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One Room Challenge Week 5 - A "Hot" Mess

Welcome to Week 5 of the One Room Challenge being hosted by Linda of Calling it Home.  You can see our plans here and follow all of the progress here.

Thanks for the well wishes last week!  I am beginning to feel better and starting to get a spring back in my step.  And just in time because our room still has quite a bit of work ahead of it before the reveal in one week from TODAY!

The room and I have been fighting for a few reasons, but as I continue to layer in elements, things are starting to feel a bit more like home.  Some days I feel like I have lost my way, and other days I walk into the space and just sit and smile.  This past few weeks haven't always made sense, even to me.  It has been a learning process trying to navigate a new layout while also trying to incorporate my goal of a colorful, happy, stylish, yet family friendly space.  And I totally have been tackling everything backwards... but we were waiting on the biggest element for a single "hot" reason!


What is THAT?!

We installed a fireplace!  Woot!

A big wish list item with the entire renovation of our kitchen and living room, has been to add a fireplace.  I am about the biggest freeze baby in the history of Wisconsin, and have been dreaming of a fireplace for years.  We had ordered one and scheduled the installation awhile back, but a lot had to happen with timing the HVAC work for the kitchen (same guys running gas lines for cooktop and fireplace).  Without kitchen progress, we had no living room progress.  Talk about cutting things close!

So, last weekend we started building our built-ins, including the surround for the fireplace insert to prepare for the installation process that took place this week Monday.


It is hard to show the room this week because it literally has become one giant hot mess.  We had to move all of the furniture to make room to build the new unit, which is only about half done.  Accessories are piled at the back of the room (right next to a giant pile of tools), waiting patiently to make this space feel cozy and warm.  I haven't settled on a coffee table yet (nothing has felt "right"), but after popping in our dining room bench, I sort of love the idea of doing a nice cozy ottoman.  We tried our beautiful wooden World Market table but it is just not scaled for the space, although the warmth of the wood was a great touch.  So that element of the room is going to be a last minute mystery, even for me.  And did I mention the built-in is only about 50% done? 

The custom curtain panels have arrived from Tonic Living and they are sensational.  Simple linen panels pleated and lined, adorned with a bold black banding.  The moment they were up, the room felt so much more like a room.  And it is crazy weird to have real grown up panels!  Now to dig out my steamer....


But.... between the built-ins and the curtains, I may have made the wrong choice on the chair...


I looooove white, but I have a feeling it is going to get one more coat of paint before this room is said and done.  I am OK admitting that not every choice I am making each week is going to work in the end result.  I have always been one to move things around and make changes until they settle and feel right.  I just have to do it in triple fast forward time for the room challenge.  But let me just say, the chair is about as cozy as it gets and my reading experience has never been better.  Mama is in love.

We have been taking an abundance of photos and are prepping a few tutorials for many of the projects that will end up in the final reveal next week, including the fireplace surround.


The room has always been longer than it is wide, so we were lucky to have room to spare for the 16" deep cabinets and shelves.  They were built to mimic the height and style of the kitchen cabinets across the way, and once painted they will be one more element that marries the two spaces.  Once painted they will also look much more cohesive as a whole and should melt away into the wall.  I can't wait to get to a point of posting about a single giant space again so you can visually see what is happening between the living room and kitchen.

Now that electrical has been run and the fireplace is installed, we can finish with the building.  Continuing with our around-the-clock schedule we actually just completed the tiling last night and it is pretty gosh darn lovely.  Next up is mantle building, trim work, priming and then painting.  I am on a mission to get everything done for the sake of next week's room reveal, Bryan is on a mission to get his TV mounted and his PlayStation hooked back up! #priorities


The built-ins/fireplace/TV unit has been our primary focus over the past week, so that means I still have a lot to finish up before I photograph the space this weekend (my goal is Sunday, yikes!).  Send me lots of happy vibes and luck!  Although we will probably have a few unchecked room "to do" boxes by the time of the reveal, just to know how far we have already come in a few short weeks makes us high five on a daily basis. 

Before I get back to painting, let's take some time to check out the rest of the One Room Challenge progress.  I wonder if anyone else is freaking out as much as I am that there are only a few days remaining... Sleep is overrated right?  DUN DUN DUUUUN