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Tuesday, April 9, 2013

Home Improvement

I am participating in the Blogging From A-Z Challenge.  Each day in April (except Sunday), I will post topic themes that begin with letters of the alphabet, from A-Z.  Today's letter is H.

Don't worry.  When I say "home improvement", some guy in a tool belt isn't going to come out and grunt at you, embarrass himself with his ineptitude, and have a little chat with his neighbor over the fence.  Instead, I intend to write about some of the little projects I've done around our house and link to some pins that depict the projects I would love to start on one day.  That is, when the magical day arrives that I have both the time and the money to complete said projects.  :)

We bought our house in the summer of '09.  Because we are paying roughly $200 more a month for our mortgage than we were on rent, we've never really had the extra cash flow to accomplish the major improvements/renovations we have wanted to do.  Instead, I've kept myself busy with small, decor-related "improvements".  (Yes, it's necessary for me to put that word in quotes b/c frankly, I am not sure whether any of the things I do necessarily improve anything.  Sure, it changes the look of things, but whether it actually enhances anything is a matter of opinion.)

One of the things I'm most proud of, but will soon be changing, is my daughter's bedroom.  When we first moved in, she chose a very light blue color for her walls.  That color lasted for a year before she was ready for something new.  At the time, she was into princesses and wanted a pink room.  Had I used my better judgement, I would have held off on the major room overhaul until I knew for sure this was more than just a passing fancy.  Unfortunately, I got so excited at the prospect of super girly decor for my decidedly un-girly girl, I threw all logic out the window and repainted/redecorated the entire room.  I did it all over the course of 2 days.  Yep, all of it.  By myself.  Here soon, I'll be re-doing it again because she was bored of the princess shit within 6 months.

Here is her room before the first re-do:



Here is her room after the first re-do:



Now that the short-lived princess phase is over, she has maintained that she wants bright teal colored walls for nearly 2 years now.  After some time on pinterest, I've discovered that it would be relatively easy to accommodate her and allow myself a little flexibility so that I don't have to completely re-paint her bedroom with her growing/changing preferences.  That's right...an accent wall. Duh!!! Possibly as her 11th bday present, I'm going to paint all her walls plain, old white, but paint the wall that her bed will sit against the teal color she's squealing over.  I have pinned an entire board full of inspiration for Trin's room.  I won't use all of them, or even most of them, but they do give me a wealth of ideas to draw from.

A smaller project the hubs & I got done this past summer was our bathroom door.  For 4 years, it had been unfinished, just as it was when we moved in.  Finally we got off our lazy bums and got the door frame sanded and painted.



In the same bathroom, I took on an even smaller project: the cabinet over the toilet.  It was in the house when we moved in, which was nice, but it was a boring oak-ish finish, which I've always hated.  4 years after moving in, I finally painted that sucker.

I forgot to take a "before" picture of the cabinet, so this is the best photo I have.  I took this pic the day we got the keys to the house:


And here is the finished product:


It's been a few months since the last time I worked on any projects, either large or small, around the house.  Lately I've been feeling very "nesty", so I created a board full of ideas of products and improvements I'd like to eventually make.  There is a lot that needs to be done, inside and out.  The previous owners had done some renovation and updating in 2000, but there is still quite a bit that would make this house not only look better, but feel more like our home.  The progress is going to be slow because these things take money and time; two things we have in short supply.  Until then, I'm looking around the house for random little projects that will keep me satisfied until I can take on something bigger.

I do have a quart of chalkboard paint sitting around.  I wonder what I could do with that.....

19 comments:

  1. Our home needs some "major" improvements (like a new kitchen, new garage, new basement) and since we are not even close to getting those done, I've made due with fixing things around the house.

    That's a good idea to give your daughter an accent wall. I'll have to remember that when my daughter starts requesting certain room decor items.

    And chalkboard paint is my favorite. Be careful. I have a wall, 3 wall hangings and a bunch of other small things I've painted with it so far. Once you crack it open, it's hard to stop.

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    1. If only there was a home improvement money tree in every home owner's back yard! :) The hubs & I have a pretty extensive list of things we want/need to get done around the house, too.

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  2. I have a wall in my office painted with chalkboard paint. It's great for jotting down writing ideas.

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    1. Ooo...that is a good idea! :) I was thinking of covering a table-top w/ it so we can keep score on game night or our kiddo can use it as scratch paper. We also have a shelf in our kitchen that I want to paint one side w/ the chalkboard paint so it can be our family note center.

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  3. It's good to get some things done and feel accomplished, especially when you have a list that will never end. I tried making a spreadsheet once of all the things I wanted to do to the house but it started getting ridiculous and impossible because I had contradicting ideas for some spaces, so I gave up and just go where the wind takes me. (I really hope it takes me to the garage this summer, because that thing needs HELP)

    alioffthemark.com

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    1. I'm scared to list all our ideas out b/c I know it will overwhelm me. *lol*

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  4. Very clever room makeovers ...
    The princess room is adorable.

    Visiting from the GBE2: Blog On group.

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    1. Thanks! It was fun to do the princess room. Too bad she outgrew it so fast. It was a short-lived phase; I should have known better.

      Thanks for stopping by! :)

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  5. Wow! Very ambitious! Good work there! Enjoy the rest of A-Z!
    http://diamondvilleclarksdennisroberta.blogspot.com

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  6. Isn't it crazy that rent is not much less than a house payment! People who own apartment buildings must make millions!

    Home improvements are part of the fun when you have a house, despite the constant changing of little ones' minds. I love her pink princess room. I've got two little girls and one of them is going through an extremely girly pink phase at the moment.

    Have fun with a-z.

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    1. The pink room was a ton of fun to work on. My daughter's girly phase didn't last very long, though. :|

      Thanks for stopping by!

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  7. I have so many home projects I wanna do... Yet my laziness often gets the best of me! Good for you! Everything looks great!

    Hugs!

    Valerie Nunez and the Flying Platypi

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  8. The pink princess room is adorable!

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  9. Your first paragraph made me laugh. ;)

    Your daughters room came out so good!

    Dark Thoughts Blog

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    1. I thought it was pretty funny. :) I grew up watching Home Improvement, so I can't see those two words together w/out thinking about Tim Allen.

      Thanks! I'm hoping it comes out as good the next time I re-do it.

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  10. Good luck with the home improvement projects! Shame your daughter got bored of the princess theme so quickly, fingers crossed the new improvements will keep her content for longer!

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    1. Thanks! I'll need all the luck I can get! :)

      I agree. It was a bummer when I started noticing her losing interest. I'm usually good about not going to bonkers over the various phases she enters b/c they come and go so quickly. I've learned my lesson. She needs to consistently love something for at least a year and a half before I buy any paint. *lol*

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