Final Reveal: Dressing Room One Room Challenge

Let’s just ignore the fact that I never posted for week 3, 4 or 5 for the Fall One Room Challenge. I just wasn’t feeling it, but now it’s finally finished and time for the big reveal! [Week one is here and week two here.]

First a big thank you to Linda from Calling It Home and Better Homes and Gardens for sponsoring the One Room Challenge!

Dressing Room Fall One Room Challenge 2020

The room turned out nothing like my initial design, but I love it. It’s definitely bold and colorful and cool. The initial design was based on getting new carpet (which won’t be installed for a couple more weeks), and using part of our living room sectional. We never did get a new living room couch, so I couldn’t use the old one. Since I wanted to spend as little $$ as possible I just used what I already had. Luckily I have a little smidge of the hoarding gene, so I had a lot to work with.

I re-painted the walls in my favorite white, Marshmallow and the trim in Urbane Bronze by Sherwin-Williams.

The only new thing that I purchased was knobs for the sink area and dresser. I contemplated replacing the dresser with a vintage mid century modern one, but it has too many memories so I decided to keep it. The dresser was one of the first pieces of furniture we bought for our first house, 17 years ago! We bought it unfinished and stained it this dark walnut shade. It still works great and has held up really well. I switched out the knobs for a white MCM vibe that I found on Etsy from HuntGatherVintage. The dresser was moved to the built in cubby area, where it just so happened to fit perfectly!

Dresser looking way better with some new knobs.

Accessories and Decor is almost all vintage finds. Artwork is a local artist.

The other main pieces I used was this Ikea shelving unit which I initially bought for my Brand-Eye Home shop and the Yellow Hand chair, which was a craiglist find. The rugs I moved from all of the other areas of the house and I’ll return them once we get the carpet. Although, I do really like them in this room.

As I was taking pictures of the room, Winnie was trying her hardest to get me to play with her. It was adorable.

Ikea shelves and vintage planter, stool and valet

I was going to get rid of this clothes valet, but I am glad I didn’t. We never really use it, but it looks cool so it can stay.

Below is a sneak peek into the bathroom. This room is the mirror image of our bedroom. I redecorated the bedroom for the Spring 2018 One Room Challenge, which you can find here.

The bathroom leads over to the other room, the bedrom

The reason for the mirror in front of the large mirror is that the large one is damaged and has that old, hazy mirror problem. As a solution, I just placed another one in front of it.

Winnie waiting patiently for me to play with her

What do you think? I especially love that I used a lot of the artwork that I just had laying around. As you know, I switch up the decor in my house often and seeing it in new spots makes me happy. This Pink Bike Ralph Friendly Lounge screenprint is a personal favorite. The pet portraits I painted a long time ago and are of our pets at the time (Moz the chocolate lab and Otto the cat).

Budget breakdown:

22 new drawer knobs: $111 + Paint: $100 = Total $211

Everything else I already owned! Here is approximately what the other pieces cost when I bought them:

Yellow Hand Chair: $90

Ikea Vittsjo Shelves: $80

Rugs (mostly from estate sales and auctions): $500

Accessories and Art (mostly from flea markets, estate sales and yard sales): $100

Copper light (Briggs Auction): $75

Clothing Stand: $50

Orange Tulip Stools (Flea Market): $100

Overall, if I take into account the price of things when I bought them, the cost was closer to $1200, not counting the carpet, which will be another $1000.

Thanks for following along and be sure to check out all of the final reveals of the other rooms being designed for this challenge here.

*Brandi

Fall 2020 ORC Dressing Room Week 2

house, One Room Challenge

It’s already time for the week two of the One Room Challenge. I am redecorating our dressing room, which is adjacent to our bedroom and could use some serious updating.
This week I started painting the trim back to the original brown shade, as well as decide on flooring and work on the design. I decided to go with carpet for the flooring, which is sort of boring, but it’ll also make it much cozier. I am also carpeting the bedroom at the same time. Both of these rooms had carpet when we bought the house, but it was not in great shape. As a short term solution we just painted the subfloor, so now it’s time for real flooring. If money was no object I would have made a different decision, but you know, money is an object 🙂

We have been wanting to get a new sofa for our living room to replace the blue sectional. I love the blue sectional and will not get rid of it (it originally belonged to my Great Aunt), but it’s just not comfortable. And due to COVID we spend a lot more time on the sofa, so it would really be nice to have a comfortable spot to chill. Since we do want to keep it, I have been wracking my brain trying to figure out where to put the three pieces. One of them will go here, one will go in the basement and the third I’m just not sure yet.

