My Sister’s Colorful Apartment Refresh

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My sister’s colorful apartment refresh, will give you some quick and simple tricks for any home refresh or renter solution. Full of perfect thrifts and links to new buys.

This is Megan.

If you didnt know this already, this is my sister Megan. We are exactly 3 years and 2 months apart. As you can already see she is a very colorful person, well not only colorful but very vibrant too. Which is why I knew I had to share my sister’s colorful apartment refresh.

My sister works as a X-ray Technologist at her local hospital in Northern Alberta. Working in a hospital can be kind of dreary, always dealing with people that are hurt or uncomfortable and really just don’t want to be there. I don’t know about you but I have always the thought that wearing scrubs would be fun because they are so comfy and they always have cool patterns. But my sister has taken her day to day life, wearing scrubs, to the next level.

A few years ago she decided to share her passion for “Scrub Fashion” on instagram, sharing her go to combonations and fashion knowledge on a different level. Her passion shined so bright she was able to become a brand ambassador for koi scrubs, and was just featured in their fall 2021 catalog.

She has now dubbed herself a “Scrub Stylist” showcasing creative ways to think outside of the box with scrubs. Whether she is showcasing a monochromatic look or a mix of solid colors you wouldn’t normally mix, you will generally get a good chuckle from her captions. She is also most known for her scrub costumes during Halloween. She shows you how you can style scrubs for the perfect holiday allowing you to bring a little bit cheer to person that might otherwise be having a bad day.

Lets get to the good stuff

Now that you know a little about Megan, lets get to why you’re likely here, her colorful apartment refresh.

We moved her into her apartment 6 years ago from Southern Alberta. It was quick. We set her up with things from home, much like any first apartment, it was a little of this and a little of that. Being in a small town didn’t help nor did not wanting driving to the big city. Which left her with a pretty boring apartment that didn’t reflect who she was. I went to visit her in February with my parents for the first time since we moved her there. I knew right away we needed to make her space feel like a home. She still had all the vibes of her room growing up and we needed to take it into adulthood.

So we had made plans for me to come back at the end of May and we would finally get her space to reflect her. We had already been collecting things for her apartment knowing we needed to do a facelift. She purchased a few things on my local buy and sell groups and we made a few trips to Home Sense, Winners and Ikea. I packed my van full to the brim and I set out on my very long drive to see her.

Bringing her space to life was a little of a challenge her style is slightly eclectic meets glam. I definitely lean boho in my designing, so it was hard to not take the ecletic flare and add in some boho vibes. We were also struggling with all the color not to cross the line between childish and adult. I think we were able to bring her rooms to a really good space. When I left I felt like she finally felt at home.

Bedroom

One of the first pieces she got was this headboard. It was essentially the piece to set up the whole look and feel of her room. She snagged it on my local buy sell group which either myself or my dad had to go pick up. That generally the case for most things she purchased used. This headboard had so much potential it was calling to us to be a bright. color. This coral color turned out so pretty. Although it caused problems later for us when we were looking for a comforter for her bed. It came off a little orange which made it hard to match. Which is generally why I always recommend picking fabric and then paint.

Anywho – we decided to use Fusion Mineral Paint which we picked up at a local boutique. And let me tell you this paint is a game changer! I have worked with chalk paint in the past but it could be a little finicky and you had to wax it and it had a few steps. But this Fusion Mineral Paint is amazing. You don’t have to sand and you don’t need a top coat. It made the project so easy and seamless. After this project I totally painted the front door it was that awesome. I am planning to do a blog for an upcoming project using it, so stay tuned.

It took us so long to figure out what bedding would work with that dang headboard! Finally Megan found this tropical fruity duvet that had all the right colors with enough vibrancy.

She had these beautiful painting she got from a trip to New Orleans a few years ago that went so perfectly with her space and added that extra hint of personalization.

The lamps were from Winners and they came with a plain white shade. We noticed that because of the clear base and white shade it was doing nothing for the space so I had the brilliant idea to wrap the extra duvet pillow cases around. I only attached the with bobby pins for the pictures because we didn’t have time to hot glue them on. But what a quick and fun way to add even more color to your space.

Alternate Bedding 1 – Alternate Bedding 2 – Yellow Pillow Cases

Living Room

Would you believe me if I told you Megan had been using an air matress as a couch for the last year? Well she could probably write a review on air matresses because she went through a few. This was what ignited the first trip back in February. My Dad being an upholsterer had these darling dusty rose french provincial couch and chair that actually Megan originally found online. She currently is waiting for a vintage sectional to be covered in a hot pink velvet but the shop has been busy, that project has gone on the back burner. But you know what? These couches might not be hot pink but they certainly look great in this space.

This area was one of the spaces that needed the most overhaul. The before picture was from when we first moved her in but what you don’t see is that there was a desk overflowing during the in-between. So to spare that view I decided to leave that out. The desk was not giving Megan any place to actually store/ put things away. Things only went on top of or around the desk. Which I am sure most of you have been there. She needed an area that would be a catch all but also hide paper supplies and board games. We scoured ikea left and right, but a friend of her was moving as selling one of the ikea peices we were considering. So that worked out perfect.

Also I need to toot my own horn because these mirrors were originally hung by me, using a remote as a measuring tool. They were so perfectly placed the first time that we didn’t even have to adjust them. We also had thought of using one big circular mirror and plus a few other styles – if I am being honest. But we went back to the OG look because it just worked. We wanted to incorporate more mirrors into her space to add more light and make the space brighter. Which I think we achieved.

Sideboard – Glass Cactus

From cubes to an actual entertainment system. Really there are no words. Megan has actually had the console for a while but I took it into my own hands to style/stage her shelves a little bit. I worked in odd number, grouping pieces together. When there was more stuff then shelving I hid some of the items behind other items so they were still there if she needed it but created the illusion of less clutter.

Trailing Plant – TV Console – Bookcases – Frames – Posters – Rug

The end of the colorful apartment refresh.

Well if you’ve made it this far thanks so much for checking out my sister;s colorful apartment refresh and reading along. We had so much fun doing this, it was such a fun weekend and hopefully I can go back for another visit soon. What was your favourite part about the refresh? Comment below.