Well we are all moved in thanks to tons of help from our faithful friends and family. THANKS GUYS! I will be without internet for a few days but I will be posting our progress asap so stay tuned.
A beautiful banquette to inspire me (and perhaps you) to get the project going so I can sit pretty too!
Via (click above)
The Entry Before…
The Entry in Progress (A Deep Taupy Gray wall color). At this point I was still working on the trim, which is now an Ultra High Gloss white. Pretty! As you can see the current flooring totally clashes with the walls but that will be gone soon.
I know what you may be thinking, “She has lost her mind!” The walls are dark but there are plans in the works for plenty of lighting to create a moody look. Lots of artwork and pictures will be added to the walls and in the end it will look amazing. I had my doubts for a second too but I have to follow my own advise and not FREAK OUT until the whole room comes together. I feel pretty good that I won’t be FREAKING then.
The hallway before…
and the hallway in progress. See the carpet is gone and the walls painted a Deep Taupy Gray. The banister is also painted white and no longer an ugly oak color. See the pretty cobalt blue and white office peeking out. I couldn’t get a good picture of it that day because the sun what shining directly in the windows. I’ll get pics later.
The living room before…
And the living room after. Again the sun was my enemy that day while trying to take pictures of the wall colors. The same Deep Taupy Gray is upstairs as well and the trim is Ultra High Gloss white. Carpet is gone and waiting on the wood floors to be put in. Lots of painters tape on that floor!
Didn’t have before pictures of the upstairs for some reason. Here is the Tiffany Blue hallway during the day, while peeking into the bright and fun Apricot bedroom.
The Master bedroom is now a soft Gray/Blue. Soothing and relaxing the way a bedroom should be!
And finally the floors!! The thing that will bring all this hard work together. They are a wide plank “click” walnut floor. Sam’s Club was our friend for this project. They had the best pricing by far!
We are working on the floors now and will have pictures to share in a couple of weeks.
The Kitchen Reno has begun…
BEFORE
Progress:
We are moving the Fridge to this wall and opening up the other side to fit banquette seating around a pedestal table. This will create a cozy eat-in kitchen from a kitchen with just a little bit of wasted space from poor space planning. We will be adding Ikea shelving around the banquette nook to replace some lost storage.
Here is just a glimpse of my paint colors. I wanted to take a picture of all the colors together so you can see the flow of color and the fun combo. No lighting in the bedrooms yet so ignore the spotlights.
The Tiffany Blue Hallway
Bedroom #1 Taupy Grey
Bedroom #2: Apricot
My Inspiration
Finally My new best friend…
Shurline painting tool. This puppy cuts your painting time in half. I still tape ceilings and trim, however this painting pad hooks on the end of your pole and allows you to trim out your ceiling without stepping foot on a ladder and all it takes is one long swipe. Run this pad down the corners of your room to paint the corners, and finally no more bending over to trim out around the floor. Just had to share this with you in case you have some painting projects coming up.
Till next time.
Picked the wall colors and painting is in progress. My inspiration was this beautiful picture via Sarah Klassen/Haute Design. The Tiffany Blue, Taupy Grey, and Coral Pink flow beautifully together. Pictures soon of my interpretation of this color scheme.
The ugly truth is that Nate and I have a lot of work to do. The promising future is that the transformation will be exciting to watch. Stretching my imagination a little is a nice and long missed exercise. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining because I know how blessed Nate and I are to have a home at all. All the more reason to be frugal and create a lovely place to live on a tight budget. So stay tuned for the DIY experience, for money saving design ideas, and lots of inspiration in between.
THE ENTRY FOYER
THE OFFICE
THE LIVING ROOM
THE KITCHEN
The first DIY project, pulling up the carpet. Looks better already! I had to rush to take these pictures before progress went to far to capture the “Before”. So you will have to forgive my grainy cell phone pictures. I forgot my camera.
BEDROOM #1
BEDROOM #2
MASTER BEDROOM
AND THE MANY UGLY BATHROOMS
Well there it is folks. Now I gotta go. I have painting to do!
