As soon as I knew we were moving I was over the moon, gone were the days of living on a main road and instead we'd relocated to a quieter place. We new when we purchased the house it was the perfect size but cosmetically it needed some work so we decided before we did anything the bedroom had to be tackled.
Stripping the horrible yellow wallpaper, changing the door and getting rid of the red carpet was top of the list but all I could think about was the fact I'd finally be able to have a dressing table. I had never had a proper dressing table, I'd always bundled under a mirror or secretly used my mums but I'd never had my own.
We decided as we couldn't afford the type of furniture we'd love from Laura Ashley or Next, we opted for a a similar look with thrifty homeware company IKEA. This is their Hemnes range and we have gone for furniture in the plain white (not the stained white) as it really brightens the room up. The dressing table from the store is £190.00 but I managed to get a brand new one in its box for £150.00.
If anything I've learnt about buying a house and doing it up yourself is to shop around, if you want something cheaper you can often find it. I also managed to get the matching Hemnes chest of drawers and bedside tables of eBay for £90.00! It can be done...
Last night we decided to give a bit of flat pack furniture building a go. Armed with some cider we began our journey. It was quite late but I was eager like a school girl to get my dressing table all built and ready for use.
As you can see I haven't dressed it yet because we've still got to paint/wallpaper the walls and also get that horrible carpet changed, however I've already planned how I want it to look. I decided I didn't want to clutter it too much so will put all my needed make up items in the front drawers with the help of IKEA plastic drawers, then all my favorite bracelets, hairbands, grips etc in the other drawers. I will eventually add a set of drawers or boxes underneath the table to give me some extra storage - especially for my hairdryer and straighteners. 
As you may have spied I have a gorgeous stool under the dressing table. I needed a stool but instead of going for a plain one I decided to chose one that had a Parisian vibe to it. I know I'm aiming for a french inspired room with plenty of white french furniture everywhere, so this just fitted in perfectly. I figured because the actual table itself is quite plain, a cute and interesting stool would be just the ticket to bring the look to life. 
This stool is called Annie (not why I picked it but an added bonus) from Out There Interiors for £115.00. The stool looks really feminine and dainty, so much so I was initially worried about me sitting on it and breaking it! Rest assured it's very sturdy! Obviously you don't have to use this as a dressing table stool as it works equally as well on its own. There are other french inspired furniture like this so do make sure you have a browse.
I have the most important components to a dressing table, anything else is just accessorises and personalising the it. I have come up with some ideas which I've made into a collage below. 
Dressing Table - Ikea Hemnes Dressing Table - £190.00 Stool - Out There Interiors Mini White French Dressing Stool Annie - £115.00 Boxes - Ikea Kvarnik White Storage Boxes - £15.00 Photo Frame - Laura Ashley White Resin Ornate Scroll Frame - £18.00 Ring Holder - Urban Outfitters Love Bunnies Ring Holder - $12.00 Clock - Amara Newgate The New Ritz Clock - £25.00 Flowers - Next Romantic Roses & Peonies - £45.00 Lamp - Next Floral Globe Lamp - £125.00 Rug - Next Fine Sparkle Rug - £45.00
As I mentioned, we can't actually set up my dressing table properly as we are still due to paint and wallpaper the room. I've spied gorgeous Laura Ashley wallpaper, fantastic white photo frames from Next and various other items that will continue my theme on throughout the room.
If you think this is good... wait until you see the wardrobe my man has built from scratch for me...It's quite epic!
xoxo
