Magical Mum Creates Incredible Harry Potter Bedroom For Under £500
- Sam Hornby, 42, wanted to recreate the Ravenclaw common room in her home
- Spending under £600, she pulled it off using materials from Ikea, The Works and Etsy
- Sam watched YouTube videos to figure out what to do
Do you wish your home could be a little less ordinary and a lot more magical?
Then you’ll definitely be inspired by this incredible Harry Potter-themed bedroom, created for under £600.
Sam Hornby, 42, a mum of two and swimming teacher from Rossendale, wanted to create the perfect Ravenclaw bedroom for her son, nine.
She used materials from Ikea, The Works and Etsy to pull off the breathtaking project for under £600.
Sam told money-saving community LatestDeals.co.uk: "My son is a Harry Potter fan and a proud Ravenclaw.
"He had a Harry Potter room in our old house and so when we moved in February 2021, he asked for me to recreate it, but wanted it to be solely a Ravenclaw common room and not Harry Potter in general.
"He also asked if I was able to make it look like the ceiling of the Great Hall, so the ideas came from him really.
"Firstly, we stripped the room and discovered that the plaster started to come off - it was like our very own Diagon Alley appearing!
"Once the room was prepped, I found an image I liked and made a projector using a cardboard box and my phone torch.
"I drew the design of the crest on the ceiling, then painted the areas around the crest using black emulsion paint as a base.
"I then used acrylic paints to paint the galaxies and stars around it and finally painted the crest.
"Once this was done, I added a picture rail, wallpapered the brick wallpaper, brought the paint down onto the wallpaper to create the illusion my son wanted and then my husband and I did the fibre optics cables in the ceiling - all 150 of them.
"It is handy having an electrician for a husband as he also did the wall lights!
"I painted the IKEA drawers to look like suitcases, printed out labels for the bottles, got old hardback books from a charity shop and printed out the first year reading books from Google Images and added owls and other bits.
"The shrunken head was crocheted by me, and the Fawkes Phoenix was also crocheted by me from a Crafty Intentions pattern on Etsy.
"The candles are suspended by transparent thread, a pin hammered into the ceiling and a blob of paint to conceal the pin head.
“We also used the brick wallpaper by Arthouse, wall lights and candles from Amazon, and acrylic paint from The Works.
“The plaster cost £210, the carpet was £255, the paint was £30, the picture rail was £35, the fibre optic lights were £45 and the candles cost £16. We already had the furniture and the bottles were empty alcohol bottles gifted by friends.”
Sam is delighted with how the magical bedroom has turned out, and so is her son.
"I am thrilled to bits with how it has turned out and even more thrilled with the reaction it got when my son saw it,” she adds.
“His smile was so big and he was a little overwhelmed as he hadn't seen it. He last saw it before we started any of the decorating and painting and had been in the spare room!
"My biggest tip for others who want to recreate this look is actually taken from Mural Joe who is on YouTube.
“He has a video that shows you how to comfortably paint a ceiling by rolling up a fleece blanket, putting it round your back, under your arms and then tying it behind your head - it stops any neck ache.
"My other tip is to shop around as it doesn't have to cost too much.
"Buy paint cheap, spend £2 a tube at most. And most importantly, take your time to prep. This includes filling holes and so on, but also get lots of images as references for what you are wanting to paint. Do your research!
"To be able to completely personalise a room for £600, and achieve the dream for my son, is actually priceless."
Tom Church, co-founder of LatestDeals.co.uk, comments: “Nearly 25 years since it was published, Harry Potter still captivates us - who hasn’t wondered when they’ll receive their Hogwarts letter?
“Until we get that magical invitation through the post, one way of bringing some witchcraft and wizardry into your home is by transforming your home into an amazing Harry Potter haven.
“Sam’s incredible Ravenclaw common room is so realistic it looks like it could have been plucked straight from the movie set!
“If you’re looking to take a leaf out of Sam’s book, remember you don’t need to spend a fortune. Head to The Range, B&M and eBay to stock up on cheap accessories, and if you’re not sure how to do something yourself, make like Sam and watch YouTube tutorials for advice.”
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