One Room Challenge Spring 2021 Week 4
I cannot believe we are half way to the finish line of the One Room Challenge! It’s been a busy week with projects so I will dive right in, but you can check out my first three posts here by clicking on Week 1, Week 2, or Week 3 and you should definitely check out all of the talented designers who are transforming one room over these eight weeks here. Oh and it’s Memorial Day weekend here in the states, hence the patriotic colors. But in all sincerity, thank you to all those are or who have served , especially the ones who did not make it home.
Ok, so last I left you, I had determined that we would like to recreate the Pottery Barn Folsom Coffee Table rather than our version of a Restoration Hardware dupe. I decided that the RH dupe would bring a more traditional element to the room and, since we already have much of that vibe, and I live to mix styles, I probably had enough traditional and could use some more modern. I have tulip feet on the TV console, not to mention the two story recessed panel wainscoting wall. SO we’re hoping to make this:
It’s going to be perfect for this space! Now, if you’re participating in ORC or are a big DIY fan, you likely know that the price of lumber right now is OUTRAGEOUS! What used to cost $2 is now around $16 around here and that table is solid wood, about 3.5 inches thick for each piece. So, at this point we are working on determining if it would be cheaper to simply buy the coffee table than make given the price of lumber. We have several lumberyards we’re checking as well as some of the local stores. The measurements listed show that the table is 58 inches long, 24 inches deep, and 18 inches tall. Of course, we can could change the dimensions since we’re hoping to make it from scratch, but the dimensions actually work well for our space. We’ve figured that we need, and “they” used, wood that was 3-4 inches thick, and so we’re looking at using planed 4x4s, likely of pine, which should get us about 3×3 pieces. We’ve talked about how we will build it, but first, we need to find/price out the wood.
The biggest project we started this week is the stairs remodel. We started by ripping all of the carpet off of the stairs and then pulling out every single staple and nail with pliers. There are easily hundreds of staples, especially because the tread (top of the step), riser (vertical part of each step, and the stringers (the wood trim on the wall that fits around each step) were all covered in carpet.
We have gone back and forth on how to remodel these stairs. Some would say the best option is to remove the stairs and reinstall new, finished wood for all three parts. That is incredibly expensive and an option we’re not keen on because we plan to have the wood laminate floors, here when we bought the house, replaced with finished in place hardwoods in the next couple years. We would likely have the stairs remodeled again using the same wood we’re using on the floor. We need something solid/well built and pretty to tide us over until we do the big remodel.
A bit of research led us to our plan: we’re placing thin oak plywood on top of the current treads, white hard board for the risers, and finished wood we round with a router for the bullnose (front lip of the stairs). The stringers are in good shape so we’ll just paint those. It’s going to take some real elbow grease, but it’ll look fantastic when we’re finished.
Once we uncovered the wooden steps, we discovered a few things that meant we were going to have to adjust our plan though. As part of the process, we need to cut off the bullnose, which is rounded, so that we can add the square edged oak on top, and then be able to add our own rounded bullnose. However, the current treads are built into the side of the stringers (wood trim on the walls beside) so when we add our own bullnose, we’re going to have this empty hole on each side of the steps. That cannot happen, so we’ll cut our bullnose just long enough that it’ll be able to fit a bit into both holes and then we’ll caulk/use wood filler for the rest. That’s the plan at least. I had my first panic today where I said let’s just paint it all and forget about this plan. But, we’ve regrouped and feeling better about our new plan.
We also figured out we’ll have to add trim to both sides to cover where the carpet was. Not a big deal, but not something we planned out.
This week, we’ll be painting the fireplace surround, I’m ordering the art lamps (I’m doing it, I am…), and we’ll hopefully be finishing the stairs. They have turned out to be a much bigger project, but I’m super excited!
Stay tuned for more updates to come, including during the week on my Instagram page. Your follows, likes, shares, and comments keep me going even when IG isn’t as fun as it used to be, so thank you!
Also, be sure to check out the other talented participants transforming one of their rooms right now! I’m telling you, there are some impressive projects. I’ll be sharing some of those in my IG stories as well each week! Until then friends,
