Happy House: A Year in Progress

We have officially lived in our house one year!  In honor of this little anniversary, I’d like to share a year of progress…

Before

*Before photos were taken prior to move in.  

 

After

Living Room: A Year in Progress

I knew upon moving in that I wanted our living room very light and airy.  I wasn’t necessarily opposed to the initial wall color, but it was darker than I would have liked, and in the late afternoon/evening, could take on on an ugly army green.  Thus I dealt with it until I could stand it no longer, and then painted the room with one of my favorite colors: Valspar’s Winter in Paris.   It was the main color in our previous home, and I knew it would be beautiful.  The majority of the furniture, with the exception of the bar, was purchased new.  The Regent Place Sofa we found at Rooms to Go.  I bought various fabrics from Hawthorne Threads to recover the pillows, but as you can see, I have only done one (and that one didn’t even come with the couch–it’s an Ikea filler).  The Safavieh Natural Fiber Ivory Rug, as well as the Java Coffee Table and Pillar End Tables, we bought online at Wayfair.  The tables are part of the International Concepts collection and came unfinished.  They are solid wood and were super easy to put together.  Hubs and I stained them using  from Amazon.  They stained gorgeously, and due to the grey undertones in the stain, I was able to incorporate a lighter wood look with the rest of our dark furniture without it looking mix-matched.  I stalked those two Temani Wicker Chairs from Pier 1 all summer and swooped them up when they went on sale.  My mom and I made the three sets of curtains for this room.  We bought yards and yards of cheap Muslim and stitch tape, and set up a sweat shop right here in the living room.  I don’t necessarily recommend this, but it did save money!  The most difficult decorating aspect of this room was either side of the fireplace.  I knew I did not want shelving or anything that would look too heavy in the room.  The bar sort of bounced back and forth from one side to the other, but I finally decided on the left-hand side once the end tables arrived because there simply wasn’t enough room between bar and end table.

What next?  I eventually want to put some sort of faux tree or large plant in the right-hand corner (the globe belongs to my in-laws and will be moving into its new home shortly) but haven’t found one I like yet.  I’d also like to replace the black marble around the fireplace with a lighter stone.

Before

 After

 

 

Dining Room: A Year in Progress

One of the first things I did in the dining room was remove the builder grade chandelier and put up one from Allen + Roth at Lowes.  It immediately softened the room.  The dining room was originally painted in the same green as the living room.  I decided to go one shade darker for the dining room, and used Valspar’s Smoke Infusion.  Seriously, this color is so gorgeous.  I’ve used it again in both my bathroom and the boys’ bathroom.  I’ve included that last photo to give you a good up-close look.  It is a blue-grey, and it looks good in any light throughout the day.  All of the furniture in this room came from our previous home, and luckily, just worked.  The only issue I found was that our mirror over the buffet table seemed a little lost on the wall all by itself, so I added two candle lanterns for either side to level it out.  These I built using leftover scrap wood in the garage that I stained, a Brainerd Die-Cast Zinc Screw Hook from Lowes, and glass candle holders from Michaels (the metal comes black, but I took it off and spray painted it).

In the future?  The only thing I really need to finish in this room is to add more chain to the chandelier (this one was too short and keeps slipping).  And, of course, add the occasional holiday decor…

Before

 

 After

 

Hallway & Stairs: Year in Progress

Quite simply, we got rid of the brown paint and continued the flow with Valspar’s Winter in Paris.

Before

After

 

The Office: A Year in Progress

Okay, this room definitely underwent major changes!  I had a picture in my head about how this room was going to look before I even moved into the house, and I have to say, that picture has become a strong reality.  This poor room was so nondescript before.  We ripped out the “granny carpeting” as I like to call it, and had Lowes install this beautiful light creamy white carpet.  I added shiplap to the alcove walls, hung a bamboo shade from Home Depot in the window, and painted the entire room with Valspar’s Betsy’s Linen.  Hubs and I added the floor to ceiling built-in shelves on the left side of the room.  I would eventually like to post on this little “how to” but other projects seem to keep getting in the way.  The wall behind the shelving is accented in Valspar’s Smoke Infusion.  We removed the boring ceiling mount light (you cannot even see it, but it was ugly) and added a drum light.  This is actually two different pieces:  the cord is actually a brushed nickel adjustable mini pendant kit from Home Depot, and the NYMO lamp shade is from Ikea.  I did it this way because I wasn’t sure if Ikea’s cords required their brand of light bulbs, and as I only get to Ikea when I visit my sister, did not want to rely on special light bulbs.  Plus, both pieces cost less than $17 each, so it was an extremely reasonable light update.  Of course, I just saw this shade (IKEA Nipprig 2015) recently while visiting my sister, and I keep thinking about it.  Maybe I could have a winter shade and a summer shade….ha!  The painting in the corner was such a fun project.  You can see the tutorial here at DIY Geometric Painting.

