Have you ever been browsing online only to find something that looks like it was made just for you at an amazing price, but you had no idea where you’d put it? Of course you have. You’re reading a blog called Addicted 2 Decorating. I would bet that at least 95% of you have done that. 😀
Well, that’s exactly what I did. I was just browsing the Anthropologie website, looking specifically at wallpaper and murals, as I do on a fairly regular basis just because. But this time, I was hoping to find inspiration for the walls in our soon-to-be bedroom, and one particular mural stopped me in my scroll — the Paradise Mural (affiliate link). Just look at this!
I mean, the last thing I need is another project added to my “to do” list right now, but I couldn’t pass this up. This mural may as well have had my name written on it. This mural is gorgeous and perfect in every way. It’s 10 feet high and 20 feet wide, and it’s on sale for $264.60. If you’ve ever shopped for murals, you know that murals that size are generally at least $600, if not much more. And sometimes they’re much more. So I had to buy it, right?! 😀
Of course, I bought it with no definite plan of where to use it. I was looking for ideas and inspiration for our bedroom walls, but I can’t and won’t put that mural in a room right next to the bathroom in which this mural is the star of the show…
When it comes to the bedroom, I was looking for something that’s more of a geometric pattern that can complement the floral mural in the next room. Adding another floral mural isn’t in the plan. So I have to find another place for this one.
I’ve narrowed it down to three spots. The first and most obvious option is the entryway wall.
If I use it there, I’d get rid of the ottomans (I can hear some of you cheering right now 😀 ) and the pillows. I’d find another place for the mirrors and the bird pictures (probably the future dining room), and I’d hang a very simple something above the credenza, like one large mirror.
The second spot that came to mind is the hallway. I think it would be beautiful and dramatic, but it would also make this area pretty dark.
Also, I think it would look terrible next to the bathroom once I add the new wallpaper to the bathroom walls. (And yes, I’ll be removing the tile accent.)
Another idea that came to mind is to wait until we turn the pantry into the laundry room, with the doorway into the laundry room on the wall shared with the future kitchen, rather than its current doorway in the wall shared with the breakfast room. Right now, the TV in that room hangs on the side wall — the wall shared with my studio…
But after the kitchen is added and the doorway to the pantry (future laundry room) is moved, the current doorway will be closed up to turn this into a solid wall, and the TV will go here. This wall will be almost the exact dimensions as the entryway wall. Those are the only two big, solid walls available in the house.
There is actually one other option. In a recent post, someone mentioned the option of building banquette seating in the dining room. I really like that idea, so I’ve been searching for an looking at dining areas with banquette seating to get inspiration. That’s when I came across this amazing space from Michelle Berwick Design.
I love that so much that I found the wallpaper and ordered a sample, but if I did something like this in our dining area, I could use the mural there. Obviously, I could only use a portion of it since it’s so big, but I’m sure I could pick out a favorite portion to use there.
I’m still not sure that banquette seating will work in our future dining area, but I really love the idea. It would give me a legitimate reason to shift the table and chairs over (instead of sitting right smack dab in the center, as my need for symmetry would necessitate) to give more breathing room between the dining table/chairs and the furniture in the TV room. But I’m still thinking about it.
So right now, I’m leaning towards using it in the entryway, mostly because I don’t want to wait until after our kitchen is finished to put that mural up. 😀 But also, I really do think that’s the best spot for it. It’ll make quite an impact when people enter our house!
Addicted 2 Decorating is where I share my DIY and decorating journey as I remodel and decorate the 1948 fixer upper that my husband, Matt, and I bought in 2013. Matt has M.S. and is unable to do physical work, so I do the majority of the work on the house by myself. You can learn more about me here.
