Intro Post: Orlando’s Master Bedroom

Hey everyone! It’s me, Orlando! You may remember from when I was Emily’s fake TV assistant years ago. Or from that time I lived with my parents as a joke and then seriously considered just living with them forever because it was so fun (that’s right now FYI). As you know, my life is currently insane and I’m finishing up a book (it’s out next year, PLEASE BUY IT!). Simultaneous to the 8 million photo shoots I had to do for this book, I’ve also been putting finishing touches on my new apartment (which I’m out of until I finish the book at the end of the month, at which point I’ll begrudgingly leave my parents’ house in Sonoma County to return to my dumb ol’ life in LA even though I don’t want to AND YOU CAN’T MAKE ME). As you’ve probably guessed, I’m already done making over this master bedroom, but I wanted to share a bit of my process with you and get you ready for the final reveal next week.

As a reminder, my new place is a cute French Provincial style building in West Hollywood and I moved there after my boyfriend dumped me and I had to move out of the condo I designed for him (YAY!). My new building is cute and comfortable and I like it there. My latest pipe dream/life goal is to move abroad, so I’ll probably stay in this apartment until I figure out my next step. Which will hopefully be to move to Barcelona and fall in love with a guy named Pablo who plays guitars and will hand feed me tapas. Do you think one tapa is just called a “tapa”? I’d google it but I’m too busy writing about it. I think it would be cool to go to a restaurant and just be like “I’m not that hungry I’ll just take one tapa please.” WHY AM I TALKING ABOUT THIS?

Anyway, the apartment was a huge mess when I moved in that only a self-hating designer would have ever chosen. That’s because designers look at spaces and go “I COULD DO SO MUCH TO MAKE THIS AMAZE!” Even though it looked like an actual drug den when I arrived. So needless to say this has been a fun and exciting journey. AND NOW IT’S DONE.

Previous to my moving in, the apartment was all a peachy beige color. I’m actually a cardholding member of Team Beige and I think it’s gonna make a comeback, so don’t get me wrong. But I don’t understand why people think that beige is a neutral color to paint interiors and exteriors. Like every apartment I looked at was painted beige. I think black and white are both neutral, but beige is a statement. It can be a good statement or a bad statement, but it’s definitely got personality and not necessarily the best color to paint something you’re trying to rent out to people with varying taste and beige tolerance.

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Don’t let this sneak peak destroy the drama of the final reveal next week, but I already painted the bedroom this AMAZING color of pink. It’s just warm enough to feel gorgeous and welcoming, just cool enough not to feel like you’re living inside a giant glass of hot orange juice.

The color is “Yours Truly” by Benjamin Moore. Why’d a grown man paint his bedroom pink, you ask? Well, I’ll tell you. Mostly because I thought it would scare off any potential suitors who have too many hang ups/insecurities about their masculinity. Pink is an amazing color and it’s for everyone. But it’s still kinda weird for a guy to wear pink or to live in a pink space. We’re never gonna achieve true equality if we hold on to these dumb ideas about what it’s okay for women and men to do/have. So there you have it America. I just solved gender inequality and homophobia by painting by bedroom pink. YOU’RE WELCOME AND SO CAN YOU!

As I said before, I love beige. So I wanted to counterbalance the frivolity of the wall color with a bunch of calming beiges, ivories, and whites. A lot of people are afraid to mix white and ivory but I love it. The crispness of white next to the milky warmth of ivory. It makes me wanna transport myself to ye olden days and ask my Mama for a nice refreshing glass of warm milk. Or rather, I’d make my Papa get it. GENDER EQUALITY!

I have been DYING to paint a room pink for LITERALLY years. I just love pale pink as a wall color. But no client has ever gone for it. It’s always too much for them because they are babies who are no fun. Why are my clients so mean to me? I have no idea! But I decided to finally take matters into my own hands and paint my room a color I’d been dying to try forever!

Another thing I’ve been wanting to try is this total bargain light fixture. It’s such a good price and looks GREAT in person. As any designer will tell you, adding a variety of materials to a room adds to the sense of texture and richness, so I love that I got to incorporate a little woven bamboo into the design plan.

In order to keep the room from feeling like it was getting too much like the set of a 2010 Katy Perry music video, I added some MASC4MASC roman shades, in classic grey to butch things up. Grey and pale pink are one of my fave color combos. They’re seriously one of the hottest couples in Hollywood right now.

I love anything that has a face, so I’m incorporating a ton of happy accessories into the mix. Above are Paintings by Hey Sosi, Pillow from Urban Outfitters, Eyeball Planter from Curated Living, Coil Sculpture by Ben Medansky, Smiley Pot by Jen Kuroki, Cut Out Fat Guy from Art on Block.

I have been obsessing over this Egg Collective x DWR dresser for ages, so I added that in for some extra storage and some EXTRA FLAVOR. Plus, with the wood/marble combo I’m bringing in two more colors/textures. DOUBLE WIN!

I’m incorporating a lot of the pieces I’ve used previously in Orcondo into the new place. This includes the cute lamps and Japanese screen I had in the guest bedroom. New additions include: Spear & Stem Lamp from West Elm, Bamboo Pendant from Ikea, White Ceramic Lamp from West Elm.

The goal with the master bedroom is to create a classic-meets-modern space that balances feminine and masculine energy and feels warm and inviting. The space has a lot of great details to highlight and was just screaming for some help when I moved in.

WILL I BE ABLE TO TAKE THIS SPACE FROM BEIGE TO MAJE?

WILL I SCARE AWAY ALL FUTURE BOYFRIENDS BY PAINTING MY BEDROOM THE COLOR OF A BARBIE CAR?

WILL I EVER LEAVE MY PARENTS HOUSE EVER AGAIN?

Find the answers to these questions for the second installment AND FINAL REVEAL OF MY MASTER BEDROOM on Monday!

AHHHHHHH!