Update: Kitchen and Paint Colors

Time to share some progress with you guys. I have been painting my little heart and have made good progress on two rooms and a lot of trim. Today I can give you a little update on the kitchen progress. 

First a little look back to where we started. 

The orange oak trim is EVERYWHERE in this house. 

There was also a strip of super old wallpaper in the dining area. 

This stuff was awful to get down. Brian's hands were actually sore the next day from all the scraping. 

 What we have done so far:
   -removed the wall paper (details here)
   -painted (most of) the trim
   -painted the ceiling
   -added our island (from the last house)
   -painted the walls

Here is our progress picture...

And a wider shot of the kitchen.

Yes we have a partially ripped off

 back splash and no I am not a fan of the island in this house

but I really need the counter space.  

Well you can clearly see we are a work in progress. We have a HUGE list of things to do for the first stage of our kitchen makeover. We are loving how things are looking so far with just a little paint

The paint color in the kitchen is Sea Salt in Harmony by Sherwin Williams. It took two coats to get a nice even color on the walls. The trim paint is just an off the shelf low VOC semi gloss. We use low or no VOC for all of our paint. I am the one that does 75% of the painting and since I am pregnant and home with a toddler and a dog it makes sense to use it. Painting the trim was a bit of a task because the low VOC primer can sometimes need a couple more coats to get good coverage. I ended up doing 3 coats of primer and two coats of semi gloss on the trim and did no sanding before and the coverage is good. 

For the first phase of kitchen beautification we are planning:

   -new light fixtures

   -paint both doors in the kitchen

   -remove the rest of the back splash and paint

   -painting the kitchen cabinets

   -painting or changing the counter tops

   -adding shelving (already on the way!!)

   -new floors?? maybe.

If feels like I have been painting for a weeks straight and we have a lot more to do but I think we can get phase one done by the July deadline.

I also wanted to share the color scheme we are leaning toward for the whole house. We want a beachy neutral cottage palette. I, of course, would paint the entire house white and grey but Brian needs some color so a nice beachy palette is a good compromise for us. Since we can see the ocean it fits the house perfectly :) We are mostly sticking to the colors below and maybe adding a little coral for some pop. 

Our last bit of news is regarding the front door color. We have picked our winner. Thanks everyone for your votes and input. We have decided to go with the second one down. It is a nice bold teal color and I am trying to step outside of my painting comfort zone and go for something bold. I originally was sure it would be the fourth one down but it looks very similar to the kitchen color. Can't wait to get started! 

Happy Monday!

Choosing A Color: The Front Door

I love the trend of painting the front door a fun color. Our home normally has a very subdued palette so we have decided that it would be fun to add a pop of color and personality to the front door. Inside we have a beachy coastal color scheme (basically greys with some blue and green hints) so I wanted to stick with that theme for the front door but make it a little more bold. Now I just need some help deciding. 

The door is immediately surrounded by brick and then has weathered wood shingles beyond that. 

The colors are all Sherwin Williams HGTV colors. The top color

is reading pink in this picture but it 

is more coral red. 

When I zoom out from the door you can get a better idea of all the colors and textures we are dealing with. You can also see a guest appearance from Amelia and Goose if you look close :) 

 We also plan on removing the storm door eventually so that big

 silver thing wont be in the way. 

Here is a close up of the colors. Brian and I both have favorites but I would love to hear some opinions from other people before we decide.  

Let me know what you think :)

Stretching A Canvas

Last year for Mother's Day Brian got me a big roll of canvas. Yes last year! We moved not long after and my poor roll of canvas has been sitting in storage. Finally we are getting settled and I was feeling inspired so it was time to put that canvas to good use. I asked Brian to make me a frame while I checked out tips on stretching canvas. Turns out it is really easy. 

Supply List:
-Un-primed roll of canvas
-Wood for frame (they have pre-measured frames at craft stores)
-Staple gun

Brian used 1x1 pieces of pine and made a basic frame. The frame measures around 40"x50". 

First I unrolled the canvas a placed the frame on top. I left about 6 inches of canvas all the way around the frame since I am a beginner. Next time I will leave less excess. 

I started with one of the long sides and folded the canvas up and put one staple in the center. I then did this to each side (long sides fist and then short sides) and pulled the canvas tight each time. 

