ONE ROOM CHALLENGE WEEK ONE
Welcome to my fourth one room challenge project!
I'm coming in hot at the end of week one to share about the space I chose to complete for spring ORC and the why behind it. I'll be transforming the mudroom, where we enter and exit our home daily. The washer & dryer occupy this space in addition to the room being used as our family entryway, so part of my end goal is to design a space that doesn't look and feel like a laundry room; but a true mud room that happens to include the washer & dryer. It's totally not uncommon as you know to see the two coexist. To acheive my goal, the challenge is for the washer & dryer not to be the focal point stars in the room. Let's have a looksy at the before views. Eeek!!
While we have a few other spaces in design phase and or in work in progress, this is one of the last spaces that still needs painting and the last one that still needs new flooring. When this photo was taken, it was after the old carpet was pulled up, just before the new flooring was installed in the hallway & steps that lead to the main level. My mind has clearly been on this space for weeks. So- Why the mudroom? I'm glad you asked.
MY WHY
Long before entering the interior design industry professionally, I always believed the entrance of home should be welcoming. In our last home we used our kitchen as the main entry point for ourselves and most guests. The kitchen was like the hub, and the layout was open-floor. It doesn't get much more welcoming than that! For those newer here, we just closed on a new home in February and just moved in late March. This house is still being unpacked and work is still in progress throughout. So, it needs to start feeling like home for us. The bedrooms, bathrooms, and kitchen were the primary focal spaces after getting all new floors throughout. That brings us back to why we're here in the mud room. To bring it in a bit with how we feel entering & exiting home. Currently the room is giving "catch all" chaos with the old washer & dryer left by the previous owners. Did I mention the last appliances to be replaced are in this space as well? We need to see these mint green walls and linoleum or laminate floors gone (not sure what type of flooring it is). Next, let's talk about design the plan that's about 75% complete.
DESIGN DEVELOPMENT
The aesthetic will be moody, but warm & welcoming. My first task was to decide what needs to occupy a space we never had- yet always needed. Aside from the obvious washer & dryer, we do need cabinetry and/or shelving for laundry essentials. We have a ton of closets in this house, including two coat closets; so we will not need hooks for any outerwear. We will need space for the outdoorsy things, shoes, and organization so the room functions clutter free. My husband wants our freezer to occupy this space as well. For now it's in his future man cave, so I'm choosing my battles wisely. My wishlist item is a sink that doesn't look like the utility sinks we all typically have in laundry rooms, because this is not just a laundry room. Once the flooring, lighting, and shelf system are all firmly decided I'll know if my dreamy mudroom sink & cabinetry will fit into the budget. Yes, the B word we all love so much in design. By next week's end some or all of these details will be established. Lastly for now, here's a high level list of tasks listed to execute my project plan.
THE 8 WEEK PLAN
Week One- Design Development
Week Two- Mood Board PRESO (on the blog & IG)
Week Three- Sourcing & Purchasing
Week Four- Paint Color Testing, then painting
Week Five- Tradesmen for floors and lighting
(this will not be all DIY)
Week Six- Install shelving and any furnishing/decor
Week Seven- Styling & Photos
Week Eight- Reveal
Be sure to follow along on Instagram and check out my fellow participants on the main One Room Challenge blog. Stay tuned for more to come. Special thanks to Linda Weinstein, the ORC host and media partners Apartment Therapy.
xx,
Kelly
'The race isn't given to the swift, but the one who endures until the end'. -Living Word
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