One Room Challenge Bedroom Makeover Reveal

by RoxanneK, in category Before and After, DIY, One Room Challenge

Last week one of my blogging friends posted that this One Room Challenge is making her feel like the mayor of crazy town. Hilarious, but so true!

I thought choosing a bedroom for my ORC makeover would be easy, especially after completely renovating my kitchen in six weeks. I should know by now with any renovation project it always takes longer and is more involved than initially planned. But after 6 weeks of actual blood, sweat and even a few tears, here is my finished space!

This is what we started with…

and now…

Before…

And after….

A drastic improvement for sure even though not everything went as I had planned. I had to make a few compromises and find a few substitutes for my original plans. One of which was the desk chair. The one I really wanted was just not in budget at this time. I found the cane chair at an antique store for $20 and gave it a makeover to better suit the room.

Finding the right headboard was a huge stress factor in this makeover for several reasons. When I was in the very beginning stages of planning my design, I visited an antique store where I found the perfect headboard that ever existed. It was completely unique and only $40! But sadly, it was a king size and I needed a full. There was no way to make it work. So I planned my design still with that in mind, thinking maybe I’d find something similar somewhere else. I didn’t. In addition to that, not all full beds are created equal in size and I needed exactly 55″ width or it wouldn’t fit with my nightstands. Every time I found one that worked with the design, it was the wrong size. Then my husband and I decided to DIY one. But with the clock ticking, I realized two weeks ago that there was no way we had time for that too. Finally, I found this one from Wayfair* that fit the space and the design. I love it, but honestly I don’t know if I’ll ever get over that first headboard from the antique store. First world problems, I know.

For the bedding, I knew I wanted a white and linen combo. However, buying linen duvet covers or blankets can get really expensive. To get the look for less, I found these amazing linen sheets from Bed, Bath & Beyond. I used them in combination with white bedding to achieve the white and linen look without having to spend hundreds of dollars.

I also spent an asinine amount of time picking the right throw pillow combination. Again, there were pillows that got away, sold out just when I needed them! I do love what I ended up with here though. (You can find the floral pillow here and the neutral textured pillow here).

Of all of the projects in the room, I have to say the barn door that my husband built might be the showstopper of the room. My daughter’s favorite color is green, so I painted it green, with a farmhouse distressed finish. No more bi-fold closet doors!! You can see how we built the barn door here.

chandelier

As for the hanging orbs, I’ve had those in a closet for at least a year waiting for the right place to use them. My plan was to turn those into chandeliers for over the nightstands. I had bought pendant lighting kits to do that but at the last-minute I decided I really didn’t want a wire hanging down the wall. Since my daughter wanted me to add string lights somewhere in the room, I wrapped these orbs with glimmer strings for now. I still plan to make those chandeliers in the future. (To my husband, you’re not getting out of that DIY project!).

Of all the projects in this room, it was the curtain rod that nearly put me over the edge. As I was hanging it on the wall, the nails weren’t grabbing. So I started again, using the anchors this time. Even the anchors were falling out. It was as if the wall was crumbling around it. SO frustrating. Luckily my husband came home and was the voice of reason in my distress (this is a role reversal for us!) and fixed it all up for me. He said the screws were too short and so were the anchors!

For the desk area, I wanted to pack in as much storage space as possible to help keep things organized. This little desk organizer is perfect. In a small space sometimes you have to hide things in plain sight.

I also picked up this multi-functional rolling cart. This will be used for my daughter’s extra notebooks and text books as well as for her makeup. She can roll it right over to the mirror when she needs it. I could think of a use for this in every room.

I added an ottoman to the end of the bed for extra clothing storage. With the nightstands and this storage ottoman, it eliminated the need for a dresser, freeing up space for the desk.

rug/serving tray (similar)

I kept things mostly neutral but I did add a few pops of green to echo the barn door. I added books with green to the nightstands.

comforter set/chandelier

I also added a bit of green to my DIY garland above the bed. The beautiful wall decor I originally chose for this space is still on backorder, I still plan on using it when it comes in. In the meantime, I pulled that frame right off my bathroom wall to hang above the bed. I made the garland because the frame looked a little bare and I wanted to incorporate a little more green.

I also brought a few touches of green in the artwork above the desk. (You can find the art shelves here, the barn print here and the cow print here.)

Because the room is mostly neutral in color, I relied heavily on textures for this space.

