One Room Challenge Week Eight: The Petite Suite Grand Reveal

We’ve finally wrapped up the One Room Challenge and given our guest suite a total makeover in just over eight weeks. It wasn’t easy but I’m thrilled with the results!

The past couple of months have been intense for many reasons, and taking on a project like this was even more challenging than it might have been under other circumstances. When I first started to consider doing this round of the One Room Challenge, it was before Covid struck, and everything came grinding to a halt, and I had intended to give the kid’s shared room a needed refresh.

Once things shifted though the most neglected part of our home suddenly came into very high demand, as it became a full-time WFH office as my husband and I alternated between work and childcare, and our retreat in the evenings away from the chaos of kids and dishes and laundry. The only problem was the space was anything but relaxing. It was half-finished with walls in need of repair after removing some pretty intense wallpaper (imagine being inside of an elaborately wrapped Christmas gift- red and green with snowflakes on the ceiling, adorned with gold foil.) It was awkwardly laid out with outsized leftover furniture from our last place, mixed in with some hastily purchased Target essentials for last-minute guests, and it had become the dumping ground for off-season clothes, boxes destined for Goodwill… in short it was a mess.

So we took it on and straight away ran into a lot of issues we had not accounted for. This is the part of the story where I share with you my secret weapon in times like this, my husband. He was my equal partner in the whole way through, constructing the niches as I plastered walls, slogging through the linoleum removal job from hell, taking even my most ambitious ideas in stride. He’s an engineer which helps on the structurally sound side of things (I run nearly every DIY idea by him first) and has construction experience from when he was younger- which comes in very handy. We make a pretty good team.

So we pushed through the challenges and just kept at it. Working out ideas on scraps of paper over dinner. Coming up with creative solutions for items that we wouldn’t be able to order because of delays and forgoing anything that would require professional assistance. We couldn’t find a mini desk to fit the space that would ship before October, so we built one. We needed a wardrobe to match the existing one, so I combed through Facebook Marketplace. In the end, I’m so happy everything worked out the way it did because it all fits together beautifully. I’ve built a custom piece of furniture for every place I’ve lived since graduating college because I think that it’s the best way to maximize a small space and personalize it in one fell swoop, and each of those pieces has somehow found a home or been remade in the next space- here, we took apart the live edge bench I built for our former dining nook and created a bath caddy and the mirror’s vanity ledge from the slab.

In this space, we created not one but several custom pieces. We built a set of niches from an awkward nook in the wall with bench seats and floating shelves, we created a workspace from scratch that blends seamlessly into the adjacent kitchen, we created more storage by transforming two inexpensive Ikea wardrobes into built-in that spans the wall, and we even built the bed from plywood and a hardware kit c/o Floyd. I also created the wall to wall jute carpet by cutting a massive rug to size and binding the raw edges.

The other major DIY we tackled was painting and stenciling the exposed concrete floors to look like my favorite cement tiles, I was afraid the effect might be cheesy, but I’m utterly obsessed with the results. We also painted the kitchen cabinets with a setup that made things fairly painless, I created statement walls with a two-tone application of Portola Paint’s Roman Clay and for the rest of the walls and the ceiling brushed on lime wash to give them subtle texture and movement.

A few simpler DIY’s include the propagation wall (so I can clear my windowsills which are always covered in mason jars and plant cuttings), the Water Closet decal on the bathroom door, created with a Cricut and some gold foil, and my little towel ring hack involving a wall hook and a gold craft hoop. Thank god for quick and easy projects and the immediate gratification they provide, I definitely needed some little wins after devoting two straight weeks to just removing the linoleum.

Really, the space feels like one big win. We finally have a quiet little getaway to work, relax and just have a moment of sweet, sweet alone time and by utilizing the square footage so well I feel like we’ve gained more usuable space in the process. Thanks for following along and for all the love and support! You can view all the photos in the gallery below.

We swapped the bed for the sofa to create a better flow

We removed the trim around the window and stripped the paint to reveal the patchwork cedar frame then hung the bamboo shade.

I created this weaving at a Meghan Shimek workshop (in the before times) with this space in mind.

The wall to wall Jute created from a rug I cut to size is the perfect canvas for layering a smaller rug to help define the space.

The brass and walnut sconces were an Etsy find from Roanoak

We stripped the painted door back to the original pine to add warmth and character.

The scale and placement of the furniture helps to keep things ballanced and light without sacrificing comfort.

Hanging a large scale piece of art helped create symmetry with the odd placement of the door and window.

We kept the bed light and neutral with Parachute linen bedding and a simple Moroccan throw.

The double swing arm lamp provides reading light over the bed while staying clear of the wardrobe doors.

Instead of centering the bed on the wall between the sconces, we paired it with a light that could be extended over the bed and grouped the pair with the wardrobe to carve out a zone.

The DIY platform bed frame and headboard was constructed from laminated Maple plywood and hardware c/o Floyd.

The simple hardware c/o Floyd made assembling our DIY bedframe easy and means we can easily disassemble it as well.

Tall Pampas Grass adds height and drama while keeping things airy and neutral.

This pleated linen shade has a soothing glow and is made in CA by California Workshop for Room and Board.

We repurposed a $15 Ikea stool as a simple nightstand.

A variety of textures keep a simple palette interesting.

