Leaving the Not-So-Icky-Anymore Behind

As we pack up and leave this crazy adventure we call a house I’m struck by what we will miss and what I will not even remember in a week. The way the light in the kitchen takes almost three seconds to turn on, the way the floor is always cold, the irises behind the house, the rhododendron creating a pedestal of almost white flowers for the kitchen window, the owl so persistent every morning at 2 am, the storms rolling in to push our too big of a Douglas closer to the roof. How our house was the snow line of the neighborhood making it feel all the more magical when we drove 300ft down the road to rain. The Townsend bat in the barn and the screamy horses across the street. How tiny my children looked in the far field, but how big their joy radiated back. The last tiny sock of a little one no longer in our life and the bigger mismatched one belonging to her sister that both dropped out of the moved couch. The reminders of the pain, struggle, growth of all in our home in the short time with two children loved, now out of our home. The room I nursed two littles in. And the resting place of one born into heaven. The feeling of weakness that comes with strengthening growing pains. The fun we had burning giant piles and driving giant blackberry-eating tractors. The sweat, stress, mess of living in its restoration. The view from the barn roof and the rumoring mist of the morning forest. The tunnel fort lovingly broken into the fallen apple tree. The taste of the apples from that somehow-still-alive tree. The endless, unconquered dirty floor. The kitchen window facing the pink summer sunsets. The crazy knowledge that comes from having to fix things on your own. The location of my first bone break. The happy coyotes and murderous raccoons that ate ALL our pets (minus the one who died of fright in a thunderstorm). The raccoon that broke into the basement and tried to steal tools scaring us half-to-death in the middle of the night. The hours family helped out and the skills they passed on. The night the water heater turned the house into a sauna. The mail carrier that seemed so grumpy in person but wrote the sweetest cards. Our kind neighbors and the waterfall down the street. Remembered or not, this house has given our family a place to step off from. We are excited to take the next one.  

The Befores

  

The Hallway

I wish I had a better before picture...this one is a little late in the game. But use your imagination and add nasty floral carpet. Red and green floral carpet everywhere. 

 This was one of those projects that started off small and as with all projects became a major overhaul. Also, every project in this house comes complete with an adorable helper.

 We had to tear out the old closet doors because they did not even fit or close properly. I found new doors and a Habitat for Humanity Restore for both the closets and the rest of the doors. Zeph designed the walls on Excel and put them into action. I love it and it will be continued into the living room.

 We cedar lined the linen closet to keep any bugs at bay and I painted the inside of the closet with stripes just for fun.

Big project because of the little details but it is so nice to have my linens out of boxes and my vacuum cleaner a place to call home.

The "I Cannot Picture a Baby Being Safe in Here" Nursery

Before:

This room we had designated for our future nursery was DISGUSTING. Dirt smudges everywhere. This picture does not do it justice. But what you can see in this photo is all the hazards (open outlets and uncovered heater). I also have a strong aversion to the color combo red and green. As you will see in other posts...its a miracle we went with this house because the whole thing had that color "scheme".  

During:

We went with a bead board look pulled from random saved up pins. The great thing about starting from such a gross canvas is you can try all kinds of things and never really mess anything up. We bought the majority of our supplies from the Habitat for Humanity Restores making this room redo very affordable.   

Gross Closet

Handsome Hubby chose dark gray for the walls and I was not too sure about it until it was up.

 My parents came a couple of times to help. And here you can see my Aunt Peggy and Mom after they made curtains from a duvet we found at a TJ Max.

I scored this chandelier at a local Habitat Restore for $20. They had pulled it from an old hotel that had been sold. 

 The inside of the closet was covered in dirty little hand prints. They had not built it properly so it ended up that I had to frame the side walls again.  

 Then we had to move everything in and I painted a gloss stenciled in quarter foil pattern to add dimension to the walls.  The crown molding was a pain but definitely make the room.

 After:

I took some old frames from a Union Gospel Mission Thrift Store and painted them orange or yellow and made silhouettes to match a wild animal theme. The bed skirt also came new in the package from a thrift store and I stenciled on the elephants. 

An old antique store produced the blocks for $2 a pack and the shelf and animals from thrift stores got a make over with a little spray paint. The changing table was in a free pile outside one of my thrift store areas and I redid it with some paint. The baskets were once chrome but some bronze spray paint and homemade wooden handles gave them a whole new look. 

The chair was also a thrift store find and I repainted it (originally a nasty salmon color) and dyed the wood with black walnut juice. The music box is passed down in the family. The crib was free and originally a drop side crib the we got the hardware for it to turn into safe crib. 

 We left the closet without doors to allow room for a dresser. The play kitchen is premature but it was fun to repaint as well and I couldn't pass up a free toy. 

 The room turned out just as I had wanted!