ORC: Laundry Room Inspiration

Elan Imbuia Chrome Fabric

Semi Flush Mount Light

Schuler New Haven Cabinetry

in Harbor Mist Maple Square

Brizo RSVP Chrome Widespread Lav Faucet
with Swarovski Crystal Finial

Freestanding Folding Ironing Board

Chrome Steel Garment Rack

Sherwin Williams paint

Currently, our family laundry room is in utter chaos. It is my job this weekend to remove all of the offending baskets of no longer worn clothes that are on the floor (and destined for Goodwill), then take a true “Before” photo of the empty space to share with you all. Once it is cleared out, I can get back in there to paint the walls (will select a Sherwin Williams color ... to be determined), trim the windows (on my husband’s to-do list), and plan on how to incorporate built-in storage to this good sized room (9'6" x 10'6") that really could function as a walk-in closet. I found the above items (with the exception of the sink faucet which I had on hand from participating in a design show house) all at Lowe’s.

I also plan to take a field trip to my local Lowe’s store in order to see what else they may have available for my laundry room makeover. I have three windows that need treatments and I am contemplating some type of shutter for the bottom half of each window if possible since this room often serves as a changing room. I also need to choose a solid counter top and hardware. I really love the lighting fixture that I found (pictured above). It is just the right combination of elegance and whimsy for this hard-working space. 

Come back next week to see how I made out with my design finds and space planning! As I mentioned last week, I am working with Lowe’s and Decorist as a designer on call, so my goal is to treat this project as a way to show what is possible when utilizing this online design service.

Follow along with the other Calling it Home

One Room Challenge designers here:

Sponsored Designers: week 2

Guest Participants: week 2

media sponsor

One Room Challenge Time!

For my third adventure as a Calling It Home One Room Challenge guest participant, I will be making over one of the hardest working rooms in the house ... our laundry room! We transformed a small bedroom on our 2nd floor into a full size laundry area quite a number of years ago. We put up freshly plastered walls, plumbed for a laundry sink, and pretty much stopped right there after moving in our washer and dryer. Unfortunately, the room never underwent the proper organization needed to function efficiently. And now that our boys are old enough to do their own laundry, we really need a better system in place to handle the constant use.

My goal over the next six weeks is to set up this room as it should be and add some decorative touches along the way. I am pleased to announce that I am going to take advantage of my new position as a virtual designer via the “Design with Lowe’s + Decorist” online design program to do as much as possible to finish up this space. Come back next week to check out my design plan that will incorporate items specified from the brands available via the Lowe’s website. I will also show exactly how this newly launched design platform can work for others hoping to receive professional advice, at a great price, for their own home makeover projects! 

Have a room in your home that you would like to transform? Book me at this link and I will be in touch! 

Check out my office makeover from the Spring ORC here.

Follow the other participating One Room Challenge guest design bloggers here. And the featured designers here.

Good luck everyone!

Media Partner:

One Room Challenge: Fashionably Late

Jason Wu signed print that will soon hang in my office.

Over the years, I have participated in eight different show house type events, including small 10 x 10 foot vignette-like spaces to somewhat challenging bathrooms to a suite of rooms for a holiday design show. I typically am ready for the opening day regardless of how much time I have to prepare, although I have been found hanging art or walking in with a key design piece at the very last minute on several occasions. This One Room Challenge has been a bit of an exception. When you are working on your own surroundings, even if your business is designing for others, it often is a much more emotional process to get through. That can slow things down ... a lot.

I signed on to this challenge to motivate myself to tackle the years worth of life accumulations that had ended up in my home office. Being held accountable to others who are working just as hard to meet their own goals is quite inspiring. We are all rooting for each other. This is not about competition. It is about goal setting, being resourceful, and being honest with ourselves and whatever difficulties we may encounter as we strive to bring our design visions to life.