Clockwise: fringe pillow, basket and textured blanket, fringe bed skirt, textured woven blanket

Now that the six-week challenge is over, it feels a little like Christmas. It was a whirlwind leading up to it and now I have a lot of catching up and cleaning up to do.

Thanks to my husband for getting on board the six-week crazy train with me again. For building the beautiful barn door, helping me install the flooring, fixing my curtain rod disaster and all of the other details, too long to list here!

Thanks also to my wonderful sponsors who made this makeover possible: The Home Depot (flooring) , Metrie (crown molding), Bed Bath & Beyond, Minted, Antique Farmhouse, and Flowings Etsy shop. Thanks also to my contractor for installing the beautiful crown molding.

To say this was an exhausting six weeks is really an understatement. I can’t wait until the next one, lol.

If you missed weeks 1-5 you can catch up below.

Week 1- One Room Challenge Bedroom Makeover Before

Week 2- One Room Challenge Bedroom Makeover Progress

Week 3- One Room Challenge Bedroom Makeover Wall Art

Week 4- Installing Crown Molding – One Room Challenge Bedroom Makeover

Week 5- Installing Vinyl Floors – One Room Challenge Bedroom Makeover

*This post contains affiliate links, you can read my full disclosure here.

May42017May 11 2017

Installing Vinyl Floors – A Do It Yourself Guide

by RoxanneK, in category How-to, One Room Challenge

It’s week 5 of the One Room Challenge! Yikes, did these last few weeks fly by! This week was all about installing vinyl floors. I have been wanting to replace the old carpeting in our home for a very long time, so when the day finally came to rip those out and get these beauties installed, I was beyond thrilled!

My husband is usually the one who installs flooring around here, but this time we did it together. I wanted to learn for myself how to do and I was surprised to find that installing vinyl floors was much less complicated than I expected. If I can do it, you definitely can too!

What You Will Need:

Lifeproof Luxury Vinyl Plank Flooring

Hammer

Rubber Mallet

Tapping Block

T Square/Straight Edge

Pencil

Tape Measure

Floor Cutter (highly recommended!)

Utility Knife

Jigsaw or Shears for irregular cuts (not pictured)

Spacers (not pictured)

Step 1 – Planning:

Most importantly, you will want to do your research and pick the right floors. A blogger friend recommended Lifeproof Luxury Plank Flooring (previously referred to as Allure ISOCORE, they are currently undergoing a name change) to me. The first thing I asked about was installing the underlayment. I was shocked when she told me that these floors had the underlayment built right in, completely eliminating that whole step! Honestly, I thought it was too good to be true and I questioned the company on it, and they assured me that it is indeed true. That alone makes these floors stand out, saving you time, money and labor.

Step 2 – Preparing Sub Floor

By subfloor, I mean whatever was under your existing floors before. When we pulled up the carpets we found staples attached to the wood boards underneath. All of these must be removed prior to install. It has to be a clean, flat surface. This was the worst part of installing the new floors, you can read about how to remove carpeting here.

Step 3 – Fix Squeaky Floors

This is the time to fix those annoying squeaky floorboards. When you find a squeaky spot, simply drill a drywall screw in the subfloor next to the nail in that area. It’s easy and it works!

Step 4 – Installing Vinyl Floors:

My husband really liked the finish on the Lifeproof Multi-Width Walton Oak Luxury Vinyl Plank Flooring so that is what we chose. I liked the varied wood tones of the wood and the different sized planks. When installing there are several patterns you can make with the multiplanks, so you will need to plan ahead before you begin so that you have an idea of your layout. None of the patterns are complicated to do.

We followed the easy directions from the back of the box, which recommends beginning in a corner and proceeding out from there. Each piece of flooring has a tongue and groove on two sides, this is important to pay attention to. You want the tongue facing the wall on the first row. Use the spacers between these first planks and the wall, the space will be covered by the molding later. We began ours in the closet and the alcove of the entry door.

Once we got past that section, it was really easy. The floors snap together with the tongue and grooves. Be sure to stagger the seams so they don’t line up. This sort of happens naturally. When you get to the last piece in a row you’ll have to cut a plank to fit. We used the piece we cut off to begin the next row, and in doing that the seams were naturally staggered.

Once you put the plank in place, you use the tapping block and the hammer to make sure it’s flush with the neighboring plank. A hammer with a smaller head helps make this part a little easier.

