Working on another room

Well, I know we said we were going to take a break from remodeling...BUT... we somehow found ourselves starting again, :-) You see, I got a recumbent exercise bike for Christmas and the kids got a Wii. So, we have a bonus room and another room off of that called the "red room". It was a very deep red...and,... notice I said "was".... We had to rearrange things so that we could create a room for all the exercise equipment. This isn't my ideal use of the two spaces, but we are going to have the kids in the main bonus room with their video games etc and the small room will be where we exercise. It's just gotta be that way so we can keep any future little ones away from the treadmill etc. It used to be that they would use the big room for playing and they would have the "red" room that had a sofa in it for gaming.

So, Dh is painting that room right now with high hide primer. But, I forgot to take a before picture!! So, sorry... we decided pretty quick to paint it before everything got back in there. Besides that my camera is old (my dad's old camera) and it is not picking up colors properly. I am seriously considering purchasing a new digital camera soon...I can't stand that it does that! I'm already color challenged, I don't need my camera to be too! We had a Canon Powershot, and it was great ....but it must've gotten dropped too many times! I'm going to have to do some research...any suggestions?

Not much going on....

I've been posting to my other blog a bit more, as we are taking a break from the remodeling through the new year. So, for those of you that wonder where I am, you can check there... :-) I'm sure I'll be back here with some remodeling details in a few weeks.

New Computer is somewhat connected....

Well, it's here and I'm typing on it, but I guess I'm just going to have to get used to it. It's a lap top which is great, but everything is not hooked up as it should be or back to normal. I'm supposed to have a docking station to hook into so that I can use the keyboard and our regular monitor. For some reason that isn't working. Then I have no idea but my cable internet service is not working either....again no idea why. I have to call t hem. Finally, I really wanted to be able to print from anywhere in my house to my printer, but we need a special USB connector for that as my printer is not wireless compatible or something. Then too my outlook is not up and running, and so my email isn't working like it should. I guess it will all come together eventually....give it a few more days.

On the house front, nothing much new is going on. We are still in the process of decorating for Christmas. I was away visiting my sister for 4 days, so we've been putting things up slowly but surely since our return. The trees are up....we have 3. Two artificial that cost me $10 together, and one real one in the living room. The lights around our house have been up since the weekend after Thanksgiving. They look pretty. I really should take a picture of both of them and our real tree. We have one scrawny artificial type tree in the kids room, and we still need to decorate it with all the ornaments that are sentimental to me. Some the kids made, and some I made, when I was a kid.

No new projects until the New Year. But I will be baking lots and lots of Christmas cookies in the coming days to send off to dh's work and to give to various neighbors and church folks. I'll see how my computer is working in the next few days and try to post pictures soon!

My computer....RIP

Yep, my computer died this past week. I'm currently sans cpu tower, and am borrowing my husband's laptop in the evenings. Not having a computer, I've noticed two things.... One, how much I miss my own system, keyboard etc. Not having a computer during the day is a bummer. Just doing simple things like checking the weather, or email, or Christmas shopping, I'm unable to do...and I miss that! The second thing is I'm amazed by how much work I can get accomplished around this house, when I don't have that computer around! :-)

Thanksgiving went great! It really was a wonderful time, and the preparations came together well in the end. I will say that my sister's first words when she saw the bathroom cabinets were "they're not too light". I had emailed her photos of them, and she said it is definitely my camera that is causing the color to be off. So I was glad to hear that! lol! Right now are taking we are break from the renovation scene, since we had to pay for a new computer. But I have small goals for January.

One thing that I am not great at, is finishing touches. I like to see the big picture, and plan and design, but the little details (curtains, lamps, wall pictures etc) well I don't enjoy all of that. So, lots of times that never gets done. I still don't have a lamp for my kids bookcase, even though it's been several months since we completed their room. Plus they have a hug wall (two actually) that are blank. So my goal for January is to finish off several of the rooms we remodeled. The boys bedroom, as well as the bathroom, and the living room. We have hung a blanket up on our atrium door windows for the last year and a 1/2 in the living room for privacy. I'm definitely going to finish that off! I have the fabric for curtain panels....so I have to get it done! (Did I mention that I don't sew!) I'll be getting ready to teach myself soon....

A repairman mentioned how much he liked our house today. And it really gave me pause to think. You know... so do I. I love this house, and no matter how much certain things bother me about it.... we have been blessed with this house. I am so very thankful for it, and as I walked around in it today, I felt quite comfortable, almost cozy, in this space that has become our home.

Preparing for Company....

Before I post about our prepping for company, I have to just comment on my last post about our cabinets. I took pictures, but this is the deal... I like them in person, but in the pictures I don't. Isn't that weird? My sister is coming into town next week, so I will ask her what she thinks. I emailed her a photo that I took, and I explained to her that they really didn't look that white to the naked eye. She said it might be the camera. Hmmmm....I'm not sure. So, the jury is still out about the bathroom. But it's as done as it can be for now, since company is coming in two days.

Now onto the company....I have been cleaning up a storm. The entire upstairs is ready for guests....all except the steam cleaning of the carpets. Downstairs we just have to mop and steam clean as well....and then we are close to done. Dh painted the guest bedroom this evening a very neutral color. He actually mixed two colors together that we had left. I loved the color surprisingly! It's going to look beautiful with the simple blankets I have and the antique steamer trunk and the rocking chair. I think I'm going to want to stay in that room, it's so soothing. :-) I've got to remember the two paint colors in case we want to use that color again. So 3 of 22 paint cans are now empty in the garage. (Primer, and the two mixed colors). yeah! A few are old colors from the previous owners. As we repaint each room, I am going to get rid of those too.

I would post pictures of the bathroom, but I'm not ready to do so yet, until it's all complete. Tomorrow I'll pull the guest room together and post before and after photos of the room. I'm off to clean a bit more and wrap a few presents for my son's birthday tomorrow. What a busy week it's been!!

Cabinets are finished!

The cabinets are finished and I absolutely love them. Such a good thing! The creamy color paint has definitely softened the look, and the hardware looks quite good. I even like the mirror painted a creamy color, although I am still debating on antiquing it. I won't decide that until after the flooring goes in. All in all, I'm very pleased!

I also cleaned out the guest bedroom somewhat and moved one piece of furniture. Goodness what a difference that made! I have an old antique trunk, with the wood slats on the sides. It's really cool looking, and I had it at the end of the guest bed. I moved it next to an antique mission rocker and it changed the whole feel of the room. Amazing what moving one simple piece of furniture will do..... it instantly opened up the room, and made it feel much larger. Plus moving the trunk, made that furniture item a cool focal point in the room. So, dh will prime the bbright green walls tomorrow evening, and a nice neutral color will go on the walls. Yeah!

I have done a thorough cleaning on two rooms so far, and have 2 more to do upstairs tomorrow. Ceiling fans, and plantation blinds are being cleaned of lots of dust. I already changed the air filter, so hopefully everyone will be breathing better in the house soon! :-) I used to kid about dust being a protectant for my furniture.... but after today....ewww... I'm setting up a weekly dusting schedule!