So, what’s left?  I would like to add a craftsman frame around the window.   And I have this huge white wall over the desk that’s just begging for an art gallery.  I have collected all of the frames.  I just have to start filling them.  I’ll keep you posted…

Before

 

After

Family Room: A Year in Progress

This room is still in major update mode, but here is what we’ve done so far.  I wanted this room to be very casual and comfy.  The first thing we bought were his and her leather recliners.  Now, you should understand that recliners go against every decorating fiber in my body: they are large, they are bulky, and they are not beautiful.  But….oh…my…God…are they comfy!  Seriously, I could just sink into one and pin for hours.  The only downside to owning these two babies is that it did make me realize one thing.  My Hubby and I just entered a new category of oldness.  My parents have his and her recliners.  My grandparents had his and her recliners.  It’s a sign.  We’ve crossed over.  Sigh... I added Merete Curtains from Ikea to either side of the windows (Ikea has the most reasonably priced 98″ curtains), again to help soften the room.  The couch was purchased from Lee Industries thanks to my very awesome interior design sister, Jill!  I added a few throw pillows from Ikea and Home Goods.  The Allan + Roth Rug is probably one of my favorite things in the room (second only to my old lady chair).  It is the softest, shaggiest rug.  Seriously, when I brought it home, my kids were practically swimming all over it, they loved it so much.

What’s to come?  We are currently finishing the entertainment center; that will be a post in itself when complete.  I’d also like to add some art to the wall above the recliners.

Before

After

Master Bedroom:  A Year in Progress

This room was the very first room that I painted in the house, and I began painting (I am not kidding you) the second day of living here.  Boxes hadn’t even been unpacked, and cans of paint were being dragged upstairs.  I just could not take the dark cave-like look of this room that its original chocolate walls gave.  Not only that, but the ceiling had been painted a baby blue, and it gave the whole room an eerie tint.  I redid the walls in Valspar’s Winter in Paris and the ceiling in Valspar’s Betsy’s Linen (flat).  We added curtains to either side of the window, as well as bamboo shades from Home Depot.

Future plans?  Very little has been done to this room as of yet.  I have lots of plans (believe me) but it just tends to be a room that gets pushed to the wayside.

Before

After

Boys’ Bathroom:  A Year in Progress

This was another room I painted rather quickly.  It was a very bright yellow, shockingly bright almost.  If you compare photos, you can even see how the yellow walls affect the color of the tile.  Ugh.  It had to go.  We took down the builder grade mirror, painted the room with Valspar’s Smoke Infusion, and hung two mirrors in its place.  I added the following Allan + Roth Merington Light Fixture from Lowes, replaced all of the dingy white light sockets with brushed nickel, replaced the cabinet door knobs, and added new Gatco Latitude towel rods.

Future plans?  New tile!!!

Before

After

 

Back Porch:  A Year in Progress

I absolutely love my backyard!  It was a  huge plus when we were initially looking at this house.  We are lucky to have this added living space, and for a few months this spring, I spent almost every evening on this porch.  The outdoor rug and Ragan-Meadow 7 Piece Outdoor Sectional were bought from Walmart a few years back.  The original cushions on the sectional were AWFUL!  Once they molded, nothing could get them clean (not even our power washer).  These new cushions are part of the Solano Sectional Cushions and Slipcover Set from World Market.  They are great.  First, I got them at the end of summer last year for a steal!!!  Secondly, they clean really well.  We simply unzip them and throw them through our steam cycle.  They come out brand new.  The throw pillows are an assorted lot: some came with the original sectional and others we found at Lowes.  The two container tables were a Target buy.  The dining table and chairs were a hand-me-down from Hubby’s grandparents.  I bought two Calliope Deluxe Cushions for the chairs at Pier 1.

 

Whew!  What a Year…

As you can see, we’ve been busy!  Yet there is still so much more to do.  I didn’t share our kitchen; aside from framing the window over the sink, we’ve done nothing, absolutely nothing.  We have big plans, but not for the near future.  Both my boys’ rooms were left a mess before the kiddos took off for sleep away camp, and I didn’t have the desire nor the effort to clean them for photo ops (ha)!  And both the playroom and master bath will have their own posts later this summer.

Here’s to you, sweet house!  We love you!