I also already have these side tables and they never really fit anywhere. I’ll use two for this room and I also have a third that I will sell. The light I bought at an auction a couple of months ago and also couldn’t figure out where to put it, but it’ll fit here perfectly! This side of the room is really dark and needs a light source. And it’s plug in so I don’t need to hire an electrician. I will paint the black base white to match the wallcolor.

Artwork is TBD.

Be sure to check out all of the participants of the One Room Challenge!

*Brandi

Fall 2020 One Room Challenge: Dressing Room

house, One Room Challenge

I can’t believe it’s already time for the Fall One Room Challenge. It seems like I just finished the bathroom Spring ORC!

This is the fourth ORC that I am taking part in. I first redecorated our bedroom, then a guest room/craft room, basement bathroom and now the dressing room. This room is the mirror image to our bedroom, so the space will look familiar. As part of this challenge, I have 6 weeks to make this space look great and blog about it each week.

If you follow me on IG you may recall that I was trying to decide between doing the dressing room or my husband’s band practice/recording studio/office. I wanted to do the band room, but since it’s also his office and he is teaching high school remotely (thanks COVID), I thought it would be too much of a disruption to his sanity if I decorated that room. That leaves me with the dressing room, which has become a catch all for all sorts of crap over the past few years.

Let’s take a look at this room before. There are actually 3 versions of ‘before.’ The first version of ‘before’ is when the architect lived here. I skipped this room in my Morrison Residence Then and Now series, because this room is currently ugly 🙂 Here is what it looked like before before before (1990s).

When we first moved into this home, I set up this room as my craft room. Here is the before before (2015).

This Ikea cabinet used to hold my fabric stash when it was used as my sewing room.

At some point during the craft room days we ripped out the carpet and painted the subfloor turquoise. It was meant to be temporary, but has now been like this for over 5 years. It’s time to get a real floor!

When we switched bedrooms to the back of the house, I also moved this craft room and it became a dressing room. Primarily my husband uses it (not sure how he has more clothes than I do, but it’s true :-), plus he wakes up earlier than me so he can get ready without bothering me.

This room needs some serious style to match the rest of the house. I haven’t really figured out the design plan, but I am starting to make a list of what I need to do. I plan to kick it into gear and figure it all out this week!

Add real flooring. I am currently debating carpet or hardwood.

Replace cubbies with something more attractive, or cover them up with closet doors.

Install an ironing board that folds down from the wall, or opens out of a closet.

Downsize and donate clothes (we are 90% done with this step!)

Figure out decor and art

Buy a full length mirror

Switch out knobs on dresser (and perhaps paint?)

I’ve got a lot to do and better get moving! Be sure to check out all of the other 200 + designers who are all linked in this blog post.

*Brandi

Living Room Nook: Dark and Moody

house

When Sherwin-Williams announced their 2021 color of the year, Urbane Bronze, I knew I had to paint something with it, because I had a gallon in the basement! I initially bought it for the green hex tile bathroom renovation trim color, because it’s very close to our existing trim color. It’s a dark, deep brown/almost black. It’s a very awesome color, especially in a cozy space.

The views outside of this living room nook are beautiful, especially now during the fall. I thought that painting the nook this dark, moody brown, would make the outside pop and it does! I wish I was better at taking photos so you can see the inside and outside, but you get the idea.

All of the furniture and accessories I already owned, so this cost zero $$. Finding a selection of vintage goods and things that you love is the best way to design.

The paintings above right were bought at two different times, but they work together perfectly. The one on the bottom was actually purchased without a frame, but the artist Kyle Rafferty framed it before it was sent. And it matched our other night time painting perfectly with the gold band.

