So Much Done
BIG news! The house is done.
Ish.
We made a big push and pretty much finished everything this weekend. There's still touch up paint that needs to happen, furniture to be painted (or purchased/received), but we are pretty much out of boxes - Rob still has a few in his office space. And I have a few more things to hang in the guest room but we really are 90% done.
And that is HUGE.
I have more pics to share and discuss. Are you ready?
Disclaimer: I know in the grand scheme of important things going on in the world right now, me moving into and decorating our house is very low on the totem pole. But this is what's going on in my life and you are reading it... ;)
OK The first room I am sharing is THE KITCHEN. It is my very favorite room and it isn't even done yet! (Also I probably should have saved it for last because every other room pales in comparison but I couldn't wait to share it).
Here's the before:
*Disclaimer - before pictures will be both from the original listing and pics we took ourselves.
I have to say this was my least favorite room and I made Rob promise I could change it if we got this house. I hated the counters and the backsplash a LOT. I had to have his word that it would be done first thing. (I hate the floors too but I can live with them for now).
And here is the glorious after:
Here's what we changed:
We painted the walls a nice blue gray. Upper cabinets went pure white (as did baseboards and beams) - they were a creamy color before. Lower cabinets are as close to Jadeite green as I could get (and it is pretty freakin' close). We had the bar top cut down as that really wasn't an effective eat in area - and we also have a breakfast nook AND a dining room - and it is a high traffic area being right off the garage. Also it didn't really get shown well in pics, but it required a weird cut just to have door clearance. We then replaced the countertops with a beautiful pure white granite and I love it. Since we replaced the counters anyway, we decided to go with a farm sink and replaced the faucet. And before you @ me with how fantastic that faucet was, it was just too big. I still have it if anyone wants it - make me an offer.
Next to go was the backsplash and it couldn't be more perfect. It is Caribbean marble and it has just the right shades of green and gray and white...and I love it. And since it is actually a fairly small square footage, I was able to splurge a bit on the tile.
We also had the hinges replaced on the cabinet doors so they are hidden now (this was not part of the original plan but cleaning the hinges proved more challenging than anticipated). I would have loved to reface the cabinets entirely - who knows, maybe someday we will - but for now, this works. And I left 3 doors off by the fridge to use as display for my Jadeite collection which I intend to expand upon over time. We also relocated the wine fridge to be closer to the movie room and bar because that just made more sense and in it's place we put in a sliding trash can and recycling station.
To be clear, the WE I am referring to here is mostly paid professionals though Rob has done some things like second coats of paint on cabinets and putting handles back on. I'd like to eventually change the floor but let's just say that's on the 5 year plan. It'll do for now.
The breakfast nook is still a work in progress. I'm missing pieces for the chairs and I need to paint the coffee bar/baking island I had built. So I'll post better pics of that area when it is all done.
PS The curtains I have ordered for that area are so perfect I can't deal. Unfortunately they are not expected until October.
Next up is the living room. This house has a bit more of an open floor plan than I was originally hoping for but I think I've made it work. You saw the dining room already.
Here's some before pics of the living room:
I cannot fully express how much I hated the tile on the fire place. It just looked too contemporary. Plus the color just didn't work with the color scheme I wanted. And I really struggled with the TV placement. The wood accent wall looks good in pics but trust that it wasn't that well done in person. But also, the TV isn't centered on the room. And that bothers me. I tried thinking of other options.
Above the fireplace? Still not centered. In the built in area to the left of the fireplace? Still not centered. We have floor plugs where the sofa is now and then I could center it, but that would have left the back of the TV exposed and that's not attractive.
So, what did I do?
We painted the walls a darker gray. Again, all trim, baseboards and built-ins got a nice new coat of pure white. I painted the cabinet wall an accent color to match my sofas - I'll be painting the rest of the backs but that needed to be done before the TV was mounted. Also I really did paint that myself. And since my TV didn't take up the entire space, I had Caleb add some adjustable shelves to either side so there was less empty space. And who doesn't want more display space?
The biggest surprise is the fireplace. We asked Caleb for a mantle. The problem is, we knew re-tiling the entire fireplace would be cost prohibitive. Magan had a great idea to add drywall to the top (for the record, I use dry wall and sheet rock as if they are the same thing. I don't know if they are. Don't know if they aren't either. I could look it up, but I'm on a roll here.) section above the new mantle. The idea being to frame out or attach it to the existing tile.
Tommy felt like it would be better to remove the tile, and he's the pro so I listened. I told him if we got very lucky and the brick was intact, we would prefer to keep the brick and just paint it. And it was in great shape! So we had him take it all off, painted the darkest gray we are using, and voila!
We also added glass shelves to the bar area so we could really use it. I also found that pretty area rug on Wayfair and if I can keep the cats from scratching it to shreds I will be very happy. I would like to add a side chair - or two if a second would fit - so that it is more of a conversation area. It's not our primary TV room.
Frankly the main reason we put the TV there is so while I am doing holiday baking I can still watch Christmas movies.
One last photo so you can see how all the rooms flow together:
Ok the next two are definitely less exciting but I'm still happy with the results.
I believe I have mentioned before that the guest bedroom is Harry Potter themed but that's a post for another day. So we went nautical for this bathroom giving me the added advantage of keeping my awesome octopus shower curtain. Not much happened here except a pretty blue on the ceiling and walls and a white update on the cabinets and trim. The thing that I am most excited about - and you can barely see it in this pic - is what we did to the built in hamper.
I removed the door so we could put the litter box inside! It's tucked away but 100% accessible for the cats. AND I had Caleb add a shelf to the top portion so the part where you would put your clothes is now storage for cat essentials. I'm very pleased with this result.
Our final room for today is the master bath. I love our bathroom. I love the shower. I love how spacious it is. But it was too white before. Especially when you add the mirrors too.
I mean for real. Who needs to watch themselves poo from that many angles? And I definitely don't want to see myself naked from that many angles.
So this is still a work in progress. I'd like to do something with the closet doors. I have ideas. I'm contemplating the self adhesive wallpaper to at least one door (the one closest to the toilet). Ultimately I would like to remove them entirely, frame out most of it so it translates to usable wall space IN the closet. That's more 5 year plan talk probably. But here's what we have so far...
It's mostly paint. Funny thing is, that's not the color I planned for this space. It was actually supposed to be a much lighter minty green. But one of the painters grabbed the kitchen cabinet paint and put it on the walls by mistake. Turns out I love it! I think it is a great color, I feel like it makes the big space cozier, and it works with a bit of an art deco vibe with the black countertops. I also added the towel racks (yes, I really did). Duncan and Rob built the cabinet beside the toilet but we kind of hate it so that will likely get relocated to the closet for shoe storage when we find a replacement.
Also the paintings in the bathroom were in his garage! And even though I was not sure where I was going to put them, I thought they were pretty so we kept them. It looks like I designed the room around them but really it was all a happy accident.
The triptic and the flower painting in the dining room are by the same artist. The triptic is signed P. Varner - the dining room one is just signed Varner. Rob thought they were by a family member but that name doesn't work. I can't find a record of P. Varner the artist online so who knows. I just thought they were pretty.
Anyway, that's all for now. Next up will be the master bedroom and guest room. Maybe Rob's office - he's very excited to finally have a room he can call his own. And of course the movie room but we have to wait for the sofa and that's not due until mid-October.
That will be something to look forward to. I can promise you, it isn't like any other room in the house.
So what are you up to?
#stilllucky #infinitelybetter #newhouse #beforeandafter #mcm #vintagevibe #jadeite #varner #2020