Painted Ceilings

Traditional Kitchen by San Marino Interior Designers & Decorators Charmean Neithart Interiors, LLC.

What do you think of painting ceilings a color? Are you for or against? A firm believer that any color other then white will make it look like a cave? Or are you all for livening things up? 

After getting the the back splash in the kitchen finished, I felt it was time for a few changes in the kitchen! I had plenty of ideas for the kitchen while I was planning it, but somehow when it came time to finish it up and move in, it didn't come together like I had envisioned. Over the summer I have been pondering this, when I had a spare minute! 

When I was working on my front porch, I looked at a lot of pictures on Pinterest and Houzz. There was a lot of blue ceiling porches! I love them! I also read it is a southern tradition and suppose to keep the bugs away. So to get back to kitchens, suddenly I thought maybe a blue ceiling in the kitchen would be pretty. It would add some interest and bring in a bit more of my blue color scheme. 

Traditional Closet by Salt Lake City General Contractors Cameo Homes Inc.

Transitional Kitchen by Shaker Heights Architects & Building Designers Shaker Interiors
What do you think? 

The family seems unsure of the idea, I don't think they have the vision yet! I got a lot of weird faces when I asked what they thought. Anyone taken the plunge? Do you like it or not?

Weekend Project

We spent the weekend up to our elbows in mortar, tiling the kitchen back splash. Once the first tiles were up, I keep asking myself why I didn't get this done sooner! It made such a huge difference in the kitchen, so much more finished looking. (I know the answer to that question! A lot more fun working outside or on the porch then in the kitchen during the summer!)

It was fun doing a bigger messy project again. I think the last time we did something this big was re-doing the living and dinning room floors in July. As you can see, it kind of disrupted life for a few days, the kitchen was a wreak!

I love tiling, it was one of the first do-it-yourself projects I learned. On looking back at previous posts, we were tiling the bathroom on the exact same day last year! So funny!

At one point in the middle of tiling, Mandy turned to me and said, "We don't have to go home!". "What?" I asked.  "We don't have to go home when we are done, we are home!" 

So many days and nights last year after we finished up for the day, we would leave, wondering and dreaming of when we wouldn't have to go home anymore.....

The New Kitchen

Because of the horrible weather on Monday, I was able to stay home from work. And because it was a lovely bright day and we needed to stay warm, Mom and I decided to clean the kitchen. What better way to spend the day then cleaning and work on house things? 

We tore through the kitchen like a whirl wind doing some much needed tidying, rearranging the counters for the thousand time and de-cluttering. After all that work we decided a photo session was in order! So, here it is- The Almost Finished Kitchen!

Disclaimer: This of course is not how it looks normally. What kitchen stays this clean all the time?!

 As you will probably notice, there are still a few things to be done. The kick plate needs to be finished, back splash tiled, windows and doors trimmed out and the end shelves installed. But it is a functioning kitchen and we have hot and cold running water, so we are not complaining!

 Once I get the curtains up, they will add a dash of blue to the red.

Mom's beloved Kitty Cat clock. This is a reproduction of the ones made during the Great Depression.

 The "ugly" side of the kitchen. We are planning on installing a pantry cupboard on the other side of the refrigerator (the side not shown). The quilt is also a temporary fixture, it is there to keep the warm air from disappearing down the basement stairs. On my list of things to find; one basement door!

 A Christmas present. Isn't it cute! I couldn't help falling in love with it.

We loved all the colors against the crisp white.

This is my favorite drawer. The sides are made of tin and it appears to at one time have had a sliding tin lid.

 You can see here the tin drawer is the deepest drawer, which is why it ended up full of dish towels. I do like the two little drawers on top of each other. They keep our mixing spoons and gadgets organized nicely.

Well, I hope you enjoyed my kitchen tour! I will be sure to share an update when it is properly finished!

Have-Done-List

While I was working on yesterday's post, I was thinking of all the things we had done in each room. Even though it hasn't been that long ago, I had forgotten some things.(too many things happening at once!) So for future reference and to remind me just how far the little house has come I am going to make a Have-Done-List.

 

 

 

Entry

Tore up linoleum floor.

Steamed and scraped tar paper off of floor

Re-wired switch and outlet

Added ceiling light

Patched holes from electrical work

Primed and painted walls, ceiling and trim

Sanded, stained and shellacked floor

Replaced quarter round trim

 

Living/Dining Room

Pulled a million and one staples out of the floor

Pulled up carpet tack strips

Re-wired switches and outlets

Added ceiling light in the living room

Moved ceiling light to center of dining room

Patched holes cut for electrical work

Primed and painted walls and trim

Sanded, stained and shellacked floor 

Replaced quarter round trim

 

Kitchen

Pulled up carpet

Removed cabinets so we could pull up wood floor

Pulled up wood floor

Added new joist to fix sagging floor

Installed cement board and tile on floor

Patched walls behind cupboards

Primed walls (no paint yet!)

Primed and painted cabinets

Re-installed cabinets

Replaced counter tops

Re-wired outlets and switches

 

First Bedroom

Pulled up carpet

Removed staples and carpet tack strips

Rewired switches and outlets

Added ceiling light

Patched walls where plumbing had been plastered in and old wall light had been

Primed and painted walls, ceiling, trim and doors

Shellacked floors

Replaced quarter round trim

 

Second Bedroom

Pulled up carpet

Removed staples and carpet tack strips

Rewired switches and outlets

Added ceiling light

Patched holes from electrical exploration

Primed and painted walls, ceiling, trim and doors

Shellacked floors

Replaced quarter round trim

 

Bathroom

Removed all fixtures, walls, floor and ceiling

Re-wired switches and outlet

Added exhaust fan

Install new window 4" to right of old one

Frame in bathtub and new closet

Cement board the floor

Install new tub

Replace plumbing

Insulate walls

Drywall walls

Plaster walls

Tile floor and tub walls

Prime and paint walls and ceiling

 

Front Stairs and Landing

Ripped up carpet

Pulled out staples

Re-wired switch and light

Painted and primed walls and ceiling

Painted kick plates on stairs

Shellacked steps and landing

 

Upstairs Bedroom

Ripped out carpet

Pulled up staples and carpet tack strips

Switched door from out-swinging to in-swinging

Tore out outlets that were on the outside of the wall

Added new outlets inside wall

Re-wired switch and light

Primed and painted walls and ceiling, trim and doors.

Shellacked floor

 

Sewing Room

Pulled up staples

Re-wired outlet

Primed and painted walls and ceiling, trim, windows and doors

Scraped paint off corner of floor

Shellacked floor

 

Porch

Pulled up carpet

Scraped old glue and paint off floor

Primed and painted floor

Washed walls

Painted trim

One Year Ago Today...............

It has been a year since I bought my little house! Can you believe it?! It has been quite the adventure. Who knew buying a house would change our lives so much?

 

Don't you love looking back on birthdays, anniversaries and other such occasions on how much has changed in the past year? In honor of this occasion I thought we could take a visual look back on all that has changed at my house in one year! (I also realized I really haven't shared all of the before/after pictures.) Of course some of the pictures are not "after" pictures, just "Progress" pictures.
 

 Entry

Before

After

 

Living Room

Before

After

 

 

Dining Room


Before

After

 

First Bedroom

Before

After

 

 

Second Bedroom

Before

After

 

Bathroom

Before

After

 

Kitchen

Before

 

Progress

 

Stairs

Before

After

 

Landing

Before

After

 

Upstairs Bedroom

Before

After

 

Sewing Room

Before

After

Porch

Before

After



Exterior

Before

After

 

It really is amazing looking back, isn't it?