The Not So Simple Simons

Trying to get back!

2011-07-12T11:39:00.002-05:00

Well first it was the football season and then it was the holidays. It has been a tough and trying 2011 for the Simon Family but we are gonna get back to it. I will get up a post soon showing what we have gotten done since we logged out nearly 9 months ago and updating the world on "us". Maybe some of you are still out there???

Before & After: The Big Reveal!

2010-10-11T13:44:00.000-05:00

As Dave said before we both have been very busy with other stuff than working on the house like celebrating our football teams and having a blast with friends and family! Way to go Auburn, 6-0! Hopefully the gators can get back on their game! Not to mention I've been pretty busy at work too, my home away from home. Speaking of the home, ours is really starting to look and feel like one. I wouldn't say that we are completely finished but its comfortable enough now that we can sit back and prop up our heels without worrying about something. We still have things to hang, decor to buy and I still have some furniture pieces that I want to get my hands on but in the meantime, it really helps that we have this super soft, fabulous new sofa to help us relax! So let me take you back from a year ago so you can see all the changes we done!

The Living Room & Dining Room Before:

The Living Room & Dining Room After:

In the living room, I still need to get two side tables to go on either side of the sofa. I also think we need another seat in this room. I've been spying this slipper chair at Target that would go perfect with it. Of course I need some pillows too and I just gotta finish hanging up some awesome photos I have from a friend! One decision that you might help me with is the banister. We currently don't have a hand rail in place, we don't have children and don't see the need for it. But when that day comes or when we decide to move, do we add one? Something to think about...

Our Den before:

Our Den After:

For the den, I want to find and purchase a rug, I'm think a 5x8 or even a 6x9. Gotta save up for that one. Dave and I also want some extra seating in the den. On the other side of the french doors, closest to the kitchen is a terrific spot for a nice leather chair and ottoman. However it will be a chair that is stylish and comfortable, sorry Lazy Boy or Ashley Furniture, you guys are out! And no, Dave's chair will not have a cooler in its armchair. For now, Dave can dream but eventually he'll have his man chair.

Our Kitchen Before:

The Kitchen After:

The kitchen is nearly complete. All I want is my backsplash. Maybe that could be a 2011 project? And we also need a small light above the sink.

The Hallway Before:

The hallway After:

The Master bedroom and master bath Before:

The Master bedroom and Master bath After:

Our bedroom is fine for now. We really want to replace the carpet in this room as well as the other remaining rooms. I have a few decorating things that I need to tidy up but thats really it. As for the bathrooms, thats another story. We've made the bathrooms manageable. Dave and I want to completely renovate the master bath, everything except the blue tile. I like the blue tile, but everything else must go.

The Guest room before:

The guest room after:

The guest room is finished, just have one or two arts and crafts framing projects that I want to do. And of course, replace the carpet.

Office before:

The office After:

The office is probably the least done out of all the rooms. Honestly, we have too much stuff; too many keep-sakes, random things people gave us or we inherited. One weekend after football season, Dave and I need to do an organization overhaul for this room and the garage. Sounds fun huh? Once we get this room just a bit more organized then I feel like I can actually do some decorating.

The Hall Bathroom before:

The hall bathroom after:

Its still pretty scary in there. I tore down the layers of wall paper in the first month we lived in the house and haven't gone back since. We want to completely renovate the hall bath too. New toilet, vanity, add bead board with a chair rail and thats right, put up more wall paper; although the wallpaper won't be covered in dainty little flowers or yellow sailboats.

Thats the house for now, we've come a long way but its not complete yet!

Anniversary!!!

2010-10-04T18:02:00.002-05:00

No not the anniversary of the blog, our anniversary! Two years since we were married and look how far we've come. There is much more to do though. Even though the blog has been slow lately it will start to come back to life soon. We've had house guests almost every weekend and all of you SEC types know that for 12 Saturdays a year everything is dropped for that most holy of sports. Thanks to all you readers and I promise I will get some new stuff up soon!

From Drab to Fab!

