Welcome back to week four of the One Room Challenge. If you missed a week, you should probably start from the beginning (Week One // Week Two // Week Three) because we've come a long way, baby! This week I'm happy to report that I finished painting and finally got my wallpaper hung! This paper was actually the first product to arrive for my ORC and it was a major act of self-control to not hang it right away! I love it so hard... But that's just one of the exciting developments this week.

Rugs

So, as you know, the floors in our basement are concrete. We painted them a couple of weeks back, a decision I felt good about because I knew that I had two 10-ft by 12-ft Karastan rugs coming. They arrived last week and I was so excited to see them in the space. Mostly because I knew that they would cover up our sad floors. Don't get me the wrong, the paint was a huge improvement but the floor still needed something to make them feel finished, and let me tell you, did these rugs ever do the trick.

They fit nearly wall to wall in the space and totally camouflaged the imperfections in the floor underneath. Also, because this is a rental space, durability was key in picking a flooring. These rugs are made of a fiber called Smartstrand Sorona Silk, that means that they are SUPER stain resistant, sourced from a renewable polymer and the softest surface you have ever touched! Because the rugs were going to take up so much real estate, I wanted to choose a light color, and the smart strand technology really gave me the confidence to go for it. To keep the floor from getting too monotonous and to help define the space I'm layering a vintage rug (similar to this one) and a small hide rug.

FYI it is National Karastan Month and the kind people over at Karastan are offering a Sweepstakes from now through November 3rd. They're giving away two product prizes: an 8x10 area rug and up to $1,000 off a SmartStrand Silk carpet. You can enter on our site using this link!

Drapes & Shades

Even though this is a basement and the windows are small, I knew I wanted to use a floor-to-ceiling window treatment. I'm sure you've heard it 100 times, but using drapes to exaggerate the size of a window is a really simple way to upgrade small windows. In the case of our basement, the drapes also helped to soften the space and mask some to the utility boxes.

Like the rugs, I knew that I wanted a light color for my drapes, so I paid a visit to The Shade Store. I didn't expect to have so many beautiful fabric options to choose from but I finally narrowed my selection to a nubby hemp fabric in an off-white color called Winter. The texture of the fabric adds interest without overwhelming the space.

In the back part of the space I mounted a larger roller shade made from a grass-weave material in a Hemp color-way. This shade currently conceals an unfinished part of the basement, but eventually there will be another sleeping nook behind it. Once the rest of the space is done, this shade will be a perfect way to section off this second sleeping aria. Also, check out those painted moldings... the end is so close I can taste it : )

Vintage Finds

I've had these tables for about 2 years, I loved them the first I saw them but as you can see, they have some issues. The main problem is that the tops don't stay on very well. My mother-in-law (hey Conny) gave them to me for my birthday, but before she did, we had this conversation...

Conny: "Are you sure you want these?" "The underneath of the top looks like Donkey Dinner!!"
Me: "Totally, that's an easy fix!"

What's wrong with me? I'm actually more attracted to "a project" than something in working order...

My game plan for fixing these is to cut a solid piece of wood (i.e. not chip board) to mount the marble tops on. It should be fairly easy to drill new holes for the legs and then glue the whole thing back together.

To fix the legs, I think I just need a little sandpaper and wood glue. I think these little ladies will make great bed-side tables! Wish me Luck!!

ALSO, I don't actually know anything about these tables, they kinda look like folk art to me but when the top fell off I quickly noticed that the tops were from Italy. If any of you know something about these tables, please let me know, I'm super curious!

Now that I've finally put aways the power tools, it's finally safe to unpack all my beautiful new furnishings! I'll be back next week with a deep dive into the lighting plan, an awesome new bed and a boat load of updates! Until then friends, I'll leave you with a little wallpaper time-lapse.

If you missed a week, get caught up!
Week One // Week Two // Week Three

Want to keep up with my project on Pinterest? You can follow my One Room Challenge Board here.