Fixer Upper- Week 16

Some small updates…I’m starting to lose track of what’s been done and what I’ve written about.  Oh and what week we are really on!  🙂  Back to school time is sure busy!  I’m looking forward to having a little more writing time.  Ha, who am I kidding!?  I’ll be busy painting trim before snow flies!

These aren’t life altering projects but I tell you, what ever little bit makes big impacts!  Here’s a few for example:

Canned lights-

Small Kitchen Canned Lights, Above the Cabinets

Living Room Canned Lights

Moving my “old” light fixtures over (I’ll post the new ones in my own house soon!)-

A Hallway “Boob” Light

Entry Light

Kitchen Table Light

Did you also notice there is one less window in the kitchen?  This wall used to have a window but now there will be garage there!

Garage Sale Bathroom Vanity Light

$15 Garage Sale Ceiling Fan

Closet shelving-

Master With New Shelf

2nd Bedroom Closet Shelving

An Interior Door-

Bathroom Door (only one done so far!)

With hardware, I may add…

A Dishwasher and Small Kitchen Touches-

Dishwasher In!

And the end of the cabinets in place.

Close Up of Island Corbels

Trim Pieces Put on Island Door

We’ve been busy!  And it’ll be nonstop until the winter!

Next week, new windows and doors!!!

#fixerupper #homedecor

Fixer Upper- Week 15

Last week we were slowed by some family get-togethers.  We had to attend two birthday parties, one wedding and one funeral.  Sounds like a title to a movie?

Work continued anyway.  And I promised last week that I would show you our countertops!  I decided to give concrete a try.  I found a local who did concrete countertops because we could try to DIY but we just don’t have the time.

I wanted something that felt more upscale than laminate.  But also something affordable.  We considered stainless steel but the price wasn’t right.  I also thought about butcher block but I wanted something a little more maintenance free.  Concrete it was!

We thought about doing this project ourselves but since we already have a renter, we felt in the best interest of time, we should just hire it done.  One less project waiting for us!  We found a local who did concrete countertops and put him in charge!

One thing I love about concrete is how rustic it can feel.  You can have concrete that looks polished and like real stone but I wanted it to feel more organic than that.  So I told the concrete man to mix in a tint (a darker grey) and to seal it in a matte finish instead of gloss.

The concrete man came out and took measurements for the countertops.  I decided on no backsplash.  I think it looks a little dated.  Plus eventually we might install some subway tile or a tile backsplash.  He also took measurements for our island.  Remember the one with the door back?

I wanted an overhang so that there could be a couple of bar stools slid up to it.  We discussed support and he took his information back to the shop to create the countertops there with his forms.

The only hiccup we had was the sink.  We had him measure for an old stainless steel sink we had and the corners of the sink were bevel cut.  And the hole that was made was square!  Thank goodness he brought out a new sink he found that fit the hole.  We were scared we wouldn’t find one that would fit!

I think they turned out fantastic.  I couldn’t be happier with the look and feel of concrete!  Here are some picts!

Close Ups of Concrete

Close Up of Concrete 2

New Sink and Faucet

Island

#fixerupper #homedecor

Fixer Upper- Week 14

Here we are on week 14 and we’re still working away hard on the inside of the place.  I’ve had a few panic moments that soccer starts a month from now and we haven’t touched the outside of the house.  Gah!

One of the things I thought would really enhance the kitchen was a small island.  There isn’t a ton of countertop space or work space when you’re cooking.  And by taking out the walls that enclosed some of the kitchen space, that left it open to incorporate an island. Specifically the island would have enough room to have space for some bar stools!

Measuring the space and what we could fit, we chose a cabinet that was as wide as we thought would fit comfortably and still allow movement in the kitchen and space for a small table to the side.

And here’s where I had an idea.  Instead of walking up the stairs to see the backside of a plain white stock backing to the cabinet, why not put something there that gives the back a little character and maybe also a bit of color?

So I found an old door that we could use to give the piece a bit more dimension and with my dad’s help, we cut it down to fit so that most of the pretty pieces would show.  Here is the door in its original finish.

We took the door and gave it a good coat of paint and mounted it.  And here’s what it looks like now-

Door Painted

I thought leaving the old hardware was cool too.  All around this door will be trim so no raw edges will show.

So now there’s a little bit of muddy gray loveliness in a bright white kitchen.

Next week, hopefully we can get outside and get going.  And soon to reveal…the countertops!!

#fixerupper #homedecor