Tuesday, July 30, 2013

On a Big Birthday

Okay, deep breath.  In less than a month, I turn thirty.  Eek!  I'm not sure how I'm almost 30.  I'm pretty sure I'm still like 25.  Anyway, it's a big birthday.  And we're throwing a big fat birthday/labor day party.  So it will actually be a week after  my birthday but we had a family thing come up the weekend of my birthday.  So, for convenience, we moved the party to the next weekend, making it Labor Day weekend.  A long weekend is always a good time for a party.

Along with this being the big 30, I'm also realize I totally missed out on my Golden Birthday.  On my Golden Birthday, I didn't even know that was a thing.  And I was busy having my birthday suck.  Really really suck.  So, to compensate for the lack/knowledge of a Golden Birthday Celebration, we're going to go big for my thirtieth.

Okay, maybe not really big.  But, I've invited loads of friends.  And we'll have a bonfire (unless it's a thousand degrees).  And there'll be some booze.  Let's be realistic, lots of adult beverages.  And delicious food.  I'm pretty excited.

Parties are always weird though.  Especially when you mix together friends from different circles.  So there are my forever friends (you know, the ones who've been around for ages, like since elementary & middle school), my grad school friends, my work friends, my hubby's work friends, and our cousin friends (you know, the cousins we hang out with socially).  So, here's hoping it's a success.

I'm still kind of working out the details.  I know there will be cupcakes as my birthday cake.  I'm fairly sure I'll never be too old for a birthday cake.  And probably a margarita pie.  Yes, a pie full of lime and tequila.  Everything else is up in the air.  Oh, and marshmallow vodka, because I got a bottle on super sale a while back and I'm pretty sure I'm going to make my friends drink it with me.

And I invited our friends via text and facebook.  So I posted this snazzy little glitter fest on facebook because it's the 21st century yo.  

So, how do you celebrate your birthday?  Do you like a big party?  Dinner out?  Lots of presents?  Even though I am practically thirty, I still desperately love my birthday.  Birthdays are the best.

Friday, July 26, 2013

Updated House Tour

Okay guys, I went crazy.  I just spent the last..... huge amount of time updating my house tour.  We've made so much progress and nothing makes me happier than looking back to see how far we've come.  Okay, other things totally make me just as happy (if not happier):  cupcakes, going to the lake, girl time, doing actual DIY project, baking, and my husband.

So, anyway.  There are a crazy amount of pictures, so get ready.  This post also lives under the House Tour tab.

I go back to work on Monday so get ready for some pictures of my updated office in the upcoming days.  I'm busy spray painting frames as we speak (as I write....)  Anyway.  House Tour Go!

Exterior

The front of the house (east side)

There is a door into the front hallway just to the right of the garage.  There is also a door into the kitchen just to the right of the bay window.  Definite charm.  Just ignore the terrible sidewalk.

Not exactly the same angle, but a thousand times better than when we bought our house.  And I need to touch up the paint on the bay window.  It suffered a little during shrub removal.

The side of the garage (south side of house)

There is a huge flower bed here filled with yucca plants and river rock.  There was also a huge dead cactus that we chopped out.  FYI: cactus do not live well in Missouri.

The back of the house (west side)

If you're paying attention, all the shutters are not the same color.  It's ridiculous.  Sadly this has not changed yet.  It's on the list though.
A fresh coat of paint and it's so much prettier.  We still need to tame those bushes a bit, but still, so much prettier.

The north side of the house.

More oddly colored shutters.  There is also a patio under the top deck.  The boards that look out of place on the deck are closing off that side of the deck because a pool used to set there.  
Paint, stain, some new pavers to expand the patio and it's a whole new house from this side.

Interior:  Main Floor

Dining Room

We just walked in the door by the bay window.  Oh boy.  This was the first room we saw.  Orange-red painted paneling, curling linoleum, and a hole in the wall.
Darker red walls.  Pretty new floor.  And a custom painted kitchen table.

Kitchen

It didn't get any better.  Ugly, dirty wood cabinets.  Pink formica counter tops and back splash, brown worn out cast iron sink.  The faucet was nice though.  And there is a stove and built in microwave.  Think of the potential!  We did live with this for a few months though.  And hosted a party with those counters still in tact.

The cabinets have all been painted black, hardware was moved to a new more normal location.  We got a fridge & dishwasher.  A new black acrylic sink was installed.  And we replaced those hideous counter tops with new black Formica and added a brushed nickle faux tin back splash.
Man, those floors make a huge difference.  They're so shiny, I just like to stare at them.

Living Room

So it has good bones.  It's huge.  And we love the vaulted ceilings.  You can tell I was ready to get to work with my vacuum and ladder.

Paint, new furniture, it's getting so much better!

A new dresser turned entertainment center and a 60" plasma TV replaced the old clunker of a TV that finally bit the dust.  And a pink chair...  Not my favorite, but it serves the purpose and sure is comfy.

