Many moons ago, in a budget far, far away, I dreamt of a bedroom rug that would feel soft underfoot, help to dampen the sound (for better movie watching), and would help to make our nearly 90 year-old house feel warmer in the depths of a New England winter. I could find rugs that I loved (no problem there) and then I would see the price. Ugh. Many were in the, cough, cough, $4,000 range (notice the giant exclamation point above my head, a la Metal Gear Solid). Now, let’s get real here: we have a dog (who likes to vomit on rugs, like she did this morning), we aren’t perfect (I do occasionally spill things like tea), and I can’t justify spending that much money on something that will mainly be covered by the bed. So the hunt continued.
Category Archives: 1920’s house
You are sound itself, and you are flight…*
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Who knew that blogging could make the world so small? But in a great way!
When Jeff and I started designing the kitchen and bath renovations we looked for inspirational images in magazines, books, on TV and the internet. It was then that I discovered (quite late, I’m afraid) the entire world of design blogs out there. Of course I had come across some while in design school (thanks to my lovely school peeps, you know who you are), but I hadn’t really found all the cool DIY ones, or the really homespun ones. Initially I discovered Rambling Renovators, a really great blog for inspirational design ideas and DIY stories (her husband HandyMan is, well, really handy) based in Toronto, Canada. It was where I got the inspiration for our floors in the half bath. But the tale doesn’t end there.
They’re calling at me, come and find your kind…*
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Happy New Year! I took a holiday, family-filled hiatus from the blog, but not from the house projects. A few weeks ago I undertook a mini-painting project that I had been wanting to do for, well, years. Stenciling. No, not the gross borders at the top of a room, but a proper, elegant, wallpaper inspired looking stencil. You know, to class up the joint. The master bedroom to be specific.
Love it all, love it all, love it all…*
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When I decided to have the closet re-imagined, I never imagined how much work that would actually be. Of course I realized it would be dirty (removing plaster is mighty dusty work), and that it would require fitting larger people into tiny spaces (sorry Team Help A Sista’ Out!). But did I realize that there would be all the components of a full-on renovation? No, not really. We had demo, framing, drywall, taping and mudding, caulking, finish carpentry, trim, electrical (still to be done), and even some flooring (a threshold needs to be added). And of course painting, but I’m doing that this time around, to save costs and to make me feel like I’m earning my keep. And all these steps are (were) taking place at a break-neck pace as compared with our previous project. Ah, nostalgia.
I can’t get out of what I’m into with you…*
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With a pile of plumbing parts in the dining room, and a new bathtub in the garage (!), I met with Dave (& Jonas) of Team Help A Sista’ Out to go over the preliminary plans for the family bath update/remodel. Scheduling the trades, as they like to call themselves (I like to call them Teams, and then name them) is probably one of the more important steps you can take in any project. Step one: get the bathroom demo’d, and get the new tub into place. Now, normally this would likely be a half day project (well, maybe a whole day since the tub weighs so much). But, as usual, I have other things I need Team Carpentry for. Namely, a new master closet.
And I know, I know, I know this won’t last…*
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And so it begins. Again. Ok, for those of you just joining us, this is a chronicle of the DIY (design it yourself – we leave most of the heavy “do-ing” to the professionals) antics of me and my hubby as we set about improving our 1920’s house. We’ve just completed the kitchen, master bath, guest bath and bedrooms (though I have more decorative touches to add to those rooms soon), and are about to set forth conquering the dreaded family bath.
We call it the family bath since that’s who uses it most: our family and friends who stay with us when visiting for holiday affairs, or just to get away from their citified lives. We call it dreaded because it’s a logistical nightmare, and one that’s sure to test our budgetary limits. So, I thought I’d take you guys right on through the process, sort of from the beginning to the end. The actual beginning was about 4 years ago when we bought the house, but the drawings and purchasing only just happened, so I can share the process with you.
I won’t stop until my tears are all shed… so happy…
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This is the AFTER post. There are no days or weeks to quantify, save for the 16 (plus) weeks that have passed full of work (that’s over 80 days!), and the months prior to that full of planning, shopping, drawing, contemplating, anticipating. There are no more major events happening (I hardly think the installation of a new panel schedule for the new electrical warrants a photo shoot). All that’s left is to enjoy. Oh, and completely rearrange our second floor, and deal with the basement that looks like a stage 3 hoarding situation is happening. But I digress.
First, I must thank everyone who wished us well, who read up on what was happening (even if reading up only included looking at the photos), who showed us love and interest during this life altering process (who partied with us on Saturday!). Your support, your interest, your excitement helped when things got tough. Which they did. And when they were going well, your interest fanned the flames of our passion for the project. I am so glad I took the time to blog it out. It made the whole process so much more fun.
A scrub is a guy that can’t get no love from me…
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Mid-week 15, day 73, and the plumbing is finally done! Shockingly, the heating install went well, smoothly even, and the last tasks to complete the punch-list for Team Plumbing were done in less than one day. Relief, disbelief, joy. Wow, we’re seriously almost done now. (Thanks, Matt!) We’ll still need a final plumbing inspection, but it’s looking good, working, and helps us get to the next (last) stage of our renovation: completion.
Team Carpentry was back, including Dave (duh), J.J. (as a jack-of-all-trades helper again), and Jonas (the cabinet/furniture guru among them). Dave worked the last bits of baseboard trim, completed the cutest (can I say “cute” about something that’s made of wood and metal?) little radiator cover that cleverly removes (!!) for access to the heater, and began the process of moving out of the garage (that could take days). J.J. worked his way down the punch-list, painting windows, corbels, touch-ups on walls and doors, and vacuuming debris along the way. Oh, and he fixed a tile that got cracked during a small carpentry adjustment. All in a day’s work, eh, J.J.?
There ain’t nothin’ gonna stop me now, ’cause I’m almost there…
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Week 14 ended today, day 70, like the soft closing of a napping baby’s bedroom door. It’s hard to say that we even had a week 14 as the days are so concentrated now, so task oriented. Once something is completed, it’s done. There are no more weeks of work anticipated, only lists of things to finish, lists which (much to our chagrin) keep getting longer as we keep noticing (minor, but plentiful) things that are undone.
We are family, I got all my (people) with me…
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Okay, so it’s been a bit since my last post. About a week. Week (mostly lucky) 13. Days 61 through 65. What a week. If I can even remember back to the beginning, last Monday, day 61 (which was a holiday, or so I’m told) was just Dave and I trying to stay focused, and on task for another big week. Dave spent some time building light rails (to hide the undercabinet lighting), and finished up working on the infrastructure for the floating shelves in the baking nook (not as simple a task as one might think!). I spent the day painting – what I was painting I can barely recall – and would still be painting now were it not for the flu that snatched me from vertical to horizontal sometime on Thursday (hence the mostly lucky week 13). But I don’t want to jump ahead.