2010-09-07T15:27:00.000-05:00

Dave and I have been super busy finishing up the house or at least make our house a bit more livable. We got rid of most of the stinky carpet and finished up our floors, just in time for our first house guest since the big floor reno. The floors look great and our house is really starting to shape up now. One thing that I wanted to get done before we finished the floors was to paint our hutch that we are now using as a bar. I want to paint it before the floors were completed so I wouldn't have to bother with being super-duper careful if I was to paint indoors. The hutch is very pretty but it needed a little updating from that rustic look. So I decide to go with a little glam. I choose Martha Stewart's Lagoon which I believe I recently told you in a previous post. Well its done. And I think it looks great. I think it definitely added a bit of charm to this old piece. I have to admit, when I put on the first coat I was thinking, "oh my, what have I done?!" but in the end it turned out perfect! Take a look see from the before to the after!

I'm not sure if you are a fan of painted furniture but I think it turned out great!

Latest Updates

2010-09-07T14:47:00.003-05:00

Hey everybody! There was a first this weekend. This was the first weekend that Adriene and I did absolutely nothing but enjoy our house!!! Saturday was the first Auburn football game so we had friends in all weekend tailgating, then thanks to Neal and Lynsey we spent Sunday and Monday at the lake. It was a great weekend and even though there is much more to be done it is nice to sit back and just be at home.

This is not going to become a trend though as we have two bathrooms left that need to be renovated, bedrooms that need to be re-carpeted, and all the other army of things that Adriene has yet to let me know about...

So on to a serious topic, Florida football. I mean seriously 13 mishandled snaps is not acceptable and I am worried about them getting that fixed in just five practices. The defense played great and when they could get past the fundamental mistakes the offense played pretty well. Brantley seemed to be fairly confident back there though.

OOPS, well at least that is out of my system, back to the house, really people who else thinks that the refs delivered that game to Boise St. in the end, oh well. Oh yeah, our office. We still have carpet in there, it is in pretty good shape but we also have around four boxes of wood floors left over from the rest of the house. The office will be a workout/office/extra guestroom////////////nursery (notice that I added several extra slashes to that one).

It kind of throws off the balance of having carpeted all of the back rooms, but I think that it would make the office a little more sophisticated. Also it would save us some $$$ on new carpet. To floor the office would not cost too much, we estimate that we would need two more boxes of flooring (around $150), and to rent the nailer again ( around $30). So what do y'all think about that? Seriously we would like to hear your opinion on that and all our work so far. Adriene has gotten several ideas from her other daily blogs and we hope that with your help we can add our two cents into the home design blog-o-sphere.

PS. We have a three piece sectional sofa for sale, would anyone be interested??? Its a Norwalk and is in really good shape!

Flooring 101

2010-08-26T14:28:00.001-05:00

Well its been about a month since we've showed the world what on earth we are up to. Sorry folks, Dave and I have been shaking things up around the house and haven't figured out quite how to tell everyone about our flooring process. Its hard, real hard, and long! I thought we would have them down in no time. But wow, once you see your results its all worth your hard work. We are mostly done with it all, but we have one finish one stair in our entryway, then presto we're done! When you decide to put in hard wood floors in your own home you gotta be willing to do the work and get a little dirty. First there is the demo phase. We had to rip up linoleum, carpet and some tile.

Once that is done we decided to lay down tar paper which is good for a moisture barrier, or at least thats what Dave told me it was for. Be careful to not get it on your walls. That stuff sticks and you are gonna have to repaint over the mess up. Sadly I tried to work too fast and I got some of the tar-ikyness on my striped wall. But its all fixed now, some fresh paint did the job. But laying out the moisture barrier is pretty easy. Just lay that out, make sure it all lines up and use a good stable gun. After my mess up with the wall, my job changed to stapler, as you can see from this unfortunate picture Dave got while I was working.

Once you get ready to lay out the hard wood floor, may I suggest one major purchase, an air compressor. Its completely worth the money. If we rented one for the time period it took to complete our floors then we would have paid for for it 5 times over or so. Also a mitre saw, We already had one when we extended our kitchen entryway. After that purchase, you must rent a nailer. Its about $35.00 a day from Home Depot.

