A New Project

 My kids know me so well. They know I love a project. Putting things together, painting a piece of furniture or a room, decorating for a new look...anything that makes me feel productive. My daughter delivered, and while my shoulders are killing me I feel accomplished. Hard work is worth it whenever you can appreciate the end results.

I'd done my laundry room/closet at my townhouse and my son-in-law really liked it. He asked if I'd consider doing the same thing for their laundry closet. Theirs is in the kitchen and is slightly larger than mine was, and I was up to the challenge. My laundry room had a wood-looking wallpaper, in a cream and brown tone. My kid's home is decorated in cooler tones; the walls are all light gray. It wasn't going to work with the warmer tones that I'd used, so I sent them pictures of different peel and stick wallpaper to look at and consider. They came back with a brick pattern that is what I would call greige - not to warm but not complete cool either. It was the perfect color and pattern for the look they wanted.

I didn't get any before pictures because my daughter emptied everything out before I had a chance to, and whenever I was working I didn't stop to take pictures. But this is what it looked like after putting up the wallpaper and new shelves:

The wallpaper was surprisingly easy to put up, except whenever it was time to get around all the plumbing. It was tricky but I managed to get it all covered. My daughter picked out the darker colored wood shelves to make the room look more elegant. There was white, light wood, and gray wood as well. I took a piece of the wallpaper with us to Home Depot so we could find the right color and the dark wood worked. We used decorative brackets that are much nicer than the plain ones. They're more expensive but like my son-in-law said, for an extra $20 they got a higher end look so it's worth it.

I'm glad I was able to do this for them before I leave for Central Florida. An update on our move is coming - stay tuned!
  

Let's Take A Tour - The Laundry

If I could point to one space in my old house that I didn't like, it would be the laundry area. My washer and dryer were in a corner in the hot, humid, dusty garage, underneath the water heater.

I loved the washer and dryer themselves; I bought them from Lowe's in 2016 after my washing machine, which was original to the house, finally gave out. These front loaders worked so well and were wallet-friendly, since they use less water than the old style top loaders. But I was constantly having to clean them because of all the dust in the garage. I knew in my new house I would want both a garage and a washer/dryer, but not together.

Thankfully, I was able to get just what I wanted in my new house. Sort of...

Down the hallway next to the kitchen, adjacent to the dry bar, is the a/c unit on the right, the master bedroom straight ahead, and on the left a laundry closet. Not a room, just a closet, but it's not in the garage so that's a plus.

 

It has a working washer and dryer (though older models), and wire shelving above it for storage. I was very thankful for it, but I didn't love it. Heck, I didn't even like it. It was very dirty. The laundry closet is a forgotten space; if, like the previous owner and myself, you don't have a need to do laundry daily, you don't give it a second thought. It's a utilitarian space and nothing more. Until you're moving in your stuff. That's when you start to notice things. Like how sticky the wire racks are because of years of laundry and humidity in the room. Or the amount of dust inside the brackets when you try to clean said wire racks. Then there's the washer and dryer themselves, covered in sticky dirt. I tried to clean them; I used soapy water and microfiber cloths on everything. The washer and dryer I was able to get fairly clean, but those wire racks were a whole other story. No matter how much I tried to clean them they were just as sticky and gross. This needed more than just some basic cleaning. This closet needed a makeover.

I took the wire racks down and replaced them with wood racks that I found at Home Depot for $9.99 each. They aren't solid wood; these are covered in laminate, which is why they're so inexpensive. The brackets were the most expensive part of this makeover. They were $7.47 each but I needed 6 of them to make sure the shelves were secure. They look so good! And they're much easier to keep clean. On the wall I put up hooks to hang my mop, broom, and plastic bags. 

Outside the closet I put up this cute Laundry sign that I picked up at Hobby Lobby for just $9.99. It gave color to this otherwise neutral space.

I changed the light fixture here in the hallway in front of the laundry closet. This was one of those white glass ball fixtures that contractors use in new construction, except this house is over 30 years old and so was the light fixture. I picked this one up from Walmart.com for $16.34. I wanted something in oil rubbed bronze and that wasn't closed, since those tend to get dirty and full of bugs. Can anyone say yuck?! I don't have that problem with this light fixture. 

Just recently I made a few more changes to the laundry hallway. I had this picture on the wall that I got years ago from Kirkland's:

This has been a favorite of mine for years, and I knew I wanted it in my home, but I had to admit it looked small on this particular wall.

I thought about maybe doing a gallery wall here, though I'm not fond of gallery walls. Thankfully my daughter offered me this gorgeous painting:

She had bought it for her bedroom but decided on doing a different color scheme so she asked me if I wanted it. I knew the colors would work with the master bedroom so I said I'd take it. When I saw it, I knew it was perfect for the hallway just ahead of my bedroom.

The size is much better on this wall. I added the runner, a steal at $14.97 from Costco. The colors work beautifully with my decor.

