5/1/2023

It’s now week 5 of the One Room Challenge, and I’m taking an aspiration approach to this post. I’m actually starting it a few days early, and I’m going to outline what I have accomplished and what I hope to accomplish in the next week.

I have:

• Started priming the walls, trim, and ceiling
• Started painting (because why stick to a reasonable order of operations?)
• Mostly striped the mantle to bare wood
• Decided I don’t have the ambition currently to strip the build in bookcases under the mantle
• Painted the front door (a completed project!)
• Relocated items and boxes to be stored elsewhere
• Started cleaning up the floor
• Removed the outlet and light switch plates, and started removing nails from the walls.
• Painted the brick fireplace

In the coming week, I will:

• Finish painting the ceiling and walls
• Stain the mantel
• Finish stripping the mantle
• Remove anything else I need to from the walls (nails, etc)

I’m hopeful that I can make decent progress this week. I’ve been inclined to work on different projects recently, and we joined the local play for the next few weeks, but we don’t have many rehearsals this week and not an overabundance of social obligations. The painting that I have completed really does make the project feel more real and exciting than the prep work made me feel – it feels like real progress had been made. I just hope I can hold on to that feeling!

5/2/2023

I knocked out priming the walls, most of the trim, and some of the ceiling last night! Gosh, I was so tired afterwards, but it was great to see the process! I think I’ll focus on finishing the ceiling (to avoid unfortunate splatters), and then start on the primary wall color.

I’m contemplating two ideas for the wall with the fireplace. Right now, I’m thinking that I’ll make a TV nook in the corner with the two couches and Gomez the cat will be able to sit on the couch to look out the window, but his cat tree will have to be relocated. Instead of keeping the cumbersome (and kind of ugly) cat tree in the living room, I’m thinking of designing a cat play area attached to the wall that lets him get up on the mantle to watch out the windows. We’ll attach a tall scratching post, little ladder rungs, and shelves for him to lay on. If it’s by the couch area, then he’ll be able to look down on us all he likes, and still have his window access.

My other idea, and I’m not sure if it’s compatible with the wall cat play area, is a floating garden/terrariums over the fireplace. Plants will be placed in glass vases/jars and hung on the wall over the mantle to provide a pleasing green-scape in that space (since the traditional TV mounting there doesn’t work for the flow of this room). I do have that overly large mirror that could be re-hung there, but the greenery is really appealing to me as a statement wall.

All that said, I’m going to hold off on ordering anything until I can play with the furniture arrangement some and see if I really do want the TV in that corner.

5/5/2023

This has been a week of intense effort and late nights, but seeing the process makes it so worthwhile!

My to-do list progress: 

• Finish painting the ceiling and walls
  • Last night, the ceiling was finished and the walls started!
• Stain the mantel
• Finish stripping the mantel
  •  I’m about 1/3 of the way, I think, on getting the mantel down to bare wood.
• Remove anything else I need to from the walls (nails, etc)
  • Done!

5/7/23

Final check in for the week, and I managed to finish most of the to-do list! The ceiling and walls are painted, the mantel is stripped, and the nails were removed from the walls. The mantel still needs to be stained, but I’ll see if I can get to that this week. Let’s revisit the to-do list from week 1.

To do list: (in no particular order)

• Paint walls – dark grey
• Paint trim – white
• Paint ceiling – white
• Paint fireplace – ??? dark
• Paint doors – ??? white?
• Fix paneling over the fireplace
• Get the fireplace windows to open
• Finish repairing the ceiling drywall
• Refinish the floors
  • Replace cracked boards as needed
  • Clean thoroughly
  • Remove carpet staples, gunk, nails as needed
  • Stain and seal
• Repair and clean tile in front of fireplace
• Paint bookshelves – white
• Replace trim in corner
• Add toe-kick/quarter round trim
• Furnish and decorate
• Cover attic fan switch hole
• Remove clutter
• Cover & protect couches

Of course, the biggest project – the floors – is yet to come, but progress is coming strong this week! Coming soon, staining the mantel and painting the trim & doors & bookshelves white.

This blog post is my week five One Room Challenge update – visit http://www.oneroomchallenge.com/orc-blog for more rooms and updates!