The Living Room: Before

The living room doesn’t really look that bad, does it? That’s because it isn’t bad at all. Our plans are simple:

• update the fan (which broke the month we moved in and is now completely nonoperational)
• install a new pendant light over the entryway
• replace the laminate with hardwood flooring
• replace the window
• New paint everywhere
• Add a new door chime (very Brady Bunch look)

We are considering Benjamin Moore’s Edgecomb Gray for the living room & entryway. It is on the same swatch as our bedroom color Revere Pewter. We already purchased an allen + roth pendant light for above the entryway that is vintage inspired and will be installed as soon as we figure out a safe/smart way of installing it.

Bedroom Fans

Here is a closer look of the fans we are installing in the upper level bedrooms. They are Hunter Fremont 52′ fans. After seeing the smaller fans in the bedrooms we decided to replace them with these larger ones. They do not hang low which is great since the ceiling height isn’t that great to begin with and we’re loving the shape of the blades. The dark tones will be echoed throughout the house. Here is a link to more details on this fan.

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The Kitchen: Before

This is by far the worst room in the house and will undoubtedly be the most expensive. Don’t let the picture fool you – this is what we’re dealing with:

• Peel & Stick tile with gaps between the tiles
• The built in stove/oven was cut out leaving an uneven cut line and a bare 220 volt wire completely exposed laying on the ground
• A broken faucet
• No appliances & no place to install a dishwasher
• Cabinets so filthy that even after 3 months and taking a electric scrubber & degreaser to  we still refuse to use them. They do not have normal cabinet boxes but are shelves built on the wall then framed
• A really odd counter below the window
• A very outdated look

There are a lot of positives with the kitchen:

• Approx 10′ x 10′ area should give us plenty of cabinets & a small island
• Huge 72” x 48” window looking out the backyard (with the backyard tree it’s semi private)
• A great sized dining area that can expand the kitchen work space if needed – there is even one set of the kitchen cabinets in the dining area that we are able to use.
• Everything needs to be done which gives us the luxury of choosing our cabinets/counter tops/backspash/appliances & really build this kitchen how we want it

We already purchased stainless steel appliances and are in the process of putting polyurethane on a counter top to add a kitchen island. We hope to install an apron front DOMSJÖ sink (click here for an image of one) that should hopefully give us enough room to install a small dishwasher so we don’t have to move our water line. We want to keep the upper cabinets ceiling height and add pendant lighting above the soon-to-be island. We really like cork flooring but are leaning towards laying hardwood throughout.

 

The picture above is of the dining area. The picture was taken while we were trying to clean the house before move in day. This photo makes this area look pretty sad but what you don’t see is an backdoor that we plan to replace with a windowed door to let in more light. Just image: New floors, new light fixture, no cabinets, & natural light from the door. 🙂

We hope to start construction in the kitchen Summer 2014.

 

 

Our Bedroom

I can’t believe we have had our house for over three months now. We have had a fencer, a HVAC serviceman, two contractors, and two plumbers stop by with all but one working on our house. We have completed all required projects to satisfy our lender and am finally able to begin some exciting projects.

 

My first requirement of living in the house was to decorate our bedroom and make it as comfortable as possible. The room we picked isn’t the largest but seemed to be the most convenient.

 

WHAT WE DID:

 

FLOORING: We steam cleaned the laminate and used Rejuvenate Floor Refresher polish the dull sheen. We still plan to swap the floors for hardwood in the future but are fine with how they look for now.

 

PAINT: We used a basic flat ceiling paint in white (purchased at Menards) and Benjamin Moore’s Revere Pewter in flat for the walls. The interior of the closet remains untouched since I am brainstorming various closet layout kits that will result in us removing the shelf/rod and didn’t want to have to paint the area twice.

 

LIGHTING: The best improvement of the whole room: swapped the old, dated fan/light kit with an inexpensive (under $100.00 after store promo) Hunter Fremont 52’’ low profile fan. We purchased enough of the same model to redo all bedroom fans to match. To add bedside lighting we purchased two small Hunter swing arm sconces (model MM146SA) and burlap shades.

 

DECOR: Our only purchase for decor so far is new window treatments from blinds.com. We. Love. Them. We needed something that Chikki couldn’t tear up and could easily open/close since I have a constant urge to open windows at 7:00 a.m. The blinds are Bali DiamondCell Cellular Shades in White. We are thinking about putting these blinds in all upper level bedrooms.

 

VERDICT:

 

I like what we’ve done but there is still a lot of work to do. We need art on the walls, purchase new bedding, and decide on what to do about our closet. The door to the room does not have a door knob and the door itself is very dated and abused. The closet doors (we unhooked and currently placed in the lower level until we figure out if we keep or toss them) look bad and I’m not quite sure if a coat of paint will improve them enough.

As of this moment we are happy with how the room looks and can’t imagine doing more to it until our kitchen, bathrooms, livingroom, & utility/laundry rooms are complete.

Countdown to Closing

This is our mission: Close on this house next week and spend the next three years learning how to tear out cabinets, change light fixtures, install hardwood flooring, and make the house look overall awesome.

Some stats:

House: Foreclosed 5 bedroom, 2 bath split level with a 2 car detached garage along with another 1 car garage connected to the house.

Us: 1 man, 1 woman, 1 cat with a dream to be our own handyman (& woman)

Clearly there will be some frustrating moments in the months ahead. This house needs a lot of work. And did I mention we have no idea what we’re doing?