Apr 2, 20144 min read

One Room Challenge: Studio Dining Room – Week 1

So I am very excited to announce that I will be linking into this year’s One Room Challenge (ORC).

What is One Room Challenge you ask?…… Great question!…….

ORC is a semi-annual event where 20 bloggers, made up of Professional Designers, DIY-ers, and Interior Designer Bloggers, transform a room from start to finish. For the next six Wednesdays, they will be giving updates on the progress of their rooms.

Here are the participants

They have graciously opened the challenge to other bloggers like myself who would like to participate by linking in on Thursdays to show the progress of a space they are working on.

This is a great opportunity for me to meet and get to know fellow bloggers, and maybe even gain some new followers. This challenge is sure to keep me accountable, on track and motivated to finish one of my personal projects. Too often my personal projects take the back seat due to time constraints. I think it’s a win-win, and I am super excited to participate!

Basically I have chosen a room that I will be working on for the next six weeks, and each Thursday I will share with you the progress of this room through to completion! How exciting is that? You will see a little bit of the behind the scenes of how a project comes together.

I was quite torn about which room to choose for ORC, so I had the kids take a vote.

Here were the choices:

The Study of my Design Studio
The Living Room of my Design Studio
The Dining Room of my Design Studio
The Kitchen of my Design Studio
The Master Bedroom of a wonderful client who I know would be ok with that

Well, it’s right there in the title……we ended up choosing the Dining Room/Conference Room of my Design Studio. Can’t wait to get this baby going!! 🙂

Some of you may recall that my Studio is an historical 1905 Victorian cottage that I am leasing. The home needed a lot of TLC when I first saw it and I have been slowly working on each room as budget allows. Since it is a lease, I am very careful about the improvements I make. I do not want to put too much money into something I don’t own. I plan to buy it in the next year or so, but until then, I am penny pinching.

Here’s a Waterlogue image of the exterior. Isn’t it cute?! I loved it from the very first moment I saw it….despite the mess that it was.

Casa Vilora Interiors Design Studio located at 5602 Franz Rd Katy TX 77493

About the Dining Room

When I first saw the dining room, I couldn’t believe how small it was and I couldn’t understand why someone would paint such a small space (ceiling included) in dark puke green. The room has just one window and doesn’t get much natural light, especially since there is a carport right by the window. The dining room has three doorways which makes it feel more like a pass through and not one to stop and linger in. The layout was going to be very difficult because traffic pattern was working against it.

Another challenge in the room is the thermostat which is smack dab in the middle of the main wall The room does have a few great features: High ceilings, wonderful casings around the window and doorways and the original hardwood floor stained a dark ebony.

The Floorplan

The Floorplan for Dining Room/Conference Room at Casa Vilora Interiors Design Studio

As you can see the traffic pattern is a bit weird so a traditional dining room layout would not work well. Besides, the space will not be used for dining, but as a conference room for meetings with clients.

The Goal for The Dining Room

For guests and clients to feel welcomed and at home
To complete it on a very limited budget utilizing items that I already own
No construction and only manageable DIY projects
Respecting the architecture and history of the home

The Feeling I want to Create

Light and airy with great traffic flow
casual feeling in keeping with the cottage feel of the home
comfortable and welcoming and feel more like a home than a business office

The Color Scheme

Cool grays, yellows, light turquoise, light jade, white

The Before

Dining Room BEFORE

This was right after painting. Unfortunately I cannot find the picture of the puke green walls. I chose a nice cool gray (Benjamin Moore Silver Chain) for the walls, and a bright white for the ceiling to bring in as much natural light as possible.

Dining Room BEFORE

This shows the view to the kitchen. Notice the thermostat in the center of the wall? I decided not to move it, so I will have to decorate around it 🙁

I really didn’t search for inspiration because I knew exactly what I wanted the room to look like, but here are a few pictures that will help you visualize my goal for the space