well folks, things have been happening and we are closing on our house on friday! we are super excited, though the moving trucks are not coming until next week on wednesday, which is good, because we have a lot more packing to do. over the upcoming long weekend we hope to get a couple projects done at the new house , like paint, paint, and more paint (though before we paint we will have to either sand or skim coat – not like i have any idea how, or even if that’s the right terminology – a lot of walls. see below). while the house is “move-in ready”, everything is from 12 years ago when it was built and just not our taste, so basically every room will be changed, some more than others. so i thought i would finally share pics of our new digs, a “before” house tour if you will (and don’t hold your breath for afters). let’s start on the outside and first floor first, and next time i’ll show you the upstairs and basement. because i took a lot of pictures. like, a lot. sorry. or not.
welcome to our house. eventually we will paint the shingles, probably a dark gray. and i can’t wait to paint the front door.
come inside to our foyer. with sponge paint all the way up to the two story ceiling. this sponge paint technique is found in several places. remind why sponge paint was ever popular? we will be hiring a painter for this as i don’t do heights; the top rung of a normal-sized ladder is scary enough. i wish we could get a painter for the whole house. in the second picture below you can also see the textured ceiling that we are dealing with in the entire house. you may think it’s not bad, but it’s bad. i can’t wait until we have nice, crisp, bright ceilings. some day. also needed: a new light fixture.
on the left of the foyer is the gigantic all-one-room living room and dining room, with an opening that is just too large, so we will be extending the wall on the left side of the staircase to close it up a little (never thought we would be putting up walls instead of tearing them down).
hi living/dining room stripes. i don’t know how to paint over these. please tell me how…and come do it? and see that floor that doesn’t match the entire rest of the house? that will be gone. while it’s nice, it’s not our style, and again, it doesn’t match the entire rest of the house. on monday our floor guy is bringing new wood to replace this large room, and will be restaining the first floor and stairs (second floor will be at a later date). unfortunately it won’t get done by the time we move all our stuff in, so we’ll have to move things out and in again.
it’s a nice big room, but too open. i like open floor plans, but i need some sort of delineation. our original plan was to build a wall with a large opening, perhaps with french doors, between the living and dining room, but our new plan may be expanding the kitchen into the current dining area, adding some sort of side divider walls and have a large dining room with a small sitting area where the current living room is. there won’t be a living room, but i think that’s the trend now, right? (through the door in the dining room is the kitchen, we’ll get to that in a few).
on the right side of the foyer is the office. why isn’t that transom window painted like the rest of the woodwork? beats me, but it will be. the office will get a new paint job as well, eventually.
down the hall is a closet, and then the half bath. shield your eyes, the sponge paint job is awful. along with potentially new drywall (because how the heck will i get rid of all that texture? it’s intense) it needs a new light, mirror, vanity, faucet…i guess everything. this may sound crazy, but i think i want to paint it black. with either large photos or a gallery wall to bring in some white/brightness. it’s happening folks.
past the bathroom is the garage entrance and laundry room. i will get to experience removing wallpaper – yesss. (sarcasm). we may make the closet into a bench with hooks above it. in the future: new washer and dryer and adding a counter top above them, painting the cabinets and new light fixtures.
then we come to the family room. gas fireplace, crown molding, great light (southern exposure), nice and open to the kitchen. but that paint. my eyes. ugh.
some may like the stones of the fireplace, including ryan, but it’s not my style. and it’s soooo big. and that hearth (is that what’s it’s called?) is just begging for henry to fall and hit his head on it. i’m dreaming of a white paneled front with bookcases flanking it and the tv above. some day. the mantel will be painted white almost immediately.
to the left of the family room is the dining area with sliders to the backyard and then the kitchen. i would love to replace the slider with french doors, though i love having a screen door for a wide open breeze, so we’ll see.
the kitchen has a pantry (yay for not taking up cabinet space with food), two story ceiling and skylights, i’m so excited for all the natural light. the cabinets are nice, but not our style. the granite is pretty good for granite, though not what i would choose; and what’s up it as the stove backsplash? so awful. we have big plans for the kitchen, since it’s the heart of the home. when we hopefully expand the kitchen, the cabinets will be changing, as will the countertops and appliances. speaking of appliances, that fridge is a joke. we think they must have had a new one but changed it out for selling, so a new fridge is one of our first purchases. and those lights are hideous, so they will be changed as well, though i’ll have to wait until the remodel. i wish the remodel could happen immediately, but hopefully in the next year or so.
the backyard patio is sad and it slopes towards the house. so we will either be building a deck or putting in a paver patio. and when we see the house this weekend we will see what plants and flowers we’re dealing with, then we may have some landscaping to do. our house backs to a park, with a baseball field and a playground, which will be so convenient.
are you still with me? basically lots of paint, a flooring update, new lights and some bigger changes as well eventually. i’m excited for the changes, but very impatient, of course. especially since we will be having henry’s first birthday party less than one month after we move in!
stay tuned for part two of the upstairs and basement!
{justine}
i put up the foot rest while i nurse, though i don’t put it in recline ever – i just think some sort of foot rest is key, whether it’s an ottoman or the recliner version.
