One Room Challenge | Week 1 | Before + Inspiration

Today is the first day of the fall One Room Challenge. I am so excited to share with you a little about the project we are tackling this year. I don’t want to make light of the news I shared yesterday, but a little home project is a great distraction during hard times, so let’s get right down to it.

A kitchen refresh has been on our “to-do” list since we first purchased our house over three years ago. We originally thought we would tackle it within our first year. Haha. I’ve learned a lot about owning an older home since then and about how the pretty little projects get pushed aside in favor of other projects that just must be done like repairing a broken main water line, AC repairs, etc.

If you’ve been here a while you know that we built our previous house so everything was exactly how I wanted it and I really hated leaving that kitchen even though our new home was perfect for our family. When we first moved, we repainted the walls, swapped out that light fixture over the island, and re-stained the hardwoods. It was kind of like putting lipstick on a pig, though, and we always knew we would do more to freshen up this space since this is a long term home for us.

Initially, we had just planned to swap out our black granite for a lighter option and update the backsplash but after living in this space for a few years we found that there were some other projects that would make our kitchen more functional.

We have a large kitchen that is already open to the living area. I love the island because everyone gathers around it when we entertain. I always serve my appetizers there when we host parties and it really feels like the soul of our house.

That granite, though. Every single time a glass is set down on it or a toddler’s hand touches it the entire surface must be cleaned. I clean it at least five days a day. SO many paper towels. Black granite just does not work for us as a family with small children.

A couple months ago our over the range microwave also stopped working. The circuit board shorted out. I really hate over the range microwaves for a number of reasons including (but not limited to) the fact that they are so expensive to have serviced and that they don’t do a great job with ventilation so the smoke alarm goes off if we are ever searing anything on the stove – such as a nice, romantic steak dinner after our children go to bed.

The next problem in this kitchen was the built-in desk. Since we both work from home you might think that an extra desk would be a great feature. But, friends, it is not. It simply serves as a place to dump mail and random items, which drives me absolutely mad on a daily basis as I try to keep its surface clean and tidy.

We love our house so much and feel like our kitchen has a ton of potential. So, this year for the One Room Challenge we are planning to give it a little refresh to make it more functional for our family while also giving it a more updated look. All without sacrificing the character.

Our goals for this space are:

• Swap the countertops and backsplash for more neutral updated options
• Replace the dishwasher range with a slide in and the dishwasher (simply because it does a terrible job)
• Convert the built-in desk to a more functional floor to ceiling cabinet
• Relocate microwave and replace with a range hood that is more functional and visually appealing
• Reconfigure cabinets for a large, single basin farmhouse sink
• Freshen the space with a new coat of paint

I am so excited to share this project with you over the coming weeks. If you want to take a trip down memory lane with me and see last year’s transformation of Madeline’s big girl room, you can find that here.

 

If you love home decor and design as much as I do I hope you will visit some of the other guest participants of the One Room Challenge here. Every season I am so inspired by these transformations. And of course a big thank you to ORC and Better Homes & Gardens for allowing me to share another house project with you all.