When you are tapping it into place, be careful the entire floor doesn’t shift. We found that if one of us stood on the neighboring plank while the other one was tapping it would keep things in place. If you’re installing alone, positioning yourself on the new floor rather than on the subfloor will keep it in place.

To cut down planks at the end of each row we used a floor cutter. My contractor told us about this and he let us borrow his for the install. It made cutting them so easy and they came out perfectly straight. We used a straight edge and a pencil to mark where the plank needed to be cut and then popped it into the floor cutter, which works just like a paper-cutter.

Be sure you are cutting the correct side of the planks so that they line up with the neighboring plank. We only cut one plank wrong this day (and it wasn’t me!) but we were able to reuse it elsewhere. To cut around floor vents we marked the plank with the straight edge and pencil and then we cut it out with a jigsaw. You could also use shears for this if you don’t have a jigsaw or a multi-max type tool.

That’s really all there is to installing vinyl floors! We used nine boxes to cover this room which is approximately 12′ X 14′. It says right on the box that these are the easiest floors ever, and I would agree with that. You really don’t need any power tools to install these, and anyone can do it themselves.

I absolutely love the variation of the wood tones on the Walton Oak, and the multi-width planks give it added interest. I feel that these floors really make the whole room. Without them, the rest of my design would have fallen flat. I would definitely use this flooring again in other rooms of my house. A huge thank you to the Home Depot for sponsoring the floors for my One Room Challenge bedroom makeover!

If you’ve missed the previous weeks of my bedroom makeover you can catch up below.

Week 1 – Bedroom Makeover Before

Week 2 – Bedroom Makeover Progress

Week 3 – Wall Art

Week 4 – Installing Layered Crown Molding

Week 6- Bedroom Makeover Reveal!

Next week is the big reveal and I still have lots to do! Wish me luck. And send wine!

Apr272017May 11 2017

Tips for Installing Crown Molding in Layers

by RoxanneK, in category DIY, How-to, One Room Challenge

Only 2 weeks left to go on the One Room Challenge! This week we are talking about crown molding. Since I first discovered Metrie.com I’ve basically been stalking their Instagram account for inspiration. So I am beyond excited to be partnering with them on the crown molding for my daughter’s bedroom makeover!

I believe the two most important elements in a room are the walls and the floors. If you can add architectural detail to a space, you absolutely should. That is what separates a nice space from a beautiful space. Providing architectural detail, and interior finishings is what Metrie* does. Because I can think of 101 ways to use Metrie products in my home, I really had to think hard on what would work best for this particular room. I considered picture frame molding or a feature wall. While I was debating, I noticed a room on Metrie’s Instagram account which had layered crown molding that was really beautiful. With the other elements I have going on in my daughter’s bedroom, I decided this would provide just the right architectural detail for this space.

When the crown molding arrived I was assembling the pieces in my living room just to get an idea of how exactly they were to be installed. I had a good idea of how they were to fit together, but having never done a layered crown molding myself I sent Metrie an email to be sure I had it right. My contact person promptly sent me back this photo that so perfectly depicts the layout that I asked if I could use it in this post. I labeled it and sent it to my contractor to show him exactly what I needed done.

As much as I love to DIY, I know my limitations and installing crown molding is definitely one of them. Fortunately our contractor is a family member who always graciously agrees to help. He is who we call when we need an expert, he did all of the custom work in our kitchen and family room. For the crown molding he started with the baseboard, which goes on the wall upside down so the bottom is the finished edge.

After that section was up, he began installing the crown molding next. You can see from the next picture that this requires some skill.

The third layer is called panel molding and that was installed along the ceiling. The designer at Metrie helped me put this layout together after I explained I wanted a layered look but I didn’t want the molding to come too far down the wall. The reason I didn’t want that is because I wanted to be able to hang my curtain rod as high as possible and I also need clearance for the sliding barn door track that is going in. Adding this piece to the ceiling was the perfect solution.

Once my contractor finished the installation, I spent another day spackling the nail holes, my husband caulked the corners and edges and then I gave it a nice shiny coat of white paint.

It truly looks stunning!

It looks so amazing that it’s kind of shame for this to be hidden upstairs in a bedroom. I was kicking myself that I didn’t choose to do my living room for the challenge, but that will just have to wait until the next ORC! I have lots of ideas for adding architectural detail in that room.

I asked my contractor for some of his best tips for installing crown molding to share with you.