We are finally closing on the house on Monday, then projects I have dreamed about doing for a few years now will finally begin. I have a lot of work ahead of me so I thought I would take one last moment to post another “reminder” blog with inspirational pictures I have been hoarding in my archive. Have a great weekend, and come back next week to watch the progress begin on my new home renovation!
Lovin the white drapes!
The pops of color in the zebra prints are fabulous!
I am planning on making banquette seating in the kitchen. Love this one.
A unique vanity and vessel sink.
I love this rustic sign.
Fabulous wallpaper for the bath.
I absolutely love this wire basket as a shelf. Planning on putting something like this in my kitchen and bathrooms.
So, I have been planning all my many projects for our new house and one thing I am still debating is cabinet color. I am painting the cabinets no doubt but I am trying to decide between painting them all white OR painting them all gray OR painting the top cabinets white and the bottom cabinet gray. So many choices, all good ideas, I just can’t decide. Any thoughts?
Just found a really fun site called Olioboard where you can create design plans with any of your favorite items online. You can choose wall colors, flooring, furniture, lighting, etc… I may be behind a little on this but never the less I had a blast creating my living room plans for my new house. Can wait to implement the plans. Of course this will look a lot more amazing in person and there will be some slightly more creative additions but this is a good way for me to see the ideas coming together. Visit Olioboard to start your own design plans and have a blast with all the options!
So we found a house and I am so excited to finally have a place of my own. I have so many projects built up in me that I can finally make happen. Of course the first thing that enters your head when decorating your new home is wall colors. So I am scouring the blogs looking for some fabulous paint colors. Here is my scrapbook so far.
So many options! How does one even begin to decide what colors to use? Well do what I do and comprise a scrapbook of rooms that appeal to you. This will help you remember the colors you like and what elements in the rooms appeal to you when you start decorating your new home. Hope you find some wall colors you like as well as other design elements that these fabulous rooms display. I can’t wait to start blogging about my own home and sharing with you more and more of my design secrets. Stay tuned!
Since the last round of house hunting didn’t pan out, I haven’t had a ton of those “designer wheels can’t stop turning” moments. Being in a rental, where you can only change so much kinda puts the “kibosh” on that. But you know as soon as the house hunting talk is back on my mind has been reeling with ideas of designs plans. So time for another “house hunting scrapbook” post. I have to post my most inspiring images now, so in a few months I can remember those moments of inspiration. So for the sake of my terrible memory, be inspired by these fabulous design pics.
These are my IKEA curtains! One of the greatest things I ever bought at IKEA and for some strange reason I only bought one pair. They discontinued these of course. Why?????? I have hunted for these curtains on Ebay, Craigslist, you name it… They are so fabulous and the colors so soft. So if any one out there wants to get rid of theirs let me know. But why would you? These guys have popped up in magazines, in TLC’s “What Not to Wear” studio, and at least I have one pair. This image above via Desire to Inspire is such a inspiration as to how to decorate with something I already have.
These floors are so chic! They are a wood and tile combo. A first glance, I thought to myself, “I can paint the floors to look like that!” Then I hesitated, “That would be too risky for resale.” Ugh… I get so tired of hearing/thinking that. I immediately decided that this kind of bold, creative designing is what really makes a room! So I am reminding myself that I will not be afraid to take risks for the sake of fabulous design. You may see some pics in the future of a floor in my home looking very similar to this image via Things That Inspire.
I love the grouping of mirrors on the wall in this room! Reminder to mix it up when it comes to wall art. Symmetry is for the birds! via Dress, Design, and Decor
I can’t remember where I found this image (SORRY!), but I had to post it! The color palette is something I have desired to achieve for years! I am almost there I think. Finally letting go of some items that are just too colorful for the sake of a soothing, spa-like color palette that I can relax in. Reminds me of a chic Paris apartment on a breezy summer day. I dream!
I love this wall color! via CoteDeTexas
I love this bed cover! I am pretty sure I can make this. Not a huge fan of the mantel headboard, I want a tufted headboard instead. I love the embroidered linens though! via Velvet and Linen
That’s all I’ve got for now. Until next time!
Thats right folks, those are paint chips you see taped to those cabinets. Just a little sneak peak of what’s to come.
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