The Country Sampler stylists share tips for creating a cozy and inviting guest room.
The Country Sampler stylists gather farm-fresh accents to fashion a cozy and inviting haven for guests.
With three of their four children grown and flown, Ossian, Indiana, homeowners Lorie and Jeff Bauermeister recently moved into Jeff ’s family’s farmhouse and began feathering their nearly empty nest. “We’ve completely redone everything, but we tried to keep the bones of the house intact,” Lorie says.
One of the rooms that was ready for a reboot was Jeff ’s childhood bedroom, now occupied by the couple’s 14-year-old son, Landri, who was eager to incorporate pieces found around the farm to give his new digs unique character. Country
Sampler stylists René Haines and Carolynn Geesaman worked with Lorie to share ways she might use country goods and textiles to further enhance the space.
Landri chose the farm theme for his new room, inspired by items the family discovered on and around their property, including a chicken nesting box, old feed sacks, a broken ladder, salvaged barnwood and a bench pulled out of the haymow. Lorie helped him turn those cast-off goods into creative new furnishings, and they plan to continue to add new accents assembled from their finds, including a washtub shelf and a watering-trough storage piece.
“He just loves the look of his room now,” says Lorie, who notes that René and Carolynn showed her how easily the space can transition to a guest room when Landri grows up and moves out. Read on to discover 18 great ideas for pulling together a comfortable guest retreat that visitors will crow about!
WELCOMING COMMITTEE
1. Serving of sentiment. Greet your guests with an accent made by decoupaging a circular cutout of a text art print onto an inexpensive white plate with a decorative edge. Place it in a small stand or prop it against another object in your vignette.
2. Hooked on a feeling. Bring a tactile touch to a tabletop with a crocheted rag rug. It provides a cozy counterpoint to the wood and metal tray anchoring a decorative display that includes a sheep figure and a teacup perched on a checked napkin that ties together the colors in the grouping.
3. Pitcher perfect. Build a floral arrangement within a reproduction metal milk pitcher using fresh or faux greenery and berry, pinecone and cotton stems. Add a finishing flourish with jute twine accented by glued-on mini pinecones.
RULING THE ROOST
4. Wall capers. Assemble a distinctive accent wall by installing corrugated metal wainscoting and barnwood-style boards. Both are readily available at home centers. The combination serves as a perfect backdrop for rustic signage.
5. Nesting instinct. Boost storage with an unusual piece, like this chicken nesting box the Bauermeisters rescued from a neighbor’s collapsed barn. “I stocked it with towels and an alarm clock, while leaving some space for guests to stow their stuff,” René says.
6. Berry fun. Offer entertainment with a supply of board games contained in a vintage wooden berry basket carrier. Aptly
store pieces to an oversize checkers game in berry pint boxes. 7. Chalked up. Update a dresser with a few coats of chalky-finish paint, giving it an aged look via sandpaper and wax. To supplement drawer space, stack vintage suitcases on top.
8. Sitting pretty. Incorporate a cushioned bench or other seating area so that guests have a spot to put their feet up. Select pillows with motifs or shapes that reflect nearby elements.
9. Metal winners. Echo the wall treatment with metal accessories, such as a mirror framed in salvaged tin, a farmhouse lantern, a tin-pail caddy and a galvanized trash can.
SUITE DREAMS 10. Barn to bed.
Fashion a one-of-a-kind headboard from salvaged barnwood and highlight its rusticity with a quilt and shams featuring all-American colors and motifs. Add an assortment of feedsack accent pillows in various sizes, and drape a pinecone and ribbon garland across the headboard to lend a bit of visual dimension. Place a weathered bench at the end of the bed in lieu of a footboard.
11. On the fence.
Employ a piece of fencing as a country quilt rack, securing each post within a metal pail filled with plaster of paris to provide support and keep it upright. As an alternative to standard valances, construct awning-shaped cornices from barnwood-style boards. Hang burlap curtains with checked detailing and shape strips of chicken wire into simple tiebacks that suit the scene.
12. Farm team.
Pair up a vintage metal livestock feeder with a wooden round cut from salvaged wood to create a whimsical nightstand. Continue the fun with a folk-art metalwork cow lamp with a burlap shade and a distressed handmade sign.
13. Bathing beauties.
Gather an array of toiletries and other essentials within a decorative and easy-to-transport basket, using a grain scoop as a soap holder and mason jars to contain cotton swabs and bath salts. Balance the display with potted plants positioned atop a small piece of framed artwork used as a tray.
CORNER OFFICE 14. Goody basket.
Treat your guests with a metal tote brimming with a selection of sweets and snacks. “I always do this when my family comes to visit,” Carolynn shares. Position it on a gingham place mat that matches the café curtains made by combining two fabric napkins and a tension rod.
15. Silo storage.
Provide a place for desk essentials to hide in plain sight by concealing them in silo-shaped canisters.
16. Hook and ladder.
Suspend a small ladder (or a piece of a larger one) from ceiling hooks and string it with battery-powered bulbs, garland and vines to shed some ambient light over a desk area created within a dormer window nook. The desk is made from an old door cut to size and mounted on the wall with sturdy brackets. A custom glass desktop levels the surface, while a checked chair pad and cable-knit throw lend the space some homespun comfort.
17. On the grid.
Repurpose a bedspring from a defunct crib to fashion a unique organizer. Affix baskets, hook racks, clothespins or even an old paper towel holder for storage, and crown your creation with a piece of architectural salvage. Add a twig wreath and a chalkboard sign that announces dinner time or other events.
18. All access.
Ensure your guests can get online by including your Wi-Fi password on a framed print adorned with a cute chicken cutout that coordinates with other barnstyle wall decorations.