Where to Start?

The hiatus in the blog posting was initially due to the ending of the school year -- I was busy with grading and tying up loose ends and so there really wasn't much progress being made on the house.  But on top of that, I've been having ISSUES with my internet company .. grrr... and so it's been hard to do blogging from my blackberry.  Lots of little things have been done (like cleaning the inside of the back door with a magic eraser (magic!!!) etc).  So I'm going to just try to post pictures of the new things I can remember?

Right now, there is an ice cream truck driving by -- ahhh to live in a cute little neighborhood again... :)

Ok, so here is the new laundry room color.  I bought this gallon of paint at the Habitat for Humanity Restore for $3, and figured it was close enough to the color I wanted.  It's bright and crisp -- good for a laundry room!

My friend Becky knew I was on the lookout for a "new" lawn mower (I was previously depending on the goodwill of my neighbors to mow my front lawn and my mom who lugged her mower out here a couple of times for the backyard) and spotted one at a garage sale for me.  It was only $8, and the couple told me that they were the only owners; it was one of their wedding gifts.  It's easy to use too!

This adorable little entertaining set is a gift from Nancy C -- a dedicated (and kind) follower.  I can't wait to use it this weekend (4th of July) as I'm having friends over!

After our Glen Arbor trip -- I decided that I really wanted to focus on the front of the house.  I was sick of the faded navy blue shutters and barren dirt/grass/weed front yard.  I was between black and white for shutter colors, and narrowed down the accent color to a deep periwinkle and chartreuse.  The girls at Home Depot were SO patient with me and helped a ton -- I asked them to remix these about 8 times on top of choosing colors that they didn't 'have' offered...

The yellow/greenish color was too neon from the road, so I went with the purply blue and really like it.
My dad stopped over earlier in the week and helped me take down the shutters from the highest window (scary!) and I climbed up on a ladder to detach the bottom two windows.  He also attached the flower boxes I found on craigslist (5 for $25!).  I got right to work painting the shutters -- easily the least favorite thing I've EVER painted in my life.  3 coats and it's probably still not perfect.

Dad detaching the upper shutters.

Spraying them clean in the backyard (also notice the bikes!!)

My mom helped me finish the final coats the next morning... it was a LONG and tedious process.  Lots of opportunities for drips!  As soon as we had everything painted, we were anxious to hang them and see how they looked -- however, we weren't tall enough, and neither was the ladder, to reach the top window, so it's flying solo until I can figure something out...

 And most all of the 'big' plants are from my friend Jeni and her mom -- they let me (with Jeni's help) dig up and split lots of their greenery.  Naturally, Jeni and I decided to do this on the hottest day of the summer thus far.  So, I've been watering them as much as possible and crossing my fingers they don't die on me...

And FINALLY ... carpet in the first floor bedroom!

Sigh of Relief: Moving Weekend

My first night in the house was Friday and I have to say, it felt pretty good to wake up here the next morning (regardless of the fact that I'm brushing my teeth over the tub because the sinks are not yet hooked up)!  It took me a bazillion mini-loads on Friday to get everything over here, but I'm finally in.  What seemed like a snag in my plans, not being able to hook up the sinks, turned into a blessing in disguise as my mom found a perfect little bathroom vanity (the furniture style ones that I like best) at a garage sale for $65!  You can't even buy a faucet for a sink for $65 these days...  She also picked up a rug at TJ Maxx that I love for the kitchen table area.  The dark brown blends in with the floor and the design adds some turquoise color to the area.

Spent a good couple of hours on Saturday moving the cabinet up a couple of inches and hanging the microwave.  My question is: how do builders screw into studs?  It seemed IMPOSSIBLE.  But the final product looks amazing -- the microwave is now easily my favorite part of the kitchen :)  Also drywalled and filled the hole left behind from the heating and cooling switch-up.

Uncle Dan, Aunt Marie, Molly, Clay and my mom came out on Sunday to bring the ....da da da da!!! ...Couch!!!  I was excited to see it with the slipcover (custom made) in the room -- the smaller size of the couch seems perfect; not overwhelming in any way.

Then, before my mom left today, we of course had to 'set up' a little bit.  It was hard to get pictures of the room without it looking weird, but in person it looks and feels really nice.  Cozy.  I decided to go with the dark blinds, and even purchased them, so maybe those will get hung this week.  (Hopefully -- because the sheets aren't really doing it for me!)

Finally feels like a real house.

Fantastic microwave.

Lovely rug.

Here is the vanity!

Shower is fully functioning. 

Couch and slipcover.  White's the best slipcover color because you can throw it in the wash with bleach and voila!  It's clean again!

Had to hang the picture with 3 inch wood nails because I couldn't resist hanging things and those were the only nails I have...