About two maybe three weeks ago, Dave and I rolled up our sleeves and got to work. Its amazing how different the house is. After 25 years of being a rental home, this house really needed some 'tender love and care'. In almost one year Dave and I have really put some love into this home. The den, hallway and kitchen took about three/four days and luckily we had some help from some friends (only after some extreme begging) to finish up the living room and dining room area.

All of our hard work paid up in the end. We are so happy with it, although it would have been great to have gone a vacation and come back and the floors were done for us. But since we did it ourselves, I'm a bit more prideful about it all. I hand picked each grain/plank and David nailed an estimated 5,000 nails. Our big reveal will come really soon, here is a sneak peak of the work we've done.

You can definitely do this stuff yourself. With a little knowledge, some fancy tools that you will surely use again especially if you are a DIYer, you can save some money in labor costs and be a proud of your own wood floors.

Big Things Coming!!!

2010-08-23T10:34:00.001-05:00

Give us a few more days folks. We have been working like crazy for the last three weeks and the progress is really showing now. Updates soon!!!

Dumpster Diving!

2010-07-30T11:02:00.000-05:00

Happy Friday! David and I are laying our floors in the den, kitchen and hallway this weekend. Dave has a lot ahead of him the next few days and our little family want to pitch in as much as we can. So I've got my gloves on and ready to start working. Tux is even in on the action. Usually Tux just poses for the camera but Dave wanted him to help out a bit more! You think he has a new career opportunity as a paperweight?

Happy Weekend!

Demolition Days

2010-07-27T12:06:00.002-05:00

So we've purchased the floors, now what? David and I have entered, yet again demolition days. We have been ripping, scraping, and sniffling our way through our layers of linoleum and carpet. First we were pretty excited and very eager to get it all done...here we are taking the linoleum out in the den on demolition day 1.

Here I am on day 3. David said my expression said it all. I was now wondering why we were still doing this. We even had a slight injury, David cut himself on some wood that was sticking out around the refrigerator.

Nasty right? But as days of work set in, we ended up beaten, broken and sick. A word of warning, please make sure that you wear masks when you are doing the work. It took us a little longer to get our floors prepped because we got sick due to all of the dust, maybe some fiber-glass and a little bit of asbestos. I'm a lot better but Dave still has the sniffles and a slight cough. Now we are done with the first part of our floor prep. We still need to lay the felt, get some of other stuff in order and then begin laying the actual floor down. After this part of the house is done, we get to start the entire process over again with the living room. Luckily we don't have to deal with linoleum! Take a look at all of our hard work.

Living Room Pump Up

2010-07-16T14:52:00.001-05:00

This is currently what our living room looks like. It needs a plan of some sort. The sofa and coffee table will stay in their location. The sofa is a little dated but its really comfortable and easy to keep clean. I think with the right coordinating pillows, it will look much better. The rocking chair will be moved to the office or the den. The wood side table (which Dave calls 'a stump') will go in the den. Once David and I get finished with the floor installation, I can really start getting our furniture where it needs to be. In the meantime, I've recently put together another mood board for our living room. Since we've lived here for a bit, I now know what I want each room to look like.

1. The living room and dining room are painted the same color, Lovely Buff by Valspar. The other colors will be accent colors throughout the room.

2. I found this print at Z Gallerie and I thought, I can just paint this on a gallery canvas. I think adding some contemporary pieces to our home might add a little spunk but still keep it classy. Plus, if you know me and know my style, you know I love anything that has any circular design to it. I can blame my freshman design instructor, Professor Dunlap, for that obsession. This piece will be hung at the top of the stairs. (above tux in our current living room photo)

3. We are keeping our coffee table just as it is. I don't want to overload the room with multiple different types of wood stains so I want to add two glass side tables from Crate and Barrel on either side of the sofa. I hope by doing this, it will keep the room looking large and give it some airy-ness (believe I just made up that word).

4. I found two lamps at TJ Taxx very similar to this one that was at Crate and Barrel last fall. Not bad for $30.00 a piece. The lamps will of course go on top of the glass side tables.

5. I love, love this rug from CSN Rugs! It reminds me of one that Pottery Barn use to have. This yellow rug will show nice contrast between our floors and our wooden coffee table.

