The floor drama that I told you about last week took some extra time and slowed us down a bit, but we quickly got back on track and checked two more big items off of the home office to-do list.
As a reminder- here’s where we left off last week…
When we first moved into our house, the home office (which is actually just a basement bedroom) had bypass / sliding closet doors. Here’s a picture from move-in day back in 2008 when the room was still empty.
In the fall of 2019, when I was working with The Container Store as a brand ambassador, they asked me to show off the functionality of their Elfa closet systems. I had always dreamed of a functional craft closet, with a combination of shelves and drawers. But the only way to make that work in this closet was to remove the doors to allow full access to the center of the closet. So down the doors came – and in went the dreamy Elfa system.
I always planned to install new doors at some point in time, but then decided that it didn’t make sense to do so until I was ready to do the whole room. So here we are.
We DIY as many projects as we can, but since the closet didn’t have an existing door frame / door jamb, I knew that this project was above our pay grade. I hired a professional who started by removing the track from the old bypass doors.
Then, he began building out the new door frame.
By the end of the day, the new doors were in and ready to be painted, along with the rest of the room. We still need to install the door knobs once they get delivered.
Since our home office is in a basement bedroom, I knew I wanted to paint three walls white to make the room as bright as possible. I chose the same white we used recently in the adjacent bathroom – Sherwin Williams Pure White.
It’s so fresh and bright, even though my poor iPhone photo here doesn’t capture it very well. It will be even better once we install a better light fixture in the room!
My design plans call for painting the fourth wall a deep navy blue. We will be using two blue Ikea Billy bookcases in the room. Here’s a reminder of the design plans so you can see how the blue factors in.
I picked up lots of blue paint swatches from both Benjamin Moore and Sherwin Williams. I quickly narrowed my options down to the three that looked best next to the blue of the yet-to-be-assembled Billy bookshelves.
We ended up picking Sherwin Williams Naval, and I love how it looks! Again, the light is pretty bad in this iPhone photo, but take my word for it and I’ll get better pictures as we move along.
And that’s a wrap on Week 4. – halfway to the finish line of the One Room Challenge. Here’s what’s coming up:
Completely clear the spaceReplace carpet with solid surface flooringInstall new pull-open closet doors (previously removed the bi-pass closet doors)Paint walls and closet doors- Install new window blind
- Install new light fixture
- Select / assemble new furniture
- Select rug
- Create double sided desk
- Set up computers / technology
- Organize new storage spaces
- Hang gallery wall
- Hang other art
- Style the space
A LOOK BACK AT ALL MY PAST ONE ROOM CHALLENGE PROJECTS
It can be interesting to see the week-by-week progress of a big project, but if you prefer the satisfaction of the final reveal, check out the eleven One Room Challenge spaces that we’ve completed over the past decade:
Menswear Themed Boy's Bedroom
I participated in my very first One Room Challenge back in the spring of 2014. Baby #2 had recently entered our lives, and needed the nursery, so I designed a menswear themed boy's bedroom for my older son, who was 2.5 at the time. Since that time, the boys now share a different room (also an ORC project below), and we recently made some minor updates to turn this room from a toddler room to a playroom / hangout room.
Master Bedroom Makeover Without Replacing the Furniture
The next ORC round, in the fall of 2014, I turned my attention to our master bedroom, which had been largely neglected in the six years since we'd move into our home. I made a big impact in this space without replacing any of the furniture, or even changing the placement of the furniture in the room.
Rock 'n' Roll Playroom Under the Stairs
In the spring of 2015, I converted the storage space under our basement stairs into a rock 'n' roll inspired playroom for my boys. At only 3 foot by 12 foot, it's one of the smallest spaces I transformed, but what it lacks in size it more than makes up for in style and fun! This is still one of my very favorite projects to date, and it was featured in print in 5280 Home magazine!
A Laundry Closet That Functions Like a Laundry Room
In the fall of 2015, I finally achieved my goal of making our laundry closet feel and function more like a laundry room by adding tons of style and storage, including removable wallpaper and, a hanging light fixture, and bold cabinets.
Modern Master Bathroom Makeover
The following spring, in 2016, I updated our master bathroom to match the "graphic glam" style of the adjoining bedroom. The wall of graphic black and white cement tile and statement light fixtures are the stars of the show. I was thrilled with what a huge transformation we created in this space without replacing any of the existing cabinets or fixtures.
Garage Organization with Style
Later that fall, I tackled the much dreaded garage! I was hoping to just create a more functional storage space, but in the process of cleaning and organizing, thanks to some creative DIYs, I also managed to make the garage pretty! I was incredibly honored to have our garage makeover featured on a two-page spread in the March 2018 issue of Better Homes & Gardens magazine!
A Small Shared Boys' Room with Bunk Beds
In the spring of 2017, my boys (then 3 and 5) were begging for bunkbeds, so we turned the former nursery into a shared boys room, complete with lots of color and tons of storage for books and toys.
Modern Kitchen Dining Area
In the fall of 2018, I took on a modern dining room makeover. We added more storage, finally found a solution to an awkward wall, and made a big statement on the kitchen island. And we did it all on a budget.
Colorful Rooftop Retreat
In the spring of 2019, we turned our unused deck off of our master bedroom into a colorful and comfortable rooftop retreat for the whole family to enjoy. This deck is perfect for lounging and enjoying the summer weather, and when the sun goes down, it quickly transforms into an outdoor movie theater.
Ultimate Game Room
In the spring of 2021, we turned our basement family room into the ultimate game room, complete with a custom-built game table, comfy banquette seating, and tons of hidden storage for all of our games and puzzles. On the other end of the basement, our home theater includes a stylish popcorn and candy bar.
Bright Basement Bathroom
In the fall of 2021, we took our orange basement bathroom from bold but boring to a bright and stylish space. The playful artwork reflects our family's love of the theater.