Renovation Realities

(I know, shocker: 3 posts in one day!)

Renovation Realities is yet another show we like to watch on DIY.  We make bets on how quickly the wife will end up crying (I'm guessing it happens in 2 out of 3 shows where a couple is involved), and we gawk at how DIY-challenged some people are.  I mean, if you are going to rip out a shower, don't you think you should learn about shutting off the water first?

Well, no major renovations at our house, just a few updates here and there. I've never been a big fan of plate glass mirrors, but Zack was convinced that if we took ours down, it would rip the walls apart.  So imagine my surprise a few weeks ago when I walk in from work and he'd decided to rip them down in all 3 bathrooms!  We had our friend Mike help us do some sheetrock repair, and then we were ready for paint and new mirrors.  I think they turned out great!

We've also redecorated the kids' bathroom in a surf/Hawaiian theme.  It's finished in that it's functional and very cute, but we still might add a few more details here and there.

Next up, Solnyshko's room! The furniture arrives Saturday, and my friend Tammy is coming over next week to paint some cool stuff on the walls.  I'm really excited about what she's going to do!

Here are a few pics of our work so far.

The half-bath:

The master bath:

And the kids' bath:

DIY

We love the DIY Network, and watch many of the shows as a family.  William is especially fond of any demolition that is required prior to a remodel!  And he commented the other night that his bathroom could be an episode of Bathtastic.

Here's a quick rundown of some of the things we have going on right now:

• Got a new front door & new crown moulding all throughout the downstairs (not DIY - our friend Mike & his dad did all of that!)
• We painted our master bath & added some slate tiles around the shower, and added a new light fixture
• Solnyshko's Bedroom - it's painted, but we're still trying to decide if we might attempt to do some decorative stripes before the furniture is delivered on March 6th.
• The Kids' Bathroom - also painted, but Zack decided to pull the old builder grade mirror off the wall. So now he's working on sanding & priming so we can get that wall painted. Then we'll get a new mirror for it. We bought quite a few accessories today for the surf/hawaiian theme. Still need a shower curtain, and some knick-knacks & wall items.
• Our bathroom - the HUGE mirror in there is also ripped down, so sanding, priming & painting are on tap for the coming days.
• Same thing in the half-bath: sand, prime, paint, mirror

We may have to take a break from all the DIY shows, because they've been inspiring us A LOT!

Making the Room

We had a great weekend! I'll have to get out the camera and upload some pictures, but for now, here's a quick rundown.

~ Friday - Mother/Son Movie Night at William's school
~ Saturday morning: went to William's basketball game and then out to breakfast with my mom & step-dad. Then our friends that are missionaries in Ukraine came and spent the day with us. They're home on furlough for several months. We had such a great time with them, and look forward to seeing them more during their time here.
~ Sunday: church, furniture shopping, super bowl party

For several months, we've been talking about and kind of looking at furniture for Solnyshko's bedroom. Yesterday, we went out with intention and found exactly what we needed & wanted! It will be delivered in a few weeks, giving us time to get all the work done in the room beforehand (minor wall repairs & painting, and possibly some closet organizers). The comforter should arrive today, so we can settle on a paint color and get started soon. Of course, with the beds we ended up ordering, we'll now need to purchase one more comforter set, and another mattress.

We've also decided to redecorate the kids' bathroom. It's a very grown-up theme (William says it's boring) and we thought it would be fun to make it more fun for them. It's also a great way to include William so he doesn't feel like all the changes & work are just for the new sibling. We're still working on details for that project, but we're thinking we might go with a surf/Hawaiian theme.

More Renovations!

We've been at it again! We've been working more in the kitchen, and in 2 of the bathrooms.

We decided to have the kitchen cabinets re-faced. Zack & I also took on a few DIY projects, including a new slate backsplash in the kitchen. Everything turned out great.

Before:











After:










We had granite countertops put in our 2 upstairs bathrooms. We painted all the cabinets in those rooms, and put up new tile around the master bath tub.

William's bathroom










Master bathroom

Ch-Ch-Changes

We've been busy! Well, the contractors have been busier than us, but we've been busy with the planning, some other small improvements, and the cleanup.

We've been in our house almost five years. It was not new when we bought it, and we did a ton of things to it for two weeks before moving in: had the polybutylene replaced, painted every room except the living room, had new tile installed in the bathrooms, laundry room and entry way, had the carpet replaced, and other minor things.

One thing we wanted to do but never did was replace the kitchen countertops. I spend a fair amount of time in there so they get a workout. Well we finally had enough: they were worn-out, dirty, stained, scratched up - way past their prime. So we started pricing our options. We dreamed of granite but figured it was out of our budget. Well thanks to a weak economy, and a very talented and generous contractor who was apparently desperate for work, we were able to get granite for not much more than some charge for laminate or other less durable surfaces. And this should also add to our resale value and overall appeal if/when we decide to sell someday.

The guys installed the countertops in the kitchen and half-bath on Tuesday, and the plumber came yesterday to hook everything up. We are so pleased with the results!

Here is the before of the kitchen…

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And here is the after…

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I can’t find the before pics of the bathroom, but here is what it looks like now…