$100 Room Challenge | Week 2: Paint & Fauxlap

Week 2 of the $100 Room Challenge was so satisfying. Painting covers a multitude of sins and this week it covered the ugly yellow-white walls. I have to finish this challenge by next weekend and get all the pictures taken and post written so I will be kicking into high gear this weekend. Keep an eye on my InstaStories to see the real-time progress and behind the scenes. 

Week 1 | The Befores

First thing to do was clean everything out - arguably the hardest part. Right now everything is sitting in the guest room, and I keep adding stuff to it with J.Crews 60% off sales which is not helping (but I got this dreamy city coat in a second color for Christmas and will love it forever). 

Next, taking out all the wallpapered boards and metal pole made me really see the potential for this space and get excited for the finished product. Do yourself a favor and take the extra 30 minutes to caulk. Even if you're not working in an old house like ours, new houses still have to settle and the caulk always cracks. 

On a $100 budget, you save a penny wherever you can. One of my favorite money savers is using paint you already have. Luckily, I had almost a whole gallon of Behr Crystal Cut paint left over from the Laundry Room reveal last spring and since they are non-returnable I just stick them in my tool closet.

Real life moment - there is never a time when I paint something when I don't get it in my hair. Evidence is below.  I didn't use a large roller since there is so many small walls and didn't feel like switching. 

While waiting for the paint to dry, I gave the old galvanized pipe a black spray paint job to fit in with the new color scheme. If you don't know me yet then realize my answer to most things is spray paint.

SO much better. Pictures may not do it justice but it is now a perfect shade of warmish cool white. 

Now for why you're really here; the faux-lap. People get offended when you call things shiplap when you're installing it new so I try to avoid the term in my renovations. But this is like, faux-faux lap. I'm not installing planks of wood - I'M JUST PAINTING A LINE. 

I honestly had no idea if this would work nor did I research it (dumb move looking back),  but I kept going. First step is to mark the lines in equal distances. I prefer really wide shiplap in real life so I decided to do it in 10" intervals. Haha, I don't know what I'm doing 98% of the time by the way.

Once all the lines are marked, get your level and draw those straight lines like you mean it.

Repeat on every side. Nope, not the most time consume step of this process.

THIS is the most time consume step, and for good reason. Now you tape (or free hand, I just didn't have that much time) on both sides of each line so your paint stripe is straight. Don't rush on this step, if your stripes are crooked you'll have to do it over or just live with it.

Instead of black, which you would think would best represent the shadow between the "shiplap boards", I decided to go with a more muted gray, Behr Seagull Gray. Turns out I love this gray and can't wait to use it in a big space somewhere. You don't need a whole gallon for this project, so I grabbed a paint sample in flat, bonus it is only $3. Once you've got all the lines painted, pull the tape off at a 45° for a clean line.

And viola! It may not add a ton of interest, but to an other wise white wall it gives some texture. The wood shelves will make it stand out more but still remain simple (and under budget).

Budget Spent:
Paint Sample, Seagull Gray - $3

TOTAL: $3


Things I Already Had:
Rollers / Brush
Frog tape
Long level
Caulk


This season has more participants than previous $100 Room Challenges, so be sure to check out all the wonderful spaces below. Best group ever.

   

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