6. I have been eyeing this linen slipper chair at Target for almost a year now. I promised myself I wouldn't buy it until Dave and I were ready for our living room to become the living room. The chair will be in place of the rocking chair. The linen fabric will hopefully add some texture to this boring room!

7. Black console table. This console table once was David's mothers. She never liked the stain and didn't have room for it in her new home. So like a lot of our furniture, it was handed down which we are very grateful. I painted it black and it looks like a brand new table. A new table that was made well. This table will be at the top of the stairway, across from the slipper chair and sofa. I plan on hanging an arrangement of photographs and prints in white frames to create a balanced collage.

8. The Bar/hutch, another hand-me-down. I really like the shape and its the perfect size for a bar, but it needs something. I first thought about just painted to back bead board, but after thinking a bit more; that just isn't enough. Another thing that I had to consider now is that our floors and the hutch are pretty much the same color. If I don't do something to it, its gonna look like a big 'brown' blob extending from the floor. So I've decided to paint the entire piece a lovely blueish-teal and replace the knobs with clear glass knobs from Anthropologie. The official color is Lagoon from Martha Stewart. The teal color will really make the piece stand out. Some people might be hesitant about painting a piece of old furniture but I think paint gives some of those old pieces a second life. One good thing about the color I have chosen, lagoon, is that it can be inter-changeable throughout the seasons. The bar/hutch will be moved over to where the entertainment center is currently living.

In the area where is bar is, I am gonna get David to hang a photo collage of David and I when we were kids. You'll see that update real soon! I'm really excited about seeing it all come together. Happy weekend everyone!

Floors Galore!

2010-07-15T15:41:00.000-05:00

Good afternoon! Its been a couple of weeks for me since I've said hello! But not much has been going on in the Simon house, until now. Dave and I went to Seagrove Beach for the 4th of July to see family and hang out with a few friends along the way. I am so thankful that we have family who get to live in paradise. It was a nice little getaway, we even got to bring the ol' dog down for some R and R.

Here is our little king of the mountain. Tux absolutely loved the beach. This was much to our surprise but unfortunately he brought lots of friends back up to Auburn with him...fleas. I think Dave has given him a bath every other day now. But after Tux's baths/pills (etc., etc.) kick in and we share our most recent news with you, the fleas will have lost their rein over at the Simon house. Please don't think that we live like animals but when you have old carpet throughout the house, these critters have a slight advantage. Well, drum roll please...yup, thats it. We have floors!

Today David went to Lumber Liquidators in Montgomery to purchase our new floors, new base boards & shoe molding, and stairs for the entry way! In the end, we decided to go with an engineered floor rather than getting solid flooring installed. This way we were able to cover more square-footage with the money we saved and we able to get the style and look we wanted. Once the manager at LL pointed out this hickory hand-scraped wood to us which was on sale at the time, we decided to go for it. David hauled 55 boxes from Montgomery with the generosity of a friend's trailer. In the next week with a little help hopefully from friends, we plan to install the floor ourselves. Once we rent the correct tools from Lowe's or Home Depot, it should be a no brainer. Dave found a link on This Old House that is gonna help out a bit. Easy-peesy, they say...but I'm ready to roll up my sleeves and get this show on the road. We are pretty happy to finally move into the den when its all said and done.

David Battles the Basement

2010-06-30T14:53:00.008-05:00

So we have very usable 700+ square foot basement/Garage. The picture above demonstrates just how usable we have found it though. Thanks to busy schedules, traveling, and some good old fashioned lazy, the mess has gotten pretty crazy. Fortunately for us I have decided that the only way to get myself motivated to start working on the house again is to start a project that I can finish completely.

Imagine this scene:

(It's Monday around 6 PM, David comes home from working hard all day)

David: Honey, I'm home!
Adriene: Oh David I am glad your home. I love you so much!
D: Thanks babe, whatcha' wanna do this evening?
A: I was thinking that I would make your favorite dinner and then give you a back rub while you watch Arrested Development and play video games.
D: That sounds pretty good but I think that I would like to work on the house some more. Which project would you like me to work on?
A: Are you sure!?! I know that you worked very hard today assuring the students that all their information technology continued to work flawlessly.
D: Yes, my priority is to get this house fixed up just how you want it Dear.
A: Ok, if you insist. You truly are the best husband ever!!!

