new house stuff

so.  we moved.  we bought a house.  unfortunately it is not in seattle because the market has exploded  and we just couldn't find something in our price range that will work for us.  so we moved to the suburbs, about 20 minutes north.  it is bittersweet; we are glad to have a place that will work for us and our growing family but we are very sad to leave our wonderful community and friends, and greenlake! oh how I love greenlake. but, it is done and now we are taking on new challenges; being home owners, new parents, meeting new people and establishing new friendships while maintaining our existing ones.  our house is great, about twice the size as the condo we rented in seattle, with plenty of space.  it is a little older, built in 1979 so we have some updates to do, but the layout and flow of the house is nice.  i am excited to get some DIY projects done around here to make the place my our style.  we have started some minor improvements so far like changing the door knobs and knocker on the front door and painting our walk in closet in the master bedroom. hubby is in the process of making the yard look nice, there are lots of trees, bushes and ivy that are cluttering up the back yard so he has been working in that.  we have some major improvements planned like remodeling the kitchen and bathrooms, painting the inside and out of the house, removing the hideous popcorn from the ceilings.  we are also still unpacking so finishing that, organizing, and decorating the place is first on the list.  speaking of lists, here is one that includes the things we want to do:

kitchen:

this is the coffee station of the kitchen, as soon as i saw this little counter in the kitchen when we were looking at the house initially, i decided it would be our coffee/tea station

so, the kitchen will eventually be remodeled after we save up enough, but for now i will be painting the cabinets, removing the wallpaper (and those hideous curtains) and repainting.

seriously...check out these ugly curtains.  i think i'll try to make a roman shade to replace it.

we will eventually knock out the wall that you see on the right to make the kitchen and dining room open up to each other and then add an island and more storage where the nook is.

other side of the kitchen.  we'd also like to knock out the wall where the oven is located to make the kitchen open to the living room.  we like floor plans where the kitchen is open to the living area.  and eventually we will replace the sink, faucet and appliances and replace the outdated linoleum. 

but for now in the kitchen, i will paint the cabinets and organize them, hopefully i can find those sliding pull out organizers, i will paint the walls and maybe add a table for the nook.

downstairs living room:

this room is right next to the kitchen.  i want to paint it, and add some art and shelves on the walls, and rearrange the furniture in some way to make it less cluttered.  the sliders open up to the deck.  i want to remove the blinds and add some nice light curtains.

hallway:

this is the hallway that leads towards the living room on the right, bathroom on the left, laundry room straight ahead and dining room from behind.  i think we are going to remove the door you see there that leads to the living room.  eventually i will likely repaint, right now it's a gray-ish blue color.

pantry:

this little closet area is right off the kitchen.  this is the next project on my list.  i'm going to turn it into a pantry.

dining room:

dining room.  someday i will repaint in here, add some nice art/pictures/other decorations, replace the chandy or add a drum shade.  eventually i'd like to get a different dinner table and chairs, but that will likely be awhile down the road.  oh, and i will also add some roman shades to both of these windows, too.                      

 

downstairs bathroom:

downstairs half bath.  it is hard to tell in this picture, but it is painted an offensively bright yellow.  this actually will be our first major project, redoing this bathroom.

we'll redo the floor, replace the vanity, frame the mirror, replace the lighting, paint the walls, replace the toilet and then add pictures, etc to style the bathroom up.

 

laundry room:

laundry room.  i am going to paint this and add some shelving and organize it all up.  also, i'll add a roman shade and new light fixture and eventually new flooring to match the wood flooring in the hallway.

entry:

the entryway will eventually be painted.  i'd like to add a nice shoe hider/organizer and add some pictures and stuff on the walls.  also, i will paint the inside of the door and add a nice rug in front of the door.  i'm not quite sure about the chandy, i will likely replace it someday.

we did replace the locks/door knobs already.  they were an ugly brass outdated set and we chose this oil rubbed bronze one instead.  the outside of the door is painted black, but i'm going to paint it a different color soon, maybe gray.

these look much nicer and more modern than the brass set. 

the entry way looking from the front living room.  i don't have a picture of the front living room yet because it is full of boxes that need to be unpacked, you can see some of them in this picture.  we probably won't do anything with the front living room for awhile because we don't have anything to furnish it with yet  :)

the wall along the stairs will have a nice photo collage, someday i'd like to paint the banister and replace the light fixtures, and perhaps remove the carpeting and add wood flooring.

 upstairs:

linen closet.  i'll line or paint the shelves and make it more organized.

 

office:

office.  this room will be repainted, add curtains, closet organized, light fixtures, shelving.

 guest room:

guest bedroom.  we need to finish this room soon.  we'll get a bedframe, maybe repaint, add curtains, light fixture, dresser and nightstand and lamp and wall art, maybe a rug.

 guest bathroom:

guest bathroom.  i'll paint the cabinets, line them and add organizers, replace the toilet and tub, update light fixtures, frame the mirror, paint the walls, add some decor.

this is the master bath.  hopefully we can update this whole area at some point but for now, i'll paint the cabinets and countertop, frame the mirror, paint the walls, remove the stupid hairdryer from the wall, replace the toilet, remove the shower door and insert and someday tile the shower, add liners and organizer to the cabinets.

i really dislike the counter tops, look how hideous it is!

so, i didn't add pictures of the master bedroom or nursery because they are sooooooooo messy right now, way too embarrassing.  so, i will unpack and clean up those rooms and post once they are a little more presentable.

i will be posting updates about this whole DIY experience, for fun.  we certainly don't know what we are doing so this should be interesting.  my goal is to make the place cozy, to reflect our style and that means figuring out what that style is, but ultimately it must be classic, fun, and functional.  our house won't be full of items that are strictly for show lacking any of the things that people need and use on a daily basis....like a TV or books to read, or toys for our boy.  so, you'll see a well lived in home that fits our daily needs along with (hopefully) looking nice.  anyway, welcome to my other new adventure/challenge, hope you enjoy the show!