My Zen Office/Sunroom Makeover And A Mural Wallpaper

I am SO excited to share my Zen Office/Sunroom Makeover with you today!

I have been very busy the last couple of weeks giving new life to this room and I finally have it ready to share with you today. This makeover is one of my favorite makeovers ever and I have so much that I want to share with you…but just a heads up, this post is a lengthy one with probably more pictures than necessary. So get cozy and continue on.

Before we get started, let me remind you of what the room looked like before.

Before, the walls were painted a dark grey (SW Software) and the room was really busy. I had it filled with lots of furniture and decor.  I liked the eclectic boho vibe that was going on in here, but after a while there just came a point when I started to crave a lighter, airier, and simply, a more Zen feel to this space.

And so whenMuralsWallpapercontacted me and told me about their collection of Watercolour Wallpapers, (Watercolour Wallpaper for UK) and their Murals for Mindfulness linein particular, I noticed right away how beautiful they all were, but after reading more about them, I just knew that I had to have one in my office. I decided on the Dana Blue Watercolour Wall Mural. 

The mural arrived in one long roll with easy to follow instructions.  I enlisted my mother in law for help, and to be honest, I couldn’t have hung it without her. This was my first time hanging wallpaper, but my mother in law has had some experience hanging wallpaper and so she was a super big help.

We gathered all of the tools and supplies required and spent a Saturday transforming the room. We had so much fun hanging the mural and in the end we were both so pleased with how it all came together.

So without any more wait, let me share with you My Zen Office/Sunroom Reveal!!!

A pair of old french doors leads you into the room.

Tada!

Just look at that beautiful Mural!

A little bit more about the Murals for Mindfulness collection, “The inspiration behind these beautiful watercolor murals came from research on the Surrealist movement. Influenced by the writings of Sigmund Freud, the Surrealist held the belief that the creativity from deep within a person’s subconscious could be more powerful and authentic than any product of conscious thought.

Based on this approached, the designs were created impulsively and mindfully, switching off thoughts and letting intuition control the paintbrush”.

Isn’t that beautiful?

Mindfulness is something that has really brought peace into my own life.  I remind myself always to be mindful….or how I like to say it, Mind-less 🙂  When decorating the rest of the room, I tried to really be present and allow my subconscious to do its thing and as a result the room feels so much more Zen.

Besides the new mural, some of the other big changes I made to the room was first painting the walls from dark gray to white.  I used my favorite Olympic One/Grade A/un-tinted paint. But unfortunately, I just found out that Lowes is no longer going to carry Olympic paint and so it looks like I need to find a new favorite white paint.  But anyway, I am so happy with the white walls. They look so fresh and pretty and they really let the mural be the star of the room.

The second big change I made was painting the old wooden desk white. This mid-century desk once belong to my mother in law and she passed it down to us.  I think painting the desk white was a great decision. Before, the desk looked bulky and heavy in the room, and now it somehow looks lighter and blends into the room a lot better.

The third big change I made to the room was rearranging the furniture. The daybed got moved to under the windows and the two bookshelves got separated. Whereas the bookshelves were right next to each other before.

I was tickled at how perfectly this bookshelf fit into the little nook space on this wall. It was as though it was just meant to be 🙂

Okay, now I want to share some of the fun little detail that are in the room.

I really really love the new placement of the day bed. It sits under the row of old pane windows, which just so happens to be one of my favorite detail of our whole entire house. 

 But can you tell that this isn’t actually a daybed? Rather, it’s just an old twin size bed. And actually, if you hadn’t heard yet, this was my husband’s childhood bed. By adding a ton of pillows to the bed it works great as a daybed. I also have a couple of soft comforters piled on top of the mattress, and then I’ve covered it all with myfavorite linen sheet ever! This is definitely one comfy spot to sit and  relax…or nap the day away 🙂

I left my chunky white plant holder still hanging up in the corner of the room.  As you may already know, I bought this at afancy farmhouse barn sale and I always get a ton of comments about it.

Under the daybed is my collection of small trunks. Two of which are wicker picnic baskets. I store things like pictures, mementos, and my boy’s artwork in these trunks.  

Now heading back around the room to the desk. I will share how I painted the desk in an upcoming post, but for now I just wanted to share how I have styled the desk.

I kept my desktop simple and focused on only having natural and purposeful accessories. 

A wicker lamp for lighting, a small plant for air cleansing, my favorite candlefor an earthy scent, and a rock to calm me.  I’ve had this rock for years now and I always hold it when I’m on the computer or even sometimes when I meditate, and for some reason it has a way of making me calm.  I guess it’s kinda like my own version of a fidget spinner 🙂

My favorite part about my desk area though has got to be the mural hanging above it. Every time I look up from my computer I am in complete awe at just how beautiful this mural truly is.

On the far wall of the office is one of the bookshelves, a macrame hanging, and my water fountain.

I did a lot of downsizing with this office makeover and so whatever is left on these shelves are items that I really love.  I got rid of a whole cupboard worth of magazines and kept only my cherished collection of Pottery Barn catalogs 🙂  The “Good Vibes Only” sign is a free printable foundHERE. And I’ve always been a huge fan of burning incense. The smell of incense automatically adds Zen to any room.

The macrame mirror was a lucky yard sale find, but even luckier was this …

My bell chime water fountain that I also found at a yard sale. If you’ve been following my blog for a while then you may be tired of me talking about this fountain already.  But it is seriously one of my favorite things in this world!  All day long it makes little chime noises that can be heard throughout our home. I use these little chimes as a reminder to clear my mind and be in the present moment.  On my shop our home page is a similar fountain if you are interested.

Moving around the room to the west wall is a closet that holds gift wrap and office supplies. Next to the closet is the second bookshelf.

My favorite thing on these shelves is the fish tank terrarium that I put together but I’m going to hold off for another day to tell you more about it. 

Next, we have a bull skull that’s holding my massive collection of seashell necklaces. Anyone else collect seashell necklaces? I’m sure I’m not the only one 🙂

And now we’ve circled around the room and are right back at the entryway.

So please tell me. What do you think?

 This room has always been my favorite room of our whole entire house. I just love being in here, especially in the morning hours when the sun shines in and lights up the whole room. Lately I’ve been opening up the windows to let in a light breeze. I listen to the birds sing, the chimes ding, and enjoy the smells of  burning incense filling up the room. And now I’m also taking in the beauty of this graceful Watercolor mural. Seriously, This room is So peaceful and Zen. I never want to leave it.

Let’s just look at the Before and After one more time shall we?

Which look do you prefer, Busy and Boho, or Peaceful and Zen?

Before decorating this room, I put together THIS Pinterest board for inspiration.  So if you like the style of this room, be sure to check out that board to see where my inspiration for the room came from.

And be sure to take a look at MuralsWallpaper to see the rest of thewatercolor wallpaper collections (Click Here if you are in the UK) MuralsWallpaper carries a large variety of other Wallpapers and Murals as well. 

Thank you so much for stopping by today.

Peace & Love,

Emily