(Next scene: David has grabbed his tools and looks into office)

David: Time to finish the closet to desk conversion I started the other day.

(David sees the doors that need to be rehung and exits office)

David: Nope, not doing that.

Fin

Somehow after all this I found myself in the basement/garage and decided that there was no time like the present to start in on the clutter:

So after one truckload, to garbage cans, and a whole pile down by the street, we are coming close to having a great new usable space for arts and crafts, etc. Seriously though I intend to close off the area around the washer and dryer (if you can believe it a dryer has a tough time drying your clothes when the temperature is in the 30's) so that Adriene has an acceptable washroom. Also there may be a chance that I will build myself a little shop and possibly a closet or two down there.

I will add more pictures when I have finished the project. I guarantee that you will be amazed with the transformation. Sorry though folks Adriene owns the copyrights on all my great ideas and designs so if you were thinking about hiring me (!!!) call her.

PS. Special thanks to our newest follower. He is a good friend of ours and gave us some really good feedback after my first post. I won't leak his name out on the internets but I will post a picture. Sorry ladies, he's taken.

Birthdays and Bedrooms

2010-06-25T12:18:00.001-05:00

Well David didn't hold back for my birthday this year! During a breakfast birthday celebration at the Crepe Myrtle Cafe with the moms, he gave me a down comforter that actually fits a queen bed. Let me just say that if you haven't tried the Crepe Myrtle Cafe in Auburn, its a must. They do all sorts of different crepes for you to choose from like the Florentine, which has egg, spinach, mushrooms, and feta. They even have dessert crepes! Plus you can check our Blooming Colors fresh market when you are there too. Back to the fun part, the gifts! The trick with finding a comforter that look good with your duvet cover, is you must get a comforter that is 90 x 92 inches or larger. A full/queen comforter with the dimensions of 88 x 89 inches or similar measures will look a little frumpy and your duvet cover won't be as full as you would like. So remember to keep your measurements in mind when you are looking for a down comforter.

After we got home I immediately put our bedding together and presto! Now David says its like his in a sea of pillows. I love it. I still need to work on some of our vignettes in our bedroom. Right now, they look a little rough.

Here's a before shot, the head board and comforter bring more "umph" to the room.

Not only did I just get a comforter, I got a lovely dinner at a great restaurant in town, Zazu's. Dave did let me that I was to get something else but I had to wait for it to come it. And Yes, it was the HTC Droid Incredible from Verizon. Its pretty awesome. But of course my luck would ring true, they already came out with a new version. Oh the joys of marketing!

No Time Like the Present!!!

2010-06-23T16:22:00.002-05:00

Ok, so Adriene has mentioned in the past that I should jump in and gift the world with my two cents. I guess that I have starved the world of my literary prowess for much too long now... here goes nothing.

I think that if I can add anything to this story it will be a little humor (mostly sarcasm). My lovely wife has done a great job so far, but sometimes you need to hear the story from the one who squeegees the basement and trenches out the crawl space. These are the truly fun stories!

Hopefully over the next few days, weeks, and months, I will entertain you with some of the pleasant un-pleasantries that have been suffered (I mean enjoyed) to make the house as charming as it is so far. Maybe a post on how much fun it is to mow grass at a thirty degree angle, or a tutorial on the futility of bamboo removal.

Please do not ever take my posts too seriously, or do, but know that regardless of just how much (groan) fun it seems like I am having complaining about some of these jobs, I really do love it. I am a fixer/project kind of guy and I couldn't imagine a better partner in crime to tackle this with.

So ready your laugh-ers, because the nitty-gritty is poised to come out in my posts. Remember the best part of hanging the shelves from IKEA is finding forty-seven and a half studs to attach it to!

Birthday Wishes!

