reading nook

We have a nice little corner/area in our bedroom that has not had a lot of attention, it was OK but not pretty. So I gave it some love and now it looks like it belongs! It has become the prefect place to read or hang out away from the activities of the rest of the house:

A book, a drink and a snack... Originally we put a desk and a computer there for Brick Master to do his homework and play so we could keep an eye on him. But soon he ended up spending a lot of his evenings there.... so we moved the desk and computer to his room instead. In his school, all homework in done on line, convenient and inconvenient at the same time.

Anyway back to this neglected area, with its large window,  white access panel to the bathroom pipes (behind the light), naked walls and closet doors..... The first thing was to cover the access panel by painting it the color of the wall, it took 10 minutes and right away, it looked so much better, I wonder why I took me so long to do it!

(barely visible behind the frame and the quilt rack!)
Next I added a huge frame to hang dome pictures and mementoes. I reused the frame I made a few years ago for the AG doll advent calendar. It had a nice Christmas fabric background that I removed, then I recovered the back with a cool French script linen. Switching the background fabric totally changed the look  and feel of the frame. The print is perfect for the red leather recliner. Finally for the window, I made a simple valence, using a left over panel from our curtains. I purchased them last year from IKEA. Our double back window is so large then I used 3 panels  instead of 2 (4 would have been too much!)

So I cut into that extra panel to make a valence to the opposite window, in that little area. I kept it very simple with 2 pieces of curtain (about 24 ") sewed together to make an extra long rectangle,  then I sewed that rectangle to the same length of blackout lining, folded and ironed the seam off center, so that there is about 1 inch of print on the back. Then I stitched the 2 sides. I created a kick pleat to hide the seam of the print, and add some interest. I stapled the fabric to a 1 x 2 piece of pine board  (a little longer than my window) on the unfinished side, and covered the rough area with a ribbon. I attached 2 small but strong L brackets on the wall, then the 1 x 2 was attached to these brackets, and voila, the perfect valence! It really dressed up the area, making it feel like part of the room. (I had pictures of the all process but they were magically deleted, major frustration!)

Now it totally belongs in the room, it is pretty and useful and functional, it is about as good as it gets in this house!

Now you will have to excuse me,

there is a book waiting for me....

Happy day!
Sharing at the creative circle link party