Spring 2023 One Room Challenge

Follow along with me during the Spring 2023 One Room Challenge! Watch how I refresh our outdoor living area with a calming Coastal vibe!

Our outdoor addition is only a few years old, so you might be wondering why it needs a refresh already.  Hurricane Ian hit Southwest Florida in September 2022 damaging the lanai cage and parts of our home.  In fact, I had planned to feature the outdoor addition for the Fall 2022 One Room Challenge but Hurricane Ian had different ideas!

As part of the Spring 2023 One Room Challenge, I am going to give the outdoor space a Coastal Inspired Makeover.  I am also going to finally patch the wall where the existing lanai had been removed!

A Simple Explanation of the One Room Challenge

In 2011, Linda Weinstein decided to join together with a small group of her online friends with the goal of finishing a room in a designated amount of time.  The group of friends worked on their projects and helped motivate each other to stay on track.  She named the event One Room Challenge®, since staying focused and completing the project could be quite a challenge.

Fast forward to the present and the event is now held bi-annually.  The One Room Challenge showcases designers and Social Media Influencers.   The campaign begins on the first Wednesday of every April & October.  The campaign hopes to inspire individuals by showcasing new ideas and trends in home design and decor.

Bloggers and other social media influencers are welcome to join in the challenge as Guest Participants. For the next 8 Wednesdays, the participants will be sharing their progress on their blogs and various social media platforms.

A Little Background about the Outdoor Living Area

A little bit of background : when we first purchased our Florida home from my Great Aunt in February 2018, the house had a screened in lanai that measured 10 x 16.  Our original plan was to use the home as a vacation home and to continue living in Illinois.  About a year and a half into this plan, I changed my mind and we started the process of moving to Florida full time.

 

How the Lanai Looked When We First Purchased the House in Feb 2018

One of the major perks of living in Southwest Florida is the ability to enjoy the outdoors almost year round.  We knew that once we were living in Florida full time, we would want to add a swimming pool to our backyard. However, we weren’t prepared for all the decisions that went into adding a swimming pool!  Shape, size, material, salt water vs chlorine…. the list of choices was overwhelming!

Dave & I started seriously talking about adding the pool in the Spring of 2020.  The subdivision we live in has certain rules regarding pools and pool enclosures that we knew we would have to abide by.  The pool would need to be an inground pool with an enclosure over it called a pool cage.  We knew this would be a major investment but since the Florida home was to be our forever home, we were willing to make the investment.

We approved the drawing for the pool/lanai/outdoor kitchen addition during the Fall of 2020.   They started in mid December and the project was completed by the end of March, 2021.

The lanai faces north.  If you are wondering what the difference is between a lanai and a sunroom, please check out this post!  

The Final Drawing From the Pool Company

This photo is when the pool area is almost completed.

The Finished Pool area  (Picture Taken Looking East)

It isn’t Just a Pool, It is An Outdoor Addition

Early on in the researching process, I decided that we needed an outdoor kitchen in addition to the pool.  Well, actually I just wanted a fancy brick pizza oven. I thought I  didn’t need a grill or a sink or storage…. just the pizza oven, please.  it wasn’t long before I discovered that my dream pizza oven cost over $12,000.  So, I found something that would work for about 1/10th the price!  And then we found something that would do several cooking jobs for almost as much as the 2nd choice pizza oven!  More about the discovery  of the Big Green Egg is in this blog post!

If you are just starting to follow my blog, you may be curious as to why I need a pizza oven.  I was a pizzeria owner before I became a Floridian!  More about my pizza exploits can be found here:

and here:

The Outdoor Kitchen Area

From the original 10 x 16 footprint of the lanai, we expanded the deck another 14 feet out and had a composite roof put over it to make the outdoor kitchen.  Technically it isn’t a real kitchen since it doesn’t have a sink but I still refer to it as an outdoor kitchen.

You may have realized by now that I like my “stuff” and I needed somewhere to put all my “stuff” like craft supplies and entertaining accessories.  Because we live in a hot, humid area, wood cabinets weren’t really an option.  After a lot of research, I found these amazing cabinets.

These cabinets are Made In The USA by Challenger Designs, located in Indiana.  I ordered them from Family Hardware in Cape Coral, FL.  They are available in several different color combinations.  I chose Cappuccino for the frame and Copper Vein for the top.  Each unit is 48″W x 35″H x 24.875″ D.  Now I have plenty of room to work on projects and for storage!

Ideally, I would have centered them under the window.  However, that would have blocked the outlet so I have to live with them placed the way they are.

Fast Forward to Sept 2022

Around the 3rd week of September 2022 we learned that a tropical storm was brewing in the Caribbean.  This video pin describes the prep work we did to get the lanai ready for the storm.

After The Hurricane Hit

We were very fortunate compared to a lot of other people in the area.  Our home was still livable but we did have damage to the roof as well as to the lanai screens.

The landscaping took a bit hit too.  Entire bushes were uprooted and the trees lost a lot of leaves and branches.

The power was out for a week.  We did have running water.  We used the Big Green Egg a lot to cook our food and boil water.

The pool collected a lot of dirt, debris and shingles.

Dave did a great job getting the pool cleaned out and ready to use shortly after power was restored.

Goals for Creating a Calming Coastal  Themed Retreat:

Over the next 8 weeks, I plan to finally get the walls patched and painted.  I hope to accomplish all of the items on my list!

1. Replace Damaged Screens and Properly Secure The Cage
2. Clean the travertine tile to remove dirt, grime & algae
3. Patch & Paint stucco walls
4. Clean & Paint metal support beams
5. Add mulch around perimeter of lanai cage
6. refresh patio pots around lanai cage.
7. Add more lighting to the pool cage area
8. repaint mesh patio table top
9. rearrange patio furniture
10. use existing storage more effectively
11. set up a potting area outside the lanai

Please check out all the other amazing projects!  They can be found here: One Room Challenge:

To see what I accomplished in Week 2:

Spring 2023 ORC Week 2