While I’ve been waxing poetic about my design dreams for our Victorian for months now, today we’re kicking things into higher gear – with the One Room Challenge! You may have caught wind of this awesome series before. In it, 20 bloggers make over one room, blogging the process and sharing updates with you every Wednesday. I’m so excited to be joining this season’s crew. Obviously, this challenge is perfect for our current situation – we have boundless makeover needs on our hands. But what to focus on??

When looking around the Victorian, I immediately saw a room that deserved some focused attention. You see, the Victorian came with this lovely “parlour” space off of the living room. It could be a library. An office. A playroom perhaps. But I’m a huge fan of keeping the TV out of main living areas so when we looked at the most practical use for this room, it became immediately obvious – this little den could be where we can isolate all of our electronic distractions into a media room. Aka – our man cave! Well, man cave light. I like me some football too {and Scandal – let’s be real!}.

The parlour was delivered to us in such…ahem…lovely condition.

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The marbled forest green trim really had me at hello. Ugh. But in all seriousness, this room actually has great bones. Under all the green paint, that original molding is stunning. The light in the room is lovely and the 12 foot ceilings are dramatic. In the grand scheme of our remodel, this room actually requires only cosmetic improvements {although I do have a couple of showstopper ideas in mind!}.

But let’s start with some inspiration. Since this room needs to be as guy friendly as possible dark, sophisticated color palettes are really catching my eye. Furniture should be cozy, luxe and layered but with a noticeable masculine edge.

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I can just envision sinking into a plush couch, cocooned by a richly hued dark walls, velvet curtains pulled to enjoy Pitch Perfect 2! But first things first. We need to pick the perfect paint color. We’ve got to solidify the look {easier said then done when you’re melding his & hers styles}. Then we’ve got finalize a layout and select furnishings. And I’m excited to bring you along for all the fun!

So if you’ve been craving some serious design inspiration – you’ve definitely got something to keep you occupied for the next six weeks – 20 times over!! Be sure to check out the other bloggers participating in the series. If past challenges are any indication, you’re in for some seriously amazing makeovers. Be sure bookmark your favorites to follow along!

Arianna Belle
Because it’s Awesome
Coco+Kelley
Design Darling
Design Indulgence
Design Manifest
Christine Dovey
The English Room
Vanessa Francis
Hi Sugarplum
Honey We’re Home
Jojotastic
The Pink Clutch
The Pink Pagoda
Simplified Bee
Style Your Senses
A Thoughtful Place 
Kimberly Whitman

TM by CIH

images via mlik magazine // arch daily // lotta agaton // la dolce vita blog

The One Room Challenge is Trademarked by Calling it Home

What do you think?

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33 Comments

  1. woo hoo — soooo much potential in that room. This is going to be GOOD! Thanks for sharing . . . .

  2. I am excited to see your dark moody room come together…..cause TV watching deserves it:)

  3. I love Victorians and your home is gorgeous:) The ceiling height and moldings are to die for. I can’t wait to see what you do with this beautiful space.

  4. How exciting – I love the direction! I recently completed a project with similar inspiration images (some of the same actually)! I LOVE the charcoal walls we decided on and I mixed in blue velvet and wood and wicker. Look out for the project on Design Sponge this month 🙂 Can’t wait to keep up with yours each week!

  5. Madly in love with your third inspiration image! I love your room and I love that you’re going dark!
    Dark walls are my current interior design crush! 🙂 Can’t wait to see your progress!

  6. I love all your dark velvety inspiration! This will be great; can’t wait to follow along.

    1. Thanks so much for including me in this go ’round Linda! Designing this room is turning out to be really fun!

  7. I love that your house allows you to keep the TV out of your main living areas! Even with that misguided paint treatment, it’s obvious this room is fantastic. Can’t wait to see what you do!

  8. So happy I found your blog via the Calling it Home! I love your style and can’t wait to see what you do with your parlour. Lovin’ your inspiration images 🙂

  9. Gah…a Victorian with hugely high ceilings is just dreamy. You’ve got an amazing palate to work with and I can’t wait to see it all happen. Loving your inspiration!!!

  10. Oh my that trim is something else. Looks like you have something special plans and nice bones to work with! We all should watch our guilty pleasures in style.

  11. Oh, I can totally see where you are going with this and I’m already drooling. What a gorgeous space you have to work with! Can’t wait to play along!

  12. I cannot wait to see what you do with this space! I’ll be joining in with the ORC this time around as well!

  13. I can’t wait to see how it turns out. I love the idea of grey walls and a navy sofa.

  14. Oh my goodness, that architecture is amazing! Yes, such wonderful bones to work with. I can’t wait to see what you do with it!

  15. Wow! What a space you have to work with! I love the inspiration photos – so moody and saturated! I like that the design trends are moving in that direction because I think it makes a living space feel so cozy!

  16. your room sis so great, bones wise & I can see you vision. I look forward to following along on!

  17. I love your house! So much charm and so exciting to see the spaces. This parlour will be amazing and I am so excited to be walking this journey with you!

    xo, Paige

  18. Love the bones of this room, I know you will have such a chic and cozy spot at the end of six weeks!

  19. Hello,

    I’m sorry if I’m just missing it, but does it say somewhere what the lovely dark gray paint is in the room with the fireplace?

    Thank you