One Room Challenge (Master Bedroom)- Week 1: The Blog Goes Live!

It’s a BIG DAY over here! Not only is it the start of the Fall 2020 One Room Challenge, it’s also the day my blog officially goes LIVE. I have been dreaming of creating this blog for years and have been working on it (and sharing our home on Heirloom & Ivy’s instagram page) for months, but the start of the ORC gave me the kick in the pants I needed to finally hit the publish button.

For years now, I’ve followed talented bloggers who have taken on the challenge and have always hoped to tackle a similar project myself. It’s not just the gorgeous rooms that I love about this event, it’s the entire spirit of it. ORC is not a competition but rather a chance for decor lovers and designers to come together in an open and inclusive community of support and creativity to share their work and draw inspiration from one another. I can’t think of something more in line with what I hope this blog will become – a chance to connect with those who have a passion for home decor, to learn and be inspired, and to celebrate the fun and the art of creating spaces that bring us joy.

So what room am I taking on over the next 6 weeks? Without further ado, I present to you our future master bedroom. 

This is by far the largest bedroom in our house. It has THREE closets and even better, LOADS of character (HELLO arched casing and built-ins, looking at you). When we moved in a couple of years ago, we decided to set up camp in a different bedroom that had a connecting door to one of our two full bathrooms upstairs. I’ll admit that we’ll miss having a bathroom off the bedroom but 1.) the master bathroom also has a door in the hallway right next to this bedroom (sort of a funky set up, but more on that in a future post) so we can still use it as our master bath; 2.) I love the idea of guests having their own bathroom when they visit; and 3.) People, I NEED those closets. I’d share a picture of my current overflowing drawers but I don’t want to scare you away.

For this first week, I wanted to give you the lay of the land and an overview of my vision for the space before I roll up my sleeves and get to work. The words I keep coming back to in my mind when thinking about my hopeful end product are dramatic, sophisticated, storied (you better believe I’m going to be working in some of my favorite vintage pieces), warm, and inviting. Here’s a little sneak peak of what I have envisioned!

What I’m most excited about: Our house (and my style in recent years) tends to be fairly light and bright which I love, but for this room I wanted to take a risk and mix it up. I plan to bring in a moody paint color on those built-ins (I’m thinking dark charcoal or black) to really make them pop. It wouldn’t be my house if there weren’t brass/gold accents throughout the space (I’m thinking a fun light fixture – boob light, your reign has officially ended) and lighter, weathered wood tones for contrast. I can’t wait to see how it all comes together and to style those shelves…

The biggest anticipated challenge: Speaking of shelves, I’ve got some sad news to share. Dare I even say tragic, which you’ll understand if you’re a lover of built-ins like me. We moved into this house in the middle of a record breaking 100+ degree week-long heat wave one July . It was so hot during our move-in that the fresh paint was literally peeling off of the walls – ah, the memories. So our first home improvement was the not so fun but oh so necessary task of installing central air. No regrets. Well, one regret- the contractor had no choice but to run ductwork right through the left side of the built-in behind the arched casing. It made me want to weep but at least I was weeping in a refreshing, 68 degree room avoiding heat stroke I suppose? It’ll take some creativity to figure out how to cover that ductwork up while preserving the charm and character of the space, but I’m game.

So it’s off to paint and plan for me for now, friends! I’ll be giving updates every week for the next 5 weeks, and can’t wait to hear what you think. Thanks for stopping by and wish me luck!

-Grace