Tips for Installing Crown Molding:

-Use a mitre saw

-Use a jigsaw to cutout “meat” of mitre

-Use a grinder and a router to fine tune the mitre cuts

-If the walls and ceiling are off use trim screws to tighten the gap

What I Used:

The following are the product links to the exact moldings that I used to create this look.

wall molding (baseboard)

crown molding

panel molding on ceiling

*A big thank you to Metrie.com (a company that I love) for providing the moldings for this space. All opinions are 100% my own, you can read my full disclosure here. Metrie is an official sponsor of the One Room Challenge. If you missed weeks 1-3 of my One Room Challenge bedroom makeover, you can catch up below.

Week 1 – ORC Bedroom Makeover Before

Week 2 – Bedroom Makeover Progress

Week 3 – Bedroom Makeover – Wall Art

Week 5- Installing Vinyl Flooring

Week 6- Bedroom Makeover Reveal!

Apr202017May 11 2017

Bedroom Makeover – Wall Art

by RoxanneK, in category Inspiration, One Room Challenge, Uncategorized, Wall Decor

You guys, this week marks the halfway point of the One Room Challenge. I’m not gonna lie, I’m kind of freaking out a little about that. While I am happy to report that the crown molding is installed, I still have so much to accomplish. The crown still needs to be painted, I’ll share more about that next week. This weekend we will be installing flooring in the room, I will feel better when that project is complete and I can move on to other details. Right now, the contents of my daughter’s room are all over the house.

Last week I showed you the beautiful desk I bought for the space. I’ve been working on putting together somewhat of a gallery wall for above the desk area. I’ve been collaborating with Minted.com* on wall art for the space. I had my daughter look through the website and pick out what she liked. She fell in love with this Marin Cows Print right away.

Since I’ll be adding a pop of green into the room with a sliding barn door, the cow print will compliment that perfectly. We are going to display the artwork on these Artful Shelves. The beautiful wood tone on these really caught my eye.

We decided two of these shelves would look best over the desk. Next we needed one more art print to go with the Marin Cow art my daughter chose. I made a few mach-ups in Photoshop to see which we liked best. First we looked at this Rural Midwest print, but decided the overall color wasn’t going to work in this space.

This Three Oaks Barn Art Print was my top pick, but I had to rule it out because I didn’t like both art prints being oriented horizontally on the shelves.

Lastly, I tried this print, called Weathered Barn and decided this was a perfect fit. I also liked the look of the shelves being equal in length as opposed to staggering them.

You can see from my photos above, that I plan to add a chalkboard on this wall as well. I showed you on Monday how I made a customized magnetic chalkboard to hang to the left of the shelves. Here is a closer look at the Weathered Barn wall art.

These shelves were so easy to hang. I had them up on the wall in about 15 minutes. I picked up the desk organizer shown on the desk to help keep my daughter organized. To say she tends to be a little messy is the understatement of the year.

This is all I can show you of the space for now, I took the shelves down until the construction projects (crown molding, painting and floors) are complete. As you can see from my list below, we did knock a few things off of it. My husband hung the new chandelier. He also built a sliding barn door for the space, but I need to install the floors before we put that in. One thing I’m really struggling with is finding a new headboard for the space. Every time I find one I really like, its either the wrong size or it’s on backorder.

~~Paint Walls~~

Paint Molding

~~New Nightstands~~

Install new flooring

~~Install crown molding~~

Build and Install a Sliding Barn Door (partially done)

Replace headboard

~~Campaign Desk~~

Desk Chair

New bedding

Window treatments

~~Replace chandelier~~

Desk lighting

Nightstand lighting

Wall Decor (partially done)

If you missed previous weeks of my One Room Challenge bedroom makeover, you can catch up below.

Week 1 – ORC Bedroom Makeover Before

Week 2 – Bedroom Makeover Progress

Week 4- Installing Crown Molding

Week 5- Installing Vinyl Floors

Week 6- Bedroom Makeover Reveal!

*Thank you to Minted.com for sponsoring this post, all opinions are 100% my own. This post contains affiliate links, you can read my full disclosure policy here.

Apr132017Apr 12 2017

Bedroom Makeover Progress

by RoxanneK, in category Before and After, One Room Challenge

Week 2 already of the One Room Challenge? I’m sure I’m not the only participant feeling a little bit like maybe I bit off more than I can chew with this one! I’m so thankful that I painted the room before the challenge officially began (is that cheating?), because I have a few big projects to knock off the list. If you missed last week’s post, you can see the before pictures here as well as my plans for the space.

