In this makeover, I’m back in Annie’s bedroom—aka the quintessential millennial gray white box of no one’s dreams—and I’m turning it into a warm, vintage-inspired retreat with real character. We had a limited budget and basically a month to plan, so I leaned hard into my favorite formula: thrifted and secondhand finds, a few affordable DIY upgrades, and a couple of strategic new pieces that make the whole room feel curated. We started with paint (because the walls were making the room feel weirdly dark even with big windows) and landed on Behr Painter’s Canvas, a creamy white with a yellow undertone that plays so nicely with warm woods and the red rug/dresser we had to keep. The big impact move was adding faux craftsman-style wainscoting using bamboo pole wrap stained in a honey tone—this brought in warmth and that “storied” feel without spending $1,000+ on real wood. I also tackled the mirrored closet doors (creepy at night, sorry) with reeded glass film, swapped dresser knobs to get away from the “giving IKEA” vibe, and built out a true dressing zone with a secondhand full-length mirror and a rug. Then I layered in cozy lighting, better bedding, and smart storage (hello, bench) so the room works for their growing family and feels like them.