Have you ever had a dream bedroom? Maybe you wanted to live in a tree house or have an indoor basketball court, or perhaps you wanted your bedroom to be themed based on your favorite character or your favorite show. Whatever it is, everyone has one thing they want their bedroom to be. Suite Dreams Project helps to bring dream bedrooms to life for kids with permanent disabilities. Last November, the student-run group Freedom by Design (FBD) in the School of Architecture and Interior Design (SAID) was able to partner with Suite Dreams to provide the perfect bedroom for a child named Dominic. FBD is a group that is a part of Andrews’ local chapter of AIAS (American Institute of Architecture Students).
Dominic is seventeen years old, lives in St. Joseph, and has a permanent disability. When he was a baby, part of his brain didn’t fully develop, which slowed his physical and mental growth. His family spends a lot of time caring for him, and most of that care is provided in Dominic’s room. When the Make-a-Wish Foundation was told that Dominic wished for a new bedroom, the project was sent to Sheri Daugherty, one of the founders of Suite Dreams. She contacted the SAID, and FBD was given the opportunity to design a “Cars”-themed bedroom for Dominic.
The project started with a “Cars” movie day so the group could gain inspiration and gather ideas for the room. Many ideas were presented in the discussions that followed, and different tasks were assigned to get the ball rolling. Josue Gutierrez (junior, architecture), the project lead, said his favorite part of this process was “getting to sit around a table with students and professors to pass around ideas to design Dominic’s bedroom.” Several meetings were held as initial sketches were drawn, shopping lists were compiled, and paint colors were chosen. As the group continued to work on designs, time was running out and some major changes had to be made.
Some of the key items in the room design were made to help Dominic feel like he was in the movie “Cars.” His favorite part of “Cars” is the town of Radiator Springs, so the main parts of the project were designed to cater to that desire. The base color of the walls is a muted sky blue. An abstract landscape is painted on one of the walls. In front of the landscape, a bookshelf designed to look like the back of a car is positioned as if it’s driving into the landscape. Above this, cutouts of Tow Mater and Lightning McQueen hang on the wall, almost giving the illusion that they are floating in the clouds. The cutout was Josue’s favorite piece—he was involved from start to finish, working with some non-architecture students and paying attention to the small details.
Another item that was inspired by the movie is a piston cup lamp. LED lights were put inside the top of the cup, which was placed on the nightstand chest by Dominic’s bed. When the lights are turned on, they shine upwards at his medals, which hang on the wall. Some other small items added to the room were Lightning McQueen sheets, a “Welcome to Radiator Springs” sign, and a shadow box for his only stuffed animal.
Designing and building the bookshelf took the most amount of time. Seth Slade (senior, architecture) took the lead on designing and building this bookshelf. According to him, “the most challenging part was figuring out how to build the bookshelf and doing the AutoCAD drawings. Also, the changes to the purpose of the bookshelf after I started designing.” Once the design was complete and dimensions had been confirmed, six different types of wooden pieces had to be cut. Once those pieces were ready, several hands were needed to adhere them to each other and make sure they lined up evenly. After the glue was dry, the individual parts were sanded and primed for painting. The bookshelf was mainly painted a light yellow that was similar to Luigi’s paint color. After watching the paint dry, it was finally time to complete the assembly of the bookshelf. The back was added, small lights were placed in the taillight spaces, and a shelf was fitted into the trunk area. Instead of a window made of glass, a TV was positioned and used to give Dominic a fake fireplace.
On November 11, students from the group met with Sheri at Dominic’s house to start painting. Two coats of paint were applied to the wall, and it was discovered that it takes four architecture students to put together a piece of furniture. The afternoon was spent painting the landscape, and the group returned on November 13 to make the finishing touches. Furniture was positioned, new curtains were added, and lights were turned on to make the final look. Once the whole room was complete, it was revealed to Dominic and his family. They were delighted, and his siblings asked to sleep over.
This project gave students a chance to create an original design, learn about furniture crafting, experiment with color matching, and see their work implemented in a real environment. Creative growth was another positive result, and Seth comments, “The project helped me grow creatively by showing me how to take something as simple as a bookshelf and make it fun and impactful.” It also gave the team an opportunity to work with a hard deadline and learn some project time management. The group is hoping to participate in another Suite Dreams project this semester.
The Student Movement is the official student newspaper of Andrews University. Opinions expressed in the Student Movement are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors, Andrews University or the Seventh-day Adventist church.