Room Swoon: Jivan’s Amagansett Bedroom

How can a room change with you as you grow? Well, we have explored this exercise in my son, Jivan Calderone’s Amagansett bedroom so let me share my experience. Jivan is 18 now but when we purchased this house he was six. This home was the very first gut renovation/interior design project that I did on my own and I can remember being so proud of the choice for Jivan’s bedroom then. It was one of those design magic moments when a chance visit to the local (and coastal) hardware store yielded all the inspiration I could have ever hoped for.

While perusing the aisles I came upon spools and spools of brightly colored marine rope (I was in Sag Harbor after all) and at that moment a lightbulb struck—I would let Jivan choose five or six different colored and varied size ropes and together, we would apply them to the wall to act as a chair rail. Now, brilliant idea, YUP—the execution? Hmmm… not really my forte. Luckily my crafty and hyper-precise husband was up for the task. Truthfully, the three of us did it together. We used a glue gun and level, then painted the bottom half of the wall a vibrant jade green and it was perfect. It was the beginning of building memories in our new beach home.

Fast forward to 15 and Jivan did not want a neon yellow, green, and blue bedroom, nor did he want a twin bed any longer. So, as much as it broke my heart, we slapped some gray paint on the walls (and, yes over the rope too!) to create a monochromatic and far more age-appropriate bedroom. Now, the bed… we really did not have the budget for a new bed so here’s what we did. We went to the local beverage center, got four wooden pallets, and boom—an instant queen bed frame. Well, kinda.

Moving on to when Jivan was 17 years old and it was time to invest in a proper bed because one, he deserved it, and two, we were living here full time now. Enter the EQ3 upholstered bed frame and headboard and the streamlined Scandinavian modernism that Jivan is so akin to. A neutral palette, minimal design, comfy bed, and as many surfboards as he can fit into his room is really all he needs. But now he’s off to college… wahhhhhhhhh!

Continuing with the rope theme (we live in Amagansett after all!) I decided to devise another crafty concoction using the humble material in Jivan’s bedroom. With so many surfboards (and limited floorspace to display them) I went back to the hardware store to source some heavy green rope (I went with the same hue as the previous room to tie the old with the new) and brass hardware. Then I rigged one of Jivan’s surfboards onto the wall where it now hangs like artwork at the end of his bed. I love it when two worlds collide to create something entirely new.

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