I. Introduction
It’s no secret we’re obsessed with the movie Wicked. I was late to the party and hadn’t seen the musical until a few years ago. Instantly, I became obsessed with the story, and I assumed that’s where my obsession would stay. Then the movie came out, and my mind was BLOWN. The cast, the set, the costumes… it is all PERFECTION.
I renovated Kate’s room not long after moving in, all centering around my favorite DIY rainbow headboard. I loved that room and will link the blog post here, but Kate has grown up way too fast and now wants a room with older vibes.
If you’re here for links, most of what I bought is from Amazon and linked in this list here. The Etsy finds are linked below in the source list section!
II. Inspiration
When doing my research, I realized that an interactive website exists where you can basically tour the dorm room from the movie set.
Here is that website… It’s so much fun to explore!
Here are the elements I want to carry over into our bedroom makeover:
- Chair rail trim with arches and fluting – blue gilding wax and floral stencils in the mix
- Large luggage resembling vintage steamer trunks
- Hand painted florals and vines above the chair rail
- 3D florals on contrasting door and inside some arches
- As much pink and as many florals as possible in all of the above
III. The Build: Step-By-Step Breakdown
1. The Loft Bed
The first step was building a loft bed to give myself more floor space for the rest of the design. The space I’m working with is much smaller than the movie, so using vertical space is a must.
I did a basic frame with 2×6 boards, drilled into studs. I held up the non-wall sides with 4×4’s… Technically two 2×4 boards glued together because the 4×4’s were so ugly. I then wrapped the whole thing in select boards and decorative trim.
2. The Arched Chair Rail
I could have cut all the arches myself, but I had worn myself out cutting arches during my last project. I found mdf arch boards on Amazon (linked in Amazon list at the top and below) that were reasonably priced.
The MDF boards are thin and tall. I cut down the arch portion to fit the space, and I used the long pieces behind the arches to bump them out to make them a little thicker. This left a bit of a gap around the arch, so I used a thin piece of shoe moulding to cover that up. Doubling up on the MDF pieces made them almost flush with the fluted door casing which was perfect for wrapping with the little picture moulding.
3. Arched Window Nook
This asymmetrical window nook never really made sense to me, so this seemed like the perfect place to add another arch element.
Again, I could have built my own arch at the opening with plywood and 2×4’s like I did in our dining room. However, this 3D custom arch set was so easy and worth every penny, in my opinion. I glued it to the frame that I built, and then used joint compound and Retique-It over top.
4. Wrapped “Luggage”
I’m in love with every single element in this room, but I think I had the most fun creating the “luggage”. I chose furniture pieces that I liked the shape of, and then I wrapped them in faux leather and crushed velvet contact paper.
I wanted to use a shoe cabinet to make the shoe display easier, but none of them folded down as far as the one in the movie. I had these IKEA bookcases on hand, so I hacked them into a shoe display by putting the shelves on hinges along with a chain.
Faux leather peel-and-stick strips made the leather detail easy. Hammering in the fabric tacks took forever but made such a big impact.
5. Stenciled Florals
I am definitely not an artist, but using these stencils made me feel like one. It took awhile to place the first group of stencils. After that, I realized that the whimsical, random placement looked just as great, so I stopped overthinking it.
To give the florals/vines a hand-painted feel, I layered four different colors to add dimension. A light green over everything, a darker green over top as an accent. Then two shades of pink for the rose buds.
I also added some stenciled flowers on top of the “wood” portion of the room. I used a moody blue for those stencils, with light yellow accents.
6. 3D Florals
I LOVED the 3D floral elements in the room, so I tried to recreate some of them. I made a bunch of epoxy florals myself, and I also purchased some larger flex moulding florals from Etsy. (Those florals are linked below)
I painted the flowers and closet door with Retique It as well, and then I stained both black. I used hot glue to attach the flowers to the door, thinking there won’t be any damage when we take them down someday. I think I’m going to eventually add a little gold rub-n-buff to the edges of the flowers as well.
IV. Full Source List: Supplies and Products
I felt like this makeover took me way too long, but now that I’m pulling together all of the info, I’m impressed it didn’t take me even longer!
Most of the materials and accessories in the room are from Amazon, including all the Retique-It products and MDF arches used on the walls. I will link the list here…
**The MDF arches are pretty thin. I only used the top/arched piece, cut to the size I needed. Then used the leftover pieces to double the thickness by adding a layer behind. (pictured below)
**The arch kit in the Amazon list is a more affordable option if you can get those dimensions to work. If the space requires custom sizing, the Etsy kit I used is linked below
I bought the xl stencils, custom arch kit, and some 3d florals off Etsy , so those are linked here…
Vine Wall Stencils from Etsy (I bought size 16.5 x 24)
Corner Floral Stencil from Etsy (I bought size 16.5 x 24)
Second Etsy Store for 3D Florals
Pottery Barn Teen has a whole line of products as part of a Wicked collaboration. I’m obsessed with all the pieces but only bought the pouf for the desk chair. Here is the link to the full collection.
V. Final Reveal
The window nook was probably the biggest risk that I took in this room, and it’s definitely my favorite part. I’m shocked at how well the Retique It worked. It genuinely looks like I stained real wood all over the room.
I made sure to get the correct type of florals for the desk, the flower that Galinda puts behind Elphaba’s ear at the end of “Popular”. I didn’t have a ton of surfaces to work with, so I included a photo of poppies instead of actual flowers.
Kate didn’t understand why I added the umbrellas/parasols, but they’re all over the Shiz dorm room, soooo…
I kind of wish that I had added even more floral stencils and 3d florals in the arched chair rail, but I can still do that someday! So much easier to add than take away 100%.
I honestly want this room for myself.
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