I Love

This Chair. So fun. It's from Crate & Barrel and a bit expensive. I do, however, have two great chairs that need to be reupholstered. Now to find this fabric....

Decorate? No, DEMO!

So all plans to start painting and decorating our lovely home were postponed when we actually moved in and found some pretty big issues that need to be taken care of ASAP. Don't get me wrong, we love our house, but the previous owners did a real craptastic job on a lot of things. I'm no home improvement guru, but even I know that the vanity top in a bathroom should be somehow attached to the bottom part. And believe it or not, "drop-in" kitchen sinks do require adhesive and caulk. You can't just drop them in.

Our progress:

-8 trips to Home Depot in the past 5 days.
-Tore down two walls of rotting paneling in the basement.
-Used our newly acquired masonry skills to patch foundation blocks with hydraulic cement.
-I've also spent a total of 10 hours cleaning the living room, office, bathroom, and kitchen. I know I have a pretty high standard for cleanliness, but WOW. All I can say is WOW. In my 3 years as a hotel housekeeper I never encountered a bathroom dirtier than our new one.

The plan:

-Seal basement floor tile with polyurethane floor paint. Yes, it's super old tile and there's a 99.9% chance it contains asbestos so we are sealing those babies down.
-Use Quick Level to fix uneven floor in basement.
-Paint the two foundation walls where we tore down paneling with waterproofing masonry paint. Basically the goal is to turn our basement in to a submarine.
-Decide on flooring for extra room in basement once Quick Level is set. Carpet or tile?
-Install three Lally column support beams in basement to give our old home a little extra support.
-Rototill a large portion of the yard and move dirt to change the grade of our yard so it slopes away from the house.
-Smile and love our 80 year old home :-)

Our home. Yes, the trim is a shade of purple. Yes, we will paint it someday.

Less than 24 hours after closing on our house, Josh and Andrew started tearing up paneling:

Aqua and Terra Cotta?

Just a few ideas for decorating our new living room. It's really hard to find pics with natural woodwork because everyone paints it white!


This is by far my favorite inspiration pic. I don't think I'd go for a zebra print rug though.

Maybe a rug like this?

Coffee Anyone?

I already have some coffee sacks thanks to a dear friend who works as a barista. Can't wait to make pillows like these for the bench on our porch!

9 Days!

Just 9 days until we close on our house. Can you tell I'm excited? My first project will be a bathroom facelift. My challenge will be space. Our bathroom is tiny and there's no linen closet so all bathroom related items will have to be stored in the bathroom. Novel idea, right? It will definitely cut back on buying any unnecessary (read: FUN) toiletries.

Bathroom To Do List:
1. CLEAN it!
2. Regrout the tile.
3. Refinish the tub if it doesn't get clean enough.

4. Find a blue to match the existing tile and paint away!



5. Install my two craigslist finds

Craigslist find #1 - Shelf with Towel Bar ($10)

Craigslist find #2 - Vanity Light Fixture ($50)

6. Have Andrew build storage unit for towels etc. Maybe something like this that we can mount on the wall to avoid taking up floor space?

Or we'll just buy one of these from IKEA.

7. Either buy a new curtain rod or spray paint the existing one white.
8. Buy a new shower curtain and liner. I like the look of a simple white waffle weave. Target?


And because we all know projects are never 100% done, here's a list of things to do somewhere down the road...
-Have "Andrew & handy friends" knock out the shower window and install glass blocks with a vent.
-Replace the rubber shower hose with a nice metal one.
-Install a medicine cabinet. I'm loving this one from IKEA.


-If I ever find vintage iron steps I will so paint them white and steal this cute idea.

Before and After Pics Coming Soon!

Sometimes It's Very Hard To Wait

I know I should wait until we've actually moved in to our house to think about paint colors, but I can't resist. I really want to push myself out of my "beige comfort zone" and do a dramatic paint color in our bedroom.

Here's our lovely Laura Paisley bedding...


And some paint inspiration...

Post 1

Hi. I'm Laura and here begins my blog about my adventures living in the great North (aka Minnesota). My husband Andrew and I have been married for almost a year and we are closing on our first house in a few short weeks. So yes, my blog will consist mostly of home improvement updates, at least for now. Enjoy!