The Start of Another Reno

It has been wayyy too long since my last post.  Honestly, several personal things happened that took my attention away from the blog.  Plus, spring and summer were on their way and T (Hubs) and I spent as much time outdoors as possible.  It was a particularly beautiful and unseasonably cool/non-humid summer in the Mid-Atlantic!

But, as winter approaches, we find ourselves in the throws of another house renovation.  Whats up?  The Kitchen!!  I am particularly super stoked about this renovation as our existing kitchen with some bits and pieces of minor finish upgrades is a sad sad story.

Here is what we started with:

With a few minor upgrades:

And this is what we hope to end up with:

Full details and sourcing to follow!  Get excited.

The Day I Turned 30

You heard that right, today, March 4th, I turned 30.  I must say that it is kinda crazy to say 'Thirty'.  I never thought, and still don't, think 30 is old.  My last year in my twenties was definitely everything I ever hoped it to be.  So 30 feels pretty darn good (even if it is still weird to see it on paper).

What did I ask for my birthday.  There are probably four people (my parents, my husband, and my bff) that know exactly the first and top thing I always want for my birthday ....

Yes, that is an Ice Cream Cake.  I prefer Dairy Queen, but when one isn't close by, I'll take a Baskin Robbins.

What else did I want ... not much of anything else (I am horrible on the whole gift specification).  But, I will say Hubs planned a nice little evening - a lovely homemade dinner and beautiful flowers.

A month of my life is missing because it was spent in the Basement

Its been pretty crazy around these parts over the past month.  There was no life that existed beyond the basement.  7 days a week and all free time (aka after work and each weekend) was devoted to working on the basement.

There is so much to catch up on.  Lets start from my last post on 1/20.  Sounds logical. (I'll forewarn you, they are all iPhone pics, which aren't the best, but when you are in the middle of painting whipping out the nice camera isn't that easy) ...

First, floor tile.  We ordered this fabulous montauck black slate tile in 12x24 pieces.  You won't see it here, but the grout color is charcoal.

Then, wall tile.  I had my heart set on subway tile, which luckily doesn't break the bank.  Except, that we decided to tile more than just the shower.  I went with a light gray grout, one because I think it looks cool and two it hides the dirt and grime.

Then there came the paint.  This was probably the one thing Hubs and I didn't initially agree one - I wanted more gray, he wanted more beige.  So I picked out every type of gray, tan, beige, greige color known to mankind.  Surprisingly though, we both narrowed it down in like 5 minutes and picked a color - BMs Annapolis Gray.  I already had my mind set on an accent color - BM's Hale Navy.

Our top three are on the left side, and in the pic below

Didn't get an action shot of the vinyl going in Hubs room, but it looks pretty awesome!

Occupancy sensors were a must in the Storage and Laundry Rooms

A Hale Navy ceiling in the bathroom ... a nice twist

We built some stairs,

And then, finally, finished up with some carpet! (don't mind the mess, we are still unpacking and organizing)

Shut the Door!

No rest for the weary.  We are still movin' and shakin' down in the basement.  Here is what has happened in only one week.

1. Door deliver on Monday
2. Install doors Tuesday - Friday
3. Drywall finishers returned to sand Sunday
4. Pick-up primer and paint Saturday.  Primed everything on Sunday except for Hubs'/Storage Room and the Bathroom.
5. Picked up our slate tile on Sunday.

And here is the status of each room, with a little more info.  Everything came from Home Depot by the way.

1.  Doors - we chose solid wood shaker style doors made by Jeld-Wen.  They match our doors upstairs, plus we love the style.  Hubs and I both had "strong"" opinions as to how a door should be hung.  Luckily we only had a few to get through, with the help of these instructions.

The first door we set

We need to figure out a way to finish all the door headers due to our low ceilings.

The louvered door is to the mechanical room.

2. The drywall finishers sanded and sanded and sanded.  I only have pics of the bathroom and storage room ... because I was lazy.

3.  Primed the walls.  We used Behr Premium Drywall primer.

 4.  And, our tile! - it is 12"x24" Montauk Black Slate Tile.  And I am in love!