One Room Challenge- Week 1
Updated: Jun 25, 2021
It's here!! This is my very first One Room Challenge and I am SOOOO excited to get started. I have been watching interior designers that I admire complete one room challenges from the sidelines for years. YEARS. All I wanted to do was participate, why did it take me this long?!? When some of the OG bloggers talk about how they have been doing this for ten years all I can think is, man, me too!! I've been here too... but then I realize I haven't been here, I was just following along with everyone from the sidelines.. some days I kick myself for not starting sooner, and then other days I know there has to be a reason for my eight years of planning weddings... I'm just not sure what it was yet.
Ok enough rambling, but I just want you to understand that being a guest participant in my very first One Room Challenge means a lot to me. A LOT.
If you follow along on Instagram then by now you know I'm planning to tackle the dining room. The room that currently looks like this...
It's pretty rough right now. In fact, a very sweet follower once thought I was shopping in an antique store when I was in here showing off some of my finds on stories. She felt sooo bad when I told her it was my dining room, but I thought it was hilarious and she wasn't wrong... it looks like a cluttered hodge podge mess in here! But let's rewind for a second...it didn't always look like this, no in fact this time last year it actually looked worse.
This was a lot of my mom's old furniture that we just plopped down here when we moved in, we knew it wasn't staying. We didn't like the style (obviously) and the scale was all wrong too, but we figured it could sit there until we got something better. Enter these chairs I found on Craigslist for $200. Yes, all eight chairs for $200, my mom and I rushed over to see them and they were in perfect condition.
After that I did a quickie makeover on the chandelier. It was before I was blogging, but you can see the full process on my insta-stories right here.
It still wasn't the most gorgeous chandelier, but it was certainly a big improvement!
For a hot minute last summer the dining room looked like this. Huge improvement right?
As for the table I just dragged in a card table and threw this canvas drop cloth over it. We actually still need to find a table for this space!! I always assumed I would find one before starting this room for the one room challenge, but it just hasn't happened! So I'm officially in super urgent marketplace hunting mode on the lookout for a Duncan Phyfe style table. But let's get into the other plans I have for this room. Here's the mood board!
- I first want to chat about one detail that is not in this mood board... the mural! Yes, I ordered the most beautiful mural from Papiers De Paris in France and I can't wait to show it to you- it's beautiful! But for now I'm keeping it a secret!
- You guys know I love blue and trust me there will be plenty of blue, but I'm also planning to mix some pink details into this room and I love this rug from Pottery Barn!
- This isn't our exact chandelier, but I do already have the one I plan to use, and this one is very similar. I found ours on Marketplace for $400 back in February and it's gorgeous, huge, and heavy! I can't wait to make the swap and it's one of the first things I plan to do in here!
- The buffet piece was actually purchased from my aunt, she's currently in the process of selling her home and moving and she knew she didn't have space for this piece and I just kept thinking that the scale of it would be perfect for the dining room- nice and wide, but with a low profile mirror that wouldn't block too much of the mural. We actually already have this piece and I can't wait to move it into the dining room!
- The dining chairs are currently upholstered in a basic white cotton and I want to do a deeper blue (shocking I know). I think this will be such a pretty pop of blue, I'm also already dreaming of setting the table with my new blue china I scored at a Missouri thrift store a few weeks back.
- I know I'm going to want a lamp to sit on the console, but I have no idea if that's "the one" or not. I do think something pink/blush and modern would be cool.
- The window treatments right now are pretty decent, but the color is just so blah... I would love to do a fun color to tie into the mural OR if I decide to paint the walls then maybe a neutral would be ok... we'll see.
- Something not pictured in the mood board is the bar cart I got on Marketplace, I've been collecting some fun decanters over the last few months and can't wait to get that table all set up in here too.
- Also not in the mood board is the ceiling- we will be doing a low-profile coffered ceiling treatment in here to add some ornate detail and interest to the ceiling.
Starting today I have eight weeks, here's my plan for each week, take this with a grain of salt as I am SURE I will get thrown off course along the way, that's part of the fun right?!
Week 1- the plan and the mood board (thankfully all of that is done, so I'll probably try to get a jump on next week now!
Week 2- the foundation- find a table, install the chandelier, move the buffet in here
Week 3- reupholster the dining chairs
Week 4- DIY low-profile coffered ceiling (this is probably the project I'm most nervous about and want to get it out of the way early in case we run into problems)
Week 5- Time to paint the walls!
Week 6- Window treatments
Week 7- Finally time to wallpaper!! Our mural is non-woven so I am planning to install it myself using this method just like I did in Lincoln's room (this is the project I am the MOST excited about!!)
Week 8- The final reveal!! (psst. This room is finished and you can check it out right here!!)
EEEkk!! I'm so excited and I hope you follow along! Let me know if you have any questions.
Want to see the entire One Room Challenge from start to finish? It's all here!