Finally, tonight I tried out a meatball recipe. Just regular old homemade meatballs that you can add to spaghetti. They were delicious, so I'll be making them for when my family comes into town. As Rachel Ray would say... "Yummo"! We had the meatballs this evening on sub rolls...and the rolls weren't so good, (kind of dry). So I told the boys and dh that next time I will try to make my own sub rolls in my new (to me) breadmaker. They have got to be better than what we had from the grocery store! (And no I have not used my breadmaker as of yet..... but maybe after Thanksgiving!)

I'll try to update with some cabinet pictures soon, as well as before shots of our bright green guest room ......

I can't even think of a title to this post....I'm just updating to say we are holding off on the flooring until after Christmas. We could not find anything we loved at Home Depot or Lowes, and we aren't willing to settle. So I was talking to dh this evening that perhaps after Christmas we could find what we want at a certain flooring company....and then get hardwood put it in our homeschool room. Our dining room and foyer have a beautiful wide plank cherry hardwood floor, and the homeschool room is directly across from it. The carpet in there has seen better days, and is stained in several areas. I eventually would like to put hardwood in the entire downstairs, kitchen and all. But we can't afford it now, and if I want to remodel the kitchen, (which I desperately do one day!), then laying hardwood now would be a waste of money. So, dh actually agreed to look into getting hardwood in that room and a vinyl in the bathroom. But all after Christmas. Yeah!

Onto those cabinets, well they didn't get painted today. But I did purchase all the hardware for them, and the clear matte acrylic that goes on top as a protectant. Once the cabinets are finally back up there, I'm going to focus completely on preparing for company next week. There is just too much to do, and not a lot of time left to do it! Add one child's birthday into the mix this weekend...and my schedule and my hands are full! Ack! I'll let you know how it all turns out....

Still working on the bathroom....

It's hard to believe it's been 10 days since I posted anything. I'm almost over the cold, but it's going around our family again. I gave it to one of my children, so I'm really hoping it doesn't get passed to the next and on to us again. I need to stay healthy for Thanksgiving!

As for the bathroom renovations. Well..... they are still going, and I'm as picky as ever. I did decide that the bathroom vanity will stay creamy white. I like the color the best, and I find it very soothing with the countertop and new sink fixtures. Very soothing. I put the final coat of paint on tomorrow, and then we seal it with clear matte acrylic spray. They should be back on the cabinet with the new cabinet fixtures on Monday evening. Yeah!

The mirror... well, I changed the black detailing to a mahogany color, and that has softened the look. I also painted it a creamy white. I am not sure yet if I will antique it or not. I'm waiting until all the rest of the pieces fall into place.

Flooring. What? Flooring? I was just talking out loud about the flooring, and how it needs to be warmed up in the room. Dh said to go get some peel and stick vinyl tiles to put in the bathroom. So, I picked what I liked and brought them home. It's a bit darker and I felt like it grounded the whole room so much better.... however the peel and stick is just not gonna do it for me. I know he says it's easier for him to lay, but in my research this evening, I've found that it is not the best thing to lay in bathrooms because of the moisture. Plus this just looks somewhat cheap without any grout lines or anything. I'm really not loving it, so it will go back to Home depot and I'll look to order a sheet of the linoleum that I want. It won't get done in time for Thanksgiving, but that's okay.... it can wait until after. Luckily what we have is in good shape, so people can use the bathroom. I guess this gives him time to prime and paint the guest room. Then I'll be thinking of lot's of warm, cozy accesories to add to the rooms. All from my own closets....(I hope!)

Not much going on here...

Sad to say, not muchis going on here. Both dh and I came down with big old colds...that we caught from the kids. Actually, the kids had it first, and then I got it about a week later, and now I gave it to dh. I've had it for several days, but dh will probably be over it quicker than me. He always seems to kick those colds faster than me! Anyway, I've gone through a whole box of Puffs tissues, and while they are thr ones with lotion in them, my poor nose is as red as Rudolph. :( Hopefully, I'll feel better in a few days.

I do plan on finishing the mirror this weekend, and hopefully if dh is better, we can finish the bathroom. We have to at least try to paint one more room before Thanksgiving. (Guest room, bright lime green...not a very soothing color for our guests to stay in!). Hopefully, we'll be done with the bathroom, and then onto the guest room. Whatever neutral color we have (and we have a lot!) will go on that wall. You know...I think I need to count paint cans we havein the garage..... seriously. I'll update this weekend!

My funny mom....

Let me preface this post with "I love my Mom"! She can be funny, sensitive, opinionated, and tough as nails. She follows my blog and I aways get an honest opinion of what she thinks.... so I was on the phone with her this evening lamenting of my decorating woes, and asking her if she would go look at my pictures and tell me her opinion.

So this is how the conversation went....

Me: So what do you think of the mirror?
Mom: Well, I like the blue on the mirror!.....
Me: Mom.... that's the painter's tape.
Mom: Oh. (chuckle)Well I think it brings out the blue in the shower curtain.
Me: Mom, the blue painter's tape is not staying.
Mom: Well, you asked me my opinion and I gave it to you...I like the blue and on the counter too.

She was chuckling with me when she realized it was painter's tape.... lol!

Anyway, the mirror is painted again. It is on the first stage of 2 more stages that need to happen. I painted it creamy white and will antique it with a chocolate glaze. It will give it an aged look and I know it will dull the white and make the whole thing less bright. Dh said he liked it, but he said he's liked everything so far. LOL! But he did say, of the three colors the mirror has been, this one is the best...

I am waiting for a decision about the cabinet base, until the mirror is done. I'm thinking it needs to go back to creamy. Hopefully the mirror will be done tomorrow, and I'll be able to finish the entire bathroom this weekend. That is my goal. On an positive note, I did find all the cabinet hardware for the doors and drawers at Lowes. It's a great match to all the other fixtures.

Time to finish my last coat of paint and call it a night!

Cabinet Colors....

Oh the saga continues. Really....I think I have some issues. lol! I mentioned to dh that there is a program called photoshop, where you can take a picture of the room, and then change things and paint colors etc to see how it would look, before you actually begin to remodel. I said, it may actually save us some money. He said that wouldn't be a bad idea.....

This is the deal. In my last post I mentioned that I couldn't wait to see what the cabinets would look like painted a creamy white color. So this weekend, that's what I did, I painted all the cabinets and the base as well. I really liked them! But my biggest concern was that, with the mirror and this other rack I have, everything would be too light, and a bit too feminine. Several people made the suggestion to paint the cabinets red, to bring out the red in the shower curtain. I really liked that idea, but I just couldn't picture it, and me liking it, for long. I don't know.... probably brings back images of my cutesy country phase 10 years ago. I know the red wouldn't be cutesy country, but I can't seem to get past that in my mind.

Anyway, I also want the bathroom to be soothing. So.... here is what I did now. (I should have taken pictures of the creamy cabinets, as you may not believe me on this one). In my mind I have an image of what I am thinking about. My friend Michelle will know what I am talking about, as she does this also. But finding what I am looking for is another matter all together. So, in my mind is a paint color for the cabinets. It's a very muted khaki with a hint of green in it. Very muted. Unfortunately, I bought a sample one that is a darker color. It's actually called desert storm....so I guess it's like army khaki. (I know, you may be saying about now...."What is she thinking!?!?") Heaven only knows.... I can just sort of picture in my mind what I was thinking.... but it isn't coming out that way. I painted only 2 cabinet drawers, and I'll check them out tomorrow in the light. I think it's a little too dark.

