arms on this one prevent it from tucking neatly away under the desk, so it hangs out into the room.

I purposely haven't hung any art on the walls yet because I want to be more thoughtful about it this time around. I'd love one large piece to hang over the bed (I have ideas for what I'd like to make), and possibly a smaller set of pieces on the opposite wall. I also wish I knew what to do with the windows. As you can probably tell from the rest of our house, I love the casual look of floor length curtain panels. I'm just not sure how to achieve that look in here with the awkward corners and all the furniture in the way.
So there you have it. We're making progress, and this will soon be a much better space. I'm excited to have a more polished and grown up space to call our own. No more ugly family room in here!