Girls' Room Updates

For the Girls' Birthdays this month, I redid their room a bit. I am not finished, but I like how its turning out.

I repainted the room a medium to light pink. It had been light pink on top and pepto pink on the bottom. Yuck! We switched the beds, so the black one is in their newly designed room. I bought a new quilt ($40) and added a canopy like decoration behind the bed with tulle and decorative hangers. The tulle was free (thanks, Grammie) and the hangers were on sale at $1 each. The wire Eiffel Tower was only $4. The other items were already owned.

These last 2 pics are crafts that I made to go with the room, among may others that I am not posting.

The mirror cost me $1! I just purchased 5 sheets of cardstock. I owned the mirror, ribbin, and glue. I think it turned out well...

The 3 pictures were free. I just used craft paint and redid some wall art I once had in the kitchen. I still am not sure if I like them that much. I freehanded the letters. Is it okay, or should I do something else?

Kitchen Improvements Thus Far...

Here's what was accomplished over the weekend. We (mainly Dan) installed 3 base cabinets, new laminate countertops, a new sink, a new faucet, and a new garbage disposer. It was ALOT of work, but it looks great, even at this unfinished stage.

It is 100% functioning now, so we will just have to work on the rest a little at a time. Dan is out of town right now. He left for Venezuela for 11 days last night.

I will probably paint the cabinets the rest of the way and reinstall all the doors this week. The trim on the backsplash will need to be painted, properly trimmed, and installed when Dan gets back. Minor touch-ups in paint on the walls will be finished by myself this weekend. It all looks so nice. I am having a Pampered Chef party tomorrow night to show some friends the current changes. Yeah!

Kitchen Disaster Zone!

Look at this mess! Are you jealous? We had some water damage from a leaking garbage disposal. Two base cabinets had a little damage, but all three were ripped out. The old countertops will NOT be missed (faux bamboo). A new set of base cabinets, a new countertop (laminate, granite look), a new sink and faucet, and a new garbage disposal will be SO nice. I cannot wait!

The Shutters and Paper Free Walls

This is just an add-on from my remodeling post. I like the colors I chose. It is a drastic change from the burgandy and once white floral pattern on the wall. It is light and bright and cheerful. Go, me!

New Year, New Kitchen

Yes, its been some time since I last blogged. I repent. Forgive me.

I have been working hard on home updates. My kitchen was numero uno on the list. I am half finished, but it looks so much better! I started by stripping off the worst wallpaper ever! The sad secret: it was the original builder's wallpaper, circa 1983! Puke! I have hated since stepping foot in this place and it is finally gone. Forever! It only took me nearly 5 years to get brave enough to attempt it. In 4 hours of sweat and elbow grease, my kitchen looked so much better. Its sad when bare sheetrock looks awesome!

After the stripdown, I went to work on painting. I found an awesome alternative to texturing the walls myself. I bought texturizer that mixes in with the paint and it did the job just fine. I went with a buttercreamish color on the walls, which brightens things up drastically. Love it! And I painted all trims and doors a bright white. Ah! Fresh and bright! I rock!

Costs: stripping wallpaper, free. paint, $36. Texturizer, $2 on sale. Supplies, $10. total : $48

I have a nice base cabinet that was unfinished (paid $15 at a garage sale 5 years ago). I painted it a mossy green color that matched a set of shutters that I bought from an architectural salvage yard a few years back ($7 ea). With very little fresh paint and a lot of sealant, the shutters are back up in the windowsill, looking G-O-O-D!

Costs for paint and sealant: $8

Mom and I found a nice shelf that is sitting atop the base cabinet in the trash last year (that's free, baby). With a little textured, paintable wallpaper (for the interior) and some bright white paint, the shelving unit looks gorgeous. I love the way it looks and I need it for more storage space. Have I ever told you I rock? Well, I do.

Costs: textured wallpaper, free (grandparents rock).

Next on the list: Paint the cabinets white and distress and antique them (and distress and antique the shelf, too). Then, new countertops. I am cheap (and poor) so I will be going with faux granite, laminate. New flooring is also on the list. I will do the stickable tile that looks like travertine, set on the diagonal. Its cheap, easy, and looks much better than the current flooring. We desperately need new lighting, so that is going up. Lastly, we need a new garbage disposal because the current one stinks. Literally. And it hardly works.

Projected costs: about $500 total, unless I can work more of my magic.

Next on the lists of home projects: Girls' room (total redo), Living Room (paint update), Hallways (paint update)...