The painting above I found on Instagram, by David Vget. His portraits are unbelievable and we were especially drawn to this one. I love it on this dark background. I haven’t framed it, but actually may just paint the edge the wall color.

We have had this chair from Crate and Barrel since we moved in. I didn’t really know that much about mid century modern design at the time, and didn’t realize this is basically a copy of a classic MCM design, Z Chair by Poul Jensen for Selig. Had I known, I would have just bought the original!

Here I am, HELLO!

This rug was a flea market find. It’s been in our entry way, but fits this spot perfectly too.

My fiddle leaf figs are staying alive, hooray! The hydrangeas are from my Mother in Laws garden.

Winnie says HI too.

Let me know what you think! And be sure to reach out to me if you would like me to design a space in your home.

*Brandi

MORRISON RESIDENCE THEN AND NOW: PART 6 OUTSIDE

house, Morrison Residence Series

It is time to see what’s going on outside of our home. This series has been so fun and this will be the last post, unless I get more old photos of the home!

In case you’re new here, this series takes look at what our home looked like when the original owner (and architect) lived here and what it looks like now. It was built in 1963 by the architect for his family, who lived here for almost 50 years. You can find all of the past posts on this topic here.

Let’s start with the front of the home.

Then: view of the deck which no longer exists

And this is what it looks like now. The major differences are the color and removal of the deck on front. The previous owners (there was one owner between us and the architect) re-sided the home in JamesHardie cement siding, as well as replaced a ton of windows, removed the front deck and replaced the roof. We are really grateful for this, because I am sure it cost a fortune. 🙂

Please note the support for Black Lives Matter in the window. I hope that everyone can see the imbalance of justice in this country and do your part to help to tip the scales to an even level. Matter is the minimum.

*Now: with the removal of a large tree, we get enough light for some sunny flowers such as canna lillies*

We had to take down a lot of trees over the 8 years we’ve been here. It’s definitely not something that we like to do, but sometimes it’s the best option. There was a huge tree right to the left of the house where the canna lillies are now, above. Falling limbs broke two windshields on our car and the tree was slowly dying. Before it fell on the house, we removed it late last year. I was sad to see it go and the house felt so open and exposed, but now I’m used to it.

The entrance area is one of the most beautiful parts of this home. It is really funny when people come to visit for the first time, because they have no idea how to enter and usually start by walking up one of the side paths not realizing the entrance is here. It’s like a little hidden oasis once you walk into this area.

Now: White planters. Unfortunately something ate the sweet potato vine.

Below is what it used to look like. I’m not sure when the stairs were rebuilt, but I have to say I liked the initial design. Do you see how the lower stairs used to go all the way across to the left? How cool.

The railings were also changed at one point and I assume that they were changed to meet current building codes.

We had to replace those horizontal huge beams that hold up the staircase, as well as the top level of the deck. It cost a small fortune, so I am hoping that it lasts until we die or move. Lol.

It’s so fun to look at these old photos and every time I look at them I see something new. I am just seeing that there used to be a built in bench where I now have the hanging chair.

This is the view from the top deck and we hang out here often. It’s a really beautiful view.

Winnie hasn’t figured out that she can walk down these stairs. If we see a cat, fox or deer while out here we put her inside, because I think her instinct would take over if she saw one.

Below is a path to the right of the house. The before photo is MUCH prettier. Now this area is really overgrown and I need to give it a seriously hard prune. This yard is massive and there is so much to keep up with, so the areas that are used the least get the least attention.

Below is the current situation. You better believe that next year I am planting some coleus here to make it look more like the before photo. This pathway is a constant battle with weeds, ivy and shrubs.

Now: East pathway that needs some serious pruning

As you walk up the pathway it leads you to the gate and into this side of the yard. Each year I grow a bunch of plants in pots and up strings along the end of the deck.

This deck is another great spot to sit. The chairs look really cool, but in reality they are not comfortable at all.

Let’s see what it used to look like. How cool is that picnic table that was built into the end?

There used to be a water feature in this area, but it wasn’t here when we bought the house and I’m not sure when it was removed.

