For years we have worked on our home—our very first home we bought 20 years ago! It’s taken us years, but little by little, we have upgraded, modernized, invested. While we continue to work within a budget, it was finally time to makeover our master bedroom.

This room was always last on the list. We focused on the areas that others would see, but secretly, I always pined for a serene retreat. Our bedroom wasn’t horrible, we just never put any effort into it.

When it finally came time to work on it, the words serene and retreat really guided the design. I wanted something that would help calm and ground us at the end of the day, but we didn’t want something sterile. I wanted to play with tones of white, texture, scale. Here’s my original design:

Functionally, I also knew we needed more storage. We have a small closet and had a dresser crammed full of clothes. I loved the idea of a wardrobe wall, but didn’t know if we could afford it. We also needed more light in the room. The windows were small, and the bedside pendants and fan light didn’t do much for us.

This is where we started off (after taking some things off the wall):

First thing first. We settled on the paint Benjamin Moore White Dove. It’s a beautiful off-white shade with a slight gray undertone. I loved that it wasn’t a stark or sterile white—it was creamy and the perfect backdrop to create a calm, cohesive retreat. We switched out a fan to a modern dark bronze (pretty much black) one without a light kit, and added can lights to the ceiling.

I also upgraded from our Target bedside tables to these beautiful campaign dressers from Ballard Designs. It afforded us more storage and added a soft pop of color in the space.

I also wanted to get rid of the bed skirt—I felt like it collected dirt and dust. I wanted cleaner, more modern lines. I looked at hundreds of beds, but kept going back to the Alrai upholstered bed. So glad we decided on it. It’s super sturdy, really beautiful, and comes in a great range of fabrics. We used a low profile box spring, which worked beautifully for us… we didn’t want a bed that was super low or super high.

Given our storage challenge, I also researched wardrobe options for months and opted for the affordable Ikea Pax system. I love that you can design exactly what you want for your space with the Pax planner, and of course, loved the affordability of the system. We didn’t have $10,000 or more to spend on this. The entire system, plus customization, cost us about $1200 or so. We also had the challenge that we had an uneven wall, so some of the doors we wanted weren’t available in the both sizes we needed. I wanted to make the wardrobe look expensive though, custom, so we added crown molding and black statement hardware to uplevel the look.

This wardrobe wall is the best thing we’ve ever done. So much storage, so incredibly functional, and also so pretty. And because we kept the color pretty much the same as the walls, it doesn’t close you in. It feels wide open and airy.

I also made the unplanned decision to get rid of my vanity and instead have a seating area in the bedroom. We sit there every morning when we put on shoes, or to read, or to have coffee.  I also wanted to feature statement lighting in a nook where everything else was going to be simple. This Rejuvenation plug in light is stunning and worth the investment. WE LOVE IT.

I added a warm gray and taupe rug to ground the space, and textural elements such as a basket, throw, and bench.

As the room began to come together, I searched and searched for the perfect statement art piece and finally found it in this oversized canvas from McGee & Co. Subtle but textural, with shades of cream, taupe and soft gray, it was the perfect addition to the serene palette I had originally envisioned. I also thought it was a wonderful counterpoint to the Anthropologie art print that was a more modern black & white piece.

Lastly, I wanted a lived-in tone-on-tone look to our bedding. Creams, whites, textures, and super comfy. While I splurged for the duvet, I found the sheets at Target, which worked great!

There are still items to finish up in the room (upgrade doors, paint vent cover, etc etc etc), but we couldn’t be happier with where we ended up. We invested on furniture, art, and lighting, and kept some linens and curtains on the budget side. It’s a right-for-us mix of high/low items. But most importantly, for the first time in forever, we feel like we have a beautiful space to which we can retreat at the end of the day.