Kasey and her husband Matt are the creators of Turntable Kitchen, the Seattle based company (by way of San Francisco) that connects music and food. The one-two-punch power blogging couple mingles recipes with local, fresh ingredients and rich food photography with hand-selected ‘Musical Pairings’, reviews and everyday musings.
We recently teamed up with Kasey to help her convert her 1930s Tudor attic into a serene sanctuary. The result was a peaceful and quiet space to kick back and relax after a long day.
Keep reading to hear (pun intended) how she did it.
One of the things that Kasey loved most about her house was the bedroom, which is actually a converted attic. With three kids, finding peace and quiet is hard to come by, so she really wanted to make the room a space to unwind after a long day. Despite it being in the attic the room actually has “very high ceilings, windows all around, and two skylights, so it’s flooded with light, even on the dreariest of Seattle days”.
When she moved into the house, the room felt stuffy and the opposite of modern. She wanted to transform it into as space that was serene, perfect for spinning some tunes on the record player, relaxing with a book, or just catching up on the day’s events.
ESSENTIALS OF A SERENE LISTENING SPACE
The color palette/mood
“Creating a serene listening space comes down to capturing a feeling. I love bright colors, but for the master, I imagined what it would be like to lie on the bed while listened to rain softly rapping on the skylight". She painted the entire room white, matching the walls to the ceiling to make it feel more spacious and decorated with a rug and throw pillows to cozy it up.
The views
As mentioned, the room is surrounded by windows. “When we first moved in, they'd been covered the most hideous grey plastic blinds that were the biggest eye store. For months, though, I wasn’t sure what to do about them. Should we get curtains? Try cellular shades?”
BW was introduced to Kasey by mutual blogger-friend, Joanna Hawley of Jojotastic, and worked together to serve Kasey’s window covering conundrum. Kasey decided on Flat Roman Shades in Oyster with blackout lining to both mellow the sun’s midday flood and insulate the sweet sounds spinning from the turntable.
The setup
In the master, unlike her living room, she has a pretty minimalist turntable setup. She moved her Gramovox upstairs and grab 3-4 records from their downstairs collection to throw on. “Years ago, when Matt and I went to the Ace Hotel in Palm Springs, we stayed in a room with a turntable and a few records. I’m usually a go go go kind of person so it was an unusual vacation for me to just lounge, but it was amazing. I had always wanted to capture the feeling of ease I felt on that vacation, and this setup is definitely it.
The plant life
“Before I became a homeowner, I was really ambivalent towards plants. But my plant appreciation has really gone through the roof in the last couple of years. I’ve become mildly obsessed with not only outdoor, but indoor plants, especially after reading how good they are for the air inside your home.” Kasey brought plants into her bedroom to add life, beauty, and serenity. And if you’re curious, that Monstera leaf plants will grow wildly out of control without much maintenance. Bonus: occasionally trim the leaves and display them in vases around your home.
The scents
“I find that scents can evoke a really powerful emotion and memories, and I have an uncontrollable habit of accumulating candles. Depending on the mood I’m trying to create, I typically opt for woodsy scents (particularly in the winter), or ones that bring me back to memories of living in California (like eucalyptus!)".
