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A Bison In the Bedroom

On the first night of our anniversary trip to Nashville, Kim and I were strolling through an art show when we stumbled upon a gorgeously crafted linocut print by local artist Laura Baisden, titled To A Wayward Bison. We decided on the spot that we had to have it (the bison was unique enough, and the colors were oh-so-right), but then reality set in and we realized that we probably shouldn’t drop a pile of cash in the very first hour of our trip. (After all, we still had a lot of eating to do.)

We settled on a business card and I tried not to mention it again, seeing that I had some tricks up my sleeve. With Christmas right around the corner, (sly dog that I am) I contacted Laura, mailed her a check and eagerly gifted the print to Kim. Sure enough, the wife was pumped, but our thoughts quickly turned to space issues. After some temporary art swapping and a few sketches and measurements, we finally agreed on the bedroom as the bison’s new home (with permanent art swapping following). And so the ten-legged bear and bunny made the trip to the front of the house. And since a good before and after is in order, here’s the bedroom, pre-bison:

So with the bear and bunny sent packing, we snagged a handy RIBBA picture ledge from Ikea that just so happened to be almost exactly the same width as our bedroom racing stripe. To decide on the perfect height, I had Kim sit upright in bed, and we measured an extra 4 or 5 inches from the top of her head. We came in at a 13 inch space from headboard to rail, which ensured no unecessary head bumps and bruises while not being too visually high.

After mastering the height and before puncturing our walls, we whipped out the fancy level, eyeballed our 13 inch mark, and Kim penciled in my drill guides while I held the ledge steady. (PS…Gotta love a tool that spells out exactly what it is in gigantic caps. It’s even equipped with lasers and a mechanical robot arm. Well, that’s only half true, but alright, we get it… you’re a laser level.)

And because I love a story that includes a power tool, here’s a tip from me to you. When drilling into drywall, place the suction hose of your vacuum cleaner right below your mark and just watch all the time you save cleaning up all that pesky dust. Clean up is usually the swipe of a damp cloth. Can’t beat that.

After the pilot holes were drilled, anchors installed and ledge up and running, we used a touch of white acrylic paint to conceal those Ikea flaws. Hey, it’s all in the details. Right?

With the bear and bunny now residing over our front door, not only did the bison find a home above the bed, but the switcharoo also brought in a former hallway print. We’re so happy with how it turned out, we’re trying to remember why we ever went sans-ledge.

So, what do you think? And since we’re on the topic, are you an art above the bed kind of crew, or do you prefer a mega headboard and nothing else? Or maybe a big, blank wall means sweet dreams? Let’s hear it.

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  • Penina3.19.10 - 11:17 AM

    Well, I am partial to the above-bed picture ledge since I have one too. Yay!ReplyCancel

  • Kim3.19.10 - 12:31 PM

    Miss P, you are right! Love yours, too: https://yellowbrickhome.com/peninas-bedroom-redo/ReplyCancel

  • Amie & Abbey Road3.19.10 - 1:32 PM

    Love it!! We too are trying to figure out what to do right above our headboard…no luck yet. Art in the bedroom is the last thing we have to tackle and so far, we have just avoided it altogether.
    oy!ReplyCancel

  • micah3.19.10 - 3:28 PM

    I love it! And thanks for the vacuum tip… is that a Dyson Animal by chance? It looks very familiar :)ReplyCancel

  • Kim3.19.10 - 3:47 PM

    Micah, it is. A Craigslist steal, that’s for sure. You wouldn’t believe how well it works for drill dust (or maybe you will!). Give it a go!ReplyCancel

  • dave3.19.10 - 5:15 PM

    Great idea on the vacuum! The boy is always thinking. A nice photo of you reaching in the Carhart bag would have been cool.ReplyCancel

  • Katie3.20.10 - 1:33 PM

    I discovered Blik.com and for a mere $45 decked out the entire wall above our bed with 99 red balloons (a song that has significance in our little world). Blik has removeable graphics that are ideal for renters and since we live in a loft, it always get noticed and talked about. I had to do the work myself, but designing your own layout is just down-right rewarding.ReplyCancel

    • Kim3.20.10 - 3:17 PM

      Katie, I’m trying to imagine 99 red balloons – would love to see a photo!ReplyCancel

  • […] folks at YellowBrickHome.com have been great customers and been generous in sharing both praise for our company and products, as […]ReplyCancel

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Kim and Scott

We’re Kim + Scott, Chicago based content creators behind the Home + Lifestyle brand Yellow Brick Home.

Join us as we renovate and nurture vintage homes across Chicago + SW Michigan!

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