Be my guest

I've always wanted the extra room to have a guest bedroom. A room clean and ready at all times for hospitality. The door always shut --- no cats allowed! But inside, a room is waiting to hug you. Think of it. Your buds can crash at anytime. Late night parties can become Bloody Mary brunches. Out of town friends are in mini-heaven. And best of all, you've got a room where you can craft a mini-home.

I've been a sleepover guest as far back as I can remember. There's no way to explain that sentence without sounding a little trashy, but my point it this --  I know what a guest (like me anyway) wants to feel in a guest room. Let's see if this does the trick...

This 1950's map of Chicago (found for 5 bucks in downtown Chicago in the 2010's) was the inspiration for the room's color palette, which means it was the inspiration for the room's everything. It's a nice change of vantage to see Chicago from the east.

I love the colors and the fonts on this poster. Shots like these can be artistically blown up for cheap art, yes? I think so. If there's extra wall space, that is.

This being a small room, and thus not needing much paint, why not try one of these expensive but "worth it" high depth colors from Farrow & Ball? These colors are said to... how to describe... have a lot going on. In different lights and in different times of day and with different things around them, they look different. Awesome, huh?! Two gallons is... holy fuck, $185! French gray (*) catches my eye and is shown below looking pretty good next to yellow (which the poster has).

This would be really useful.

If this color green (**) managed to not clash with the blue and green in my Chicago poster, I would try to use it at all costs - especially if my guest room had a unique alcove (re-modified closet?) or an adjacent bathroom.

I mean, just look at that awesome Arsenic.

Although if you have an alcove, you may be tempted to indulge in a Farrow & Ball wallpaper... for over double the price of a gallon of paint. Therefore I'd buy a gallon of the paint (come here, Arsenic!) and then do a stencil of some kind. (Shut up, of course I'd get around to it.)

Ahhh, here is where the furniture comes in. First and foremost, a nicely polished vintage valet stand. Everyone needs a place to throw their worn but not dirty traveler clothing. Other than this, I'd have a large chest filled with clean blankets and a small vanity table with chair and well lit mirror. The bed would have a simple wood frame, stained or painted black to match the poster colors. Both sides of the bed would have a reading lamp, nightstand, and outlet access for charging.

I know what you're thinking. Where's the f-in color? COLOR NEEDED!!!! And achieved through fresh flowers placed throughout the room in a plain(ish) set of matching vases. Stupendous! [Ed. note - Getting bright flower colors in PowerPoint was to some extent impossible. I could really pay to learn how to use better graphic design software, hmmm... What do people use for magazine and blog spreads?]