I am proud to say that I have managed to work through the sometimes uncomfortable task of realizing just how much I have neglected to do in my own home. Don’t get me wrong ... we have done a lot with our 1904 farmhouse over the past ten+ years. But for the last five, as my work and family life has gotten busier, I have let a lot of STUFF takeover when I really should have been dealing with it on a regular basis. Keeping it simple is all about establishing routines, and habits, and designing a good system to help deal with what is allowed to enter our spaces while making sure the unnecessary goes out. That is my wish for this makeover.

So while I have not completed my office makeover at the six week mark, I am definitely in a better place than I was even yesterday. I am thankful for the support and encouragement I have been receiving virtually along the way from the Calling It Home One Room Challenge community of design bloggers. It really does make a difference!

So please come back next Thursday to see my final reveal. I was always disappointed when a show house participation ended, so this is one way of keeping it going I guess!

I did take a bit of time today to take note of the accomplished spaces of the other link-up participants. Below are images of just some of the home office transformations that may inspire you to tackle the room where you “make things happen” at home. Visit Calling it Home here to get to each link. Enjoy!

These two by a couple of my local design friends are not offices, but are worth checking out ...

And here is the link to the sponsored participants final reveals.

Would you ever consider participating in the One Room Challenge? The next one begins in April of 2016, so start planning now!

One Room Challenge: Confession Time

I wish my office was looking as pretty, neat and stylish as the

Christopher Peacock showroom at the Boston Design Center.

My One Room Challenge to-do list (week 4)

1. Completely empty office.

I may need to get a storage pod just to relocate all the stuff I am trying to sort through. I am not sure I can get through it one category at a time with any amount of joy at this point (sorry, Marie Kondo!) I am basically feeling pretty overwhelmed by my surroundings, and I have not made much progress since I have been working on other projects that I actually get paid to do, and the rest of the time has been procrastinated away by scrolling through facebook or playing with my new bunny or going out to eat with friends or taking care of my family (not necessarily in that order). 

2. Paint walls, touch up trim and ceiling.

I am not a huge fan of painting, in fact I dread getting started, but if I can empty the room, I will take on this part of the project myself. Once I get in painting-mode it will be fun, right? A fresh coat of paint is the quickest way to transform a room, unless of course you have to declutter the room to paint it.

3. Style the space.

Of course this is my favorite part of any design undertaking, but to get to this point I am going to have to move mountains. And probably reduce my time spent on social media for at least a few days. Already feeling withdrawals.

Can I do it? I am not feeling very confident. I really wish I had a personal assistant. Or a fairy godmother. Or both.

How is everyone else doing with their One Room Challenge? Check out their progress here. And here. 

Office Makeover Inspired by ‘The Intern’ #OneRoomChallenge

image via The Intern Movie on Pinterest

Have you seen ‘The Intern’ yet? Well I saw it over the weekend and now the set design from the movie is officially my inspiration for my #OneRoomChallenge office makeover! Director Nancy Meyers (of ‘It’s Complicated’ and ‘Somethings Gotta Give’ fame) hit another interiors home run with the set decor of this movie. The interiors were very Pinterest-inspired and the movie spoke to the changing of the guard when it comes to the way we work today and who is running the show.

via The Intern Movie on Pinterest

As a working mom to four middle-to-high school age sons – and being of an age in between that of the main characters – I still felt that I could easily relate to the aspirations of both: Anne Hathaway as the young mom/internet start-up success story trying to find balance in her work and personal life, and Robert De Niro, a recently retired senior looking to fill his post career days with meaningful work and joy. I have always been intrigued with these types of stories. How do we do what we love, provide for our families, and still find balance in our days? The main character played by Hathaway, Jules Ostin, has to deal with managing a successful boss-babe empire on top of figuring out the whole “can we have it all” thing. It is definitely worth seeing how everything turns out for her and her loves while this beautifully decorated film is on the big screen!

