One Room Challenge Week 4

Welcome to week 4 of the #OneRoomChallenge, where a group of participants encourages one another to complete a room remodel project of their choice in 7 weeks. If this is your first time here you can check out the blogs for week 1, week 2 and week 3 of my husband’s home office project.

This week my contractor came to look at the space and go over the plans for the work that he will be doing. It’s fairly minimal, adding an electrical outlet for the printer, a shiplap wall, painting and changing out the chandelier but I’m honestly not very handy with a hammer and a big believer in hiring a professional to get it done right the first time. A licensed contractor ensures that every step of the home renovation is followed systematically. Not all contractors follow the steps necessary to complete a project safely and on time so make sure you do your due diligence to find a licensed contractor who will get the job done right and they are liable if there’s any damage or if anyone gets hurt you don’t need to worry. A job well done is money well spent and time saved for you. I know many people that start a DIY project biting off more than they can chew and now it’s been years and still not completed or it didn’t come out as well as they had hoped. I am here to help if you have any questions or get stuck in your DIY project and need some advice.

More excitement this week…. Lots of boxes are starting to get delivered!! I love the reading nook chair, and it was super simple to put together, and only took about 10 minutes. The bookcases are really solid and heavy, my husband put them together fairly easily, but need 2 people to move after they are assembled. Seeing the finishes in person for these items and how they coordinate so well with the area rug and accessories also made it clear that the curtains I mentioned last week need to be returned. If you’re not going the DIY route, I highly recommend using custom window treatments to get the perfect look for your space, ordering pre-made curtains online can be tricky. But if you are doing it yourself make sure you are measuring them correctly.

Stay tuned for more updates next week and check out my insta-stories.

Book a complementary discovery call to discuss your upcoming projects and how I can help with your home project.

One Room Challenge Week 3

Week 3 of the One Room Challenge

(and pretty much all of 2020) was all about PIVOTing.  

Before I began this One Room Challenge I had decided I wanted to make this a space that was easily accessible and shoppable. I will share links with you so if you love a piece, I’m discussing you can purchase it directly online but to be honest, this is not how I usually work as a designer. I prefer to work with my trade vendors who are truly an extension of my team, we discuss what I’m looking for and work together to find the perfect and unique pieces curated for each space. This saves a lot of time for me and money for my clients. All pieces are selected and signed-off for approval before purchasing so we are sure to have a cohesive look and feel that is exactly what is desired.

But because of COVID I am pivoting a few design methods for this One Room Challenge… And So here I am browsing the internet for shoppable pieces for hours and hours and by the time I am happy with all of the chosen pieces (which you can see on the roomboard in last week’s post) then presented them to my “client”/husband and get his approval for his office space half of the items were either out of stock or the lead time (the amount of time before it gets delivered) got pushed out till mid-July!? That won’t work for my June 25th final reveal deadline for this One Room Challenge. Shopping online for an entire room does not make you feel very confident about what the finishes will look like together because the colors on your computer screen may have been edited and shades may be altered.

Can anyone else relate!?

It was time to pivot and make a few revisions to the design to make this work!

You can only stare at pillows on the computer for so much time before you need to TAKE A BREAK throw the kids in the car and make a run to your local Target to get your hands on some actual textiles! Loving the Hearth & Hand throw pillow line, I also found some fun accessory pieces, and art which inspired me again of the direction I needed to go in for the office and get some orders placed ASAP before I missed another deadline or “out of stock” message. I returned home to find these 108” Sami Curtains from Anthropologie were delivered. They are more ivory than white but I will wait to see how they look with the chair and rug before I rule them out. I DO love them so hoping they are the right fit for the color pallet.

Making sure you have the right textures in your home office is a surefire way to add warmth, comfort and personality to your space rather than a cold, clinical feeling. Your office should inspire you to do your best work and keep you motivated.

Check out the other One Room Challenge participant blogs and see their progress here.

