Guest Bedroom Reveal and Macy’s Global Goods Campaign

For this post, I received product from Macy’s via Everywhere Agency; however, all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

When decorating our guest bedroom, I wanted more than anything else, for it to be a place that felt welcoming and warm. Somewhere where anyone who stayed with us, whether overnight or for a long time would know that the welcome never wears off in our house and that they can be themselves here. Before even buying our home, Brandon and I had talked about how we wanted to have guest and friends stay with us as much as possible, and I wanted people to feel that in this room. Growing up, we both had big families and had extended family come to visit regularly, and there are no better memories with cousins or friends than those of staying up late, sitting around talking and laughing together. We each plenty of friends or siblings friends who stayed over at our homes often enough that they had laundry piles (mostly my brother who used to sleep at Brandon’s house all the time as a kid), and cousins who stayed for months, or years, and we wanted our family to know that they are always welcome here.

My main request when planning furniture for this room, knowing full well that a guest bedroom would not be on the top of our priority list when we moved in last year, but still wanting it to be nice, was that I really wanted either a queen sized bed or a futon that would fold out into a full/queen bed. Most of our siblings are married and I wanted them to have somewhere to stay and not sleep on the floor if we could avoid it. I already knew we were super blessed to even afford a first home, and on top of that, one that had a guest bedroom so I knew I was pushing my luck, but as it worked out, a few weeks after moving in, my brother got a bigger bed and we inherited their old set, including all of the rails. Unfortunately they were missing all the casters off the bottom so it sat really low, but just a few of those bed risers from the store, and it was not only a great height for guest, but it was tall enough to store a bunch of boxes of random stuff I couldn’t place yet and a pack and play for our guest who have babies.

The beautiful throw that is on the bed, holds a lot of meaning. When I see it it reminds me of that same desire we had to welcome our home to others, to serve others and always be open to anyone in need. It comes from Macy’s Global Goods line (which in online exclusive), which is a line of products crafted by artist around the world, artist in need of opportunities and it encourages them to preserve their heritage and history while making a better life for themselves. Their wool blankets, like this one, are made in Bolivia, the poorest country in South America, with almost half of the population being under the poverty line. The Global Goods campaign allows people in native villages to work where they are from, weaving using the same techniques passed down through generations and allows them to stay where their families are, rather than migrating to find work. Over 200 people work on this blanket initiative alone. It’s an amazing project and Macy’s carries all of the products made around the world, as “gifts that give hope.” It is so heart-warming and inspiring to think of the good that it does, and I am reminded of it when I see it in my guest room, the room in my home that reminds me to open my doors and share some of what I have been so blessed with. Like I’ve said before, I want my home to be a collected, not decorated, and to be collected with things that have meaning to me, such as this blanket. It doesn’t hurt that the blanket is absolutely gorgeous. The hand weaving and stitching is beyond beautiful, I can’t even imagine making something that beautiful with my own hands. It would also make a beautiful gift for someone you know who is always giving to others.

Speaking of making things with my own hands, on the wall next to the bed, is a replica antique tobacco basket, that isn’t nearly as beautiful as the baskets made in the Global Goods campaign, but I love it because I made it. I had seen so many beautiful ones in antique shops and on blogs and decided to try my hand at making one myself, it has a little tweaking left to fix, but I love it. (P.S. I stapled it to the wall. I wasn’t sure how to hang it and it’s really light weight, so I just went for it. Don’t tell).

I try to keep lots of pillows on the bed in here, even though my kids frequently come and steal them for forts or claim them as more pillows for their own beds. A lot of our friends and families have lots of little ones who come with, and the one thing there never seems to be enough of is pillows. We’re always running out, so I pick up a few when I remember to and pilling them on every bed, just in case and hope that it works out.

I bought this cotton wreath last year when we moved in and just never have found the perfect place for it. I brought it to the guest bedroom to see if I could find somewhere to hang it, set it on the bed, and when I walked back in, I loved the way it looked against the pillows. Nothing says “Welcome to the South” like a wreath of cotton bolls.

The clock on the wall behind the bed is another hand-made item. This one was a Christmas gift from my Brother-in-law and his wife, so we love it of course. I love the way the warm wood pops agaisnt the gray color. Speaking of the which, I wish that I could share with you what paint color is because it is the first gray I have found that I love but it was really just the product of me dumping a couple cans of leftover paint into a can of what I thought was white but turned out to be slightly pink paint until I got a color I liked! One day I’ll take a sample of it to the home store to get it color matched so I can tell yall! I like it so much, I’ve been considering painting our bedroom the same color.

I hope you love our guest bedroom and that it gives you that feel of being welcome and relaxed. Don’t forget to head to Macys Global Goods to find that beautiful throw blanket and other beautiful products that give back to the world while making your home a more beautiful place!