The difference that paint can make never ceases to amaze me. The dark walls are gone and the new color is Dove White by Benjamin Moore. My go-to paint color. Both my family room and my bedroom are painted this same color. Here is a look at where we are at now.

It’s a blank slate now, with tons of potential. I mentioned last week that this campaign desk* was the first thing I planned to buy for this space and here it is. I’ve wanted this forever and it was totally worth the wait. I love the wood tone, and the desktop is really spacious.

As for the closet wall, these bi-fold doors are coming out and we are going to add a sliding barn door instead. My builder-grade house had bi-fold doors in three rooms when we moved in. In my older daughter’s room, I changed them out with DIY custom mirrored doors. Bi-fold doors are the worst. The good news is my husband has gotten the sliding barn door built for me already, I just need to finish painting it. We also need to install new flooring before we can hang it. You really have no idea how excited I am to be getting rid of this old carpeting and installing new floors! I can’t wait to get that project done and share it in the coming weeks.

I also bought the storage bench for the end of the bed that was on my design board, you can see it in this photo. Another thing I didn’t show last week is the mirror. This is one thing that I had prior to beginning the bedroom makeover that will be staying in the new space.

I’ve also been putting together some idea boards for the bedding. I’m definitely going for a neutral linen and white look. If you follow along with me on Instagram, you may have seen this already. I do happen to love the white quilt that is currently on the bed, but it’s old and getting really worn, so it’s time to replace it.

The next two things on the list are installing the crown molding and the floors. I am hoping to get at least one of those done this weekend. Decluttering the room and lightening up the wall color already feels like a huge transformation. It’s as if the room lost 20 lbs!

*This post contains affiliate links, you can read my full disclosure here.

Apr62017Apr 5 2017

One Room Challenge Bedroom Makeover Before

by RoxanneK, in category Design Boards, Interior Design Tips, One Room Challenge

Has it really been a year since I last took part in the One Room Challenge decorating event? Time really does fly! This time, I’m doing a bedroom makeover in my younger daughter’s room which I’ve been thinking about doing for months now. This challenge is just what I need to get myself into gear and get it done.

Here is what I’m starting with. I painted the walls a dark eggplant color years ago. Although I always prefer light and bright rooms, I wanted to try out a dramatic paint color. We all loved this dramatic color for a long time. Eventually though, it just started to feel very heavy and dark. Time for a change.

I was working with what I had in this room back then, so the floor plan was not working. When my daughter was little, we had her bed pushed up against the wall to allow for play space. When she was a bit older, I changed it around, trying to make the tall dresser work on the long wall and squeeze a desk in there too. I hung a gallery wall to surround the small TV. It really wasn’t functional or pretty. But I will say I did a great job painting this room, look at that perfect paint line!

The dresser above has already been removed because it broke. The new plan will not have a dresser at all to allow for putting a larger desk on that wall instead. For clothing storage, I’m going to add two 3-drawer chests I picked up at Ikea, (I’ve already made them over) and a storage bench at the end of the bed. Those three pieces should make up for the loss of dresser. The TV will also be removed, my daughter is okay with that. I think we are raising a Netflix generation.

As for the design, I’m planning a very light and bright color scheme with rustic farmhouse accents. My daughter’s favorite color is green, so I might to add a pop of green in the way of a sliding barn door in place of her existing bi-fold closet doors. Here is my idea board for the space so far.

I’ve been coveting that desk from World Market* forever. I had visited family in Alabama years ago where I visited a World Market store for the first time, long before we had any stores here in NJ. That is when I first saw that desk, and it will be the first thing I buy for this new space. My daughter is now a freshman in college (she lives home & commutes) so a comfortable study space is essential. The gorgeous chair shown has been on my wish list for almost as long as the desk, but I’m not sure if that will make it in the budget.

My to-do list is long for this bedroom makeover and I’m hoping six weeks is enough time to get it done! Besides painting the walls, I plan to remove the carpeting and install new wood flooring. For architectural detail I will add layered crown molding. We are going to build our own sliding barn door to save some money. Basically the only thing that you see in these before photos that will remain is the mattress and boxspring. Here is the (long) to-do list. Luckily, I did get a little head start with painting the walls, I have yet to snap a few pictures of that.