One Room Challenge Week 2

This week I laid out the floorplan and began

specifying furniture, fixtures and finishes for my hubby’s office… everyone knows what furniture is but for anyone unfamiliar: fixtures is a term for lighting and other pieces that are built in and finishes are materials, textures, colors and paint, floors, walls, etc. There are also many other factors to consider, such as if the product is in stock, are there extended shipping and delivery time frames and investment amount.

Already in the second week I’ve run into many challenges and it certainly wasn’t as productive as I had planned for it to be. Most of my time was spent hunting the world wide web for a computer desk that is large enough for 2 large monitors, a laptop, headset, keyboard tray, with cable management systems built in and doesn’t look too “commercial” at the right price point. When I finally found one that checked all of the boxes, they were out of stock of one of the key components, a multifuctional cabinet with roll-out tray for the printer.  I called to check when they would get more in stock and I was surprised to discover the company is discontinuing the natural walnut finish that I was specifying. The other finishes were too dark for the small office space so I had to jump ship and begin the search all over. After a full day (interrupted about 9,876 times by the kids) I have found some nice alternatives (without as many bells and whistles as the first one but it will work)  I was excited to show my husband, Bill! I hope he likes it!

When at first you don’t succeed … fix your ponytail and try again!

Here are a couple other pieces I found as well…

This week was the last of virtual learning for my children and I was surprised how excited my daughter is to help me create a powerpoint presentation for her dads office. I thought she would be more interested in sitting in front of the tv, but it’s so encouraging that she wants to help me. I’ll try to post the powerpoint presentation for you to see next week when all specifications are finalized. Stay tuned!   

Office Floorplan

Check out all of the other amazing participants blogs at the One Room Challenge here

Hello & Welcome to my blog!

My name is Lara and I’m so glad you’re here!

WOW! 2020 is not what any of us expected. Just like you, during this covid-19 pandemic our many worlds are melding into one… Boss/Employee, Spouse, Parent, Teacher, Student, Chef, House cleaner, Gardner, Handyman, Board executive, Accountant, Therapist, Friend, Nurse, Prayer warrior, and so many other roles we currently find ourselves accomplishing all within one single location… our HOME!

As a former designer for the largest Teknion contract furniture dealership in North America, I specialized in workplace space planning and creative design strategy for large companies in the San Francisco Bay Area. My interior design specialty has since shifted to boutique style residential interior design services, where I deliver an intimate experience for my clients and cater to their unique home interiors. I provide my clients with invaluable guidance and detailed design to deliver a balance of beauty, function and personal taste while saving them valuable time and investment to spend more quality time on the things that matter with the people who matter most in their lives.

My Why…

We are all working from home a lot more than usual, and although it could be temporary, it quite possibly may become the new normal. I’d like to take my knowledge and experience in office and residential design and share it with you! I will take you behind the scenes with me as I share tips and tricks for a functional and glamorous home office and other spaces you can implement in your own home. I want to share the best technology for productivity at home. I want to share how to stay organized, comfortable, best lighting and art tips and so much more!

design

is a process of dialogue and feeling the evolution of design, it stems from an understanding of basic physical and emotional needs of the user.

I believe that design is a process of dialogue and feeling the evolution of design, it stems from an understanding of basic physical and emotional needs of the user. Think about those needs that you personally have and as my former internship mentor and world-renowned interior designer, Kelly Hoppen says “Think about how a room will be used before you make a start”.

Speaking of making a start… this blog has been something I have thought about for a while so this is a big exciting step for me along with what’s to come in the next 8 weeks. I am new to the world of blogging and it won’t be perfect by any means but not everything needs to be perfect to still be wonderful. If you have a blog I would love to read it, please drop a link to your blog in the comments section along with one tip you learned when you first started it that you would like to pass along.

Stay Tuned…

The first project I will be sharing with you is near and dear to my heart… stay tuned tomorrow for more details on my blog and Instagram!