So.... As I'm painting them, dh is watching TV. He loves the color and says it's very soothing. This is not a word dh uses very often, so I'm encouraged by it. Maybe I selected a pretty good color. The test will be when I put them next to that counter top. So, when the paint is dry, dh takes the cabinet drawer upstairs to put back in place. Afraid to look myself, I see him standing in the doorway just looking at the color. "Is it bad?", I ask. "No, the color is great!", dh responds enthusiastically. I step around and check it out. "I don't like it.", were the words out of my mouth. To which dh replied, "Get the program, no matter what the cost, get the program". lol! I busted out laughing. When he headed to bed, you could hear him muttering slowly under his breath, "Get the program, get the program", with a big grin on his face. LOL! Funny man.

So, I think I'm next going to work on the mirror. Let's see how many times I can paint that! :-)

Dh and I decided that we will be painting the cabinets a creamy color to see how it looks.... we may also paint and antique the mirror as well....but we started with the cabinets. I was not going to even attempt this until Monday, but curiosity got the better of me, and so I did. The cabinets now have the first coat of creamy white on them. I'm going to finish them tomorrow morning. Then we wait and see what we think.....

I'd say we'd have it all done by Sunday, but we have the craziest, busiest weekend ahead of us. And very little of it involves working on the house. We attended a birthday party this evening, then football and a sea or orange and white, for a very rowdy conference game on Saturday night. Finally, church and friends over all day Sunday. Whew! I hope I'm up for it!

Remodeling the bathroom will have to wait until Monday....and so will our blog.....

Have a great weekend!

Picture Update.....

Okay, I'm going to post some pictures of my current disaster now. I guess I'll first post the items I like, and then go on to the stuff I messed up.

These are the light fixtures. I love the brushed nickel and the white globes. I also love the shape of the metal. I'm happy with that. (you can just see in this picture the top of the mirror frame, and how the bronze in no way matches the satin nickel.)

This the the satin nickel faucet from SE Salvage. It does have a hint of yellow undertones, that is for sure.... but the mirror behind it is bronze and so a lot of that is reflected in the metal. It does not look this brassy in real life. I figured they are far enough away from the light fixtures that, while not an exact match, are close enough.

Here is a shot of the three of them and the shower curtain. The bronze does however warm up the space and brings out the colors of the shower curtain nicely. But you can also see the white cabinets and they are too white in my opinion.

Finally a photo of the mirror re-done in a silver finish. Please remember that I didn't put the antiquing glaze on this to tone it down, so it does look very silvery..... If you notice this picture vs the one above.... the colors in the shower curtain, are just blah.... (this photo). I think the silver doesn't go with anything in the room.... It isn't the direction I wanted to go, but somehow I found myself there.

Basically, my opinion as I look at the room, is that it needs warmth...in natural wood tones. I know I said, light and airy, but it isn't yurning out so well.... :-) So, those are the photos so far. I was talking to dh this evening...and he was so surprised that I didn't like the bathroom. He isn't upset, actually he recognized that I'm more upset by my mistake than he was. He is totally willing to re-do the bathroom cabinets. That means stripping them, and then staining them a mahogany color. I think the plan is to attempt a mahogany faux finish on the mirror. I think that will help and with the mahogany base, I can use brushed nickel hardware.

I had one other idea as I look at these pictures, to possibly salvage all the work. I suppose I could paint the cabinets more of a cream color and paint the mirror the same. It's a bit more feminine than I would like, but it is cottage airy. The thought I have as I look at this, is the shower curtain is cottage like and the mirror is not. But how do you marry the two?

If anyone has any other thoughts...or links on faux finishing to look like mahogany, please pass them along. I did find a link recently on houseblogs on how to strip paint. It was a great little tutorial that someone showed on stripping an old door using a heat gun. So, I'm going to try to find that one in the multitude of blogs.

I guess I feel better. On one blog I read recently, someone talked about using photoshop to see how your room would look before you do anything. That's obviously a tool I need. Even now to see how it would look with dark cabinets and mirror vs light. I'm so thankful for my dh. No matter what happens in my design faux pas.... he is totally willing to go back and get it the way I want it. Why I always have to learn lessons the hard way, I'll never know.....

Frustrated.....!!!

Good grief, I am so frustrated today! It is just not coming together....and I know I haven't posted a picture yet, but it looks awful. Here is the deal. Yes, the faucets and light fixtures are up, and they look quite good. Yes, I have mentioned that before. I do like the satin nickel finish. I think the oil rubbed bronze would look better, but I am not willing to change out everything all over the house. I'm just not really willing to do that, or put out that expense. We have a lot of light fixtures that are the brushed nickel, and I just don't want to swap it all out. Having said that here are the problems I have.... and I may get brave enough to post a picture.

1. The cabinets are too white. The vanity top is some bisque color and it would be set off the best with oil rubbed bronze. But as I mentioned before I'm not willing to do that across the whole house. Sooo.... the problem is that the cabinets seem to be just suspended in air. Nothing is grounding anything or complementing the warmth of the shower curtain. What exactly does that mean for me? Well it could mean that I have to stain the cabinets mahogony, or try to faux replicate that with paint. I'm not too thrilled with doing that, based on my reason #2 below.

2. I applied my faux finish to the mirror last evening. I knew it was too shiny and knew I would need to antique it with a black antiquing glaze. But even so, dh took it up to the bathroom, so I could get an idea of how much to do. It looks awful! Really, I do mean awful! (Dh thought it looked great, bless his heart.) It is such a cool color ( as in not warm), that once again, it look completely out of place in the bathroom. It's like the only thing with warm tones in there is the shower curtain. I have no idea what I was thinking....
Editing to add: I just pulled photos of the mirror off my camera so I could look at it on the larger computer monitor. It really is not a good paint job. At all.....

So, I have a few options: One will definitely be painting the mirror to a different color. If nothing else is done that will be done! I think it would have been easy to change or remodel a bathroom if I could just pick a vanity, and pick a vanity top, change the shower, and re-do the floor etc. Pick exactly what I need, cost not really being an issue. But this is what we try to do, mainly based on necessity.... we remodel on a shoestring budget. We will re-use pieces of furniture, or cabinets or whatever, but trying to make it look good can be really frustrating. (Which is where I am now). So, I have no idea what I'm going to do. This is when I wish I had a friend who could come over and tell me.... oh you definitely need to go this way with it...or that way.... sigh sigh sigh. I am so feeling the time crunch on this one.....

Another Progress report....