Once I had a staple in each side I then went to each side (following the same pattern) and put two staples in. I would pull it snug using the frame each time. I did this until I got to the corner of each side. 

This picture is with the sides all stapled. You can see that the canvas is pulled tight underneath. The trick for me is only putting in a couple of staples each side and then following the same pattern as you move from side to side. I can see that if you  tried to do one side at a time you may end up with ripples. 

Once I got to the corner I folded the extra fabric so there is a 45* angle fold on one side and it is smooth on the other. I then put a couple staples in. 

Once all four corners are stapled you have a stretched canvas! You can see that I had a lot of extra fabric but it came out nice and tight with no ripples. Not bad for our first try. 

All trimmed up and ready for primer. 

The entire project took about 30 minutes. I am including the 10 minutes it took for Brian to build the frame. Brian also did the stapling while I did the pulling and stretching. It would have taken much longer if I did it alone but it is entirely possible. This pregnant girl is not above asking for some assistance these days. 

After we stretched the canvas I grabbed the Gesso to prime. This step actually took me longer than the stretching. The canvas soaks up the primer really fast and it took a while to get nice coverage. I ended up doing 2 coats of Gesso before I started the actual painting. 

I loved this project. I now have a custom size canvas for far cheaper than any store bought pre-stretched canvas. It really was as easy as it sounds and I would recommend trying it. Custom and cheap, you can't beat that. 

ps. I have since finished the painting and will hopefully post some pictures on here next week :) When I am feeling inspired, things get done!

Bookshelves

I have a confession to make. We are book hoarders. Can't throw them out or give them away. Even textbooks. We sold most of our textbooks back but we both kept some. We have moved boxes and boxes of books multiple times but the bookshelves didn't make it.

This weekend we were a little tired of tripping over boxes of books so Brian decided to build some basic bookshelves to house our books until we build a more permanent home. We are thinking built-ins with a desk. 

   

In his makeshift workshop.

He made a really simple (easy) bookshelf. The cut list for one unit is: 5 pieces cut at 36". We went with pine since we would be painting them.  

We love love the Kreg Jig. We use it for almost every building project. By we, I mean Brian but I am very supportive. With the Kreg Jig we have no exposed screws so no need for wood putty. Makes the painting process go much smoother.

We needed tall shelves for all the textbooks, but you can 

add more shelves depending on your need. 

We have the basic frame built it just needs a backing (for support and aesthetics), a paint job, and the books! We are planning on bead-board as the backing and most likely a nice clean white paint job. So far the project was $25 for the wood and it took Brian an hour to make 2 unfinished bookshelves. We did have the wood precut at Lowes to fit in the trunk. 

I look forward to showing the finished project!

Wallpaper, Paint, & Trim: Oh My!

We are making progress. We have moved everything in and we are sloooowly getting work done. I really love doing work on the house but I have been feeling a little overwhelmed lately. Brian works full time outside of the house and I can't get a lot of the painting done during the day (thank you toddlers). The progress feels slow and only happens a couple hours at night and on the weekends. I truly love the process but I am ready to start getting some major work finished. 

In the meantime I can share what we have done so far. We are starting with boring monotonous work but it can make such a difference. First up: wallpaper removal. 

See that tiny amount of trim up there. It took FOREVER. On and off an entire day of scrubbing. Brian spent the entire day peeling and removing this. This is old school non strip-able wallpaper and it was a nightmare. The best method for us was:

   -Score the wallpaper.

   -Spray with a mixture of stripping solution and water.

   -Let it sit for 15 minutes.

   -Spray with warm/hot water again.

   -Peel with a plastic paint scraper (metal will scratch wall).

   -Use a sponge dipped in hot water and scrub. 

Quite the process! Poor Brian. 

Next up: ceiling painting! Our ceilings clearly have not been touched since the house was built in 1970 and they are stained, splotchy, and dingy. We decided for the main living areas we would go with a nice bright flat white. We may be more creative with the bedrooms but we want to bring as much light into these spaces as possible. We ended up using the Ace Hardware brand and because we have textured ceilings we ran out very fast. But as you can see in the picture above it makes quite the difference. 

Another thing we have been working on is the trim. We have barely started and I can't wait until the trim is done. We have orange oak floors, trim, and doors. Way too much for me. The floors are in good shape and maybe eventually we will refinish them. For now we are going to paint the trim and put down some rugs. 

