The One Room Challenge // Week 3

I even surprised myself with this one.  Reading the tea leaves in my recent postings, you may have already had a feeling I might figure out way to work a brick wall into this season's One Room Challenge. Lo and behold, here we are in Week 3 of 6 and suddenly I'm springing this one on you. What a jerk, huh? I played coy and did not include an inspiration image, nor mention it previously when discussing my strategy.  Undoubtedly, you're sitting there scratching your head wondering how my design scheme could have gone off the rails- and with faux paneling no less!  But let me assure you, that this train is on the right track.

You see, I've actually been mulling over this project for quite some time now, trying to gather up the guts to just do it. I had all the same reservations you probably would have about putting faux brick into our home. But there I was, standing in line last week at Home Depot with three panels on my cart and I finally had an epiphany that seemed to just part the clouds and make it all make sense. 

I gave myself an out. Instead of adhering the paneling to our drywall,  I figured we'd nail it directly to the studs, thereby minimizing risk, damage and investment if we got it on the wall and came to the conclusion that my husband and I hated it. Turns out, we didn't hate it. 

The faux paneling we purchased was considerably more substantial than the paneling I thought would be available. It's thick, course and crusty and honestly, very stone-like in texture and wouldn't you know it, it cut like butter with our skilsaw. Still, I had my doubts. I also had my doubts, even as we hung it up on the wall and surveyed the seams that would eventually need to be filled in order to play the part of an authentic brick surface. 

But any doubts and fears were set to rest just as soon as it was filled, sanded and painted. 

It's a beaut.

The purpose of this redesign for The One Room Challenge is to give my husband a more inspiring and cohesive room to work from each day. It occurred to me that a workspace is the perfect occasion to think out of the box design-wise. I think realizing that helped me get over myself and any prior inhibitions I had with this project. And it's good guys... as I hit publish on this post, its already light years ahead of what you see now. It's still in construction phase and I'm already catching myself standing in the doorway, staring at it.  It's not the real thing, but I dare to think we might have even bought ourselves some more mid-century design cache for our little 1967 Rancher. Who knew?

Previous Progress:

Week 1

Week 2

The One Room Challenge is a 6-week, semi-annual trademarked design event, created and sponsored by Linda of Calling it Home. I'm participating in the Thursday link up along with some of the finest design bloggers in the land. Be sure to stop in at Calling it Home and see all the good work that's being done out there in blogland. 

I'll also be blogging in between posts with more updates. Follow along!