Tonight, I continued painting some of the cabinet drawers and doors. Then dh put them back onto the vanity base to see how I would like it. The faucets look really great...and they make our tired old 1980 something vanity top look new again. It shines up really well! The light fixtures fit the space well. So, I had dh also rest the mirror on top of the vanity top against the wall. UGH. It's throwing me off completely. It's almost a oil rubbed bronze finish... but not that dark. So, the one way I was considering taking the bathroom, the mirror is reminding me of that design idea. I have satin nickel and oil rubbed bronze together...and it's throwing off the cabinets base completely. I'm sooo not liking the white. I think it's the cabinet doors, they just look old and 80's and the paint isn't helping because of the shape of the doors. (Kind of a cathedral panel). Maybe it's the white paint, being too white.... but I think I need a little rich color in there....

Next step to pull the room together, is to get the paint tomorrow and begin painting the huge mirror frame. I'm planning on getting a silver base, with a pewter glaze and some black glaze to give it an aged look. (But not too aged). I'm just going to wing it and see what happens..... but I have to get started on it ASAP, as I can't tell what direction to go with the cabinet base until I figure that out. Oh.... and that base, I am so tempted to strip all the paint I just did and stain it. Yikes! Sssshhhh..... Don't tell dh.... I don't think he'll like it very much! And to be truthful, neither will I! Who knew re-doing a bathroom would be so difficult!

Progress Update...

Well, the light fixtures are up and I like them a lot.... They aren't pottery barn, as far as price goes, but they are updated and they didn't cost us an arm and a leg. We did buy the faucets at SE Salvage. They were 1/2 the price of the faucets elsewhere....so we couldn't justify spending more. So, dh is installing those as I type. We found a mirror as well at Southeastern Salvage. It is 76" long by 36" wide. A huge mirror! Unfortunately it is not in the right finish that I need, so I will be getting some paint and glaze out to begin to make it look different.

The cabinets.... um... yes, the cabinets.... hmmmm. Well, I haven't exactly gotten to those yet. Sigh. Soon I hope. I think I did realize that the white color is too white on the cabinets, now that I have everything else going on in there. So, I'm going to hold off a little bit more and see what I think. :-)

I'll try to post a picture of the mirror sitting on top of the vanity, leaning against the wall. Just so you get a picture of the finish it is, and how it just doesn't work with brushed nickel. But one thing dh and I noticed immediately is that it opened up the whole space... making it feel so much bigger. That bathroom is narrow, so the mirror did the trick.

Okay, back to work, cleaning the kitchen......um I mean painting the cabinets....

Weekend Plans...

It's hard to believe the weekend is here already! Seems like I was just posting last weekend's house plans to my blog.... or even the weekend before. Time moves so quickly...

The men in my family went camping last evening, so I am without a car. Dh's car broke down on Thursday evening and is in the shop. We are not sure when it will be back to us, so I will most likely be without a vehicle for part of next week.... or I'll be getting up at O' dark thirty, to take him into work. UGH! Anyway, enough about car troubles.... when the gentlemen return today, we will be heading to Southeastern Salvage to get a mirror. I found a mirror that I like, it's certainly large enough to fit the space and is decorative. However, the finish is not quite what I was looking for. I could search out what I want, but I'll have to pay dearly for it, as most large mirrors are really expensive. I found this one for $89. When you see the size you will be amazed. So, now I have to work on painting the frame of the mirror to look more like a satin nickel finish. I found some silver metallic glaze at Lowe's and some pewter as well for the darker spots on the mirror. Its going to a difficult process, as I have never done something like this before, and I can't find the instructions I need online. I've antiqued our furniture before and gave it a new life....but this is totally different! I'll have to see the mirror up on the wall first. Maybe I'll paint it a mahogany color. I have decided to go with the brushed nickel fixtures, as I agree with Michelle, that they will have more longevity.

I found a brushed nickel faucet at Southeastern Salvage, but it had yellow undertones, and no matter how I looked at it, or in what light....it still showed. So, I'll also be hitting Lowes, Home depot, and a lighting store to find the faucets, and to look for some lighting. Who knows though the price was the best at SE Salvage....so I may just get the faucets (yellow tinted and all), if I can't afford anything else.

The cabinets are still not finished! Yikes! That's my job and I am dropping the ball! This weekend, I really plan on finishing them.... .....really, I do....... :-) Dh will be changing out the baseboard in the bathroom, to match the boys bedroom. (The wide stuff) He still needs to fix the window trim, but I can live with that for awhile. We just really want to make that bathroom usable once again......

That's the plan for the weekend. It's going to be a busy one again!

Bathroom in Progress.

Here are some photos of the remodeling progress so far:

This is the paint color , next to the shower curtain. There is only one light in the bathroom at the moment, and so the picture is dark and not very good. The color is actually, more of a beige yellow.

This is cabinet central... where I paint the cabinets in the evenings. So obviously we entertain no one since it's set up in our living room.

Here are some almost finished cabinet drawers. One more coat of paint and then the clear enamel sealer. We use Krylon's clear satin spray seal on our cabinets. We did this in our home in PA, and the cabinet never chipped, and wiped down beautifully.

Here is the cabinet base with two drawers painted as well. I really have to see everything in to see if the color is going to work or not.

Finally, I had to take a picture of just a sink, so I had a before picture for when we change out the faucets.

Speaking of faucets, and then going on to light fixtures and cabinet hardware. I am at a crossroads as far as design, and I'm not sure which way to go. I really like the look of the oil rubbed bronze that is more or an antique look. I think it would set off the bathroom beautifully. It's very rich in color. But if I did it in the bathroom, then we are talking door handles, hinges and then wanting to have continuity in the whole house. So, I am really debating between the polished nickel and the oil rubbed bronze. Here are two pictures of each so you can see what I'm talking about. Part of me wonders if the darker color will have as much longevity as the brushed nickel..... anyway, it's definitely going to take some thinking on my part. Especially with the mirror (which I haven't found yet).

Drum Roll Please.....

I found a color! Woohoo! It's on the walls and so far I love it. It's called Sand 2 by Laura Ashley. Lighter than the shower curtain, so it should stand out nicely.... and I think it is dark enough to set off the white cabinets. Funny story.... as dh was heading out to pick up the paint, he drove by and stopped to chat with our neighbor.

Neighbor: Where ya headed?
DH: To pick up some paint.
Neighbor: Didn't you just get some?
DH: Oh yeah, we have a plethora of paint samples in the garage and on the wall right now. But this is "the" color....so I'm headed out to get "the" can of paint.
Neighbor: I have a label maker.

LOL! I don't know whether he wanted to offer to label all our paint cans, or if he was suggesting to my dh to put "the" color label on one of the cans we owned. But I cracked up when I heard it.

As far as the cabinets... I painted the first coat this evening, and will look to see if the color is okay. I may need to go with a slightly darker shade of white. I'll try to post progress pictures tomorrow.

Paint Central....

I finished priming the cabinets with the help of dh last evening. Boy I am glad that's done! I found a whole gallon of delicate white paint that we bought for another project, but the color wasn't right. So, I'm going to try it here and see if I like the color on the cabinets. But that is for later today. Last evening dh also put two other colors on the wall. (Two that we own.... our bedroom/bathroom color and Belle Grove Buff, which we used to paint our living room). I am leaning toward Bell Grove, as it is more of a taupe with tints of yellow in it....and it is very neutral and lighter than the shower curtain. I told dh this morning that I am "almost positive" that the color will be Belle Grove Buff....and then he said, "Yeah, but with you that's "absolutely uncertain."" LOL! I complimented him on his use of an oxymoron to match my own.... :-)

I'm off to hunt for many things today. A mirror would be almost first on the list....as well as cabinet fixtures and scouting out faucets and lighting. I'm also on the lookout for some nice shelves..

