Project Backyard: Forming Forms

Things continue to progress in the backyard. Forms for the concrete footings are beginning to take shape!

Kitchen Demolition Begins

At some point someone decided it would be a good idea to construct a free-standing structure complete with cabinetry smack dab in the middle of our kitchen in order to house the vent for the range. Not only did the large and obtrusive structure make the kitchen feel much smaller than it really is, but it separated the breakfast bar from the rest of the kitchen and blocked the view between the kitchen and the dining room. It also blocked light from the two large kitchen windows from getting to the breakfast bar area and the dining room.

Here's the play-by-play:Any job that requires power tools, is a job that makes David happy. A big thanks to Sean for his expert demolition assistance and to Paul & Stacey, who know how to make crow bars and safety glasses look good.

House Tour

As we gear up to do several major renovation projects, I thought it would be fun to post a tour of the entire house as it was the day we moved in. The house in this tour is about to become a distant memory and I can't wait until these 'before' pics are replaced with amazing 'after' pics. :)

Click here and enjoy the tour!

Copy Cat Chic: Veranda Round Chandelier

One of my favorite blogs is Copy Cat Chic. It's a perfectly simple blog that finds cheap-yet-chic alternatives for chic-but-expensive home decor pieces. It's such a great idea for a blog and a great resource for affordable decor finds. When I stumbled upon a chic deal of my own today, I decided it was time to do my first post channeling Copy Cat Chic. Here goes...

Veranda Round Chandelier
sold by Pottery Barn
$349 + $34.90 shipping = $383.90
BVR-8W Veranda Round 8 White Shade Wood Chandelier
sold by general-lighting (eBay store)
$119 + free shipping = $119
It's the EXACT same chandelier at a savings of $264.90. And it will soon be hanging above our dinning room table!

Guest Bathroom: Less Floor is More

Removing the layers of flooring which have accumulated over the past 99 years was the latest guest bathroom demo project.

In the shower area, there were two layers of linoleum and three layers of plywood to rip up. In the rest of the bathroom, there were two layers of linoleum, two layers of plywood, a surprise layer of original tongue-and-groove Douglas Fir (a sweet surprise!) and a layer of metal.

David removed all the layers down to the original fir. Our goal is to salvage the fir to use as patches for the master bedroom floor (click here to see the wall we tore out) and the soon-to-be hole in the kitchen floor.

First the linoleum was removed:
Then off came the plywood:David's saw blade was the first to meet this layer of metal:We were pretty excited to discover original fir floors:Project 'Save The Fir Floors' begins this weekend. Click here to see what the bathroom looked like before demo began.

Project Backyard: Excavation Continues

The backyard is quickly taking shape! Most recently the walls of the future garage were marked and holes for the footings were created.I hope you all enjoyed the BEAUTIFUL weather yestereday! :)

Project Backyard: Excavation Begins

After months of painstaking planning we were finally able to break ground on the backyard!

Here's what it looked like before:
After two dump truck loads of dirt were removed, piles of back-fill dirt were created and a somewhat level garage floor began to emerge from the mudpit, here's what it looks like now:

Guest Bathroom: Take THAT!!!

Smashy smashy make David happy.

Before:
After:
Before:
After:

Guest Bathroom: The Design Plan

Here's the design mood board for the guest bath remodel. The goal is clean lines, classic details and a light color scheme to help brighten the small space.
Breakdown
Light Fixture - Northwestern 4 by Schoolhouse Electric
Pedestal Sink - Kohler K-2267-0 Memoirs Pedestal Sink in white
Sink Faucet - Metropolatin Bath Facuet, widespread
Shower/Tub Hardware - Vintage Tub & Shower Chrome Faucet
Toilet - Kohler Devonshire Two-Piece Elongated Toilet
Storage - Classique Wall Cabinet
Paint Colors - (the same fantastic combo used by Jessica Helgerson in this bathroom) Benjamin Moore AF-685 Thunder at 25% (semi-gloss) and Benjamin Moore OC69 Regal Matte white
Floor Tile - 1" hex tiles in Ice White
Shower Tile - 3"x6" Subway tile in white
Shower Curtain - Essence Fabric Shower Curtain, White, Target
Medicine Cabinet - Original 1911 medicine cabinet, stripped and repainted
Bathtub - Used bathtub, resurfaced

For a reminder of what the bathroom looked like before demolition started, click here. We've got a long way to go!