We paired our existing Ikea Brimnes wardrobe with one off facebook marketplace, gave them a fresh coat of paint, new hardware and added moulding for a built in look.

Topping the wardrobes with a row of seagrass baskets helps utilize every square inch of the wall for storage.

View from the sleeping area into the home office/kitchen. Nailing down the floor plan first is the key to making the most of small spaces.

We spent a large chunk of our budget on the Frame TV but it was worth hiding the screen in plain sight. The downloadable art is from Juniper Print Shop.

The two-tone Roman clay plastered walls create added dimension to the niches and continue into the kitchen to serve as a backsplash.

This was once an awkward nook with a large beam running off-center down one side. We concealed the beam by splitting it into two niches and floated the TV in the middle.

The floating shelves and bench seats were constructed from the same maple pine as the bed and office to create a cohesive feel in such a small space.

A record station helps set the mood.

I set out a few favorite albums with great artwork out on display.

The color palette of the room is continued through the shelf styling.

The set of niches add some much-needed symmetry to the space .

I shopped the house for everything on the shelves and repurposed items from past projects.

The pressed flower shadowbox was a last minute addition created with my four-year-old from our garden. Sentimental pieces personalize a space.

View from the kitchen/office into the living/sleeping space. White limewash adds texture to the walls and ceiling.

Because the rest of the space is neutral the patterned floors become a focal point without feeling too busy.

We tore up the 90’s linoleum and dirty white carpet and replaced them with the wall to wall jute and stenciled concrete floor.

We built the small office from scratch to feel like an extension of the kitchen and take advantage of every last inch.

The navy from the cabinets and the pattern on the floor are the same shade for a cohesive feel.

The floating shelves help to tie the kitchen and office together and create more open storage to display pretty objects.

A moody floral vintage oil painting from Bay Area favorite Elsie Green helps add depth and texture

We based the depth of the desk on our ability to tuck in a chair when it was not in use to keep the narrow walkway clear and built-in cord control.

We kept the shelf styled simply (but made sure to include office snacks).

The patterned floor extends the length of the kitchen, around the corner to the entryway and into the bathroom.

Fitting a designated office into a small space and be tricky but with some consideration it can blend in seamlessly with it’s surroundings.

The kitchenette is used primarily to brew coffee and tea and whip up snacks and sandwiches during the day so I tried to keep unnecessary countertop clutter to a minimum.

Painting the upper cabinets white kept them from feeling too heavy and visually opened up the space.

The navy beadboard cabinets and gold hardware catch the afternoon light.

We used Roman clay plaster on the wall spanning from the nook into the kitchen, here it acts as a subtle backsplash.

Little details like the wooden scrubber and dish and a branch of lemons are as pretty as they are practical.

The fridge blends in with the white upper cabinets and sidewall painted to match.

The bright indirect light in the entry made it the perfect candidate for a propagation station.

We repurposed spice racks from Ikea and test tubes from a supplier to create the cutting wall.

It adds a bit of green to the space while supporting my houseplant obsession.

We painted the worn wood door a deep gray-blue that frames up the glass panes, but kept a bit of the distressed texture.

We stripped the heavy burgundy colored stain from the door in favor of its natural tone and waterproofed it with interior polyurethane.

The bathroom wall is done in the same Roman Clay finish as the living space to create a focal point.

We continued the theme of wood tones, navy, white and gray to create a sense of flow with the rest of the space.

The hexagon shelf was a dollar spot find from Target.

The navy linen shower curtain matches the patterned floors and adds depth to the light walls.

The mirror ledge was inspired by a much more expensive piece and is suspended by carefully placed brackets.

Can you spot all three DIY’s? The water closet decal was created with gold foil adhesive and a Cricut machine.

I created the towel ring out of a wall hook from Cb2 and a brass craft ring when I couldn’t find one I liked.

Matching brass fixtures create a cohesive feel and compliment the navy blues.

A repurposed bottle stands in for a vase.

The simple brass sconces modernize the space and were found on Etsy.

The live edge lends an organic feel and was made from a salvaged piece cut off when we created the bath caddy.

The bold patterened floors create the effect of a statement tile on a budget.

While updating the existing built in bath and shower wasn’t in the budget, the exisiting white tile blends easily with any decor.

I decanted toiletries into amber bottles to avoid the visual clutter of a mishmash of plastic bottles (without having to give up my favorite products for the aesthetic).

The live edge caddy and the mirror ledge were made from a repurposed slab used in a previous project.

Resources:

Bedroom/Living:

Kitchen/Office:

Cabinet Paint Hague Blue and Schoolhouse White: Farrow and Ball | Petra Tile Allover Stencil: Royal Design Studio | Vintage Oil Painting: Elsie Green | Ceramic Footed Planter: Target | Glass Containers with Wood Lid: Target | Small Wood Vase: Melanie Abrantes Design| Electric Kettle: Amazon | Holders for Propagation Wall: Ikea, Glass Test Tubes: NovaTech

Bathroom:

Origional budget: $5,000 Final cost: <$6,000

Thanks for following along, you can find the rest of the posts in the series here. You can check out the rest of the guest participants here or the amazing featured designers here. You can also follow along on Instagram by following #oneroomchallenge for some serious eye candy.

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Kim LucianJuly 5, 20201 Comment