Love green and white? Need bedroom decorating inspiration? Looking to give your sleeping quarters a spring makeover? I have a great budget bedroom to share with you today that decor8 reader Marlise Kast-Myers wants to share with you. She wrote in from San Diego to tell me about her recent decorating project -- her five bedroom home! When you think about decorating such a large space, you instantly imagine investing thousands of dollars and going wayyyy outside of your budget, don't you? Think again...

Marlise was determined to stay within budget so she was smart about it -- she did a lot of her own work alongside her husband, graphic designer Benjamin Myers. Together, they installed floors from Lumber Liquidators, made their own light fixtures, Benjamin made the framed art and the work above the bed. They also handcrafted their bed frame and headboard and sourced for furniture at antique/vintage shops and craigslist. For a personal touch, because every room decorated from scratch needs a few items that connect you with cherish people or memories, Marlise incorporated a special trunk given to her by her parents to serve as both functional and beautiful storage. The entire renovation of their five-bedroom home was under $4,000 and their bedroom was less than half of that!

Going for a vintage modern vibe, Marlise explains her jumping off point for her bedroom, "Our inspiration came from the boutique hotels we have visited around the world. Ben is naturally artistic so sometimes it is difficult for me to see his vision until it all comes together. I sort of go along for the ride! He loves the clean fresh look of white with only a splash of one other soft color so we tried to keep the room somewhat minimal so that the design could speak for itself." It's not surprise that Marlise has stayed in a lot of hotels -- she has co-authored several travel books including many Fodor’s guides!

One her favorite pieces in the room is the mint green metal steamer trunk that carried her grandparent's belongings when they migrated from Africa to the United States, you can see a peek of it above. I love the patina. The antique tiered dresser is gorgeous too and I like how they cleverly used vintage printing press drawers as statement art over their bed. Her husband is a fan of green so he opted to paint some of the squares in the drawers in green to tie in with the trunk. An old metal fan, other shabby worn trunks with handwriting on them in black ink, sheep skins from IKEA, candles, and soft flowing drapes give the room a warm, tactile feeling. The various tones of white that are used range from pure white to cream so the room is not at all stark but warm and inviting. This budget bedroom looks lovely and proves that you don't have to sacrifice style to stay within your budget. Beautiful!

(Images: dna wylie photography)