The Dappled Willow

So it’s week three of the One Room Challenge and I’m already a bit behind schedule. I knew there would be delays given the current restrictions limiting getting supplies to online orders for delivery or curbside pickup. Unfortunately my order from the hardware store took much longer than I expected to be ready for pick up, so I did what I could in the meantime.

I browsed the internet for inspo of the many projects still to come in the living room and researched clever DIY hacks to try to make my vision come to life for less than retail price. I hunted for the perfect rug, kept my eyes peeled for secondhand items on Facebook Marketplace, and did a bunch of research on which white paint is the best.

There was one project I was able to get started on this week though…

Fireplace Mantel

I always envisioned a wood beam mantel on our white brick fireplace and now that the offset stone shelves have been removed we can finally make that happen!

We were fortunate to be gifted a slab of live edge butternut by our brother in law who is an arborist and timber framer.

Daniel loved the idea of keeping the bark on going for a more rustic look but I had a something simpler and lighter in mind. After much discussion about what to do we landed on a compromise.

Daniel cut the slab in half and I picked the one with the best lines for the mantel. We still have the other half to hopefully do another cool project with.

I chiseled the bark off and then planed down the front face even more to reveal the lighter wood tone.

Then I sanded it down with a belt sander to smooth out the ridges on the top and bottom of the piece. I sanded the front of it by hand.

I’m sure this whole process could have been done much faster but I so enjoyed taking my time on this. I loved working outside, hearing the birds, and seeing the beautiful wood beneath the bark slowly be revealed. I’m so grateful my husband was supportive of me taking the time to do this and watched the kiddos while I worked away.

We still have to decide on whether to stain it or not, then seal it and mount it but we can’t do that until the fireplace bricks are repainted.

So I get to add and cross off my “Prep fireplace mantel” from my project list.

THE PROJECT LIST:

• Declutter
• Widen entryways
• Drywall
• Prime
• Paint walls
• Paint brick fireplace
• Paint window frames
• Prep fireplace mantel
• Install fireplace mantel
• Music storage/station
• Firewood storage
• Replace rug
• Figure out lighting
• DIY Art
• Stage with art and accessories 

I’m hopeful we can make great progress over this upcoming long weekend and get back on track! For now I’m enjoying the process of watching this room come together, no matter how slowly. I’ll be back next week with another update!

Cheers,

Lydia

Visit each week of my One Room Challenge™ here:

Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 |

Thanks for being here! See what everyone else in this challenge is up to at One Room Challenge™.