We currently have a hot tub in this area. It was an impulse buy a few years ago and was a great purchase!

We had this stone wall installed a few years ago.

Heading up this hill and into the back yard…

…you’ll find my vegetable garden. As you can see this area gets a lot of shade, so I will blame my failure of a vegetable garden on that and the fact that a groundhog ate most everything that did grow. If you follow my Instagram stories, you have seen a lot about my trials and tribulations of vegetable gardening.

Below is the one area that we did the most to. I saw ‘we’ but we hired this job to the professionals. This awesome patio and stone wall is in memory to Dave’s grandma, Lucille.

Below is what the back of the house used to look like. I really wish that we still had the curved skylight!

I hope you enjoyed the tour of the outside areas of our home. I’d love to hear what you think I should bring back from the original designs. It definitely used to have more garden beds which would be awesome to have, but I am already over my maximum capacity of gardens to tend.

*Brandi

Final Reveal: Powder Room ORC Week 8

Bathroom, house, One Room Challenge

We made it! I didn’t know how much I would be able to accomplish in the past week, since I broke my toe last week, but it’s finished!

I redecorated this bathroom on a budget and have been blogging about it as part of the One Room Challenge. You can find the previous posts here: Week One, Week Two, Week Three, Week Four, Week Five/Six, and Week 7. Special thanks to Linda from One Room Challenge for putting this together and the media sponsor Better Homes and Gardens.

I am absolutely obsessed with these rugs. They are so beautiful and work well together. I don’t like things to be too matchy matchy, and I think they work to define the separate entry area and bathroom.

As you may recall, I contemplated switching up the Varga prints, but I actually grew to love them even more with the addition of the new rugs and the colors in the bathroom. I plan to repaint this entry space next.

My goals for the bathroom were to highlight the architecture of the room, add color, and do it on a budget with minimal trips to the stores. The total came out to less than $1000 and I used a lot of what I already had.

Here’s the cost breakdown with links to the items: Faucet ($260), Mirror ($225), Rugs ($190), Paint ($100), Towel Ring ($63), Cabinet Pulls ($20), Misc ($75).

As I have mentioned in previous posts, the wall mural was inspired by @banyanbridges on Instagram. She paints colorful murals and this room was screaming for something on the walls. I wanted to incorporate a mural into the entire space, and bring it all together, but I also didn’t’ want it to become too busy. I think I succeeded! My husband Dave said that this is his favorite room that I’ve ever designed.

I knew that I had to do something to make that missing tile spot look intentional, so I added a color block with a rounded top to mimic the lines of mirror. I also painted the gas pipe the same color as the ceiling. I contemplated covering it with something and then painting that, but with COVID it’s just too annoying to go anywhere that’s not necessary.

The mural’s focal point is the canvas. The lines start here and then extend around the whole room. I knew where I wanted the lines to go, so I started them on the canvas and then extended the lines around the room. I’ll do a separate blog post about how to get crisp lines. If you follow me on Instagram, you saw lots of stories about this.

The cabinet pulls I got at an Estate Sale at Maximalist Studios from Eddie Ross. They fit this room absolutely perfectly and the holes even lined up so I didn’t have to drill new ones! A fun fact is that one year ago this week Eddie Ross was at our house styling a photo shoot for BHG. I hope it someday makes it to the pages of BHG! The suspense is killing me.

The pocket door I painted years ago. I still liked the color (Alchemy from Sherwin-Williams), so it was incorporated into the color palette.

Let’s take a short trip back memory lane to see what this space used to look like. I’m very into sustainable design. A lot of times you can keep and re imagine what you already have, instead of ripping it all out and starting over. I was lucky and able to save a lot of money on this space by keeping what I liked: flooring, sink, cabinet, and counter tops. In the future, I want to make that large closet a shower, but that will be much more than $1000 🙂 I’m saving my money for that project.

The biggest change to the space was removing the upper cabinet that housed a gas meter. As luck would have it, the gas company came out to move the meter outside about a month before we tackled this project. We still have a pipe running vertically through this space, but it looks a million times better.

