s2020 ORC - The Pink Bathroom, Week 1

s2020 ORC – The Pink Bathroom, Week 1

DECORATING | The Spring 2020 One Room Challenge (ORC) and my MCM pink tile bathroom.

One Room Challenge guest logo Whelp! I did it! I signed up for the One Room Challenge (ORC). I’ve followed it for years, since it started ages ago. (I want to say a decade, but has it been that long? Does time mean anything any more? I’ve been at home as a result of the coronavirus pandemic for more than eight weeks now. I’m losing it.) Here’s a link back to the blog page where you can see all the fun guest participants. Like me!

Anyway, I have watched so many bloggers I know and follow participate, but it’s always seemed too overwhelming to attempt myself. And I stopped blogging for years anyway. I was too busy with my kid, and our huge move, and a million other things. But lately, I’ve been getting back into it, and some of my new web friends from the ‘gram have been so encouraging. (What UP Kate Pearce Vintage, who is maybe the nicest ever and is a featured ORC designer for this go ’round!) It just felt like I was maybe kinda sorta ready. Maybe? We’ll see!

So, I’m doing my bathroom.

It’s a pink-tile midcentury bathroom that has retained most of the original features it came with from when this ranch house was built in 1955. The candy pink tile, grey speckled mosaic floor, mauve-ish gray bullnose. AND IT’S TINY. Like, PITA-tiny. And it is the main bathroom for our little family of three. (Technically, we do have a second bath, but it’s even tinier, and there’s no tub in that one, just a terrifyingly wee shower. It’s also original to the house, and the MCM tiling is a muddy yellow and brown, or as my daughter calls them, “poo and pee colours!” which is, I guess, very appropriate? But let’s not talk about that.

For now, let’s focus on the pink bathroom.

The realtor’s photos made it look fairly good, of course. Those sneaky sneaks with their weird photo edits. I mean, everybody knows you can’t trust a realtor photo. Anyway, here’s what the bathroom looked like according to the realtor (you can also see this image is the featured header). Consider this the BEFORE:

One Room Challenge Guest Pink Bathroom Before

The pink bathroom according to the Realtor (lies, all lies).

And here’s what it looked like according to the seller:

My pink tile bathroom, according to the seller (a little more honest).

Literally the first thing I did when we moved into this house was take out that horrible sliding door tub enclosure. Really easy to do. Really disgusting. Like, it had never once been properly cleaned. Vile. That’s what neither the realtor photos, nor the seller photos show you: How filthy a house really is. (Though, actually, the rusty brownness of the sink is pretty apparent in this seller photo, but I digress.) Anyway here are MY unofficial before photos (post sliding door removal). Unfiltered, unedited. HONEST. Like me! (Just kidding. I am also full ‘o lies, just not about this bathroom.)

The unvarnished truth!

The sink. Barf.

Oh god. Help.

I give you nothing but veracity, my friends.

Anyway, this is the room I’m doing. Pray for me? I mean, I’m essentially an atheist, but send me your good vibes. Whatever you’ve got. I’ll take it. I’ll be posting here weekly until this bad ORC boy is over, as well as giving regular updates (complete with off-the-cuff videos, occasionally with ridiculous filters because my face is haggard) on my Will & Bequeath Instagram account. It’s where the magic happens, baby. (No, but seriously. I’m up in there every darn day. It’s hoppin’. Many jokes. It’s fun! You should follow me!)

P.S. I guess I’ll try to do like the big kids and say thanks to Linda Weinstein (creator of the One Room Challenge) and @betterhomesandgardens (official sponsor of the ORC). Neither of whom I ever expect to interact with. Because I am an ant among men and they will never notice me. (Also, my bathroom has ants. TRUE STORY.)

P.P.S. I hope to use a bunch of vintage stuff from my horde in this room update because I won’t be shopping IRL. To shop my Etsy store and see what I have, head here. If you buy something, you will literally be removing it as a possibility for this room. So. Make of that what you will. I won’t be mad at you. To read more of my old blog posts with a design-and-decor focus, click here.

P.P.P.S. (Good lord.) This post has also been published on my Will & Bequeath work blog. To read some of that vintage-focused goodness, go here. I am slowly reorganizing that site to better merge with this one, and to accommodate more direct sales as I work to get away from the middle-men apps like Etsy and Poshmark, however, so this site, goin’ strong for nearly 15 years now, should be considered my home base and is the best place to look for ORC updates.