Below is a photo of the loft space of her internet-based fashion business, About the Fit ... 

image via Nancy Meyers instagram feed

Houzz article by Anne Colby // photo credit Francois Duhamel
‘The Intern’: Nancy Meyers on Bringing Movie Interiors to Life

What I really liked about the company’s office interior was the modern design paired with classic styling, intentionally set with open spaces for collaboration and multi-tasking. The super large work surfaces are my favorite part. In fact, I have a table pretty big in size (3' x 8') in my current office. In all honesty, it is probably a bit overscaled for the room size, but when I saw how good a large desk looked in the movie, I have decided to keep it in my room makeover. It is a great work surface to have and I have always intended to keep part of it cleared off for impromptu design projects. But since I got it a couple years ago, it has becoming somewhat of a flat filing system much like the desk of Jules Ostin’s executive assistant in the movie ...

What my desk looks like (maybe a little worse!)

photo credit Warner Bros. Pictures via Houzz

How I would like it to look:

Fresh flowers. Seating for guests. Organized.

Clean. Room to be creative.

photo credit Warner Bros. Pictures via Houzz

The floor plan above shows what my office layout will look like and how it will be all about The Desk! What I have altered from my current layout is the editing out of many storage boxes filled with clutter, along with a large double wide children’s dresser that is currently on the largest wall. We bought the dresser for my boys when they were little, and years later it is not in the best shape anymore. Drawers are off the tracks, the paint is chipped, there are stickers on it. It kind of just ended up in this room, and I do not love it anymore.

After reading “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up” to get motivated for this One Room Challenge, I have learned that to live well we must let go of what no longer serves us or provides joy. Every time I enter the room and look at the dresser – which is now piled high with papers and objects that need to be sorted – I feel completely overwhelmed. I want the clutter to be gone and the wall to be clear of furniture so that I can use it as a pinboard-type area for inspirational images. 

Back in 2011, when I was trying to get my creative career back on track after staying home with my kids, I started an online design magazine, New England Finery. Back then, this wall was where I sorted out my stories. The space was energizing! I had a vision and could see it come to life right in front of my eyes. 

New England Finery photo by Elizabeth Wertz

my designed space to promote New England Finery 

at the Boston Antique Design Show // October 2011

I really enjoyed that creative period in my life despite the fact that I was struggling with the ups and downs of raising a family at the time. Designing the magazine while curating editorial content was completely engaging, and I met a lot of creative people along the way. It combined my graphic design training, my passion for interior design, and my love of technological innovation all in one place. I could hardly call it work.

Unfortunately, this self-created position didn’t exactly pay the bills, so I ended up shelving the magazine for a full-time job at a local luxury showroom that needed a marketing director. Since then I have taken on other full-time jobs (furniture sales, large format printing sales) always searching for the perfect combination of creative challenges and work-life balance. I finally decided that being a freelance creative director (define as you wish!) with multiple sources of income and opportunity is where I want to be. My plan is for my new office to support me in following this path.

A few items that may end up in my home office makeover

(images via Design Vignettes on Polyvore)

A friend and teammate from my new position as brand ambassador for the skincare company Rodan + Fields, posted the image below on my Facebook page recently. Seeing it in my photo stream made me realize that my home office was not looking as fabulous as a successful entrepreneurs place of business could look today. Seeing that photo motivated me to take on this One Room Challenge. Stay tuned for next weeks post that will detail my selected colors, fabrics, and lighting. Check out this weeks updates from the other Calling it Home ORC participants here. Hopefully I will be Instagramming my decluttering progress shots soon! #justdoit 

image via bossbabe instagram feed

A Beautiful Before + After Giveaway!

For years I have been posting Before + After photos from my client’s home makeovers. Creating beautiful living spaces that are comfortable and inviting, while adding designer touches that they might not have thought of on their own, has been a rewarding process. I love when my clients are happy with their makeover transformations!

Recently I experienced a transforming before and after of my own. A friend of mine invited me to try Rodan + Fields, a top-selling skin care product line formerly sold in fine department stores, now sold exclusively through independent consultants who share the benefits of the products mainly through social media and sometimes at hosted events.

Soothe Regimen for Sensitive, Irritated Skin and Facial Redness

Before R+F, my sensitive skin had been acting up for years, and I was having a hard time finding the right combination of products to address redness and irritation. Makeup helped, but constantly covering up the problem wasn’t addressing the underlying poor condition of my skin. Topical medications hadn’t alleviated the problem either. I figured if the Rodan + Fields Soothe line for sensitive skin could solve my skin challenges, I would share the product with others, just as my friend had with me. 

