The little things

It's amazing how little things like light switches and outlets can make a big difference in a room. Earlier this week, all of the power outlets and switches throughout the house went from looking like this:


To this:


Something so simple has really made the house feel so much more complete! Plus, I don't worry about getting electrocuted when I reach for the switch in the dark anymore. :)

We also scored about 800 bucks in free work because the electrician wasn't able to order two-prong white face plates for the electrical outlets. So instead of backordering them, he switched all of the outlets over to three-prong (there were still some in the house that hadn't been converted). That work alone was going to cost around $800, and ended up not costing us a dime! So we got all updated three-prong outlets in matching white, and can say goodbye to those stupid adapter things forever. Amen!

Inspired, we finally decided to put an end to this half-installed light fixture that's been dangling from our bedroom ceiling for weeks.







Now I'm not a big fan of these boob-looking lights, but it's better than the outdated frosted glass fixture from the 40s that was in here when we bought the house. And being on a budget, these lights were the clear winners. I would much rather have something softer, maybe a small chandelier or something with capiz shells, but this will certainly do for now!

While we were on an installing roll, we also finally put up the same fixture in the upstairs hallway. We had been without a light on the stairs since we moved in, and Lucy does not enjoy going up or down in the dark one bit. That big heavy head of hers causes some serious downward momentum, which has caused her to trip and fall more than once.





Much better!

Lucy greatly appreciates the small change. And while we did drop a couple of screws along the way, putting the project on hold while I searched each step of the staircase with a flashlight, it was a relatively easy job and well worth it. :)

Watching grass grow

Work on the house has slowed down quite a bit since our house was afflicted with the plague. Okay, so it's just bronchitis. But it feels like the Black Death sometimes.

Anyway, the grass seed we planted a few weeks back over the spot where the shed was has finally sprouted. It's coming in pretty well!




It's been so hot and dry that we didn't think anything would grow at all. So I'm definitely pleasantly surprised.

Since we've all been feeling lousy around here, most of the big projects are at a bit of a standstill. There's a stack of tiles in the mudroom just waiting to finish off the floor, for example. We have managed to get a lot of yard work done, found perfect matching nightstands for the bedroom, and picked up some nice accessories to style the living and dining rooms. I'll share those pics soon. Things are coming together!

Also, Miss Lucy turned one year old. And yes, this happened:


She actually didn't hate wearing it! I swear.

For Lucy's big girl birthday present, we got her the biggest bone we could find. It's called a "mammoth bone", though I'm mostly sure that it didn't come from a Woolly Mammoth. I can't be positive, though.

Seriously, who gets bronchitis in July??

Long time no see! For the past two and a half weeks I've been miserably coughing, choking, hacking up mucus, and generally wishing I was dead. After finally breaking down and visiting the doctor I found out I have bronchitis. I'm still trying to shake it and it doesn't seem to be going anywhere quite yet. Anyway, while laying on my couch spitting yellow phlegm into a bucket I neglected to update this blog. I think I get a pass, no?

July was crazy hot. Like, most days in the high 80s/low 90s and really humid. So naturally work around the house slowed a bit. We did get to enjoy barbeques in the backyard and dining on the front porch. We got a new lock for the garage so we could store all the yard tools that have been clogging up the back patio. Lucy's been loving the backyard.



During the hottest days the porch stayed nice and cool, so we put the backyard patio table up there for a little while so we could enjoy the breeze and get some relief from the heat.




Deeeelish!

It hasn't been all fun, games, and phlegm around here though. As I showed you earlier, we primed over the hideous wood paneling in the mud room on a whim a couple of weeks ago. Branden has been itching to finish the room off, so we picked out a paint color and he got to work on it while I coughed and wheezed and cheered him on from the kitchen.



What would I do without him? :)

After paint was done, the next thing to tackle was the horrible linoleum floor. It was in rough shape and peeling up at the corners. We also knew we'd be trashing it, so we didn't mind getting paint and primer all over it.


After the 1,382,039th trip to Home Depot, we decided on some easy vinyl tiles. Since we weren't sure what condition the sub floor was in (though after we ripped up the linoleum the sub floor ended up looking fine), we decided to get tiles that adhere to each other--not the peel and stick tiles that adhere to the sub floor itself. The floating floor was a good choice, and the tiles were pretty easy to get together. Cutting them was the toughest part.



We're almost done tiling the floor--we came up just three tiles short!--and it has already made an enormous difference in this room! It used to be dark, dingy, and dirty. Now it's light and airy and adding usable square footage to our house. Once the floor is done and the trim is painted, I'll be sure to post a full reveal with before and after photos.

A plumber is coming in Monday to give us an estimate on what it will cost to redirect the existing washing machine hook-up to the mud room. The dryer hook-up is already in the mud room, but the washer is in the basement. Weird, I know. So if we can get a washer and dryer out here, it will be a lovely and usable laundry room! Let's hope it doesn't cost a bagillion dollars!