I wanted something large to cover the electrical panel. A thrift store find canvas that I already had was the perfect size for this space. I just painted over it and incorporated the design into the whole room.

Original tile and sink in bathroom remodel.

I also already had that hanging planter and plant. The plant I stole from my craft room, so now I have to replace it!

I couldn’t just buy any old towel ring, so I found this one on Etsy. I really love fun design elements like this, and it’s handmade in the US, so that’s awesome too.

I would really love to hear your thoughts on this room. What to you love about it? I LOVE it all!

Be sure to check out the One Room Challenge Blog, which links to everyone’s blog posts. You will be SO inspired by what you see. I love interior design and it’s so fun to see all of the creativity.

Cheers to the end of my third One Room Challenge!

*Brandi

Powder Room ORC: Week 7

Bathroom, house, One Room Challenge

It’s already week Seven of the One Room Challenge. You can find the previous posts here: Week One, Week Two, Week Three, Week Four and Week Five/Six. I only have one week left and I just broke my toe, oh no!

The mirror arrived early, so that is up! I think it looks great and works for the space. However, I do wish that it was a better quality. The gold should wrap around the front a bit more so that you can’t see the edge of the mirror. The great thing about making my own purchases is that I can give unbiased reviews! Don’t buy this West Elm mirror! Ha. It looks good from far away, but up close it’s not so great.

I am seriously loving how this bathroom is coming together. I painted the cabinets blue and still have to paint the mural, pipe, and radiator covers. I also have to install the hand towel ring and install the window film so that you can pee in here without someone seeing you from outside. 🙂

I have been wanting a new rug for the entryway, so I ordered this one from the same seller as the orange rug, Turkish Rug Loom. I really love these rugs. I will say that it’s tricky to order rugs online, because you never know exactly what the color will be or how soft they will be. The entry way rug is pretty rough, so it wouldn’t work for a bedroom or living room, but it works fine for an entryway.

Vintage rugs instantly add character to a space.

What do you think so far? I’d love your feedback!

There is only one week left in the One Room Challenge and I am really glad that I don’t have toooo many things to do, because it’s going to be a challenge with a broken toe.

Stay tuned for the big reveal next week and be sure to check out all of the other participants in the One Room Challenge. You can also easily browse on Instagram with hashtag #oneroomchallenge or #bhgorc.

*Brandi

Powder Room ORC: Week 5 and 6

Bathroom, house, One Room Challenge

I have made a bit of progress over the past two weeks in our Powder Room. I am documenting this as part of the One Room Challenge. You can find the previous posts here: Week One, Week Two, Week Three, Week Four.

The canvas was painted over to match the wall color and the wall mural will be incorporated on it. I am still not 100% sure what that will look like, so you (and I) will have to wait and see. If you recall, there is an electrical panel on that wall. This canvas was the perfect size to cover it, and center on the wall. I’m so happy I’m a hoarder and kept this giant thing for years. haha.

Use a large canvas to cover electrical panels.

The window is still clear and I still love the view. A friend suggested that I use that one way mirror film, which I thought was a GREAT idea. But when I looked into it, it doesn’t stay opaque once it’s dark outside and light inside. If anyone knows of something that would be opaque from one side even at night, but still be able to see out, let me know. I’ll probably end up using the frosted film to make it opaque.

My husband Dave installed this new faucet. Isn’t it beautiful? Our friend Brendan helped with it. Thanks B! After 4 trips to the home improvement store, it now works.

I plan to spray paint the silver closet handles to match the rest of the gold hardware.

The vintage rug I found on Etsy from Turkish Rug Loom. It’s really hard to pick a rug online, because you never REALLY know what the color will be. But I think it works, what do you think? I love the warm orange color and the large scale floral pattern. You don’t often see that in vintage rugs. You can also see the paint chips of what I still need to paint (the cabinet and radiator cover).

The towel ring was another Etsy find from seller Nancy Funk Ceramics. I love how unique it is. Given what’s going on in our country right now I wish it was black, because Black Lives Matter!

I made a list of all that I have to finish before week 8: Paint cabinets, paint entry trim and door, hang towel ring, paint mural, paint pipe, paint radiator, spray paint handles, hang mirror (once it arrives) and apply window film.