“To see real changes in your skin’s appearance, you need to use the right concentration of clinically active ingredients in the right formulations and in the right order.”

Rodan + Fields formulas offer a multi-med therapy approach to skin care, utilizing a tested combination of cosmetic and active over-the-counter ingredients “in the right formulation in the right order” to visibly improve the complexion. Almost immediately after starting my new Soothe regimen, the texture and condition of my skin improved dramatically. And I have to admit, I really like having this new morning and evening self-care routine as part of my daily ritual. The multiple step approach (wash, treat, moisturize, protect) feels very spa-like and I am definitely impressed with the results.

After five weeks of using Rodan + Fields, my skin now has a healthy glow, and I am not feeling the need to cover up with foundation as soon as I wake up. An added bonus is my typically dark under eye circles are becoming less noticeable, too, and I haven’t even switched from Soothe to the more powerful anti-aging regimens like Reverse or Redefine yet!

True to my word, I now want to share these fabulous products with others. As a brand ambassador for Rodan + Fields, I’d like to treat my blog readers to a special giveaway. To enter to win, all you have to do is visit my R+F consultant page and give the Solution Tool a try. By answering the questions provided (it should take less than 5 minutes) you will receive (via email) a customized skincare routine recommendation for your specific skin challenges. It’s like having a complimentary consult with a dermatologist without an appointment (Dr. Kathy Fields and Dr. Katie Rodan are the board certified dermatologists behind Rodan + Fields success). Couldn’t be easier!

Rodan + Fields Solution Tool

ENTER TO WIN!

Everyone who answers the Solution Tool questions will be entered in a drawing to win one of the following giveaway prizes (entry period from July 27th through August 3rd). Be sure to email yourself the results to count as an entry!

MINI FACIAL  //  A 5-minute Mini-Facial sample pack that includes Micro-Dermabrasion Paste, Redefine Night Renewing Serum and Redefine Lip Renewing Serum. 

ACUTE CARE STRIPS  //  One pair of super effective Redefine Acute Care self-adhesive skincare strips for expression lines, that “fill a wrinkle while you sleep.”

MULTI-FUNCTION EYE CREAM  //  One jar of Redefine Multi-Function Eye Cream (a $60 value) that utilizes powerful peptides to minimize the look of crow’s feet and reduce the appearance of dark circles and puffiness.

REGIMEN OF YOUR CHOICE  //  And one winner will receive a complete Rodan + Fields skincare regimen of their choice (close to $200 value!) Based on your needs, you could try out a two-month supply of Redefine, Reverse, Soothe or Unblemish. I know you will love these products as much as I do, and I’d love your personal feedback on them, so enter now to win and I just may be showing your Before + After photos next!

Enter now by visiting my

Rodan + Fields consultant page

and try the Solution Tool!

{click here}

– last day to enter is 8.3.15 –

Conference Room Makeover

This is a #throwback makeover, from a couple years ago. My task was to choose paint color, carpet, and design elements for the Designer Bath conference room, where we often hosted invitational Lunch + Learns for the design community.

Above is the “After.” Below is the eye-sore before ...

This support beam posed the biggest challenge. After much thought, simply wrapping it tightly with rope created an interesting texture in the room, while referencing the company’s early years when still located in the seaport town of Salem, MA. The decorative orange tree, taking a cue from the company’s brand colors, adds brightness and life to the corner of this window-less office space. 

The new paint colors for the walls in the conference room and adjoining cubicle area both had to coordinate with the new commercial grade carpet we chose from Landry and Arcari. 

To finish the space, cut vinyl was added to the conference room walls. On one side, the Designer Bath logo in white, and on the monitor wall we added a reflective wave pattern taken from their Salem Plumbing logo.

At my new position at White Light Visual, this is the type of project we are often called upon to design and execute – branding corporate, retail, and institutional environments through “visual marketing.” To me, it’s just another form of art.