Here are pictures of the living room as of right now.  I think it looks pretty dang good for every single piece in this room being just leftover odds 'n ends from everyone...

Blind Frenzy

I was 100% set on white faux-wood plantation shutters for my first floor.  I KNOW that nice, white blinds would look good.  But then I saw some black blinds at Menards that piqued my interest, and then I found some cool Magic Blinds on Overstock.com that beckoned...and so now I have no idea what I want.  Something inexpensive... as I have 13 windows to cover.  I'm also drawn to the privacy and coziness that darker blinds would offer.

I picked up these options today from Lowes and Target.  I know that white would look crisp and would match.  But I wanted to try these ... I'm drawn to the naturalness of the colors and kind of have a South-Pacific thing in my head now after after seeing those black blinds.  Obviously, it was hard to get a good impression because I could only stick them in there at the halfway point... but tell me what you think.  And soon, because I need to make a decision by this weekend!!  The lighter color ones are "Honey-Maple" and were $23 per box.  The darker ones are Bali style and were $13 per box.  They are both 2inch slated blinds.

Lighter color #1

Lighter color #2

Darker color #1

Darker color #2

Both

 

I also picked up this picture last week (more Target), which I think is the perfect size to hang above the baker's rack in the kitchen.  Lurve the colors!  (PS click on this to enlarge the image.. it's kind of hard to see so small.  Make sure you hit backspace though, and don't exit out, otherwise it will close the entire page.)

Weekend Warrior

Worked alll dayyy on Saturday.  Both ceiling lights are replaced, the hood over the stove is removed, the wire in the wall is moved and a new plug is installed on the top of the cabinets, an over the range microwave is purchased, dimensions for the hole in the wall because of the heating and cooling change are cut and ready to go, the ceiling is put back together (the only bad thing is that it is still my ceiling ... :(...), the front room is cleared out, the front room has had all of the staples removed, front room is cleaned, clothes and shoes (or a small portion) are starting to be moved in, and I'm finally feeling like this joint will be livable by the coming weekend!

Also, I don't have a picture because it was kind of a pictureless kind of job, but I bought a plug from Menards and changed the cord on the stove from a 4-prong to a 3-prong and have a working stove now!!! (Part of me should be saying 'Darn' however, because I've lost a potential place to store shoes...).

This weekend was inclusive of many firsts, like: first time I've ever installed a receptacle for an outlet, first time I saw a living bug (and ew!  a spider!!) in my house (..and I was beginning to get worried, I mean, this house is HOW old and was abandoned (essentially) for a year and there weren't any bugs????), and first time I got in a fight with a married couple at Home Depot.  Explanation:  I bought the floor model microwave, thus it wasn't in a box.  After waiting a ZILLION years for a guy to come and help us (me and the nice lady who was helping me) take the microwave down from its display -- we decided to do it ourselves.  So, we lugged it down and balanced it across a cart.  While the lady went to find all of the installation parts, I went up to the front to pay for it; she told me to just leave it where it was and someone would bring it to the front and help me put it in my car.  After waiting for a few minutes, I went back to check on it and it was gone -- but the salespeople were there, baffled, because they thought I had come back to take it.  So what happened was a couple saw it in the cart (with no price tag mind you -- who just decides they want something with NO price tag on it??) and decided they wanted it.  I ran around the store until I found them to explain to them that I had already bought it, and they would NOT give it up.  I swear the guy was on steroids because he was about to rip me to shreds when I said, "Excuse me, hi, umm this is kind of awkward, but I actually already paid for that microwave ..."  Finally, a manager came over to my rescue and saved the day.

Here it is in all its glory.  I feel especially attached to this microwave now that I've had to fight for it.

Lights!  (PRETEND YOU CAN'T SEE THE DROPPED CEILING -- THANKYOUVERYMUCH!!!!)

Kitchen light -- got this from a garage sale on my way home from work last week for $5!

Free antique bed that I love and want to spray silver.

Bamboo buffet before.  Well, kind of before, I forgot to take one so I just quick snapped this while I was priming.  Btw, I used a can of Kilz spray primer (the odor covering one) and it was a breeze as I still can't feel the tip of my right forefinger.  Dang CO'SPS!! (Can-o-spray paint syndrome)

Hello closet!  Thank you for accommodating only 1/8 of my clothes!  Hello every single other closet in my house -- I'll be using you to house my wardrobe as well!! :)

 

Progress on Cabinets

My mom came out Friday to assist me with the finishing touches on the cabinets (the sides of them - you may have noticed that I hadn't painted the sides in past pictures).  She and my cousin and aunt have all successfully added wainscotting to the ends of the cabinets that adds to a custom feel.  I decided to do the same, but by using textured wallpaper.  The final, final touch will be add trim around the top.  Who knows when that will happen though -- I have much more 'pressing' issues to take care of (like blinds) before this weekend! (Move in weekend!)

