Cave Creek teenager gets a room makeover

On a recent Friday afternoon, 16-year-old Kelsey Kimer was greeted at her Cave Creek home by a group of more than a dozen interior designers and design students.

On a recent Friday afternoon, 16-year-old Kelsey Kimer was greeted at her Cave Creek home by a group of more than a dozen interior designers and design students.

The students were gathered outside the small ranch house on a horse farm that’s reachable only by a dusty unpaved road. They had been working since the early morning hours to finish a project to design the perfect bedroom for Kelsey while she was away at school. Everyone was excited to see the results (video).

Kelsey plopped down in a lawn chair among the students, petting her dog and being filled in on the details of the day.

“All I’m thinking now is that I really want to see my room,” she says. “I want to see how it looks out of the drawing.”

It was a busy week for the teenager. People were in and out of her home laying laminate floors and painting the walls. She was in school and was also planning the details of a big slumber party for her best friend’s 15th birthday, which included manicures, bowling and dinner at the Olive Garden.

“I’ve been sleeping at her house all week, ’cause I don’t have a bed,” says Kelsey. All of her belongings were moved out while the designers worked on the renovation.

She also was dealing with the upcoming birthday of her brother, Kyle. He was killed a few months ago in a car accident, and she’s been struggling to deal with his abrupt death.

This room redesign idea came from her mother, Dawn Green, who was hoping to brighten Kelsey’s spirit by giving her a new place to retreat (slideshow).

After about an hour of standing around outside, the designers announce the room is ready to be unveiled. The design students run to the side of the house and crowd around the one small window in Kelsey’s bedroom, so they can peek in and catch her reaction.

Kelsey makes her way down the narrow hallway that leads to her bedroom with her mother at her side.

Her reaction is quiet at first.

Then: “Wow, this is really cool.”

Within minutes, she’s nestled among the dozens of pillows on her new bed and invites her Australian shepherd, Sarah, to join her, stroking her belly.

“Hold the phone,” she says as she spots the small red fridge against one wall. “That is so cool. I’ll be filling that with Coke.”

Photos that were once roughly tacked or taped directly to her wall are now matted and framed, and neatly line shelves. Most prominently featured is a photo of Kelsey hugging her brother, both teenagers smiling widely.

Design students from Scottsdale Community College watch Kelsey's reaction to her revamped room. (Paul O'Neill, Tribune)

Kelsey’s room was made possible by the joint efforts of Anita Lang Mueller and her team of designers at Interior Motives, a design studio in Fountain Hills. As part of the company’s yearly goals, they decided they would like to take on a charitable project. Through mutual connections at Scottsdale Community College, Lang Mueller was contacted by Green, who was looking for someone to spruce up her daughter’s room. Lang Mueller decided to sponsor the first Inspire contest that would challenge design students while improving the life of someone in the community through design.

Ellinor Ellefson’s design was chosen from 13 submissions by members of the American Society of Interior Design student chapter at SCC.

After only one week to prepare a presentation, the students pitched their ideas to a panel of judges, which included Lang Mueller and Kelsey.

Kelsey says she had wanted something with lots of vibrant colors, but when she saw Ellefson’s design ideas she was surprised by how much she liked it.

“It was just the two colors, and not colors I would have picked — aqua and red,” she says. “But I love it. I think the bed was my favorite part.”

Kelsey refers to the most substantial element in the room — a full bed and queen bed that were placed in the corner, forming an L-shaped lounge area, piled high with plush fabrics, including a custom duvet and coordinating bed skirt, and pillows. The headboard is Ellefson’s design, also custom-made, and features a soft red velvet that brings luxury to the room.

Ellefson paid close attention to functional design in the room, giving Kelsey a desk that sits compactly against a wall under a window but will expand to more than twice that length when she needs more room to work.

“I was going for a room that would be a nice place to hang out with friends,” says Ellefson. “It’s fantastic to see it go from an idea to the finished room.”

The source

Interior Motives

16851 Parkview Ave.

Fountain Hills

(480) 837-8979

Scottsdale Community College

9000 E. Chaparral Road

Scottsdale

(480) 423-6000