Most of the makeover was done back in March, right before quarantine. It's been a great improvement, but I knew there was more I wanted to do. For starters, the smoke detectors in this house are so old they've yellowed. I don't even understand why there are 2 smoke detectors in this small hallway, but both are dingy looking. I want to get those replaced or at least painted. The bifold doors are another project on my list; they're metal which makes them creaky, and they also have yellowed. I want wood doors, or at least something that looks like wood.

This is the wall behind the washer and dryer, just below the shelves. I didn't realize how stained the wall was until I put the new shelves in. I thought about painting it, maybe even in a contrasting color, but I've decided on something else: wallpaper. I found some on Amazon that I've ordered. Hopefully I can start on this next week. I think it'll give this laundry closet a boost. That, and the flooring...

Again, no one looks at the dingy laundry closet floor but the homeowner, so it's never a priority. But I look at it and I hate it. This linoleum has been here for over 30 years. I took the washer & dryer out and tried to give it a good cleaning, but it's just too old. The color has yellowed and the dirt is encrusted into the grooves, so it won't come out. To take this out and put in ceramic or porcelain tile would be tedious, expensive and unnecessary; only a small piece of the flooring actually shows. Instead, I've found a better and easier alternative: peel and stick tile. I looked at Home Depot and Lowe's but ultimately found what I was looking for on, you guessed it, Amazon. I'm excited to get this project started and to see my vision come to life.

I'll try to remember to take pictures this time as I work on this area ;-). Next up in the home tour: the master bedroom. I can't wait to share this special space!

2017, The Year of Rest...Or Was It?

After a year of turmoil and craziness, my hope was a new year that was quiet.  I needed a break. I was mentally exhausted and emotionally drained. It was time for some rest.

The previous year, in November, I started a project that I'd put on hold due to the holidays, divorce, and time. My dining room set had gotten pretty worn. We'd bought it when we moved to the house in 2000, and after 16 years the color was faded, and it had stains and scratches. I considered buying a new dining room set, but when I saw the prices I almost fell out of my (dining) chair. For the price we'd paid for an entire dining room set (table, 6 chairs and china cabinet) all I could get was a table. I didn't want to spend a ton of money, so I considered buying something second hand that I could fix up. Then I thought, duh, I already have something used. What can I do to fix this up?

I decided to do what everyone else does when getting ready to do a diy project: I went on YouTube.  I found Cass from the YouTube channel Clutterbug, who'd done her entire kitchen using gel stain. It appealed to me because I wouldn't need a lot of special tools, and with gel stain I wouldn't have to do a lot of sanding. Looking at several more videos convinced me it was something I could do. If it worked, great. If it didn't, oh well. I was gonna get rid of it anyway.

The original color was a light maple with a Southwestern detail around the edges. The chairs had brown and black striped cushions which was the first thing I'd changed to a tan and white fabric I found on clearance at Walmart. It's hard to see in pictures but the finish on the table was dull and faded. I know that painting furniture white using chalk paint is popular, but it wasn't what I wanted. I like a classic elegant look with a little bit of a rustic touch, not the chippy white shabby chic that seems to be in everyone's house these days. It isn't a bad look, it just isn't my style. I decided instead to go with General Finishes gel stain in java, the same color Cass had used in her kitchen.

I lightly sanded the top of the table, put on the first coat, and thought, "Oh no, I ruined the table!" It looked pretty awful; so bad I didn't take a picture. It was streaky and didn't cover the original color very well. I was more heartbroken than I thought I'd be. I was really looking forward to keeping my dining room set, and it looked like it wasn't going to be.

Thankfully I went on General Finishes' YouTube channel to see if there was any way to fix my "botched" stain job. What I found out is that the first coat always looks pretty bad. As I looked at more videos and websites, I realized I was freaking out unnecessarily and I just needed to keep going. Boy, am I glad I did! The results were better than I dreamed!

The color is dark, rich, and elegant. The cushions pop against the espresso tone. It was just perfect.

I finished staining the table and chairs just before Thanksgiving. Not wanting to have the mess in my house during the holidays, I decided to leave the china cabinet alone. I picked up the project in January after putting away all the Christmas decor.

This was after a couple of coats of stain. It gives you an idea how one coat would look. The color as seen here is pretty but it didn't have the richness I was looking for. To get the espresso color took 4 coats of gel stain, and afterwards I added 3 coats of poly to protect the stain and give it that lovely sheen.

I stained the outside only, and left the inside the original maple color. I also replaced the handles. The original knobs were tiny and black, which wasn't going to show against the java. I found some really cute knobs in an antique gold on Amazon that were about $1.00 each and were absolute perfection.

Doing this project myself gave me a sense of accomplishment. The best part: the entire project (including all the materials to reupholster the chairs, gel stain, paint brushes, etc) cost a total of $250! I loved it so much I gel stained the top of my coffee table and two nightstands! Keeping myself busy also helped my mental state, which was much needed. The year was off to a good start.

Of course, life isn't perfect and my year of rest wasn't going to be either. But that's another blog post. Stay tuned!