ORC: Book & Bourbon Library Reveal

We made to the ORC: Book & Bourbon Library Reveal! Are you ready to see our new Bourbon Library?

Welcome to the ORC: Book & Bourbon Library Reveal. This season we designed our front entryway library space and this week we are sharing our final reveal of the Book and Bourbon Library.

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WEEKS AT A GLANCE:

WEEK 1     WEEK 2     WEEK 3   WEEK 4    WEEK 5     REVEAL

Just in case you maybe wondering exactly what The One Room Challenge is, here is the link, and the scoop. This event was originally started by Linda Weinstein @ Calling It Home. It is currently hosted twice a year, in April and October for the past 16 seasons. The ORC has hosted over 500 interior designers & home decor bloggers, that have joined together in this challenge to makeover one room in their own homes.  The participants have a total of six weeks, from start to finish, to complete a full room transformation. Over 4,400 rooms have been transformed through the One Room Challenge to date, and many spaces have been recognized and featured by several prestigious sites, like Better Homes and Gardens the hosting media site this season.

THE PROPOSED SCHEDULE: 

WEEK 1: Introduction & Inspirations, Beams

WEEK 2:  Fireplace Install & Mantle

WEEK 3: Stone Tile Install

WEEK 4: Bookcases

WEEK 5: Adding a Chandelier

WEEK 6: REVEAL

Inspiration Board: The Book & Bourbon Library

THE LIBRARY BEFORE PICTURES:

This is where our library started out merely 6 weeks ago. While it looked fine and we had installed the cedar beams, it still just needed a little more character since it was the first room you see as you enter our home.

Six weeks later here is where we ended up, a beautiful DIY slate and stone floor to ceiling fireplace, with a custom built mantle stained to match our previously constructed cedar beams. This now anchors the room and adds a great new focal place for the eye to rest upon entering. Plus the cozy functionality of adding a fireplace to this room, that would not normally be able to accommodate a fireplace since it is directly on the front of the house is nice. We do want say a big thank you to all of gracious sponsors this season that helped to make this room transformation possible, including Generation Lighting for our gorgeous new Avenir chandelier. The addition of 3 double bay bookcases have added plenty of storage space for our collections of books that would otherwise be stowed away in boxes. I personally feel that books will become a luxury item at some point with things going all digital, and that library with attractive coffee style books or high end hardback books will become sought after in homes by collectors. The same way you look for vinyl records, it is a dying breed so to speak. The Bourbon Library, well I feel like it speaks for itself. While currently we do still house a few other of our bar items in here as well, this room will predominantly be the bourbon library. Currently  housing some of the greats like Four Roses, Basil Hayden, Blanton’s, Eagles Rare, Angel’s Envy, and REI. We also like to stick to our roots with Jack, Crown, Wolf and Walker, let’s just say there is always room at our bar for these. I also may have a few that we are waitlisted for as well, which if you are a true connoisseur I am sure you know the ones. While the Bourbon Library gives this room a secondary meaning or use, it can be like a fancy bar, or gentleman’s room, or the library. I know when I used to work at wedding event homes, traditionally they all had gentlemen’s libraries, which were the groomsmen room. This is loosely where the idea came from, honestly we had planned on making this my piano room at some point, but even so I still think my baby grand would look great in here. I decided to furnish the room in a Montana sunset feel, and I blame this all on the television show Yellowstone. We might be slightly obsessed with the show, the scenery and decor.  So here it is alive and well in our Book and Bourbon Library with a slight Georgian farmhouse twist. I decided after ordering both the deer hide and cowhide pillows that I preferred the cowhide pillows in the library with a bolder pattern along with the more Navajo print pillows. Not to worry I did keep the deer hides as well, they are currently in my great room for the holidays. We placed the longer lumbar pillows in the bottom cubbies, which may seem odd, but with four cats we already knew those spots would have inhabitants. So staging of those shelves is really pointless, we decided to embrace the fact we will have cubby snoozers and just purchased pretty pillows that fit for them to lay upon. While this may seem excessive, sometimes in design it is just better to embrace the areas you know to be challenges head on, instead of trying to hide them, LOL!We did add in a storage ottoman to this space, which adds a cozy element to prop up our feet by the fire, while stowing away those extras blankets, throws or pillows you may or may not want lying about the room. I also have a little folding desk, which is great for when I want to work remotely from this room on my laptop, stashed in there as well.The painting above the fireplace is a vintage oil painting I ran across a few years ago while antiquing with a friend. It is called, The Bear Dance by William Holbrook Beard. While I am pretty sure mine is a museum replica, it is still very old and clearly very faded, you can see the real colors peeking out from the sides behind the frame.  However, I still fell in love with this piece, even though it has had some wear and the colors are not as vibrant as they once were, I feel like that is a part of its history.  It looks great sitting on the mantle in this room and really finishes off the rustic feeling. For the season I have added my pine tree sculptures and saw for a little more visual interest. We also decided to add the console base back as a makeshift hearth for below the fireplace, which is where we originally had this piece of furniture previously, it just looks a little more built-in now.We are so excited at how our new Book & Bourbon Library has turn out for this season of the One Room Challenge. Even though it has been a challenging year dealing with our new normal of the pandemic lifestyle and everything that has gone along with it. I hope that this post has inspired you to keep on living your best life, and even if you find yourself spending more time at home just remember you can turn you home into a haven designed just for you and your interests, whatever those might be. Stay safe and healthy my friends, and have a happy holiday season!