Before and after: dining room progress

Since I finished reupholstering all of the dining room chairs (after having to go back to Jo Ann's for more fabric... oops), I figured it would be a good time to show the progress in the second most complete room in the house: the dining room.

Lest we forget what we were dealing with, here's the dining room when we bought the house, complete with weird ceiling panels and peeling wallpaper:


And during renovations:

(I know my sis won't be psyched about having this picture up! Sorryyy!)

It was a hot mess, for sure. So without further ado, here is the dining room currently:




Amazing! While there's obviously still a lot to do here, I kind of can't believe how far this room (and the house in general) has come. Beautiful new ceilings, walls, crown molding, paint... it's an entirely new house.

We bought some stain for the solid oak table (which Branden is incredibly attached to), so once it's darkened up a little bit it will blend with the room a lot better. Though I thought I hated them before they were recovered, the chairs are working for me now. The ornate scroll designs on the chairs are actually kind of a nice juxtaposition to the hard angles of the Shaker style table. I'm liking it for now.

Anyway, the chandelier needs to move over a bit and we need some kind of buffet table for the corner, but we're in no rush. For now I just can't believe that it ever turned into a real and beautiful room!

You can learn a lot of things from the flowers...

One of the exciting (and kinda dorky) things that I've really loved so far is discovering what flowers and plants are springing up throughout the backyard. Like the a rogue rhubarb plant that sprouted up in the side yard, for instance. Or the big black-eyed susans along the side of the house. I can't wait to see what else comes to life as the summer moves on to fall.

I decided to take a walk around the yard and photograph my favorite current blooms. Who knows how long they'll be here!







Lucy didn't know what I was doing out there, but she knew she didn't like it.



As a wonderful housewarming gift, Branden's grandmother got us huge hanging flower baskets for all around the front porch. I love them!




They've added such charm to the front of the house. I feel a lot of pressure to keep them alive, and so far this heat wave isn't doing me any favors. I can't wait to get some nice furniture to put out on the porch and really make it inviting. Not that the ladder isn't doing awesome things for the aesthetic of the place, of course. :)

Before and after: chair re-do

While I love love love the color of the dining room, I haaaate hate hate the fabric on our hand-me-down dining chairs. They've been recovered many times, and the last time was by my sister on a very limited budget. The fabric was pretty hideous (sorry Laura!).

So I decided to finally just go pick out fabric and reupholster them, since I've hated them for so long. Branden and I took a trip to Jo-Ann Fabrics and picked out fabric for the chairs as well as for our bedroom curtains. (I've never made curtains before, so stay tuned for how those turn out! Eep!) We ended up picking out the same pattern for both, just in different colors. We didn't even realize it at first. I guess you like what you like!

Here's the chair before:


And here's how they look with some fresh new fabric:


It's such an easy and inexpensive way to give the room a completely different feel. The light green pattern works really well with the wall color, the drapes, and the area rug under the table. The dining room is still in a bit of disarray, so once that's in better shape I'll post a picture of the whole shabang. Until then, you'll have to deal with just this little sneak peek makeover!

Busy, busy bees!

Things have been so busy since we moved in at the beginning of the month! Every day has been devoted to some project around the house, and we still have tons and tons more to do and plenty of boxes to unpack.

One of the biggest projects has been getting the backyard ready to be fenced in and safe for Lucy to roam and eat sticks. Since dismantling the shed that once stood in the back, we've had to rake up endless amounts of debris (nails, glass shards, wood planks, etc.) and build a retaining wall to prevent the neighbor's chain link fence from toppling in a landslide.

Here's the site where the shed used to be, with the retaining wall in place:


You can really see how having it gone has opened the whole place up considerably. Here's a before and after:



We're getting a delivery of 10 yards of top soil on Monday, which we'll spread over the sand. Then we'll be able to lay some grass seed and get some green growing!

Inside, the living room is definitely the furthest along of all of the rooms. We've still got some things to work out and change, but it's the one room in the house that feels almost complete.



We need to get a much smaller chair for the computer and some new throw pillows for the couch to coordinate with the curtains. I'm actually happier with the ceiling lights than I thought I'd be (and they really don't look like boobs as much after they're installed...) I'm in love with the wall color, which changes during the day from a beige to putty to a deep mocha, depending on the light. Since the room is so big (it's something like 20x13) the rich color works beautifully and doesn't make it seem small, which was one of my fears. Lucy loves having all the extra room, and one of her favorite spots to stretch out and sleep is between the tv and the coffee table.

Yesterday, on a whim, Branden started priming the mudroom. This room had dark brown paneling on the walls and needed to be brightened up.

Here's the mudroom before we started painting:


And here's the mudroom currently, with most of the room primed:

Doesn't look great, but it's already an improvement!

There's still tons more to do. And since moving in, we've somehow lost electricity in all of the upstairs bedrooms aaand I put a hole in one of the windows while hanging blinds. Don't ask me how that happened. We'll hopefully be able to get an electrician in this week to figure out what in the world is going on upstairs, and with luck it won't require any major rewiring. The joys of being a homeowner!