Update: Well, I don't think I like the Belle Grove Color after all... I'm not sure what it is, but I don't think it works. Go figure. So, a stop at Lowe's today to look for some more paint colors. This time with the shower curtain, and my entire list with me....measuring tape and all!

Sometimes I wish I had the easy button! I got this one for dh for his birthday to take to work. It's still here...so I'm thinking I need to use it....

Why would I be displaying the easy button??? One word, and most of you know it.... PAINT. Yes, I went to check on the paint color samples dh put on the walls. I don't like any of them. (Naturally). Back to the drawing board....

An update....pre-weekend....

Just a quick update before the weekend..... I am almost done priming the cabinets, but it is taking a long time! I really do not know how I had the patience for 22 of them previously. Just 3 drawers and 4 doors are killing me as it is...

Dh has put the final high hide primer on the walls. It definitely helped with a lot of the blue/gray under color. Now he has the auditions samples on the wall and as soon as they are dry I'll go up and try to select a color. (Oh please let it be easy!)

Goals for the weekend:

1. Finish priming and begin painting all the cabinets.
2. Pick and paint color that will look good, and paint it on the wall.
3. Stick with said paint color! LOL!
4. Try to locate a mirror that will work for the room.

Those are our remodeling goals, but I'm sure we have some regular house stuff to attend to as well! We did really well last weekend. A lot depends on me and the cabinets, so I hope I get with it!

I'll update with photos tomorrow....

Parking in the garage....

Remember I mentioned that we cleared out some stuff this past weekend? I am now able to park inside my garage for the first time since we moved here, a year and a half ago. What a nice feeling! I did end up getting the car washed at a car wash. The inside is still quite a mess, but I'll get to that eventually. (Maybe this weekend). My mom and dad have a golf ball hanging above their respective sides of the garage, so they know how far to pull in so they can close the garage doors, and not hit the wall in front of them. Well, I had my dh make me one with a tennis ball. Now I too know exactly how far to pull into our garage. I love it!

Anyway, here are some photos of the parking side of the garage and my tennis ball device.

It's the little things that make me happy.... :-)

Sometimes you win...sometimes you lose....

Tonight was one of those losing nights.... when you are all excited to go shopping, you have been anticipating it, you know what your looking for, or at least have a plan.... and then nothing goes your way. You forget your list, or you forget *something* you need, or you end up finding nothing that works. Perhaps it's the very outfit you want, but the store is out of every size but 2. Or it's a weekend anticipating yard sales, only to find nothing. Or a trip to the grocery store, and your list and coupons are sitting on the kitchen counter.

Well this evening I went out by myself to begin shopping for the bathroom. (Scouting, pricing and getting paint samples). So, 1/2 way to Hobby Lobby to look at the mirrors (which are 50% off by the way), I realize that I forgot the shower curtain at home. So, now I don't have it to pull colors out for the walls. Bummer. It's so much easier when you remember the fabric. I found a mirror that I actually liked at Hobby Lobby, but it was a little too small for our bathroom. Ugh. The vanity is really long, and so if I'm going to put one large mirror, it's going to have to be really long. The one at HL was not long enough. How do I know? Well, unfortunately the small tape measure that I carry in my purse for shopping trips like this, was also left at home. I called dh to get the measurements and I had just measured our dining room mirror, so I could eyeball it and see it wasn't long enough. Bummer. So, then I got to thinking about 2 rectangular mirrors, or two oval mirrors instead of one mirror.

After Hobby Lobby is was about 7:20, so I decided to head down to Southeastern Salvage to look at their mirrors and see if I could doctor one up. Plus I wanted to price lighting fixtures and faucets and see if I liked any of them. Well I get there and there are a ton of people (employees in the parking lot). I'm not sure what is going on, but they are milling around by the entrance. (My first thought is strike line, but then I didn't think it looked that bad, and I saw no signs). :-) So, I park and get out only to be informed that they are closed and are actually having a store meeting. Sigh. It was 7:30 and apparently they close everyday during the week at 7pm. *sigh*

So, after that I went to Home Goods, to look at their mirrors... (nothing I liked). And then headed to Lowes to look at paint samples. I picked a ton to take home and hold up to the curtain and the wall. My Belle Grove Buff that I painted the living room, was a close contender, just a little light. Dh liked Churchill Hotel Wheat, and I am almost positive that we still have a Lowe's audition of that one, as it was also in the running for the living room walls. Shoot we have a ton of paint samples I bet. I think I even have the white color that we'll do the cabinets and trim in. But I digress...

So, I check out the paint, go and look at (of all things), garage doors. (Like that is even a reality). And then on to check out the lighting and faucets. To which I decided that I need to finish painting everything first and then go look for all three (mirror, lighting, faucets), when I know more of what I am looking for. (Finish, size, shape etc) So, that was my evening. Came home late to watch the Biggest Loser. And now I'm wiped out, so I'm going to bed. Perhaps I'll dream about the bathroom, and some ideas will come to me!

Painting, Parking and other things....

****If anyone can tell me why my typing starts out spaced one way and after I load pictures ends up getting crammed to single space, please let me know.... I am a perfectionist in regards to layout, and that frustrated me!*****

I am very excited.... I can now officially park in the garage! Yeah!! It has been cleared out of things and dh moved lots of stuff around. I'm so thrilled to finally park there, that I feel like going to the car wash and getting my car cleaned, just for the occasion! I never go through the car wash... we just don't bother because it just gets dirty anyway. But I think tomorrow I just may clean out the inside of the car and then head out to the car wash and get the whole thing sparkling clean!

Dh has the primer done on the walls and I have 1/2 the cabinets primed. So, I'll have lots more to do with that as the week progresses. I have been thinking about what direction I am going in the bathroom. It's funny, but today I had a thought that I'm not exactly the type that pre plans every aspect of a room, and then goes and finds all the stuff.... nope, it kind of develops naturally as a sort of process...kind of like an artist painting a canvas. That is how I design the rooms in my house.

Anyway, I had an idea, and then I sat down and started second guessing that idea. (Not good when you have already painted!). I am second guessing whether I should have painted those cabinets, or instead should I have stained them a dark walnut. I think the dark walnut would certainly be richer, but in that small and narrow bathroom, I think it would make it appear smaller. So, I think I'm okay with the creamy white cabinets. I'm probably going to pull a pale buttery yellow out of the shower curtain and then use some sage accents and even a few red accents. There are so many colors to chose from in that curtain, but the feel I'd like to give the bathroom is airy casual cottage feel.

Here is the sink faucet that I like from pottery barn that is $349. Not happening! (I like the color in that photo, but maybe a little darker). As to the faucet....I'll try to find one to mimic this as best as I can. I'm still stuck on mirrors and lighting too. The mirrors that are up there now, are too small for the space. (Or I might update and re-use them). I really like this long mirror from pottery barn with the sconces. Just don't like the finish on the sconces. Well let me clarify, I love the look, but it isn't what I'm going for in an airy cottage feel.... lol! Anyway, here are the photos. The sink faucets I will look for in a satin finish.... and perhaps same for the light fixtures. I may also do two larger oval mirrors with a double sconce on top of each one, or a single sconce on each side. So many decisions!

