It is completely amazing what can be accomplished when you create a schedule, and stick to it! I am the type of person who prefers to wing it. I wing everything, from daily chores to food shopping, deciding what to post on Instagram to blogging. It's just my personality. However, throughout this entire One Room Challenge, I made and stuck to a schedule. Let me tell you, there was not a single moment where I felt stressed or felt that this challenge wouldn't have been completed on time.
Here is what I learned from this challenge. Though, we only worked with a small space, I learned that picking and sticking to a budget is extremely important when attempting a room make over. Although, we didn't go over budget, we definitely had unexpected costs that would have wound up being a problem if we were working with such a tight budget. Wallpaper. Just because a description says X amount of rolls will cover X amount of square feet; always order more. If you cannot afford more than it would be wise to find a different print in a more affordable price range. Other than our little wallpaper debacle, I would say that this challenge ran incredibly smoothly.
All in all, my husband and I are extremely pleased with the final result of this project, between you and me, I am already designing out next space for the upcoming One Room Challenge in the fall (though my other half doesn't know this yet HAHA). Well, I shall not keep you any longer, Alas, the final reveal....
I am so happy with how board and batten, wallpaper and converting a tiny closet in an awkwardly spaced hallway can have such a dramatic effect. I am going to break down all of the details for you all now.
First and foremost, this project would not have had the impact it did had it not been for my custom cabinet guy, Jason. Jason put my vision to life. He was quick, efficient, and listened to everything I said I wanted. Even though he was working in such a tight space, he made it happen. Since he worked so quickly, I also asked him to throw up that board and batten for me as well. So many kudos to Jason.
If you are local to the Atlanta region - Jason is available for any custom wood work plans you may have - you can contact him at Atlanta Cabinets & Furniture 404-610-5968
I filled these custom shelves and cubby holes with black wicker baskets from Big Lots. Each basket is functional and serve the purpose of storing our children's snacks. (A huge pet peeve of mine is seeing snack boxes in pantries, baskets are the perfect way to conceal the ugly unhealthy wrappers from the sanctimommies ;) ).
I initially purchased our console table from TJMaxx, but as life would have it, I wound up finding the perfect set of vintage theatre seats for my entryway last weekend at Vintage Pickin' (an incredible vintage market in Alabama - if you haven't been, it needs to go on your bucket list. Stay tuned for that blog coming up next). So, all of my furniture had to be rearranged to accommodate those incredible additions. That console table found a new home upstairs in my craft room, and was replaced by my first, ever purchased vintage piece of furniture. I bought this superb piece from my favorite antique market, Queen of Hearts when we moved to Georgia from Florida a little over 4 years ago. It is one of my favorite pieces I own, and what better place to display it than in the One Room Challenge reveal?
The wood work and details had me at hello.
Let's talk about the accents on the table. I scored the distressed lamp from Kirkland's, which was on sale for 50% off. The grand total for that unbelievable find was $21. Um, yeah, SCORE. I tend to do a lot of window shopping at Homegoods, It's one of those stores that I love to browse and walk up and down the aisles. Well, guess who's carrying sugar molds now?? Yep. This sugar mold was crazy inexpensive. I snagged it so fast I thought the other customers around me thought I was a nut case. I decided to fill the mold with faux hydrangeas to make it flow with the wallpaper. Last, but certainly not least, my ceramic birds and distressed white clay pitcher. There's this incredible online store called Parish Mercantile, (if you've been following me on Instagram since the beginning you'd know that it is my favorite online store) I purchased both from it. These birds have made their way all over my living room, entryway and now the kids' hallway. I loved them so much, I decided that instead of relocating them every couple of months, I should just buy two more. There was zero regrets on that front.
I was hesitant about hanging a picture over the wallpaper. It's a completely different ballgame when you put in the labor for home makeovers. My first thought was 'ughhh I don't want to damage the walls, it took so much work to line this wallpaper up, what if I don't like a sign up there and I ruin it?!'. After going back and forth in my head for a couple of weeks, I decided to just go with it. I designed this laser cut wood sign and contacted my friends over at WoodScape ( Instagram - @wood_scape._). They had made me a sign previously for my butler's pantry and I knew their work was exquisite. The quality of their signs are beyond anything I have seen floating around on the 'gram, plus the owners are some of the nicest human beings I have ever encountered. When coming up with the design, I wanted to choose something that reflected my feelings towards my children. It was incredibly important to me to have something original yet said that this was their hallway. Lee Anne Womack's song, I Hope You Dance, always hits me right in the feels, I get teary eyed every time I hear it. "I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean". Is there any mother out there that does NOT get emotional when they hear those lyrics?! And as for the finish, I decided to stick with natural tones.
I'm not crying, you're crying.
I felt that the natural tones really pulled the light fixture in with sign. The whites on the sign pulled in the table. The decor pulled in the taupes in the wallpaper and the dark walnut in the pantry just completed the entire project.
And there you have it! Our first One Room Challenge, completed! No hiccups, no going over budget, and just an incredibly fun experience for both my husband and myself. I hope you all had just as fun of a time following along with me throughout this entire process! I cannot wait until the fall for our next challenge!
All contacts for sources of companies listed below.
Atlanta Cabinets & Furniture - 404-610-5968
Woodscape - woodscapedesign.com
Parish Mercantile - www.parishmercantile.com
Kirkland's - North Point - 678-339-0981
Homegoods - North Point - 770-642-1514