~~Paint Walls~~

~~New Nightstands~~

Install new flooring

Install crown molding

Replace headboard

Campaign Desk

Desk Chair

New bedding

Window treatments

Replace chandelier

Desk lighting

Nightstand lighting

Wall Decor

I am really unsure of what I am going to do as far as a new headboard at this point, I’m torn between something DIY or buying something new. I’m open for suggestions on that! Wish me luck because this is one long list of to-do’s!

*This post contains affiliate links, you can read my full disclosure here.

May122016Feb 2 2017

Kitchen Makeover Reveal & A Giveaway

by RoxanneK, in category Before and After, One Room Challenge

The day is finally here for the One Room Challenge kitchen makeover reveal! It’s been an exhausting six weeks taking part in this challenge, but it was totally worth it. There is also a giveaway for you to enter at the end of this post to celebrate! So lets get right to it, here’s a reminder of what we started with in our kitchen. Basic builder grade everything and too many orange wood tones. UGH.

And here, finally, is the after. Drumroll please…

We saved a little money by painting and repurposing our old cabinets. The appliances and countertops were the only splurges.

Here is an old photo of the kitchen taken from the living room side.

And the view now. We want back and forth a few times regarding what to do with the space above the fridge, especially with that soffit in the way but ultimately it came out just as I had envisioned it.

My contractor custom-built this for us, even adding the “X’s” for the wine bottle holders. Obviously I haven’t had time to buy any wine yet.

For the upper box with the wine glasses, he built the shell and I ordered these under cabinet wine glass holders* that my husband installed after I painted them white.

Here is another angle of the kitchen before the makeover.

And after.

There is still one upper cabinet without the glass insert, paint was literally still drying on that one as I took these photos.

It was a happy day for me when my husband removed the old counters. We saved about $500 removing them ourselves as opposed to having Home Depot do it.

The new counters are quartz, in the color gray expo. I picked a high shine counter even though I knew it will show fingerprints and smudges more than a matte finish. I waited so long to get rid of the flat laminate counters that it’s worth it to me to keep them shined. The new undermount sink is awesome also! And the pendant lights from Lamps Plus are just beautiful too.

Because the kitchen is open to the living room, you can see we only painted the kitchen. Painting the living room just moved high up on the to do list for me. Our contractor also added the crown molding all the way around the room for us. The orb chandelier shown below was a DIY project from a few years ago, it only cost us $27 to make!

I also picked up new spice jars for my spice wall racks because the old ones didn’t all match. I labeled them with round chalk board labels*.

I found this little vintage can at my local antique store. I don’t know what it’s called, but its purpose is for sifting powdered sugar.

And this pantry is amazing, I can’t wait to get it organized! It goes all the way from the floor to the soffit to maximize every inch.

And to recap, here is our checklist:

~~Buy a new refrigerator~~
~~Add a row of cabinetry above the existing cabinets to extend to the ceiling~~
~~New countertops~~
~~New undermount sink~~
~~New backsplash~~
~~Paint existing cabinets~~
~~Add glass fronts to some of the cabinet doors~~
Install lighting in new upper cabinets
Install lighting under lower cabinets
~~Add new cabinetry hardware~~
~~Install new pendants over the sink~~
~~Completely makeover the existing table and chairs~~
~~Paint the walls~~
~~custom built-ins over the refrigerator~~
~~custom slide out pantry~~
~~crown molding~~
add bun feet under cabinets

Unfortunately, we did not get the cabinet lighting installed. We needed a few connectors that we had trouble finding and just ran out of time, we will add that soon. We also didn’t get the bun feet installed under the cabinets because I couldn’t find the type I had in mind anywhere, so we are going to have to custom make those. Another thing not on the checklist that we didn’t get to is adding a decorative strip of molding across the front of the cabinets where the existing uppers meet the new uppers that we added.

I have to give a HUGE, GREAT BIG thank you to my husband for making this all happen for me. He basically gave up every weekend for at least the last four or five weeks to get this done in time, and he did so happily. Which is especially appreciated because he doesn’t always enjoy DIY projects. He literally hasn’t even had time to cut the grass in at least 2 weeks, which I know is driving him crazy. Thanks, John! <3

I also have to thank my sponsors: Lamps Plus, Stikwood, Amerock Hardware and Wayfair. Lastly, thanks to the Back Porch Shoppe Etsy store where I purchased my Farmer’s Market sign. They kindly gave me a second one to giveaway here today to one lucky reader! Be sure to check out all the amazing signs they have in their shop.

Enter below and good luck!!

Sorry, giveaway has ended.

*Affiliate links, read my full disclosure here.