Love this faucet!









Like this mirror, but the wall color is too yellow for me.

Saturday's Accomplishments....

This is my final post for the day.... I am tired! This getting up at 7am is something I am so not used to!

I did not get to priming the cabinets today with a good bonding primer. Unfortunately I forgot how long and tedious it is to sand those things! (How could I forget)... and yet it's been 3 years since I painted my kitchen cabinets back in PA. I guess just like childbirth, time dulls the memory of the pain. lol!

So, all the cabinet fronts and drawer fronts are sanded well, and wiped down. They are just waiting on the primer, which I will try to do this coming week. Dh is finishing the first coat of grey primer on the bathroom walls. I'm sure it looks different! He'll put a coat of white primer on the walls Monday evening. Then I guess it will be time for me to pick another paint color. Oh joy... .

I was looking at a beautiful faucet fixture at Potterybarn.com. Beautiful, but expensive. As in $349, and we would need two for a double sink. So, I'm on a hunt to try to find one as similar as I can for much less money. I won't be getting the faucets or light fixtures until we can afford it. Maybe a few more weeks......

Oh and the stuff will be out of the garage tomorrow! Someone is coming to pick it up, so I may be able to park in there on Monday! yeah! That's my weekend....

Photos.....

Okay, the cable has been upgraded, so that is out of the way.... saved actually $20/month and now we have a ton of channels coming to us....my beloved HGTV and the Food Network included. I can't wait! Yeah! I'll have to tell my dad tonight that he inspired me to get that done.

Here are some before photos of the bathroom. I am planning on starting to prime those cabinets in a little bit.... notice the bright blue! the last photo is of the shower curtain I picked a year and 1/2 ago. I am planning on pulling colors from that. Oh yes... light fixtures.....!!!

Accomplishments so far.....

I was up at 7:00am this morning....the boys woke me upand I could not fall back asleep. So, I thought I might as well get started on cleaning out our homeschool room, filing lots of paperwork, and then updating and balancing the checkbook. It took me all morning to go through magazines to pitch, all the school work so far this year (2 months worth) and all the mail (bills/junk etc). I even wiped the entire desk and computer down! I have a full garbage bag that I used for filing junk as well! I still have a little paperwork to go through, but I am much more organized.

On a side note, we are thinking of going totally digital here through our cable company. My mom and dad just did this in Florida, and if they can do it, I guess we can too. It does save us about $17.00 a month to get cable/internet and phone all together....not a huge amount, but every little bit helps. So, I may add that to the list of calling about this weekend.

As to the bathroom and garage. Well, we have to wait on the garage as the stuff that someone was going to pick up and take out, is still there. So, we can't move things around until that happens. But the bathroom is ready to be taped and primed. As soon as I'm done with the paperowrk for today, I'm going to prime the cabinets... yeah! I can't wait. I did take before pictures, as soon as I upload them you can see the bright blue color that has been the bathroom! I'm glad it's going!

I hope to post another update this evening with photos!

Weekend Plans...

Oh I've got big ol' weekend plans for our house... lol! My parents were supposed to come in this weekend on their way down south. Their trip was delayed for several reasons, and so instead of driving 8 hours out of their way from my sister's house, they will head directly to Florida. I'm not bummed, as I know I'll see them again in a month for Thanksgiving.

What does this mean for this weekend? Well, since I won't be entertaining guests...it means house projects. Also, it just hit me that I have a month and a half until everyone descends upon my house for Thanksgiving. I'm soooo not ready! There were so many things I envisioned having done before this event... but time and monetary resources have kept us from it.

So here are the grand plans for the weekend:

Clean out the garage- We'll be moving things around a lot to create space so at least I can park in the garage! That would be nice...and then maybe my car would stay clean!

Prime the bathroom walls- The bright blue color on the walls has got to go! (I have to remember to take before pictures of that bathroom!)

Begin priming the bathroom cabinets- I am going to update my kids bathroom cabinets with paint. Creamy white to be exact. This should do wonders for making the space look bigger... (and the wall color will help a lot too).

I will have to wait on the sink fixtures, light fixtures bathroom accessories, and mirrors. Those will cost money, and we are trying to get out of debt completely...so those will have to wait. But those are also simple to install and when the time comes will really make the bathroom look great. I have a shower curtain that I bought when we first moved in. It has all the colors that I want to draw into the bathroom. I'll take a picture of it as well so you can see the general direction I am going.

That's the weekend plan! Pretty ambitious isn't it? Yep.....We'll see how we do!

A lush green lawn...

Well, not only did I de-clutter the bedroom, but I mowed the majority of the lawn today as well. Dust was kicking up everywhere and it made it difficult to see and breath at the front part of our dirt pile... uh, I mean lawn. :0

But this is what I noticed, and I am very happy to see it. Our bermuda grass is spreading. Now let me start by saying that I have not been a fan of bermuda grass my whole life. I'm used to tall fescue grass up north. Actually our neighbors in PA had bermuda grass and I remember a patch that found it's way into our yard and grew every year bigger and bigger. To be fair there lawn was like a carpet in the summer...very beautiful. But the thing I don't care for about bermuda is how it turns brown during the winter when it becomes dormant.

Having said all that... I have to add that I am pleased the bermuda is spreading. It spread considerably throughout the whole year. I guess what I'm thinking now, is that I'll take any grass (even bermuda) over the large dirt patches that I call my yard now. The back half of the yard is mostly bermuda, and it's a dream to mow. (I'm sure it's nice to run on too). So, I keep hoping that it continues to spread next year even farther. We may even help it out by overseeding in the spring. And as to that brown dormant color, well I read that I can overseed with rye every fall, and it will green up beautifully and then die in the spring when the bermuda comes out of dormancy. (I'm not sure if I'm even going to head there...but it's an option). Right now, I'll just hope the bermuda continues to spread. Who knows...my goal of a lush lawn in 2 years may just transpire without much work at all!

Bedroom decluttered....

I did it! Today was the day we decluttered the bedroom! I'm sorry, but there are no pictures. :( But, I will tell you that the huge box of clothes is now at the thrift store. A huge laundry basket piled with junk has been emptied. And lots of piles of stuff has been cleared out of the room. Dh took two mirrors up to the attic to store until we are ready to use them. The only problem is, with all that stuff gone, I have a big empty wall with one small dresser on it. I can see a need to build some shelves or rearrange furniture or something. So this week, I may end up rearranging furniture in our bedroom, or designing a built in entertainment center. lol! Poor dh... :-)

Mission Unaccomplished.....

Well, not entirely.... the wood pile is gone and an ugly tree is also gone from our yard. yeah! But as to the bedroom decluttering.... well let's just say nothing's changed. lol! If I took pictures as requested, the before would be the same as the after! Perhaps I should do that! :-) I did update our checkbook and balance our account. So the weekend wasn't completely wasted. I guess I can do a little this week to help out the old bedroom.