2010-06-10T13:59:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday to me! Well, not yet, my 25th birthday is on Saturday, June 12th. We aren't planning much for my birthday, at least I don't think we are. Birthdays are usually pretty casual around here at the Simon house. We might do dinner or something. Mom might do the traditional pound cake. If you haven't ever had sour cream pound cake, you must try and make it at least once, then you'll be hooked. I love pound cake, unfortunately it does exactly that, packs on the pounds...so Mom if you are reading this; let try to come up with a low-calorie/non-fat pound cake if there is such a thing! I do however want a few things for the birthday, not sure if I'll get them or not but here are a few things I've been spying!

Of course first on my wish list would be the new Droid Incredible. I refuse to change phone companies just for an iphone, plus its so fast. I've had a regular phone that does the simple stuff for ages and now I think I need to join the rest of the world and their trendy phones. Then I also want a plush down comforter for the master bedroom so that I can finally take my Audrey bedding from Pottery Barn out of its packaging. We currently are just using the quilt I bought to go with it, but it would be nice to been one step closer to finishing that room. Then maybe one of those cute low v-neck white Ts from Gap. And maybe some loafers, I know its summer but you can't pass up a cute pair of loafers which you can still wear into the fall season. I could wish for a lot more things but that would be very greedy and I'm greedy enough as it is! As for the house update, we are still working on the office. I'll have some photos to show you kids soon!

Tackling the Office

2010-05-25T12:21:00.009-05:00

So you might of read of few post before but our office needs a little love. In the past few months we have collected most of our childhood keep-sakes since our parents did some spring cleaning. Dave and I haven't really wanted to take all of our memorabilia but if we didn't accept our parents gifts, they were going in the trash. We couldn't do that to bunny, Pongo and every stuffed Florida Gator imaginable! With all of our stuff in one room, you can image what it might look like.

Yup, its a big mess! Our office is more chaotic now than what is shown in this picture because we had to remove everything out of the closets to paint their interior. Here is one closet that Dave rebuilt while I was baking and anticipating the paint job soon to come.

We've devised a plan! We want the office to have multiple functions, not only will it be an office but it will also be a work out/reading room. Dave came across the idea of putting the desk in one of our closets.

FYI-Guys we caught him in the act--Dave was browsing Martha Stewart! when he found the closet idea--I told you everyone loves martha, she's so crafty! But its a great idea, none the less. I had already purchased the Lack shelves from Ikea so we've a step ahead of the game! We intend on building a table top ourselves because our current desk is too wide to fit in the door frame. Dave and I are still gonna have to make a special trip up to Ikea anyway for a few more products for the closet converted office project. This time, I think I'm gonna drag Dave to Ikea so he can see this glorious store in his own eyes! **Ikea has not paid me to be a spokesperson, I do that of my own free will** Here is what is on my shopping list: magazine files, cork-message board, boxes with lids, swivel chair, and some sort of drawer unit on casters.

As for the rest of the room, we wanted a space that we can use as a small workout area. The only way that I can stay in-shape and not become a fluffy wife is working out to my Yoga Booty Ballet DVDs. If you like to dance, it definitely for you! I have a spare TV and DVD player and will fit nicely on the bookshelf. Our love seat will provide a great area to read or just rest. Dave has a banjo that he has been wanting to learn how to play and this place would be great for him to practice.

Hopefully this office will be functional and peaceful. A good place to work on many projects from arts and crafts to learning the "art" of bluegrass. Maybe I should purchase some earplugs on my next trip to Lowe's so I'll be ready!

Scrumptious Cookies!

2010-05-25T11:10:00.003-05:00

On Sunday, I made some great cookies while Dave was working in the office. I found the recipe on Smitten Kitchen. Here is the recipe:

Oatmeal, chocolate chip, & pecan cookies

Makes about 3 dozen cookies
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground clove
1 cup quick-cooking oats
2 cups chopped pecans
2 teaspoons freshly grated orange zest
12 ounces semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a large cookie sheet with parchment or a Silpat (nonstick baking mat). Using an electric mixer, beat the butter in a bowl until light and fluffy. Add both sugars, salt, and vanilla, and beat until well mixed, about three minutes. Stir in eggs, one at a time. Sift together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and clove in a separate bowl. Add half of the flour mixture to the butter with the mixer on low speed. Once the flour has been incorporated, add the second half. Stir in the oats, pecans, orange zest, and chocolate chips. Drop the dough, by the tablespoon, onto the cookie sheet and bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until golden. Remove from the oven and cool the cookies on a rack. Store at room temperature in a cookie jar or other airtight container.

