Spring 2021 One Room Challenge: Week One

You read that right! Over the next eight weeks, I’m going to take you all along with me as I participate as a Guest Participant in the One Room Challenge^TM!

What is the One Room Challenge?

The One Room Challenge (ORC) provides participants with a supportive, enthusiastic forum in which to share the process of transforming a room. The ORC is not a competition, but rather a celebration of creativity, inspiration and original ideas.

The ORC is currently in its nineteenth season and has become a widely-anticipated biannual event among the design community. Each season, 20 design influencers are selected as “Featured Designers” to take the challenge of transforming a single space in just a few short weeks.

[This is where I fit in!] In addition to shining the spotlight on these influential design titans, the ORC has also expanded participation by allowing “Guest Participants” to join the action through Instagram and personal blogs (like this)!

So, what room will I be tackling?

If you know me or have been following along with my Instagram @IngomarAcres, you know that I struggle taking my home projects all the way to “done” in a timely manner. Let’s just say I have a lot of projects around the house chillin’ somewhere between 60%-90% … but it’s because I just get so excited about moving to the next project! HA! “SQUIRREL!”

Selfishly, that is just another reason why I’m so excited to participate in the ORC this spring. I will not only be jumping at the opportunity to share my room transformation, but I’m also really excited to leverage the deadlines to help make sure that I take this room all the way to “done.”

Because I’m a first-timer to the challenge, I wanted to make sure that I wasn’t biting off more than I can chew (remember … not good at finishing what I start sometimes!), and I definitely wanted to make sure that there was a healthy mix of DIY projects and room styleing.

So, which room is it going to be?! (Drum roll please.) The Guest Bedroom!

I know, I know. The guest bedroom might be one of the least exciting rooms in a house, but coming off the year of isolation that we all just went through, I am damn ready to start having guests over again!

So, before all of you start calling to set up hangouts (I can dream!), give me a few weeks to makeover your space!

The Problem – Is it really all that bad?

I don’t know about you, but it seems to me that every house has that one room that over-time turns into the dumping ground for all the things – I’m talking about everything you probably should have just gotten rid of a long time ago, the random odds-and-ends that don’t really have their own designated places, and for sure all the crap you just need out-of-sight before someone comes over.

Thats right. The Guest Bedroom is our dumping ground, and yes, it really is THAT bad. Lately, it has become dangerously close to Hoardersville up in there! YIKES!

Without further ado, let’s take a look at where I’ll be starting. Hold your judgements, and don’t say I didn’t warn you. There is NOTHING cute about what you’re about to see.

There is a lot to unpack in that photo, so please, just don’t! Basically, everything you need to know about the room in its current state boils down to two things:

1. Too Much Sh*t – It’s a storage locker, not a bedroom. You can literally see everything from kitchen appliances to toilet paper!
2. Dated and Uninspired – It’s what I like to call a complete lack of design: no color, no style, no risk, no emotion. I literally only feel anxious when I look at this mess, and that’s not mentioning the pee stained carpet!

Where do we go from here?

I am going to take this room and flip it upside down, starting with the clutter! The goal for this week is to empty the room completely and inject a heavy dose of inspiration and drama into it! I need to establish the rooms purpose and if its going to be multi-functional, it needs to be MUCH better at it!

I want my guests to feel like they are away at a modern, boho farmhouse retreat – warm and inviting, but clean and polished. This ain’t going to be your grandma’s country cottage by any means.

Oh, and I’m going to make sure that this beautiful home-away-from-home for my guests never wanders toward Hoardersville again by creating an organized “overflow” storage solution too!

Follow Along

My next eight weekends are going to be all about this room! I’m diving in head first and I hope you come along! I’ll hook you up with links to my purchases, provide step-by-step instructions for some easy DIY projects, and keep you posted on my weekly progress.

And, definitely, don’t forget to give the other Guest Participants and Featured Designers some love! Hit up the One Room Challenge blog or search #OneRoomChallenge on Instagram for some amazing inspiration … all starting today!

Alright! Here we go. Wish me luck!

+ Chase