On another note, even though it is officially autumn here, you would never know it! The heat is ridiculous! It isn't even cool in the mornings anymore. (Or I just might get up early to experience it!) :-) So, here's hoping that the temperature drops and the weather begins to feel more like fall. It's my favorite season, and I'd sure like to enjoy it!

Change of Plans...

Well, I don't think this weekend we'll be painting quite yet. I decided to do something that costs even less money.... and that is to de-clutter our bedroom. I'm reminded of an email that flylady sends out saying, are there things that have migrated to your bedroom that don't belong there? Well, we have quite a few things that have migrated....some that have never been unpacked. We have a box of clothes overflowing in the corner when you first enter, that have needed to go to Goodwill for quite some time. Just getting that box out of there will help the eyesore. :-)

So, instead of beginning the kids bathroom, I'm planning on de-cluttering the bedroom, and rearranging the closet. It's not exactly a "fun" project, and no I'm not looking forward to doing it....but I guess I'll feel better when it's done. And then "next weekend" we can begin painting!

More thoughts and ideas

Well, I am deciding what to work on next here at our house. I have a general direction of where to go.... both bathrooms. I have ideas mapped out in my head, so we'll see how frugally I can complete them. I believe in a week or so we will be starting with the boys bathroom and painting over the bright blue walls. We already have the primer, and dh says we'll just have to use a paint we already have. So, I guess I'll have to do that until we can afford the color I want. We also have the paint to paint the bathroom cabinets. It's funny because I have no idea why I have this paint.... I "know" it's from a wrong paint selection I made a few months ago. So, I have a gallon of creamy white paint to paint the cabinets with. I think I'll stop there and see how it goes. Perhaps this weekend I'll post before pictures of the bathroom with the wall color and fixtures.

Also this weekend we'll be clearing the side yard of some old wood, and a dead tree. It looks to be a busy one!

Unexpected Surprises....

I guess remodeling can be like that sometimes, an unexpected surprise. Perhaps not exactly what you were planning on working on, but all of a sudden something needs your attention.....you know those breakdowns that are so unplanned....ours just happens to be a big one.... the garage doors. UGH! They are wooden and are falling apart. I'm not sure if the people who lived here before us never used them, or if it's just time for them to "go", but it's gotta happen. They are literally cracked and splitting apart at the seams. It's a safety issue and a water damage issue, and it has to be remedied.

Yes, part of me is quite excited about the possibility of new garage doors.... (if I don't look at the price). Both dh and I decided that we want nice doors as this is an investment in our home long term. If we ever sell, they will be a feature. And NO wood! We need durability at this house! lol! So, we unexpectedly agreed completely on a set of garage doors. In style, and windows, and everything. yeah! Now we just have to replace them...and the sooner the better. Here are the pictures of the old garage door, where it is falling apart. You can see in the second picture the water damage. The third picture shows where it is coming apart at the seams. (Dh thought I hit it with the car originally, to which I gave an emphatic "no"!)

We would like to get carriage doors for the garage. Here is a picture of what they might look like. (Not my house) I can't really find a photo of exactly what we are hoping to get. The windows are similar, but the hardware is a different shape wrought iron and has an extra plate at the bottom. The panels are slightly different as well.... but you get the idea. I guess this will have to do for now, and then I'll post photos after they are done.

***EDIT*** I'm just editing to say that I showed dh my blog entry for the day and he was laughing. I asked him, "What are you laughing at?" His response: "Safety issue, it's not a safety issue". Um... I know it doesn't look that bad, but when you raise the garage door the entire panels are splitting/pulling apart from the weight. So, I asked dh when he thought we would be getting those new garage doors we picked out. His response: "When we can afford them." So...what if they fall apart, then what. His response: Well if they fall apart, then we'll get the new garage doors, but I highly doubt they will fall apart". My response: (said very jokingly) "You never know...when you leave for work tomorrow I may start kicking in the garage door." lol! So, who knows when the garage doors will be coming? I will have to start using the front door though. ;-)

Brainstorming....

As I mentioned previously, I sprained my ankle... so I am doing very little around here at all. Simple tasks, like sweeping the floor, and putting laundry away seem giant-like to me. I do them, and then I need to sit and rest my foot for awhile.... but while having lots of time to sit and elevate the ankle....I have been thinking and thinking about renovations.

I can tell I am getting somewhere when the creative juices start flowing.... and that "stuck" feeling goes away. The "stuck" feeling is not being sure exactly what direction to go in design wise. When my creativity becomes "unstuck", it's a great thing! lol! So, I haven't been thinking about the inside of my house, nope I've been pondering the outside. We have a larger farmhouse style home, and while the front is nicely landscaped (it was done by the previous owners), the side and back of the house have almost nothing done to them. Just that weedy grass with tons of bare dirt patches. ;-) And I wouldn't call that landscaped. But because of the size of the area to work with, it always seems overwhelming to me. I can't even begin to figure out what to do, or what to plant, or where to plant it, or how to get privacy, etc. etc. etc.

A few days ago a good friend, called me on my birthday. We had lots of fun catching up and it was good to laugh with her again! She was my neighbor in Pennsylvania, and we would pop over to visit each other's homes from time to time to look at our flower beds, or talk container plants or just hangout together. I told her of my gardening woes, that I had not a single container plant on my deck (which is not like me). And I mentioned to her in our conversation how good she was at working in little sections of her yard. She didn't need to have the entire thing done, but she worked a little here and a little there. Kind of like "putzing around the garden" as we say in PA. Anyway, I was thinking about that conversation today and some brainstorming began to take affect!

One thing dh and I know for sure is that we will be majorly cutting back those cottage roses this year. They are too large, and are not blooming as well. We'll do it in February, and hopefully we won't kill them, but we plan on pruning about 1/2 of each plant! I also plan on planting some begonias in the front to add color in different areas. While I liked the pansies that we planted, they really wilt in hot weather, and begonias are hardy right through fall!

I thought about the back of our house, as my mind looked at what the eye visualizes. You can see right under the deck, and I think I can remedy that with some lattice and some raised flower beds or maybe some climbing clematis. Also in front of a row of tall leyland cypress I would like to plant something else that would bring color to a row of green, and soften the line of the privacy hedge. There are also still a few areas that need privacy, so I think I would like to plant a few more evergreen in a corner of our property, and another leyland cypress.

I'm still pondering and dreaming... but breaking it down into manageable sections of our yard helped me to get "unstuck" and create the beginnings of a plan! So I have my flower and landscaping books out, and I'm just having a marvelous time brainstorming today!

Just a little break...

Well, it's been awhile since I posted anything here. About 3 weeks actually.... It will probably be a little while until I'm ready to post another update on our house. DH and I are in the process of adopting internationally, and right now all the funds that we have are going to that. So, we are taking a break from the house remodeling. We have some expensive items coming up like new faucets, lighting fixtures and bathroom hardware....plus we'd like to fix the window trim mold in the other parts of our house that we have finished. (Like the living room, and homeschool room). But it will have to wait a few months.