They turned out great, although as a request from David, I did not add the fresh orange zest. Lately I've been in a minor baking mood especially since I've been trying to avoid some of our home projects, such as painting our crown molding or organizing our office. But we've devised a plan for the office. Stick around and check it out!

Dancing Jamz!

2010-05-19T16:21:00.003-05:00

Hello Peeps! Not much is going on on the home front. We are finally getting around to painting our office closest but thats about it. I've been on a music kick for a while now. Here is what I'm listening too. It makes me wanna dance all over the house!

Painting & a mail station

2010-05-10T14:43:00.000-05:00

Here are some photos of our mail/message station in the kitchen. We mounted a plain cork board and I also create a magnetic chalk board which we hung on the side of our refrigerator. My mother-in-law had an old frame that she wasn't using so I took it off her hands. I first painted it with some left over paint then I removed the backing, replaced that with a thin aluminum sheet which I had painted with chalk board paint.

On the other side of the kitchen I saw some great prints off etsy and thought to myself, "I could do that!" I used watercolor paint, I changed up the color some of my inspiration but I think they turned out great! Purchased some cheap-o frames from target, and then done. It only took a day. Pretty crafty!

Decorating in Stages

2010-05-07T10:27:00.000-05:00

Good morning! So I haven't been able to do a post lately because I've been extremely busy at work, you know end of the school year deadlines and everyone needs a project done now. And my summer isn't going to be too relaxing either, we have several projects going on and our communication and marketing team is gearing up for an exciting fall! It been really great though, good to be busy. But to be honest, Dave and I haven't done much to the house since we've gotten the kitchen in order. I've been doing some projects here and there, but I haven't finished any of them! We've been saving up just a little more to do the floors. After that we will be able to move our entertainment area into the den where it belongs. Our living room is beginning to shape up a little more; we only have just a few boxes now!

I still would like to move around some things. The bar-hutch will have a 'pop' color painted on its backing, and maybe a black wash over the entire piece, and then I want to move the bar-hutch where the television is. I'm still torn on the color. That will decide the mood of the room. I also have a console table that I need to refinish which is currently in the den just waiting for me! Dave and I really want hardwood flooring installed to replace the carpet because I don't know if you can see all the stains in the photos but they are pretty noticeable in person.

See only just a few more boxes! Our dining table is pretty much crap. We don't even have chairs to match it! We've hung the Ikea shelves and I'm still trying to design a layout for the shelves. Try to obtain that effortless-thrown together look but still tasteful while maintaining an interesting look. I'm probably just thinking too much about it! I loved the shelves so much I just purchased two smaller ones for our office. I'm starting to dread our office project. We have lots of stuff to go through and hopefully some re-arranging too. Of course I wish I could wave my magic wand, if I had one, and "poof" it would all be done to my liking! So for now we are decorating in stages to try to make our home feel like home. Now I'll leave you will a horrifying photo of our office. Maybe I can get Dave to paint the closets for me this weekend! Keep your fingers crossed! We also gotta remember to see your moms for Mother's Day! One busy weekend!

Kitchen Reno: Chapter six-Holding On

2010-04-23T10:21:00.000-05:00

Last week we put all 23 door knobs and 10 draw handles. In the end the brushed nickel won out over the rubbed oil bronze because it matched the stainless appliances better and we also have a silver light fixture from Ikea hanging in the kitchen. I think it looks pretty good. We also finished a small project this week in the kitchen, more pictures soon!

Things we still have to do:

1. Install countertop lighting

2. Find a good reliable tile installer, we don't want to do it ourselves because I'm not comfortable using a wet saw, don't think Dave is either. I've ordered the tile for the backsplash (picture coming soon) but we have yet to find anyone that will return our phone calls. Contact me if you want my do-not-call list or have a good contact. Don't want to announce it over the WWW if others have had good experiences with these local contractors (marble & tile people in particular...)

3. minor decor decisions, watercolor art in the kitchen. Maybe a project tonight? Fun Friday,huh?

