Entering week 3 of the One Room Challenge, we’re still cleaning up the water pipe fiasco from last week. Our plumber hopped over for a few minutes (LITERALLY 5 MINUTES) and refitted the cold feed with a more permanent crimped solution (the ~$7 SharkBite couplings are an easy fix, but not highly recommended behind inaccessible walls). In case you missed it, week 2.
If you came here from the ORC site, hello! I’m Sanju Patel. By day, I work behind a desk, typically crunching numbers. By night, you can find me in a garage. My wife and I purchased a home in Texas 2 years ago – a quick close without costly bells and whistles. As lifelong fans of DIY, we’ve decided to invest into our home as our family grows with an open invitation to see our process from start to finish.
“Luke, I am your father!”
Sections of our sheetrock were still wet. We didn’t want to risk mold growth, so we cut out a large affected section with a drywall saw (an incredible tool for just a few bucks). A new panel will be cut and screwed on later in the week. Sawing drywall can get messy, so we laid out plastic sheeting. We also fitted on a respirator (previously, drywall work left a lingering cough). How could one not get into character and play Darth Vader?
Next, we scored along the top and bottom edge of our trim with a utility knife. Using our trim puller and mallet, we started to pull the trim forward.
Removing the trim will help us secure a custom base for our Ikea Pax unit. We want to elevate it so that the trim can sit flush and aligned with the additional trim around the room. Using our miter saw, we also chopped up some 2×4’s to build the custom base. It will come together this weekend as we’ll assemble the base using Kreg screws.
Our sample wallpaper from Love vs Design arrived! And we’re drooling over it! What do you think? Have you worked with such wallpaper? This IS definitely NOT our grandma’s wallpaper – it is thick and durable, almost like canvas. And best of all, it can handle a textured wall. We’ll have a trial run this weekend and share results next week.
Flooring Dilemma
We have neutral floor tiles and my wife doesn’t quite like the appeal of wood in our laundry room. And it just doesn’t feel right to go through the trouble of laying down new tiles. We considered vinyl tiles – peel and stick, but that too doesn’t feel right. We would be more open to that solution if we already had linoleum. The permanence of flooring inconsistent with the rest of our house really has us at our wits end. We may skip it this go around. Thoughts?
So definitely progress, even if at a snails pace! We’ll make some headway soon enough. Thanks for following!
As always, send us any questions and don’t forget to follow our Instagram stories. By the way, there are 20 SUPERB featured designers participating in the One Room Challenge with Better Homes and Gardens as a media partner. These guys and gals totally rock and will not disappoint. Check it out!
Great news about the plumbing fiasco and good move on the damp drywall. I’m all for holding off on flooring until you’re ready to pull it up and lay down exactly what your want. You can get a nice rug to hide it for now? Covering up existing flooring with anything else isn’t going to hold up well. If you don’t like tile or wood, ever thought of laying marmoleum? (Not on top of tile, of course!)
Have you considered painting your tile? This isn’t a long-term solution, of course, but there are several commercially-available paints that are formulated for this purpose, and you can cheaply achieve the look of, for example, patterned cement tiles for the price of paint and a stencil. We did this in our spare bathroom two years ago, and we haven’t had any issues with chips or peeling. Good luck from fellow ORC participants!
Love that wallpaper! This is going to look fantastic! RE the flooring – you’ve got neutral already, so why bother to change it? It gives you a great base for an area rug that will cover most of it anyway – a contrast bound jute or sisal would be a great mix with that wallpaper!
Flooring is tough because it feels SO permanent! I’m sure you’ll find a good solution. Good luck!
It’s coming along GREAT, Sanju! I can’t wait to see how you do the Ikea unit. We have the Pax units in my craft room, but I’ve always wanted to make them look more like built-ins. Go, Team Laundry Room! xo, Kristi
Thank you! They’re so versatile, right! Go team laundry!