ORC Rooms to Watch

Are you guys familiar with the One Room Challenge?  If not, you totally should be! Linda at Calling it Home started this biannual phenomenon 5 years ago and it's been getting bigger and bigger ever since.  There are about 20 designers/design bloggers who are part of the official 6 week room transformation challenge, but hundreds of other bloggers join in the challenge on their own.  I've been aware of it the past few rounds and greatly enjoyed seeing the reveals after 6 weeks, but this time around, I'm enjoying all the weekly progress as well!  I would have joined in as an unofficial participant since my dining room could use a bit of love, however the timing didn't work out this time.  So this time, I'll just sit back and enjoy! The participants are just past the make over half-way point and I'm eager to see where everyone takes it!  A few of my favorite bloggers are part of it and I can't wait to see their results!

I am constantly jealous of Nicole Balch's Victorian home.  She always seems to achieve the ideal balance between historical architecture and modern elements, so why should this make-over be any different?  On Making it Lovely, for the One Room Challenge she's taking on her bedroom AND den and *gasp* painting the previously stained woodwork white.  I'm totally on board with the white woodwork- freshen it up while still highlighting the architecture.  I can't wait to see these 2 spaces come alive!!

I've got my eyes peeled to see what Gwen at The Makerista can pull our for her basement 'man cave.'

She's done some pretty spectacular make overs elsewhere in her '80s colonial, so I have no doubt that the final result will make all of our jaws drop.  Just check out her dining room!

Guys guys guys!  Orlando of Hommemaker is making over a tree house!  Like a real life tree house with a tree in the middle of the space!!

He's going for a cool and kid-friendly space and has shared 4 different design options that he's debating.  I'm voting for option #1, Desert Safari.  Whichever plan he goes with this is going to be one stunning space in the end!

Are you following along with the One Room Challenge?  I'd love to know which make over is your favorite so far!  Tomorrow they'll all be posting about their week 4 progress, so it should be exciting to see how they've progressed!  I just love a good room transformation, don't you??

Swap: Dipped Art & Plants!

The latest round of Swap it Like it's Hot snuck up on me!

New to Swap it Like it's Hot??  Here’s a quick recap: 40 bloggers went thrift shopping with $10 in their pockets.  We all sent our treasures to another blogger for them to re-envision, revamp, and DIY.  This is my 3rd swap- check out my previous projects here and here

If you're here from Always Never Done, welcome!!

Amy at Always Never Done sent me several items for me to reimagine: a fabric remnant, wood rectangle, framed daisy painting, and a mason jar holder.

As soon as I checked out these items, I knew that the painting and the jar holder would be my focus.  I've been itching to "dip" a painting, but I never seem to find the right thing.  When I say "dip" I mean painting part of the piece and frame a solid color like the whole shebang got dipped in a can of paint.  The art that I come across usually is either total junk and would still look like junk after painting, or is too nice and I'd feel like a heathen defacing it.  This little flower pot was absolutely perfect for the task: cute enough to look cool with some color blocking, but not so precious that I'd be ruining something.

I started with a little tweak to the frame- I wasn’t keen on the green part of the frame, but if you know anything about me, you know I am particularly keen on gold.  So I out came my gold lief paint to cover up the green.

I only painted the part that would show after “dipping.”

Once that was dry out came my favorite Frog Tape.  Dude I love that stuff.  Blue tape holds no candle to this sexy green stuff.  I wish I was being sponsored to say this, but trust me, I’m not.  Just a starry-eyed girl and her Frog Tape.  Make sure to use a finger nail to push the tape down at the paint edge and into every little crevice.  To help seal it even more, I like to run a wet paper towel down the edge before painting.  The sticky stuff on the tape expands when wet…… just let an entire roll of it get wet and you’ll see what I mean- the sticky stuff will expand out of the roll becoming a slimy, unusable mess.  BUT it’s proof that it works!  But I digress.

After taping the painting, I painted the “dipped” side with a brush, being careful to brush away from the tape as another protection against bleeding under the tape.  I generally like to pull my tape off when the paint is still wet, but you have to be suuuper careful!

Once the paint is dry, all you have to do is hang and enjoy!!  You end up with a piece of art that’s part modern, part traditional, and (in my humble opinion) rather interesting.

For the mason jar holder, I was stumped for a bit.  Do I use it to hold something?  Flower pots for an herb garden perhaps?  Cute idea, but doesn’t involve any kind of transformation.  What about a stand of sorts?  Again at a loss for an idea that would be anything different from it’s original use.

As I thought about these possibilities a bit more, I came back to the idea of plant holder.  If it was on the wall, it’s purpose would naturally change.  But then how to hold plants into a jar holder on a wall?  Light bulb moment!

I ran to the kitchen, collected all my air plants then ran to the basement to grab my twine.

I haphazardly started wrapping the twine around the metal frame with no real plan.  I tied some spots and looped others until I had the entire frame entangled.  Up on the wall it went and in went the air plants.  I try not to kill air plants…. I succeed most of the time…. but they’re addicting!!  Such cute little plants they almost look fake.

If I was confident in my ability not to kill all the air plants, I’d double my collection and load this puppy up completely!  It also makes me happy that I didn't permanently alter the item, so if I want it to go back to a mason jar holder, all I have to do is untie a few knots.  So easy!

How fun do these 2 beauties look together?

Now it's time for you to share the Swap it Like it's Hot LOVE.  Pop on over to Casa Watkins and see what she did with the goodies I sent her!

Be sure to check out all the other awesome projects this week!

MONDAY

Hearts & Sharts / 58 Water Street / I Am a Homemaker / Prim and Propah Create & Babble / Windgate Lane / Gourley Girl and Guy / Dogs Don't Eat Pizza

TUESDAY

Confetti Style / Blue i Style / Polished Habitat / Two Purple Couches / Run to Radiance Restoration Redoux / Confessions of a Serial Do-It-Yourselfer / Our Southern Home

WEDNESDAY

Erin Spain / Prodigal Pieces / That's My Letter / Southern State of Mind / Roadkill Rescue Always Never Done / Year of Serendipity / Casa Watkins

THURSDAY

Two Thirty-Five Designs / Finding Silver Pennies / Ciburbanity The House of Wood / Decor Adventures / Bright Green Door

FRIDAY

While They Snooze / The Charming Farmer / Primitive and Proper / A Designer At Home / BrePurposed / Home Made By Carmona / Domicile 37 / Evey's Creations

High-Low Challenge

You guys had so much fun with the last High-Low Challenge, let's make it a regular! Here’s how it works.  In each category, one item will be higher priced and one more budget friendly.  Can you guess which is which??  Leave your guesses in the comments and let me know how you scored!!

Funky Brass Chandeliers:

English Roll Arm Sofa:

Fun Floor Poufs:

Chandelier- 1/2, Sofa- 1/2, Pouf- 1/2

Well?  What's the verdict?

Whether you guessed right or completely wrong, hopefully this goes to show that you can have style at any budget!