Pretty soon we can start posting some real progress pictures. Right now the timeline is feeling really short and the list is looking really long. Here is to getting started though! 

Happy Weekend! 

Our First Weekend and Sir List a Lot

Last weekend marks our first weekend spent in the new home. We are still in transition (for a few reasons) so our first weekend looked a little more like camping. Our furniture consists of camping chairs, blow-up mats, a pack n play, and a cooler for a baby gate. We hope to get everything moved in the next two weeks and I can't wait. Even with the camping feel it was so nice to be in our own home with (most of) our things. We actually felt like we were on vacation and I have not felt that relaxed since we moved to New England. We still have our rental and this turned out to be really helpful because our first weekend we also learned some things about the house. 

What our first weekend taught us:

-Our hot water doesn't work. At all...

-The water pressure is crazy low.

-An oil tank was put in after the washer and dryer so we have to remove door frames to get ours in.

-There are no blinds or curtains and LOTS of windows.

Those are pretty big things. There is a washer and dryer in there (from 1970ish) so that isn't a huge deal. The water pressure can also be adjusted but the hot water is an issue. We knew we needed to get our boiler services upon moving in but when we were disgusting and sweaty after a day of hard work a hot shower would've been nice. Instead we just washed hair in the sink in cold water and stuck it out. Not pretty. Luckily though we do have our rental so we were only stinky for so long and we should have hot water up and running soon. 

During our relaxing weekend we also had time to start making lists. My favorite! We have so much work to do that we are having to break our lists down to phases as to not get overwhelmed. 

First Things First: This list is the we must do now list and may not be all that fun or glamorous. But we can't live without hot water. 

-Service boiler.(possibly add reserve water tank or electric one)

-Replace roof.(this was negotiated into the price and expected)

-Find out water pressure issue and fix.

-Blinds/curtains for bathrooms and bedrooms at least.

-Rug for living space. (Goose slips on hardwood floors)

Now for the fun stuff.  We broke down (most of) the main living spaces and decided what our first phase of updates will be. Honestly I can see these list getting longer and longer because we are full of ideas. Love love love owning a home. 

Phase 1:

Living Room: 

-Paint trim/wall/fireplace mantel

-Furniture! Couch, chairs, ottoman, lamps, etc. We sold almost all of our living room furniture before moving. Sitting on the ground wont work for long.

-Curtains. I hope to try making some but I am far from a seamstress so we'll see how far I get with that. 

-New stair railing. 

Kitchen: 

-Paint cabinets. Probably going to go with simply white in Ben Moore advance line. Probably.

-Remove laminate back splash.

-Roman shades or bamboo blinds. 

-Paint walls/trim.

-Remove chair rail..maybe.

-Remove odd decorative wood above sink.

-Paint counter tops. Thinking about trying a faux granite paint until we move onto the next phase of ripping out the kitchen and starting over. 

-New floors? We haven't decided what to do with the floors but these are coming up on the edges so we may do a temporary fix until the final phase. 

Dining Space:

-Blinds for window.

-Open shelving.

-Paint walls/trim.

-Remove chair rail?

-New light fixture. I have my eye on a globe pendant from West Elm.

-Paint door to garage. (not seen in this picture)

Hallway/Stairway:

-Paint walls/trim/doors.

-New door knobs.(or possibly paint the old ones)

-Paint stair risers.

-Add stair runner. Brian has already slipped down the stairs multiple times from wintery wet shoes and steep stairs. 

-Baby gate!

-Hopefully a full art/gallery wall in the stairway. I have a vision of a floor to ceiling gallery wall. I have been working on sketches and art for just that purpose. 

Blue Bathroom:

-Blinds!

-Shower curtain.

-New shower head.

-Paint vanity/storage door/trim.

-This bathroom is an overhaul so we are not doing much now. While I sort of love our pink and blue bathrooms they are dated. We don't plan on keeping anything that is in here so we will save our pennies until then.

We have plans to paint, add blinds, and add lighting to the three bedrooms upstairs (including a nursery!) but I don't have pictures of those rooms yet. All these projects for phase 1 should keep us busy for a while. We don't have any phase 1 plans for the sun room or downstairs. We have 2 bedrooms a bathroom and an unfinished laundry room downstairs. 