May92016May 10 2016

One Room Challenge Reveals to Watch

by RoxanneK, in category One Room Challenge

Hi there, I hope everyone had a good weekend and a great Mother’s Day. I had a beautiful weekend with my daughter’s and my mom. In addition to the Mother’s Day festivities there was still construction going on in my kitchen makeover. We have the tile grouted and the crown molding is all installed! We have a few more odds and ends to take care of tonight and then hopefully I’ll be ready for the after photos!

Tackling a room makeover in six weeks is really challenging to say the least! But it is fun, and it helps get a projected completed that normally would drag on for months. Especially helpful in a kitchen reno, because the kitchen is the center of the home and living with kitchen supplies all over the house is a little frustrating after a few weeks.

The final reveal for the challenge is this Thursday. I’m looking forward to seeing how the other participants have managed to complete their rooms in this tight timeline. Today I’m sharing a little preview of some of their amazing rooms. Hop around and be inspired by all of these beautiful One Room Challenge guest participants! Be sure to stop in again later this week for all the REVEALS!

Industrial & Modern Spaces

Lindi @ Love Create Celebrate | Neutral & Blue Guest Bedroom

Jenn & Vicki @ 2 Bees in a Pod | Industrial Glam Master Bedroom Closet

Nicole @ Q-Schmitz Blog | Modern & Minimalist Half Bathroom

Jess @ Domicile 37 | Glam Family & Breakfast Room

Kathryn @ Up to Date Interiors | Modern & Creative Kitchen

Vintage & Eclectic Spaces

Maria @ Simple Nature Decor | Blue & White Guest Bedroom

Rachel @ Craving Some Creativity | Vintage Patriotic Office

Chanell @ Hobnail House | Vintage Rustic Living Room

Kim @ Knock it Off Kim | Eclectic Play & Dining Room

Yuni @ Love Your Abode | Classic Neutral Guest Room

Farmhouse-Style Spaces

Roxanne @ The Honeycomb Home | Farmhouse Kitchen

Sara @ Twelve on Main | Neutral Farmhouse Laundry Room

Jenny @ Refresh Living | Neutral Farmhouse Master Bedroom

Sarah @ Little Red Brick House | Industrial Farmhouse Dining Room

Children’s Rooms & Nurseries

Sarah @ Flourish & Knot | Whimsical Harry Potter Nursery

Samantha @ Little Bits of Home | Star Wars Boy’s Bedroom

Amy @ My Life from Home | Vintage Sports Boy’s Bedroom

Katy @ A Shade of Teal | Rustic Glam Nursery

Amanda @ Old House to New Home | Mint & Coral Nursery

Aren’t they all amazing so far? I’ll see you back here Thursday!

Apr282016May 12 2016

Installing Cabinerty Hardware-ORC Week 4

by RoxanneK, in category How-to, One Room Challenge

Two short weeks to go until the One Room Challenge deadline arrives! The good news is that we have really made some progress since last week. The bad news is that there’s still so much to do.

We have the framework in place for what was the problem area above the fridge. I am happy to say that I love how it’s working out. It still needs some adjustments, but this was a huge step towards getting there.

I was going for a custom built-in look around the fridge, with wine racks above it. They’re not complete yet, but I still feel like my vision really materialized now that the framework is in. A big thanks to my contractor (my husband’s cousin) for accomplishing this for us. Especially since I changed the plan up several times on him.

In addition to that, I’ve gotten most of the cabinets painted with the exception of 2 of the upper doors. One is still being built, and one is still having the glass installed. I also need to paint the inside of the built-ins over the fridge. We did manage to install the cabinetry hardware last weekend.

Thank you to Amerock and Wayfair for supplying the hardware for this project*. I had a hard time narrowing down which hardware to go with, because Amerock has so many to choose from.

I ending up selecting the Allison Mushroom knobs in wrought iron dark along with the Inspirations 3″ Center Cup Bin pull. My husband found a quick and easy way to install them using his laser level**.

The Easy Way to Install Cabinetry Hardware:

Measure from the ceiling down to where you want the knobs placed.
Next attach a laser level at that height on the opposing wall.
The laser level projects a level light across the front of the cabinets. This way you only have to measure one time, rather than for each door. Mark each door with a pencil where you will drill.
Drill the holes and attach your hardware.

I am loving the new hardware, especially those bin pulls. I like that they are a twist on the bin pulls that are so popular right now. As you can see from the photo above, I chose to give my painted cabinets a slight distressing around the edges. It shows up more intense in the photos than it actually looks in person.

