Monkey does hard time, Dresser Before and After

Here is a quick catch up via pictures. Enjoy!!

I come home to toys all over the house almost every day. I find them on my bed, under the bed and in all spots in between. The other day I came home to his. It appears Monkey was misbehaving while I was at work and was put in a bit of "time-out" if you will.

Here he is in relation to the other toys in the basket. It appears his punishment worked since he has not made a peep since this infraction:)

Bailey got this sweater for Christmas as well and I think he looks awfully dapper in it.

I bought this dresser a couple of years ago with every intention of refinishing it. Time slipped away. About 6 months ago my mom and I went and picked out paint...which is step one. I didn't really want to change the color much because I liked the weather grey...I just wanted it cleaner looking. This is the before.

I started sanding it by hand and realized VERY quickly that I was going to need some tougher tools. I knew paint stripper was the best solution so after an hour and many pieces of sand paper off I went to pick up some caustic chemicals. Woohooo I heart chemical assistance!

I made some serious progress, but soon realized this thing had three coats of paint over an oil based paint which was layer four. I really only needed to get it smooth enough for a new coat of paint so I wasn't to be deterred.

The drawers lined up like soldiers.

Here is an after of the same dresser with shiny new grey/blue paint and wonderful knobs. The official AFTER:

Here is a close up of the knobs...please excuse the minor crookedness. I didn't realize that until the pics hit my computer. By this time I didn't care so much. They are a clear swirled knob from Antropologie. I love them.

The entire process of fixing the dresser took HOURS. But its done and I love it. Bailey and Molly spent most of the time I was working curled up on the chair. They do have it rough;)

Act three: The Mantle Upgrade

I rested a little after finishing the kitchen and mudroom, but then moved into the living room and started a remodeling project there. The living rooms main wall was covered with....wait for it....BARN BOARD. Love it. I came up with a plan to take down the barn board and install custom built shelves, with a large mantle that would span from one wall to another. I started researching the idea..and I came up with a number of designs that I liked. That meant it was time to rip out more barn board and Sheetrock the main wall of the living room. We then built the shelves, complete with fancy trim work. It looks custom and it looks like it has always been there. I LOVE IT. It gives me a ton more storage and a great opportunity to accessorize to my hearts content.

PS-if it seems like we spend all of our time at Lowes and Home Depot, that would be correct. There was a span of about 5 months where we could not go a weekend without visiting a home improvement store.



This is the living room/fireplace when I moved in. Green brick?? Terra cotta tile hearth...who were the people who decorated this place???
I whitewashed the barn board and painted the brick white. I tried to accessorize the mantle with candles. I learned to live with the terra cotta hearth.
Here are the shelves in progress...and note we had taken down the bead board and replaced it with Sheetrock. Not an easy task. I also came up with the idea to paint the terra cotta tiles with heat resistant paint (like one would use on grills.) Brilliant idea. Here it is primed.
Here is a close up view of the finished details. Please note the trim work-we are pretty proud of that.
Here's the finished product:)

Act two: The Mudroom

Once the kitchen was complete it was obvious that the pantry/ mudroom/ laundry room needed an upgrade. The old mudroom was covered, and I mean COVERED in barn board. While barn board has its place-we didn't feel its place was right next to our newly modernized kitchen. We ripped down all the offending wood (way easier said then done.) We put up new Sheetrock, installed a new pantry, covered the walls in bead board, and carried the paint color from the kitchen to the adjoining mudroom. I also decided to add some hooks for our coats, which has been extremely useful.

A shot of the mudroom when I moved in. I think the previous owners must have gotten a good deal on barn board...the stuff was EVERYWHERE...

They even made a pantry out of barn board...

We like our pantry better.... We added a row of hooks to help us stay organized. Note-I know we love bead board like the old owners loved barn board.
A view into the mudroom from the kitchen...

The Kitchen Remodel

I first tackled the kitchen. The old kitchen we a little gross...so when I first moved in I did a minor cosmetic update. I ripped down wallpaper and painted everything including the cabinets. In October of last year I gutted the kitchen. We replaced the cabinets, appliances, counter tops, backsplash, plumbing including a brand new sink and the light fixture. We shopped around-I love a deal and got great prices on everything. Two of my favorite deals were the light fixture ($5 in the Lowes sidewalk sale,) and the small tile we used in the accent row on the backsplash (a mere $1 a sq foot-also in the Lowes sidewalk sale-I bought all they had-about 6 sheets.) We did all the labor ourselves, with the help of my dad and brother. I will say my Dad knows plumbing and electrical and this was not his first kitchen upgrade. He was a huge help and I learned allot.

Things I learned:

1. Taking down wallpaper is a horrible, evil job. The older the wallpaper the worse it will be.

2. ALWAYS pay to have the appliances delivered-specifically the refrigerator. It's worth the $75 to have to delivered-take my word for it.

3. It takes weeks to get counter tops delivered and installed. We finished the entire remodel in 4 days and then waited two weeks for the counter tops. I made poor Kevin install our sink "temporarily" on a sheet of plywood so we could do our first Thanksgiving in our new kitchen. We got our counter tops a week or so later.

4. Measure, measure, measure. Kevin was in charge of layout. He did a great job-and we did not have to return any cabinets due to mis-measurements. I was impressed.

5. Whatever you budget-no matter how good of a job you do-add at least a few hundred dollars to the top. The incidentals included: toe kick pieces, filler pieces for the cabinets, caulk, new switch plates-etc. You can imagine how these things add up.

All that said-we were very close to budget. We finished the demo and installation (save the countertops and backsplash) in just over 5 days. We were sitting in a brand new kitchen in 6 weeks. Not bad for our first big project together. I LOVE IT!!!

The Kitchen when I moved in to the house. As you will see...the previous owners loved them some country decorating.... I made minor cosmetic changes with paint...
My dad, brother and Kevin installing the first new cabinet....
The finished prodcut-we are really proud of the tile backsplash....
Another view of the finished kitchen...