Over spring break I bought a can of tester paint in a pretty light aqua color and have been dying to use it SOMEWHERE.  So, I figured since the front door needed to painted anyway, I'd try it there.  I really like it!  Then I found a cute welcome mat at Target for $10 that matches.  Target has the cutest stuff.

Mom working on the cabinets.

A picture from the side (sorry the lighting is so poor, that's kind of what happens when you depend on your phone as a camera!)

Setting up the furniture so that it looks like a room that could be lived in!  (Thank you to Nina for the lovely candle and picture frame!)

Front door in the breezeway (Don't mind the empty boxes, unpainted trim, etc...)

Mat

With the cute mat.

I Love Lamp

This lamp was a STEAL that I just couldn't pass up.  I bought it, took it home, and immediately put it together (just to make sure it wasn't too good to be true) and love it.

Sunday

Dad came out today and rehung the front door -- so the front door is no longer screwed shut and now locks.  I cleaned the appliances and floors for a bit, but we didn't stay at the house very long.  Instead, we headed over to my condo to enjoy white chicken chili for dinner - yummo.  Feeling a little concerned that there are a lot of small things to do before I move in ... all of those things on top of all of my grading and the next couple of weeks seems impossible.

Here's to a new week!  Plans for this week: purchase and hang blinds, finish painting trim on first floor, find vanity situation for bathroom, hook up plumbing in kitchen, research stove plugs to see if I can find an adapter for mine, research microwaves.

Ta-ta!

New (well, new to me) baker's rack in kitchen.

Dad rehanging the steel door.

All Trimmed Up

Sspent the afternoon painting the trim and cleaning/lining the cabinets.  It's really starting to pull together!  I do believe it will be livable (the first floor at least) in 12 days!  We stopped back over to the house after dinner because Mike cut and nailed the trim up this evening -- the lighting was dim and it's hard for me to take pictures on my phone in bad lighting, but I did my best.  Here's at least one side of the room, but you can get the idea.  This trim, but everywhere.  I used "Decorator White" semi-gloss against flat "Natural Linen" wall color.  I really like the contrast in person.

Appliances In

Yesterday after school my mom and Jon came out in a Budget truck (thank you again!) with my stove, fridge, and various other household/furniture items.  It's so exciting to see the appliances in the kitchen -- it's starting to feel like a real house :)  Unloading appliances into house??  What a task.  We had to take off the back door, hack off the door prop, cut the water line of the fridge in order to shimmy the fridge into the house.  The stove was easy compared to that -- but turns out my 100 old house doesn't have the updated stove plug-in hookup.  Go figure.  So I'll have to wait and fix that before I make any elaborate and gourmet dinners.

We left the furniture sitting all haphazard in the living room because trim is going in today.  The couch is still in GR because it's being fitted for a slipcover.  Have to buy the fabric for that still -- Duck fabric was recommended because it's thick (and I want a white silpcover to cover up bright yellow) and inexpensive. 

Feels like it's getting close!

Doors off of the fridge for move in purposes.

 Attaching the doors back onto the fridge.

Hello fridge!

Hello stove!

Weekly Visit #1

Hello blogworld!  I'm sorry to keep my followers waiting (eh eh Amy eh eh :) but I was out sick early this week (I even missed work!) with a sinus infection and haven't paid much attention to the house.  I did stop by on my way home tonight, however, because I picked up a set of lamps from a consignment shop and wanted to spray them white immediately :)  I also wiped down the bathroom tiles and took some beauteous pictures of the bathroom now WITH grout!

My brother really went out of his way on Monday, along with my mom, to help me secure a beautiful stainless steel fridge that I found on craigslist for a STEEL!  (Pun intended, of course.)  I'm hoping to get the appliances and big furniture (aka couch) out here this weekend.

Also, my friend Katie is preggers and turning her office into a nursery, and her old guest bedroom into a nursery -- so that means that I'll be able to snag her mattress and have a place to sleep!  Now we'll have to wait and see about the carpet ... I did talk with a friend after school today (he owns a carpet and flooring company) so he's now on the lookout for remnant pieces that will fit my space.  Fingers crossed.

Here are the lamps BEFORE:

And here they are after: (by the way my right pointer finger is actually still numb (not joking) from this intense spray painting process.  They could use one more coat to finish them off, but I ran out of paint.  I think with modern lampshades they will be really cool!

Here is my new firepit!  Perfect for the summer.  I bought it from a coworker :)  Thank you!

    *note to self: move new item that you are taking a picture of for your blog away from side of house and trash bin..


And here is the lovely, lovely, grouted bathroom.  Hello, toilet!

A close up of the accent tiles (I wish I could capture their true color: a very soothing, soft, milky aqua.

And a shot of the floor.  I guess I took this at a very strange angle!