I can't wait to get started! We hope to get all phase 1 done by the time baby #2 comes in July. Soooo basically we are already behind. 

Happy DIYing!

Under Contract!

After months(!) of searching we are finally under contract on our New England home. We looked and looked in New Hampshire. Everywhere we looked in New Hampshire we felt that we had to compromise something on our list. Every weekend we would look and feel disappointed. So in an attempt to get past the house hunting blues we went a little north into Maine. That is where we found our new digs! Onto another state (I am so sick of the DMV at this point). But we found a house the covered, what we felt, were the most important things on our list. 

I shared the below picture about a week ago on Instagram (@tyoast). The view is what really sold us on the house. It's hard to say no to an ocean view. 

The house was built in 1970 and is a split level style house. We were looking for a ranch style and we feel that we mostly got that here. We can live on one level for the most part and the lower level is a bonus. We have about 1400 sq feet finished on the upper level and 140 sq ft finished on the lower level with 800 square feet unfinished. We have 2 unfinished rooms and an unfinished laundry/mud room on the lower level. 

Let's get to the good stuff...pictures!

Brick and wood shingles on the outside. I love love

the look of the weathered shingles. Gives it a beachy vibe. 

One car garage. This was a compromise for Brian. He does woodworking so this will be tight with a car and his projects, but we will make do.

When you walk in the house it is a split staircase. When you go upstairs there is the kitchen straight ahead and a living space to the right. Also, WOOD FLOORS :)

The NEVER used fireplace. It has been around since the 70's and never even touched. This was another reason we loved this house, extremely clean and well kept. I don't actually know that we will keep the fireplace but for now we love it. 

The kitchen leaves a lot to be desired. We plan to gut the kitchen eventually. In the meantime we will jazz it up with some paint, hardware, and add a dishwasher until we can do a total overhaul. Like I said, extremely clean and feels hardly lived in. 

The kitchen has a large eat in area. Large enough for a table, maybe not our monster farmhouse table but big enough. We hope to have a deck off the kitchen and change those nice large windows to some french doors...eventually. The door that Amelia is looking through leads to the bonus room.  

Brick wall in the kitchen...don't mind if I do. Love love love brick accents on the inside. Also you know I can't wait to get my white paint on all the wood trim. 

The staircase up to the bonus room. This room was added in the late 80's. This room is also what has the excellent view of the ocean. 

Unfortunately it was a rainy foggy day so the view is non existent in these photos and the lighting is bad but this is a nice big space that will be perfect for all family things. I imagine a TV, play, exercise room. With all those windows I want to spend all my time in here :)

Back to the other side of the kitchen. We have a hallway that leads to 2 bedrooms, an office, and a full bath. The wood floors are in all the rooms and office as well. 

How fantastically tacky is this bath. Well I actually love the black and white tile. The rest has to go...eventually. That is my new word, eventually. It may be dated and, well blue, but it is nice and clean and we can live with it for now. You may like this one even more when you see the other bathroom. 

Onto the downstairs. But first lets zoom in on that awesome outlet cover. 

Ahhhhh yeah! And you better believe that these are on almost every outlet cover...in the entire house. 

Unfinished laundry/mud room. It does have a sink and folding table area. Plus it is already framed and insulated so it wont be difficult to finish.

This is one of the rooms downstairs. It actually has a huge attached storage space (potential closet) and an attached finished bath so we will most likely turn this into the master suite. You know after we change the floors, tackle the wood paneling, and finish the closet. Oh and just wait for the "master" bath. 

Time warp to elementary school girls bathroom, right! I sorta love this sink (sorta). But the pink needs to go. 

Here is a little shot of the different floors we are dealing with downstairs. Pretty fantastic. I will not miss them when they go. 

You can imagine how long our to do list is. We are breaking our list down into phases. Since we can live in the house without needing immediate work we will start with small aesthetic changes (lots of paint...lots) to give it some of our personality. Phase two will be finishing up those unfinished areas and floors. Phase three will be gutting (bathrooms and kitchen), adding a deck, and possibly knocking down a wall or two. We have a long timeline but can't wait to start tackling these projects. Now where did I put that bucket of white paint and my angle brush.