From here you can see into the hallway.  You can also check out one of two barnwood doors.  My mom still hates these.
Some art, some pillows, a new lamp and we're making progress!

The fireplace end of the room.  Check out those movie theater style lights.  Oh, BTW, they plug in.

Man, oh man.  More new furniture.  Ugly doors have been removed.  Built ins and mantle got a new coat of paint.  And most importantly, those crazy light fixtures have been replaced!

Hallway

From here you can see the front door, it's missing part of its trim.  You can also check out that main wall that is red and tan crackle pain.  And you get a nice view of some paneling.  Oh boy.

We've added some art and an entry way table to drop keys and sunglasses on.  I have plans of replacing our old thermostat with a new one and then putting a frame around it for a little fun.

That's the bathroom door you see on the left, the linen closet you see at the end of the hall, the master bedroom and the office are on the right side of the hall.  Pretty pretty paneling.
The tan hall.  Very very tan.  It was just too tan.

I spent months debating on the right color to switch it up.  We finally settled on this airy turquoise.  I think it was the perfect choice.  And we added a gallery wall to cover up the non-functioning attic fan switch.

The parade of changes we made on one wall.  Originally I thought it would be fun to leave the stripes from the paneling.  And I hung up some homemade art.  Then I decided it was way too tan so I remade my art with a turquoise background but the same basic flour.  And then I decided the stripes I had to go.  I hated the stripes so I painstakingly painted them all tan.  Finally the top of the walls got painted that pretty pretty blue.  And I moved our wedding picture in the floating flame over.  Turns out I over estimated on the amount of space I had for my gallery wall.

Guest Bathroom

This was actually one of my favorite rooms.  I love that green tub!  The blue paint does nothing for it, but I love the green tub.  It was my inspiration.  BTW, that sticker is still in our shower over a year later.

We painted the walls grey.  In my head, I think of it as elephant grey.  And we decorated with grey and green to tie in our green tub.

 A coat of grey paint and some green and grey accessories made a world of difference!

This is the vanity.  No idea why the doors look totally different.  Or why there is only one door knob.  Weird.

The vanity got a fresh coat of paint.  We put on new green knobs that match the tub.

The upper cabinet.  There is only one door.  So strange.  That is also a kitchen light fixture you can see hanging down.  C'mon now.

That crazy lone door got ripped off.  I painted the inside of the cabinet the same color as the walls.  And the green baskets are for some nice hidden storage and the grey drawers hide my make up.

We put in a new sink and faucet, ripped out the weird extra mirrors and framed out the remaining mirror.

Office

Nothing terrible.  The walls are just blah.  Nothing a good coat of paint can't fix.


Master bedroom

It's kind of blurry but there was nothing terrible about it.  The ceiling fan was ugly.  Otherwise it just needed an new coat of paint.




 Master bathroom

This isn't a true before, I had already painted the shelf.  It had been the same color as the mirror was.

 Some bright turquoise paint for that beachy vibe we love.  *We really do put away our cleaning supplies.  I don't know what my problem is.

Guest bedroom

This room was so ugly!  Bright red paint and blue poster paint.  Sheesh.  

Laundry room

These people sure loved their faux finishes.  A sponge painted wall and paneling.  

 
 New appliances.  Pink paint.  A zebra print curtain.  Trim got painted a crisp white.  And we installed shelves over both the washer and dryer.

Basement

Basement Living Room

Yes, that's exactly as ugly as it looks.  There had been a wood burning stove at some point and they stuffed a dirty rag in the hole.  They also bricked in the fire place very badly.  And more paneling.

Super ugly and built out of paneling.  When we had our home inspection water came shooting out of the wall above the sink.  It was terrifying.  We got the water cut off and also cut off the gas to the stove.
The walls got painted green.  I painted the bar a glossy white (to cover up the paneling.... yes, the bar is made out of paneling)

A close up of the bar top before and after.  The green tile is not my favorite but painting the walls green definitely helps.  And the white bar made the room so much lighter.

What has to be the world's smalles ceiling fan.  The fixture itself got painted silver.  And the fan blades got a nice coat of dark grey spray paint.  And now it looks brand new.

Basement Bedroom

We fondly refer to this as the Tupac room.  It was red with black spray paint.  Specifically Tupac spray painted on the walls.  This was one of the ugliest rooms.

Another view of this super attractive room.  With a very low hanging ceiling fan.

Three coats of Kilz.  And some black and gold stripes for a little Mizzou pride.  We still need to add baseboards.

Basement Bathroom

This picture does not do it justice.  When we bought the house the walls were bright blue and the ceiling was light blue.  It was quite amazing.  The floor was also just bare concrete.
My sweet husband did three coats of Kilz in here as well, on both the walls and the ceiling.  And we painted the same kind of stripes as the bedroom but in red and yellow for a little Chiefs pizzazz.  We also put down black adhesive tiles.  Probably not great for the long haul but it served the immediate flooring problem.

Red and yellow towels top off the Chiefs decor.