$200 Teen Bedroom Makeover: Maximize Space
So you’re wondering how to decorate your teen daughter’s bedroom and make it both age-appropriate and something she’ll like?
Or need some decorating ideas for a small bedroom your teen no longer loves? I am here to help with your teen room decorating issues!
I’m going to share the before and after of a budget-friendly teen girl’s bedroom, where I took the painted walls from Pepto-Bismol pink, to a new soothing color palette and maximized space of a small bedroom
This post is a paid collaboration with Lowe’s Home Improvement. All content and opinions are my own 🙂
Contains hand selected products, with affiliate marketing links where I may earn a small commission if a purchase is made. {full disclosure here}
What we will cover:
- Why you shouldn’t let your kids pick their paint colors – ever!
- How to maximize bedroom space for your teenager’s needs.
- What areas are critical for storage, studying, and getting ready.
- Decorating upgrades to invest in from little girl to teenager.
Don’t Let Your Children Pick Paint Colors
If we are meeting for the first time, I’m a paint color expert and share my go-to picks on this website. So I definitely have strong opinions around paint colors LOL.
I know you want to support your daughter’s self-expression. I’m a fan! But I’m not a fan of putting the exact paint color they choose from the store on their walls. Hear me out 🙂
If you send a young child up to the paint chip rack, they are going to immediately go for the BRIGHT hues of paint colors.
Why? Because they are influenced by crayons and markers that are pure and deeply saturated colors. NOT good color choices for walls in a kids’ bedroom or even a teenager’s bedroom.
Let the shade of color they pick: pink, blue, green or purple be your guide. Then find a more muted and lighter hue of that same color for the walls. You’ll thank me later (download my paint colors here).
Teenage Bedroom Ideas and Ambiance
Taking your little girl room to a teen bedroom will require re-thinking the space. You need to think about how she will be using the space and her tastes.
Plus think about the room feel, if she needs a space for studying, relaxing, dressing, and hanging out
Some areas to invest in when decorating a teen’s room are:
- Small desk for studying and creativity
- Reading and hang-out space
- Smart storage solutions
- Glam area for getting ready
- More sophisticated accessories and textiles
You want to add a level of sophistication that wasn’t necessary in a small child’s room. Plus give her privacy and a space to hang out with her friends.
These are all of the goals I had when making over this teen’s bedroom.
How-to Design a Teen Girl Bedroom
Let’s start with the before pictures of the teen bedroom that I was begged to makeover. She’d chosen the Pepto-Bismol pink walls when she was 4.
The room felt cramped and over crowded and didn’t reflect her personal style. She frankly didn’t like to hang out in her own room.
It was time to update her space to reflect her love of seashells and the beach and ditch the bright pink.
Teen Bedroom Room Ideas
- Paint the walls a new color.
- Clear out the clutter.
- Maximize the space by rearranging the furniture.
- Create a study area.
- Create a dressing area.
- Ditch the bright colors for more calming ones.
- Update to grown-up bedding.
- Change out the ceiling light fixture.
- Bring more natural light into the room.
To keep this makeover affordable, my goal was to use the furniture she had. Plus clear the clutter and get her stuff organized.
Don’t make this mistake arranging furniture in a small bedroom:
- Putting the largest furniture on the smallest wall.
- Using the smallest furniture on the largest wall.
That’s exactly what her parents did when they set up her room.
The other odd thing in the room is her dad put the raised bed in the middle of the wall. It left a dumping ground for stuff and took up space we could use.
Teen Girl Bedroom Budget and Supplies
To spend as little as possible and get a high-end look for less, I leaned on paint for the biggest impact.
Plus designed the bedding myself (my Christmas gift) and used the furniture in the room. I invested in a new ceiling light because that “boob” light HAD to go!
Then dug in my attic for artwork to add to the room, until she finds something she loves.
$200 Budget: Makeover Supplies
- 1 Gallon Valspar Signature Paint
- Color Sample: HGTV Home by Sherwin Williams Upward
- Allen + Roth Faceted LED ceiling light
- Valspar Walls, Ceilings Trim 6 Piece Paint Roller Kit
- 2 Cans Krylon Fusion Gold Metallic Spray Paint
- Labor: FREE 🙂
Teen Girl Bedroom Makeover Reveal
It’s surprising what a new paint color, bedding, and furniture layout can do to improve a small bedroom! As a reminder here are the before pictures, for perspective.
By pushing the bed back into the corner, it allowed space for her desk on the same wall. It’s now easier for her to roll her desk chair.
Now the dresser is on the large wall, which makes this area look neat and tidy right when you walk in. I LOVE the new ceiling light and how it sparkles in the sun.
We are still looking for the perfect wall art, so for the pictures I used some artwork from my attic – that’s why it isn’t hung 🙂 Teenagers have STRONG opinions about what they like, right?
Yes! That is the same mirror which I spray painted gold and wow what a difference it makes in the room.
By placing it across from the windows, it now reflects light around the room, which is critical for a bedroom that doesn’t get much natural light.
With the new furniture layout and moving the dresser to the other wall, she can now open and close both closet doors and has the perfect dressing and glam area to get ready.
Shop Teen study area and Storage
Fortunately, the furniture in the room was PERFECT for the blue walls. The white with gold hardware now pops in the space.
The raised bed is ideal for storing everything she has. LOTS of decluttering was done before we put everything back into the room.
Now it is neat and organized, so she’ll be motivated to keep it that way. Every space is defined and easier to use plus clean up.
The soft neutral rug is great for hanging out with friends or even for a sleeping bag sleepover.
shop neutral rugs
Shop Wall Art
This teen bedroom is now more sophisticated and grown up. More importantly it feels calming now that the walls are a pale blue.
Plus maximizing the space with a new furniture layout and defining “zones” in the room makes it feel more open too.
The best reward was when I found her on “reveal day” hanging out on the floor studying and listening to music 🙂
The next day her older teen sister exclaimed “Tracey, you fixed her bedroom! I didn’t think it was possible.” That made me smile.
Shop the Look: Teenage Girl Bedroom
Inspiration and ideas from artwork (wall art), ceiling lights, throw pillows, desk light, and storage for your room design.
I hope you found inspiration in seeing what a new wall color, a few new accessories, and furniture layout can do to completely makeover a teen bedroom.
