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Homeowner Alexis Moore completed an eight-week makeover of her untouched 1980s dining room as part of the One Room Challenge, painting over old red wallpaper rather than removing it and furnishing the room largely with secondhand pieces. The project, featured by Apartment Therapy, shows how prep work and thrifted decor can deliver a dramatic vintage-inspired result.
A homeowner has transformed an untouched 1980s dining room into a moody, vintage-inspired space in just eight weeks, working within the One Room Challenge format and furnishing the room almost entirely with secondhand finds. The makeover by Alexis Moore (@alexisnicolemakes), featured this week in Apartment Therapy‘s Before & Afters series, relied on painting directly over stubborn red wallpaper rather than removing it.
Moore told Apartment Therapy that the dining room in her 1980s home had not been updated since the house was built. “It felt super outdated and lacked my personal style,” she said. While she valued the room’s hardwood floors, natural light, and open layout, the dark red wallpaper covering the walls was the main problem.
Because the old wallpaper appeared to have been pasted directly onto the drywall, removal would have been, in Moore’s words, “a nightmare.” Instead, she painted over it using Sherwin-Williams’ “Hardware,” a warm gray-tan shade. She credits the result to extensive preparation: filling holes, skim coating the walls, and priming before painting. “It was scary, but with lots of prep work, you’d never even know!” she said.
Above the chair rail, Moore installed a vintage-inspired forest-pattern wallpaper, Wall Blush’s Wedded Woodlands — her first time wallpapering a space that large. A more experienced friend helped hang the first few panels before she finished the job alone. The furniture was sourced secondhand: the table and chairs came from Facebook Marketplace, and the buffet came from a Habitat for Humanity ReStore. She offset costs by selling her old dining set on Facebook Marketplace, and most accessories — including an oversized antique-style mirror — were also bought used. The lamp was a $30 HomeGoods find.
Why Budget Secondhand Makeovers Resonate
The project illustrates a practical approach for homeowners facing two common renovation obstacles: dated wallpaper that is difficult to remove, and furnishing costs. Moore’s decision to paint over wallpaper after proper surface preparation — rather than undertake risky removal from drywall — offers a documented example of a widely used workaround, though results depend heavily on wall condition and prep quality.
The makeover also reflects the growing appeal of secondhand sourcing. By buying the table, chairs, buffet, mirror, and much of the decor used, and reselling her old furniture, Moore kept spending down while achieving the vintage look she wanted. For readers planning similar projects, her advice was to keep looking rather than settle: “If you invest time, I bet you can find just the thing you wanted.”
The One Room Challenge Format
:The makeover was completed as part of the One Room Challenge, a recurring design event in which participants redesign a single room on an eight-week timeline and document the process publicly. Moore participated under the format’s structure, which encourages DIY bloggers and homeowners to share weekly progress.
The feature appeared in Apartment Therapy’s Before & Afters vertical, written by Megan Baker Detloff, an editor who previously worked at HGTV Magazine and This Old House Magazine. Apartment Therapy noted the project was “rental friendly” in its project tags, though it did not publish a total cost figure for the renovation.
“It felt super outdated and lacked my personal style.”
— Alexis Moore, homeowner
Costs and Longevity Not Disclosed
Several practical details are not included in the report. Apartment Therapy listed the project cost as “N/A,” so the total spend — including the large-format wallpaper, which Moore herself described as an “investment” — is unknown. It is also unclear how the painted-over wallpaper will hold up over time, since long-term durability of this method depends on wall condition and adhesion. Whether the new wallpaper can later be removed without damaging the drywall beneath was not addressed.
Takeaways for Similar Projects
Readers considering a comparable dining room update can draw on the documented steps from this project: assess whether wallpaper is firmly adhered before deciding to remove or paint over it; fill holes, skim coat, and prime before painting; and source furniture and decor through marketplaces and reuse stores to control costs. Apartment Therapy points readers to its separate guide on painting over wallpaper for further instruction. Moore says she plans to continue applying the same secondhand-first approach in future rooms.
Key Questions
Can you paint over wallpaper instead of removing it?
In this project, yes — Moore painted over wallpaper that was pasted directly to drywall, after filling holes, skim coating, and priming. Results vary depending on the wallpaper’s condition and adhesion, so proper preparation is the step she credits for the outcome.
What paint color was used on the dining room walls?
Sherwin-Williams’ “Hardware,” a shade Moore described as sort of tan, sort of gray, applied below the chair rail over the old red wallpaper.
Where did the furniture in the finished room come from?
The table and chairs came from Facebook Marketplace, the buffet from a Habitat for Humanity ReStore, and the oversized mirror and most decor were secondhand. The lamp was a $30 HomeGoods purchase.
How long did the dining room makeover take?
Eight weeks, completed as part of the One Room Challenge design event.
What wallpaper was installed in the room?
Wall Blush’s Wedded Woodlands, a vintage-inspired forest-pattern wallpaper applied above the chair rail. Moore said it was the largest space she had ever wallpapered.
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