Besides that I sprained my ankle badly, and I don't really have it in me yet to begin a remodel. I could be painting the bathroom cabinets, but not quite yet. :-)

So, hopefully in a few weeks we'll be ready to begin a new project. See you then!

Getting Organized

I know this blog is mainly about remodeling....but I guess I consider organization of the home part of our remodeling. :-) And goodness knows we have organized around here since we moved in. I talked a little about how we re-did 3 closets since we moved in. No one can really notice that remodeling, as it is behind closed doors. But, it has made such a difference in where and how we store things. My boys bedroom closets is one example.

Anyway, this weekend I decided to tackle all the loose paper around our schoolroom/library, and if you homeschool, you know how this paper can accumulate! I sorted through, filed and threw out so much stuff! I re-registered with my Church related school for next year and updated my attendance and grades. I even have notebooks set up for next years filing of paperwork, etc for each boy. It took about 2 hours of uninterrupted work, but it's accomplished and I feel so much better! It was such a job to tackle!

From there I began to pull curriculum that was from previous grades, to box up and wait to be used in the future. I also pulled curriculum to sell at a future used curriculum sale. I threw out completed workbooks, that I was saving for who knows what! My dh said, "Throw them out!" So, out they went. I created quite a bit of room on all my bookshelves through this process, and I was able to shelf our curriculum for next year.... Yeah! And now I have room for the two boxes of curriculum that are coming soon!

Finally, I moved on to another paper mess. We are in the process of adopting internationally, and I had all the paperwork in various places...file folders and piles in and around my desk. It wasn't very organized and I don't think anyone other than me could locate a single document if they needed it. And while we had 3 ring binders for housing this stuff, we were not using them..... So, I tackled this project as well. Every important paper is stored in clear sheet protectors. It looks so much better, and I was able to empty two huge file folders! Now, all the documents are in their place, and should we need to pull them for something, it's easily found. I love the feeling being organized gives me! (Yes, I know I'm probably weird...) :-)

We have an art closet in our homeschool room as well. It has 3 doors. One is for my curriculum manipulatives, like games, flashcards, etc. The other two are for craft supplies. They are a Mess!! The boys pull out art supplies and crafts to do any number of projects whenever they feel like it. And while I LOVE their spontaneity and creativity, the disaster they leave behind isn't much fun. Thankfully they are old enough to put their crafts away, but they kind of put it in any old place they can find. So, from time to time I have to clean that out as well. It's been a LONG time since I did that. I'm waiting to get up the energy.... lol!

Anyway, aside from the art closet the room looks much better....I have a friend, who has on her blog... "Tackle it Tuesday." That's what I felt like this weekend... even though it wasn't a Tuesday.... I sure did tackle a lot!

Finally! Pictures of $10 Bookcase

I was away for a few days...so I am finally able to post some pictures of the bookcase, and some cute things I found at Hobby Lobby, to decorate it with! I went into Hobby Lobby as one of my last stops last Wednesday evening. It was about 20 minutes before they closed. I came across some awesome accents for my boys room. Very unique, vintage with a scrapbook kind of a feel. So, I picked them up not even caring what they cost. (I can do this impulse thing, it isn't often, but when I see something I love, and it isn't real expensive, then I'll probably get it). Anyway, it wasn't until I got home that I noticed that every single item I bought was 50% off! WOW!!! It's funny because when the cashier told me the price I momentarily thought, that wasn't bad....but because they were closing I was in a hurry to get out of there. So...another great deal!

Here are a few photos of the bookcase and the accents I put on them. The space in the middle of the top of the bookcase is left for some lamp that I have yet to find. I decided since I found all this cool sport accent stuff, that I will not do the lamp in a sport motif.... too much.....and will just get it in a solid color to go along with the quilts. Doesn't the finish on the bookcase come awfully close to the finish on the headboard? That is hard to find...

Here are some closeups of the sports balls and picture frames. My kids photos are not in there yet....and it will probably take me several months to get that done.... lol!

This one is my favorite baseball photo frame. Now if I could just snap a picture of my son diving to catch the ball like that! Maybe I could leave it in there and we could pretend it was him!! :o)

One final picture of the grouping and the bookcase. I want to add some books and of course the lamp...but I am happy with it for now. This room has become one of my favorite rooms in our house. I love to walk by in the morning and just admire our handiwork. (I know I'm probably weird). :o)

We also replaced the ceiling fan with one from our downstairs family room. It works so well up there. the only thing that is a problem is when it is one a high speed it rocks rather badly. It is definitely a balance issue and so we will have to research how to solve that problem. It did this even in the family room (though not to the degree). Here is a photo of the fan (before and after).

Now doesn't that look better?

The final things for the room to finish it off... are pictures for the walls. I have a few, and I have some baseball jerseys to hang if I like the look.... I guess I'll get to those last finishes when I feel like it. Pulling the finishing touches together is not my forte, and so it rarely gets done. I am proud I was able to pull together what I did, and if those pictures go up, I'll be really impressed!

Our next project that we are anticipating starting in a few weeks is the boys bathroom. It's currently painted a bright dark aqua blue and the cabinets are just a very worn oak. The light fixtures are round globes from the 80's and the sink faucets are also 80's. There is a linoleum in the bathroom that I don't care for, but I have seen dh replace linoleum before and it did not go well. So this one I may have to leave alone and just cover it up. I'm planning on painting the boys cabinets creamy white, which will be a lot of work. So, come along on the next project starting soon!

Nightstand/Bookcase!

I had just posted to the ladies in my homeschool support group that I went yard saleing this weekend and it was a total bust.... not a nightstand or bookcase to be found. I went to a TON too! So, I intended to stop at the antique mall on Sunday afternoon and see what I could find. I had been visiting the antique mall, about 2x a week for the last 3 weeks. So, I wasn't optimistic. It's a large store with lots of vendors, and I typically start out walking the entire thing, row by row, right to left. As I am going I am looking at prices for things that I don't necessarily love. You know things, I could re-do to make work... $125, $85, $75 and one $65. I wanted to pay around $40 for a nightstand or bookcase. So, as I am walking around the store I am talking to the Lord.. "Lord, I will be patient as long as you want. You know I don't want to spend a lot of money on this, and I don't really want to settle on something I don't like and pay more for it. I've been checking every week.... here, goodwill, thrift stores..... please help me to find a nightstand or bookcase."

I was heading around to the very last row, at the back of the store. And there was a booth that was almost completely empty. The dealer of that booth had everything 50% off for 2 weeks, and he must not have been renewing his contract. Now everything was gone, except for the three bookcases he displayed things on! Two were not real wood, and were a little small, but one was just about perfect.... it looked to be the same finish wood as the boys beds and dressers (red/brown maple/very hard to find). It was just a little wider in depth than a bookcase, and had several layered shelves that I could use to display things on. It was high enough to still place a lamp on top, and just wide enough to fit nicely between the two beds. Really I couldn't ask for more....not even the price. $10.00!! I took the post it note and walked right up to the front, thinking as I was walking and looking at furniture still... "Jackie, what are you still looking for?? That piece is so obviously yours". :o) So, I'm thanking the Lord for His provision! I never get tired of seeing how He works in the big things and small....

P.S. When I gather some things to put on the bookcase, I'll snap a picture!