Confession time. I’ve been stalking the One Room Challenge for the last couple of years. It is the source of some pretty amazing ideas – both from professional and amateur designers. This challenge seems to feed really good design. It showcases places that you really want live in. And I want to accept the challenge. I almost have. But putting yourself out there is tough, especially when you are putting yourself out there with something as personal as your home or even something as personal as (gasp) your dream job. What if no one likes my room? What if no one even reads this?

Guess what. Who cares? The point of interior design is not to please everyone. Good interior design should be a true reflection of those using the space. It should do more than incorporate trends or show off brands. Good interior design considers how a space is used, the goals and lifestyle of those using the space, as well as the taste preferences of those using the space. You may not like my room, but that doesn’t matter as long as it works for my family. Your opinion of my room matters even less if I love it.

For the non-design dorks reading this post, the One Room Challenge is exactly what it sounds like – a challenge to fix or freshen up one room over a six week period. You don’t have to completely gut a bathroom or build an addition (but you can). For me, the challenge is about loving the space you are in. It is about taking a space in your home that isn’t working and making it your favorite place in the house.

I am participating in this fall’s challenge. I hope you like what you see. Shoot, I hope I like what I see. I’ve got a house full of rooms in need of attention, but I am going to spend the next few weeks showing the process with just one.

Over the next six weeks, I am going to convert this afterthought of a laundry room/pantry/office/workshop (what is this room anyway?) into a family room.

Let’s start with the why. Our new house has one large room that comprises both the living and dining areas of the house. One of the two bedrooms is right off of the “living room”, the other bedroom and the kitchen are right off of the “dining room”. While the living room space is large, the door placement in the house makes the space not exactly the best candidate for a casual family room. Ever stepped on Legos the minute you walked in the house or tried to watch a movie while your kids were trying to sleep 10 feet away? Enough said.

We need to create a spot where the kids are free to be kids and the TV can be on without bugging anyone. That space needs to be out of the way enough (i.e., not smack dab in the middle of everyone’s path through the house) but still close enough so that I can monitor the kids while I cook dinner. Conveniently, our new house has three pantries. I have no earthly idea why the house only has one bathroom but three pantries were deemed necessary. That’s ok though. We’ll take it. One of those pantries (also used in the house’s prior life as the laundry) is about to become a family room. (Side note: we are moving the laundry to another of the pantries. Both of these tiny rooms were added on to the original house within the last 20 or so years. Seriously. No idea why.)

Our new family room is small. Like 8’ wide small. And it is short. Like 7’ 9” ceiling short. I’m really not sure of the original intended purpose for this add on but we will take it. This is a challenge after all.

Here’s one last look at the room.