As far as other kitchen progress, we purchased our Carrera marble subway tile last weekend at Lowes. We needed 3 boxes and that’s exactly how many were in stock that day, luckily!

The countertops and the undermount sink are being installed today, finally! In reviewing my checklist for this week, I realized that I left several thing off of it in the beginning, so this is the updated version.

~~Buy a new refrigerator~~
~~Add a row of cabinetry above the existing cabinets to extend to the ceiling~~
New countertops
New undermount sink
New backsplash
~~Paint existing cabinets~~
Add glass fronts to some of the cabinet doors
Install lighting in new upper cabinets
Install lighting under lower cabinets
~~Add new cabinetry hardware~~
~~Install new pendants over the sink~~
Completely makeover the existing table and chairs
Paint the walls
custom built-ins over the refrigerator
custom slide out pantry
crown molding
add bun feet under cabinets

I still need to pick which crown molding we will use to top the cabinets. We’ve decided to just continue that molding throughout the kitchen (yay!). I don’t know if that will really be done by the ORC deadline, but I’m hoping to get it up above the cabinet wall at least.

Our biggest project this weekend will be tiling the backsplash. I have some more painting to do, including 2 more kitchen chairs and a few cabinets to touch up. It will be a busy one over here for sure!

In case you missed the previous One Room Challenge posts, you can catch up here:

Week 1- Kitchen Makeover Before

Week 2- Kitchen Design Plans

Week 3- Kitchen Pendant Lighting

Week 4- Installing Cabinetry Hardware

Week 5- DIY Farmhouse Table

Week 6- Kitchen Makeover Reveal

*this post was sponsored by Amerock and Wayfair.

**affiliate link-read my full disclosure policy here.

Apr212016May 12 2016

Kitchen Pendant Lighting ORC Week 3

by RoxanneK, in category Before and After, Lighting, One Room Challenge

Week 3-we are halfway there….Yikes! I’ve made progress since week 2, but I wish I were further along than I am. As I mentioned last week, we did get our new pendant lighting installed above our sink area. I’d like to say a huge thank you to Lamps Plus, one of the official sponsors of the One Room Challenge, for sponsoring* these Old Bronze Mini Pendants for this makeover. I just love this new lighting.

I haven’t previously shared a before photo of the kitchen from this angle. We had two pendants on a track hanging above the sink before. I’ve wanted these changed out for years, as well as wanting to get rid of the track that they hung from.

Luckily my husband, John, is great with electrical work and was able to switch the two old pendants for the 3 new ones, minus the track!

And he even looked happy doing it.

After John had them installed, I added my regular light bulbs. Then I realized they would look much cuter with Edison bulbs instead. Here is a shot showing one of each type of bulb in the pendant.

As you can see from the photo below, still no countertops. But I do have an install date set for next week which will still give us two weekends to complete everything else. We removed the old backsplash and I’ve gotten a good amount of the cabinets painted. Notice that a few of the upper cabinets are still without doors, I’m still working on those.

Although I’ve only crossed one additional thing off our list since last week, a few of the others are halfway there. We made over my kitchen table last weekend, which I shared a sneak peek of on my Instagram. I’m still working on making over the chairs. Painting the cabinets is almost done.

~~Buy a new refrigerator~~
~~Add a row of cabinetry above the existing cabinets to extend to the ceiling~~
New countertops
New undermount sink
New backsplash
Paint existing cabinets
Add glass fronts to some of the cabinet doors
Install lighting in new upper cabinets
Install lighting under lower cabinets
Add new cabinetry hardware
~~Install new pendants over the sink~~
Completely makeover the existing table and chairs
Paint the walls

Thanks again to Lamps Plus for sponsoring my kitchen lighting! They are a pleasure to work with, with incredible customer service. I would highly recommend them for your lighting needs. I am also using lighting from Lamps Plus to light my upper cabinets as well as the lowers, but that is yet to be installed.

I’ll see you back here next week with my Week 4 progress. Be sure to check out my Instagram for sneak peeks!

Week 1- Kitchen Before Photos

Week 2- Kitchen Design Plan

Week 3- Kitchen Pendant Lighting

Week 4- Installing Cabinetry Hardware

Week 5- DIY Farmhouse Table

Week 6- Kitchen Makeover Reveal

*You can read my full disclosure on sponsored posts here.