A Kid’s Room Renovation for ScaryMommy

If you have children of your own, you’ll likely agree that parenthood isn’t always easy. Besides all the responsibilities of being a mom or dad, you need to keep them happy.

Paintzen recently connected with Jill Smokler, creator and founder of the blog ScaryMommy. Jill created ScaryMommy ten years ago when she felt she was “drowning” in small children. “Back then, I couldn’t find other sites that I felt reflected the truth about motherhood. At least the way I experienced it,” said Jill. “I began looking at my growing community as my virtual village. The people made things easier, more fun, and not nearly as scary.” Over the years, Jill built the blog by adding contributors and crafting highly shareable content to help other moms. Today, ScaryMommy reaches tens of millions of moms every month – but has always been able to maintain that same “imperfect and authentic voice.”

Scary Moving

Jill used Paintzen to help her on a home design project. “My kids and I recently moved into a new house, which wasn’t the easiest transition,” Jill told us. “We’re still months away from having a completed kitchen, more than one bathroom, and a dining room. But I wanted the kids to have their bedrooms feeling like home. It proved to be wise planning. When they get frustrated by the lack of a working kitchen or having to share a bathroom, they get to retreat to their bedrooms.”

featured project scary mommy before

The Project

Paintzen worked on repainting the bedroom of Jill’s 14-year old daughter, Lily. “Trying to please a 14-year-old is pretty close to impossible,” she said of the planning process. Lily, however, always had a sense of what she wanted; “[She] loved the idea of some accent wall, but didn’t want any bright or strong colors.” After some further research, Lily came across a picture of a marble wall and knew it was what she wanted. Jill found some wallpaper that Lily approved of, and Paintzen sent a wallpaper installation crew to hang the chosen wallpaper.

Paintzen’s professional painters also painted other areas in Jill’s home and identified a few areas where some additional prep was needed. It’s often tough to know what basic prep work is, and what needs professional help. Jill shared, “Turns out my definition of “paint ready” and a professional’s definition isn’t quite the same – whoops! There was quite a bit of patching, sanding, and priming that I didn’t know about. In the end, it only added a couple of days to the project, and that’s one mistake I’ll never make again.”

The Finished Product

featured project scary mommy bedroom

In case you’re wondering how Lily felt about her new room, you’re not alone. The Paintzen team was very concerned with making sure she was pleased in the new space. Thankfully, Jill told us we were in the clear. “Lily loved the marble wall from the start… it was everything after the wall that was the issue. She wanted pink accents, but not too pink; some gold and silver but not too much gold and silver. After six comforters, over a dozen pillows and three light fixtures, it’s finally finished. I’d describe the look as “Fem-Zen” or, better yet, “Hallelujah, She’s Freaking Happy!”’

A Happy Space

Finally, we asked Jill about her experience. Being a full-time mom and running a full blog and website is no easy job. We wanted to make sure that we helped make the home painting process a little bit easier. “I’m at a point in my life where I want things to be as easy and convenient as humanly possible. I grocery shop online, pay my bills online, and pretty much avoid running errands at all costs. So Paintzen was perfect for me. I was able to do everything I needed from the comfort of my couch. And in a few days, we had a transformed room. Can’t beat that!”

We at Paintzen had such a great time working with Jill, and we’re so thrilled that both she and Lily were happy with the final product! Parents, be sure to check out ScaryMommy, and follow Jill on Instagram here!

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