Naomi Stein
- Nov 11, 2015
- 6 min read

ONE ROOM CHALLENGE ~ The City Condo ~ Week 6

{Originally Published November 11, 2015}

Party Time! It’s finale day of the One Room Challenge and the condo is done.

The condo is actually DONE.

You have NO idea the feelings that come up when I say that. Giddy exhausted disbelief. I don’t think I can properly convey just how hard George and I have worked, or how much stress I have felt over this renovation. I have poured my heart, soul and sanity into this project. Despite my many doubts, we survived and our reward is a gorgeous, updated, furnished apartment.

Instead of the One Room Challenge, I took on the One Condo Challenge. I know I “broke the rules” a bit here, but I had an empty, half-renovated apartment that needed to be finished, and QUICK. I’m so grateful to the Linda for inviting me to this ORC and giving me this amazing opportunity. Without the 6-week structure, the audience and the sponsorships there is no way we could have taken on a project of this magnitude. We saw a chance, we had a dream, and we went for it. I said in week one, if I decorate it, They will come. Who is THEY? We hope it’s YOU.

More on that below, but let’s get to the reason why you are here…. the pictures!

SEE WEEK 1 WEEK2 WEEK3 WEEK4 WEEK5

Welcome to our pied-à-terre.

This is the living room, but perhaps the proper way to give the tour is to start when you walk in the door…

Hello and welcome to Philadelphia! Our guests are greeted with this gold foil map of our fine city.

Out went the green tile floor (yay!) and damaged wallpaper (sads.) In went a whole lotta awesome.

The walls of the teeny entry are swathed in a gray grasscloth. After an initial shock, I’ve embraced the grasscloth and can now say it’s one of my favorite elements in the unit. Yes, I’m just going to confirm right now that I am my craziest, most difficult client.

Being a city apartment, space needed to be maximized, so we set up our entry to be both pretty and functional. The mirror is a place to check yourself before heading out the door, the live-edge walnut shelf (made by Georgie) is the perfect key-drop spot, and coats and bags can tuck inconspicuously below.

The apartment is open concept and once you pass through the little entry you enter a bright living/dining area that is also open to the kitchen. An open space is a blessing and a challenge. When I first moved in 8 years ago, I filled it with bulky, too-large pieces that made the apartment feel small. Ugg, I’m grossed out by the image above. Except Bailey. Love you, puggy.

After our most recent tenant moved out, we re-evaluated the space and selected finishes and furnishings that would really make the space pop. This is just a basic apartment- no high ceilings, no beautiful millwork, so we needed other elements to make our place feel special. Dark floors were really key here. They make the space feel cozy and modern at the same time.

If you have followed along, you know I ran into a few challenges furnishing this space- most notably my sofa not fitting through the front door. My last minute replacement- the white tufted Ikea sofa- actually works pretty well in here. It’s clean and modern and let’s other elements be the star.

I had initially planned a much simpler art arrangement above the sofa, but when my main piece arrived smaller than I anticipated, suddenly the scale felt all wrong and I was scrambling to fill in the blanks. I really wanted a CLEAN yet collected look and that can be hard to pull off! Especially when you have about 8 hours to pull it together.

With the art wall being more eclectic than anticipated, it solidified my decision to keep the pillows pretty neutral. Confession- I purchased about a dozen pillows to test out in the space. I love a pop of color, but every time I added one in, it felt like too much. Instead, I prefer the mix of textures, pops of green (a neutral in my book) and a fun colorful pillow on our lounge chair.

We swapped out our auction-find chair for George’s lounge chair. Thank goodness we hoard chairs because reupholstering the first guy would have broke the bank.

Wanting to maintain a clean, modern feel wherever I could, I opted to leave the TV wall very simple. No art above the rosewood credenza, just the grasscloth and a few favorites. While I never been a minimalist, it’s been fun to push myself a little. Besides, the grasscloth provides so much warmth and depth, I didn’t want to taint it.

My dining room feels complete now that I have my statement chandelier. I love seeing it reflected in our glamorous new mirror. And the new dining chairs? So comfy! My requirement for dining chairs is that I am able to sit indian-style in them. These pass the test.

THE KITCHEN

Our kitchen has seen major improvements in the past week. We finished painting the island cabinets and George came up with a great solution to my island countertop dilemma. He built me a hot-rolled steel sleeve that fit right over the green granite. The stone top is completely protected, but in the meanwhile I get a cleaner, more contemporary look.

He used natural hot rolled steel and welded the edges to look thicker than a standard granite counter. It will patina over time and I think it will keep looking better and better.

You may have also noticed I swapped out my kitchen light. I know its like musical chairs with lighting in this place. I have always wanted this gorgeous Crystorama flush mount fixture but didn’t think my budget would allow it. Thankfully, Crystorama came on as a sponsor and I decided to upgrade at the last minute. It makes me giddy every time I see it. It puts out surprisingly good light as well.

THE BATHROOM

Marble, wallpaper, subway tile, art, graphic shower curtain. Neutral, but certainly not boring.

MASTER BEDROOM

A custom headboard and pillows mix in with some great budget finds like these nightstands and these lamps.

LOVE my wallpaper. I may have to do the rest of the room at some point. And the mirror is perfect in here. I love the oversized scale. George and I reviewed a ton of options and this one both managed to pass our taste-tests. Clean and not too girly for him. A touch of gold for me. Everyone wins.

GUEST ROOM

I just wanted the guest room to be a serene, comfortable space. The lamps and lumbar pillow add just enough softness without being overly girly. This room gets the best light. Definitely a good napping spot.

So now that we’ve remodeled and furnished the apartment, what the heck are we going to do with it?!? Well, something funny happened while we were renovating… I fell in love with the apartment. It is so serene and chic and cozy. I feel so happy being there. And then I step outside and I’m right in the middle of our fabulous city. I miss this action, I miss this vibrancy! I’m just not ready to let this place go. But I have another home/ home office in the suburbs and I’m not in a position to move my life and work downtown at this point. So how do we have our cake and eat it too?

Share our pied-à-terre with others!!

WE WILL BE RENTING OUT THE CONDO ON AIRBNB ON A SELECT BASIS!

If you plan on visiting our glorious city (Philadelphia, duh) and want to stay in a clean, comfortable, high-styling two bedroom apartment in the center of town, then should you definitely check out our listing. I’d be so excited for you to enjoy the condo too.

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SEE WEEK 1 WEEK2 WEEK3 WEEK4 WEEK5

ORC PARTICIPANTS- 20 top designers/bloggers have been invited to this Challenge and today we are all sharing our reveals. Prepare yourself for some amazing makeovers.

Apartment 34 / Arianna Belle / Because it’s Awesome / 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 / The Zhush / CIH

TM by CIH

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SOURCES

I promise full posts breaking down each room and component, but it is getting very, very, very late, so this source list will focus on sponsored items and other major pieces.

I also recommend you check out our Pinterest Board.

KITCHEN – Sponsored by Lowe’s

Cabinetry color- Coventry Gray by Benjamin Moore

Refrigerator

Faucet

Subway Tile

Steel countertop by George Coldren

Ceiling Light by Crystorama

Counter Stools

Kitchen Rug- Ebay

LIVING ROOM

Grasscloth from DecoratorsBest