4. Paint the door in the entryway (never got around to that!)

5. FLOORS.....

Happy Weekend!

Spring is Here

2010-04-22T11:08:00.000-05:00

Spring is finally here and our azaleas' are blooming! This past Sunday I took a few pictures of our home to show off our great spring weather. Hopefully it will stay nice for a while. We still haven't done much to our yard except the occasional lawn mowing and general grooming. I do know that we have tons of plans for our yard, like growing our garden, building a deck/patio and removing trees! And when I say, We, its all Dave. Unfortunately my green thumb hasn't hit me yet. I promise my time will come soon. In the meantime, I'm great with documenting all his progress!

Guest Room: Revealed

2010-04-21T12:43:00.001-05:00

You've seen glimpses of the guest room when I was working on the desk and lamps, but its pretty much complete now. I call this my fun, artsy-fartsy room. Its full of color but not too loud. I think my mom would call this chaotic! The guest room gives me a chance to show some of my paintings without them being so out of place. I do have to finish a few minor decor details and replace the ceiling light fixture with a ceiling fan. I do plan to hang something over the bed but I haven't quite started on that project yet. My great-aunt did a lot of crochet throughout her life, but now she isn't able due to her health. I've recently come to own a good deal of her work though some of it is unfinished. I want to take a few of her patterns and get them framed. A collection of sorts...It will add great texture to the room plus it will be nice to have my Aunt E's work hanging up near my own. Here are a few more photos of our guest room. Photo note: I think that we need something in the far corner with the chair. The chair is huge, it goes with the sofa that is in the living room but our living room is too small to pair with the sofa.

Photo Collages

2010-04-15T15:01:00.007-05:00

There are several different variations when it comes to creating your own photo collage. It all depends on your particular style, how you want to showcase your gallery and what area you have to work with. You can go with black and white photography or color, it all depends on what kind of statement you want. You could go for something very symmetrical.

Or you go with something very asymmetrical.

Your collage could possibly have more than just photography. Add a canvas or two. Have a four leaf clover, a map, a concert/play ticket stub, or something that might mean something to you or you just happen to like it? Throw it up there. Get creative with it. Your frames can match in style or color or if you if have a collection of different frames, lay them out all together and see what looks good to you. Keep in the area that you are working with. You want to get creative with your collage, but there is a point when you need to edit. Take a step back and think. Maybe take something away or change its placement. But when it comes down to it, do what you think works best. I tried to do my very own photo collage in our bedroom. First I took a measurement of the area of wall I had to work with and then I just started playing around with it. I laid everything out on the floor and once I was happy with my layout, I took a picture so I could remember. Some people like to measure everything and get very technical. I would do that with a very symmetrical collage. Anytime that I don't have to deal with math the better I'll be and the better David will be.

I wanted to add a shadow box of our wedding announcement and other wedding stuff. With a little bit of white spray paint, I pulled everything together. Here's take two and I'm ready to hang! It was super easy and it add instant charm to any room!

Photo example courtesy of Little Green Notebook and Young House Love.

Hangin' In There

2010-04-13T10:21:00.002-05:00

We got more curtains hung! I'm not too good with a drill so David graciously hung the curtain rods up for me while I ironed our white linen curtains and then I put them up myself. I only need one more pair to hang in the kitchen and I'll need to purchase two 27"x77" bamboo blinds for the french doors in the den whenever we move into that room.

David's mother recently had a yard sale due to the fact that she is moving, so we have acquired some new furniture pieces. We took home the Ethan Allen chairs that you see in the photo above, a console table that I plan to refinish and put in the living room and a black coffee table that we are going to use in the den. Please excuse our floors!

I think it will go nicely with our sectional sofa, which is currently in storage and plan to get it re-upholstered as I'm sure I've stated once or twice. Its a great sofa, good 'bones', but just needs a little update. I can't decide whether to go with a microsuede or a velvet fabric or a combination of the two. I'm not very knowledgeable on fabrics, but I'm kinda leaning toward the velvet although I do like this Crate & Barrel lounge sectional that is shown in a high pile microfiber, in coffee. What do you guys think?