Let me know what you think so far. Right it looks very minimalist, but once I get more color in here it’ll all come to life.

Be sure to check out all of the other blog and Instagram (#oneroomchallenge) posts of everyone working on their One Room Challenge. There is so much inspiration out there!

Powder Room ORC: Week Four

Bathroom, house, One Room Challenge

We are half way through the One Room Challenge!

This week I tackled painting the walls, the ceiling and the window trim. I decided to go wild and paint the ceiling a color. I have always loved a painted ceiling, and this time I made it happen. Most of our house has wooden ceilings, and I wouldn’t dare paint them, because they’re beautiful. When I see someone painting a wooden ceiling, I cringe. Since it was already painted, I figured I was safe. I decided to go with the Brandywine color from Sherwin Williams, which is sort of like a Terra Cotta, but more orangey. I like that it mimics the color of the flooring.

Mid Century Modern Power Room One Room Challenge

Next up is to paint the cabinet, pipe and radiator cover, add the new hardware, install the new faucet and mirror and paint the mural. I unfortunately waited too long to order the mirror and the estimated arrival date is June 25-29. The ORC ends on the 25th so fingers crossed that it arrives before then!

The pipe above I plan to paint the same color as the ceiling. However, it’s a gas pipe, so I am finding conflicting info online as to whether or not I should paint it. Another option is to cover it with another cylindrical shaped something. I am still figuring it out!

The cabinets will be painted the blue color and the radiator cover the green shade. So far I like how it’s coming along.

What do you think?

Make sure to check out all of the other rooms posted this week for the One Room Challenge!

Powder Room ORC: Week Three

Bathroom, house, One Room Challenge

It’s week three of the One Room Challenge! To be honest, I have done nothing with the powder room in the last week. However, I did order the new faucet, so that’s progress!

Here is the latest design idea mood board.

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is MCM-Powder-Room-Week-3-round-mirror-1024x1024.jpg

As I have mentioned, the walls will be painted white and I will add a hand painted mural. I started following @banyanbridges on Instagram and have been totally inspired by her wall murals. Here are some examples of what she has accomplished with paint! Her instagram also has a lot of painting tips, so give her a follow.

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is 95750338_2500772923508859_2507953070152701423_n.jpg — @Banyanbridges inspiration picture of colorful wall murals

I LOVE how she incorporated everything into the color blocks below Door, trim, wall, and even the door hardware!

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is 79917150_2572939052760841_7482749210275952232_n.jpg — Inspiration of wall paint beauty by @banyanbridges

I am not 100% sure what the mural will look like, but I have been thinking about it a lot. Once I paint everything white and have a blank canvas to study, it’ll really come together in my mind. There are a couple of problem spots that I need to incorporate into the design. The back splash tile doesn’t go all the way to the left where the cabinet was. I plan to use color blocking to incorporate this area and make it look intentional. And there is an access panel in the ceiling that is pretty banged up. I was thinking of making it a darker color to camouflage it.

The faucet that I bought is this one from Delta. Isn’t she pretty?

I decided to go with gold everything (faucet, mirror, towel bar). I contemplated using black, but the handles are gold-ish and the canvas frame is gold so I decided to do everything in gold.

The mirror choice has been narrowed down to the West Elm pivot mirror. Do you remember that in the first post I mentioned that I couldn’t see myself in the last mirror 🙂 I found one that pivots, so I can angle it down slightly and be able to see myself! Hooray!

Mirror choices. Round or rounded rectangle?

I am deciding between the two above, circle or rounded rectangle. The room has so many 90 degree angles and straight lines, so I plan to add some curves with the mirror and mural. Which would you choose? I have to decide soon so I can order it! I’m leaning towards the circle.

Let me know what you think! And be sure to click around the ORC link up website to see what everyone is up to. I have found some great new accounts to follow this way. And special thanks to the media partner for this event, Better Homes and Gardens. I hope that someday they publish the photos that they took of our house last June!!

My previous posts can be found here: week one, week two.

*Brandi