Warning, this post is going to be very picture heavy!
I'm going to show you before, during, and afters; along with some of my inspirations for decorating. Its been a busy bit since my last post, and so today I'm updating everyone while I get my laundry done. :)
First, let me show you what the empty house looks like. I walked through taking a video while the Realtor showed me the house, then forgot to take pictures. So these may be a bit blurred or shaky, but its the best I could pull from a video.
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| through the front door |
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| panning around to doorway |
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| door! :) |
Ok, so that's the empty front room, aka, living room. And as you can see its not bad. The previous owner left us a very old and nasty looking air unit, and hopefully it wont work and we can toss it. We haven't turned it on yet, I'm scared of what might come flying out at us.
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| cabinets in the kitchen |
So in the first photo, you can see that you go straight from the door to the kitchen space, and sadly this was all I could get off the video to show you my kitchen, but I have more photos to come. I think this photo shows you the weird "L" shape of my kitchen though. To the left of that window is another doorway which leads to my laundry room. The kitchen was originally the back porch and got boarded in. It has drop ceiling tiles (I know - weird) and they cover the old green tin from the 50's. (It matched the tub!) So, the house then got another porch, which was also later closed in to become the laundry room. The other side of that window has siding on it, even though its still indoors. (I know, right?)
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| master bedroom |
This is the master bedroom, there is another window to the right of this photo. So I get lots of light. :) Not much to say about this room yet, so we will move on to my bathroom. I know yall have been wanting to see my "army" tub, right?
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| TA-DA! |
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| My sink is normal though, so is the toilet. |
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| And my not-so-pretty shower set up. |
So, yeah, um, "EW" is all I thought here. You can't see my mirror(s), but above the towel bar is an "unbreakable" mirror that is made out of a reflective plastic. I thought it was glass until I started to take it down, I touched it and it pressed in like saran wrap will after its stretched and you touch it. WEIRD! So yeah it was first to go, it was also shaped funny and I had better plans for that wall. Towel bar is gone too. So is the old curtain and rod covering the window and the silver rod you see there. My medicine cabinet was also really gross and took a lot of Lysol wipes for it to get to my standards before I would put my toothbrush in there. This room was actually the first to get attention. I had my dad come over and re-paint it for me, it had 3 different colors on the walls and after taking all the junk off the walls you could definitely tell. He also re-caulked the seams of the tub and walls for me. Thank you Daddy!
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| guest bedroom |
Moving on....
Guest room! Also with 2 windows for lots of light! This is the smaller room toward the back of the house, and also where the closet is located. To the left of this photo is the closet, where we find the only shelves in the house.
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| Is that... A window? |
Yes, yes it is a window, in a closet. I do not know why. This room was the first to get packed. All our stuff went in here first. I still can't get to my sewing machine or my books. :(
Ok! That's the (empty) house. Anything you see in these pictures is from before I had the keys or washed the walls down. This is what it looked like before I did anything. Next up is some more photos, and I think I will stop here to check on my laundry. Be back in a flash!
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Alright, ready to see the rest? First, let me note this. Did you see my hardwood floors!?! Aren't they pretty! I love them.
So, What should I show you first? Bedrooms? Living room? How about my laundry room since I just came from there. Yes lets start there and work our way to the front door.
My laundry room has concrete floors and is the last addition to this house, so its really drafty and fluctuates the most in temperature. Yesterday, I bought a shelf unit to keep my hubby's tools off the concrete and get my laundry things all in one place. I was disappointed to only have 3 shelves at 13"x25" but was glad the information page has a website to order more parts that I can add shelving to this unit later.
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| Ahhh! Shelving at last. |
Here it is all set up. Easy assemblage and simple. See my Mason jar for my (homemade) detergent? You can get the recipe I use from
here and the jar came from Hobby Lobby.
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| Ignore my hot water heater, I do. |
Everything sets right where I can get to it when I do my laundry. Later I will be setting a proper place for my brooms and such. I also want to hang some curtains just for privacy. My neighbors can watch me do laundry from their back porch! Don't worry, I do have a dryer. Its directly across from the washer.
Next up is my kitchen. Be warned, there is crap EVERYWHERE. Our lifestyles right now don't give us much time to cook, so its not like the stuff is in our way right now, but it is an eyesore I am working on cleaning up. Again, work is my ball and chain.
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| there is a table and chairs under the window, I swear! |
......Yeah..... My Christmas trees are in the corner over there, and beside them is my Dad's paint kit I have yet to return. The blankets in the chair are waiting to be washed and put away for summer. I did take these photos today, so at least you can say I'm working on it. Last week the table was still in pieces, at least its re-built now.
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| anyone notice my labels? |
So this is my cooking area. Stove, Microwave, Can opener. The cabinets are still getting arranged for best use too, hence the green labels. If pots and pans don't work out in place "A" I move the label to "B" and see how that works. The bottom cabinets suck, they have too many shelves making tiny spaces for big items. I'm not using them right now. Also, hubby makes the tea, so he keeps both tea and sugar on the windowsill.
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| doorway to kitchen |
Here you can see how far the laundry room is from the rest of the house. My fridge and stove are in very odd places but that's where their plugs are, so that's where they go. And my doorway is NOT that dirty, its the lighting. I used my phone's camera because I can't find the cord to my camera.
Ok, lets see more crap, shall we. LOL. How about the guest room and my closet. Its not as bad as the kitchen, but it also has yard sale things in it, so its crowded, but not for long.
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| you can see into my closet too. :( |
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| Far right has a bed, I know its hard to tell. |
Ok, yeah its crowded. First thing I have to say is: A lot of it is going! The bed rails are going, the white bags are going, the white unit is going. There is a big green box behind it that's going too. Then the rest is things that my parents gave me to move and clean with. I no longer need them, Just waiting for my folks to pick them back up.
