Lessons from the One Room Challenge

Take a look at five rooms from the One Room Challenge. You can learn a lot from other designers.

When you’re looking for design inspiration around the web you should always look to learn from other designers, not just copy their projects or rooms. Learning is a large part of designing a beautiful home that is uniquely you. The fall and spring One Room Challenge hosted by Calling It Home is one of my favorite blogosphere events to help me learn and grow.

20 seasoned designers and a slew of other guest participants plan and execute makeovers of a room of their choice in just six weeks. Having redone several rooms in my house, I can tell you from experience that this is a monumental undertaking in such a short period of time. Designing a space takes, planning, budgeting, shopping, executing and then finally styling and photographs. It’s a lot to do at breakneck speed. You can view all the rooms here for main players and the guest participants can be seen here.

I’ve perused the 200 guest participants and have chosen my favorites to show you from the Spring 2017 challenge. My favorites are based mostly on styling and decorating.  These spaces have some minor renovation, but time investment, elbow grease and cash are the key ingredients to making it happen.  Most of all, these rooms contain lessons we can learn about design.

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Learn From the Master

I want to move into Danielle’s master bedroom over at Mom Wife Foodie. First of all, I have this love affair with gray. Then that chandelier is calling my name. This room is comfortable, chic and breathtaking.

I counted 10 patterns (11 if you count the rug) in Danielle’s room. A great way to mix patterns is to keep a consistent color palate and choose an array of large, small and medium prints. Add more impact by adding small doses of color. She took it up a notch by adding the pink floral pillow and tropical pillow. These pillows work well because she balanced it with the pink flowers on the nightstand and the tropical pillow on the bench. That wasn’t an accident. The colors add attractive visual symmetry.

John Gets Extra Credit

My pick for the bathroom was done by Nicole at Madness and Method. This is what you can pull off with just a little planning and lots of paint. This bathroom represents a lot of what middle America homes look like. Beige and bland builder grade. I say that as I glance out of my office at the beige builder grade vanity my bathroom…one day soon we shall part ways.

In six weeks, Nicole took it from bland to colorful and vibrant. She designed this bathroom for her brother so it has a masculine vibe, but it could be easily gussied up with feminine twists.

Obviously, I say a million times yes to the teal, gray, navy and white feature wall. It’s so fun. This is a great example how to incorporate bold and bright colors.  Adding white or black in a pattern is an easy way to tone down a busy or bright color scheme.

Another thing I love is she didn’t rip out the cabinets;  just added trim to the door fronts. Not a beginner project, but certainly feasible. My jaw dropped when I read she used spray paint on the cabinet doors AND the counter top. You can do a lot with spray paint my friends.

An A+ Kids Room

Carrie at Lovely Etc. made me want to cry with her sweet little boys’ bedroom. The whole look says come play, snuggle and dream. The color palate is soft like a nursery, yet the tie die from the closets and the boldness of the large navy stripe tell you this room is not for babies.

I could gush for days over all the details. The mural is so darn cut. And who wouldn’t want to read bedtime stories in a teepee? A galvanized metal awning! OMG so creative. She even incorporated the closets into the design. Form and function are a match made in heaven.

I love the way this room is exquisitely designed to make you feel. Beyond being beautiful, rooms that function and speak to emotions are hands down what make a home.  I believe before you choose paint, props and furniture, you should consider how you want people to feel when they’re in the room. This feeling will guide your design decisions better than a Pinterest board ever can.

Just because it’s basic, doesn’t mean it’s remedial

Paint steals the show in Cornflake Dreams’. dining room. Benjamin Moore Hale Navy does it again. This color never fails to deliver. It is stunning against the white of the molding and wainscoting. Now admittedly, Jillian used a contractor for some of the work, but this is the type of transformation you could tackle as a newbie diy-er. (Minus the flooring…paint a few more things before you move up to flooring—trust me.)

This traditional-leaning room has a very curated color palate of navy and blue. She injected just a smidgen of greenery and everybody’s favorite bowl of lemons. A limited color palate doesn’t have to limit design. You can add major impact for a classic and refined look.

A Make Up Test that Scores Big

Diane Rath over at The Rath Project is an interior designer and stylist who created an astonishing kitchen just shy of a full-fledged reno. Changing the hardware on your cabinets is an easy way change the look of your cabinets. 

My favorite part of the room is the blue grass cloth wallpaper. It adds so much depth to the space without it being overwhelming. And that light fixture over the table. LOVE.

She managed to make a huge impact in her cozy kitchen by installing butcher block counters, dual toned subway tile and a beautiful tile floor; while this does take a little more budget or DIY skill, it is reasonable considering we’re talking kitchen.

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I hope you enjoyed the round up and learned something. Remember, other people’s homes can be a source of inspiration, but they will never be yours. Dream your own dreams, then make them happen.

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