The purple dresser with holes in the back is my MIL and she gave it to me when she moved out. I plan on restoring it and selling it. Also, the mirrors on the bed are part of a vanity I an going to restore too. Got that at an estate sale for $75. :)
My armoires are the best part about this room. Since I don't have individual closets like most houses, I improvised. Craigslist was very helpful, both the armoires in this room and the 2 in the master are all from there, and worth the trips.
I managed to pick up 3 in one day with my mom's little trailer!
This one was an entertainment center, and I got it for my linen closet. The bottom half has slots for cable boxes that fit pillows perfectly. There is a top shelf for sheets, and the big open center for the TV is great for my big quilts and blankets. (I have a lot of those) :)
This black armoire is my favorite. I hauled it home myself in my El Camino.
That was actually really fun. (You just have to know me)
This particular armoire is something I have been searching for for a few years now. I paid $150 for it, and online items similar to these are upwards of $2,000. Below is a photo of just why I wanted one of these so badly.
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| CRAFT STORAGE!!!!! |
YES! Craft storage! I have a place to keep all my projects tucked away and out of sight when I'm not working on them. Finally! I am so glad to finally have this piece its crazy. I found a LOT of inspiring ideas on Pinterest for this armoire.
To show you a few favorites:
Not to mention the goodies and ways to organize it! ---
I especially love the way the paints are displayed there. And the best part is that I got the black racks to use for that for free with one of my armoires! I also have the same camera idea, but I just got one of those cheap gorilla tripods at walmart. That clamp-pod thing is around $30 online! Hobby Lobby has boxes like those for $4 ea, so I buy a few at a time and try to go during their %50 sales.
*All these example photos are from searching Pinterest.*
Now I just need to get my closet unpacked to get my craft supplies and projects put in there!
Which brings me to this photo----
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| *cue scary music* |
AGHHHH! Makes you want to scroll back up to the pretty photos doesn't it!
I literally can not get into the closet. It was almost empty when we moved in, then the white boxes (mostly craft items) got pushed in there so my MIL could stay in the guest room. She stayed 2 nights and found some friends to live with. That stuff stayed there and the spare bed got moved in along with my "Krafty Kloset" (as its come to be named) and the yard sale items. We also moved a lot of other things into these 2 rooms just to make the rest of the house look better. IE the living room and some bathroom things.
Next up, the bathroom. Not much has changed, really. Just a few storage items to make our things appear nicer. Hidden I should say.
Sorry this first picture is so dark. Its my phone's camera again.The next picture you can see my crates have a new home. The floor this time instead of the wall.
My plans for the wall are also from Pinterest. Where else would they come from.
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| I used her tutorial for a similar one. here. I love these 2 girls' blog! |
I'm going to make a small one to go above my crates and use it for towels. Another larger version will go in the living room for coats and purses and keys. The bathroom shelf will have knick knacks like my bottles below.
I like that our colognes and sprays look really cute with a bunch of different empty jars.
Ok, so I guess I'll show you what I've done with the master now. Then off to the living room.
These are a pair of armoires that I bought the same day I got my linen closet. They are cedar and really old. Only one owner before me. I got really excited when I was cleaning them because both had a key in the bottom drawer! The doors actually do lock! The cool part was that they were old skeleton keys, and I LOVE skeleton keys! On the top of the closed one you can see the stack of those black units I was talking about using for paint storage. I will only need 2-3. Maybe I will re-assemble the rest for my closet. :)
And the rest of my bedroom is pretty uneventful. Our "fireplace" heater is on the desk, and once the desk gets a back it will go under the window between our "closets". The fireplace will get put away pretty soon, most nights now are comfortable. It won't be long we will have to get a few air units put in. Yall ignore the laundry baskets, I told you I was doing laundry! :) Sort, wash, fold! Repeat! LOL!
Ok, Let's go see the living room, I'm excited to show you the new rug I bought!
Its a bit untidy, but there is no junk in here! It all got moved to the other rooms! Dw actually plays his guitars now that they have their own space. He set his amp in one of the cabinets under the TV. My Navajo blankets keep my couches nice, and thanks to my mom bringing it from her house, I now have a coffee table. Can you see whats on my rug? Horseshoes! Look at how pretty it is!
Its got browns and creams and dark greens in it, and has horses! I love it! Last Sunday me and Dw went to Mountaintop Trade Day and were specifically looking for a rug. The rug guy who is always there has great deals, and quality rugs! He didn't have this one out when we first started looking at his selection. I was leaning towards getting the one with the star in the middle of it. It had a pretty border and was mostly brown and cream, with that "primitive star" in the center with a circle of green around it. I asked if he had anymore western styles with more green and he pulled this one out. He asked for $55. After about 5 minutes talking with Dwayne, we agreed it was the one! Now that its here, I kinda want to get a smaller coffee table so we can see it better!
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Well, now you have seen my progress. The house is still crowded with boxes, but its getting better as we go. Yesterday was payday for me, and I decided it was time to buy us a mower and trimmer for our new yard. Last weekend we had to borrow my mom's. So, after a lot of online deal searching and reviews, I took Dw to Sears. I told him to pick out a mower and a trimmer, and the sales associate got the line and mix for him. He also signed us up for the Sears Team thing where you get free stuff on your birthday. Me and Dwayne ended up splitting the bill for these and called them our "early anniversary gifts" for this year even though our anniversary is still a few months away. The yard will not wait for that. :)
So my hubby gets to play with new toys today when he gets home from work. :)
The house still needs curtains, and pictures need to get hung, the living room still needs some lamps and entry tables; but for the most of it, there is enough to come home and relax to.
Ok, my laundry has set long enough while I typed, so later yall. Hope you enjoyed my house tour!
