List maker, Life saver

I have always been the kind of person who makes lists.  Lots and lots of lists. Our house renovation had reached the point of more little projects than big ones, and I have had a very difficult time focusing my attention on one thing long enough to get it completed.  I thought it would be a good idea for me to break down what's left to do by each room.  Then it would be a matter of me taking it one room at a time, and then someday onto the exterior.  The list probably is short on some things, but it is at least a starting point.

First was the cedar closet by our front door.  It used to partially open into our attic, which happens to be quite full of brown recluses and red wasp.  Neither of which you would want to find while putting on your coat.  Last week my mother-in-law lined the closet with cedar (sealing it off from the attic).  Today we got the rod hung, coats put on hangers and put in the closet.  All it lacks is a battery light and a shoe rack in the bottom.  Also there is lots of storage above the coats but at this point I don't have anything that needs to go up there.

So this is the list I made for Matt and me to reference when we wonder what we should work on next.  We have a copy of it on our fridge and all of Matt's jobs are highlighted blue, which are greatly fewer than the non-highlighted items.  After the closet, we're moving onto the second bedroom.  The ceiling is up and the floors are down, the walls are just quite unfinished.

CEDAR CLOSET

BUY BATTERY LIGHT

SPRAY PAINT ROD WITH RUSTOLEUM PAINT

PUT UP ROD

CLEAN JACKETS, HANG ON WOOD HANGERS

BUY SHELF FOR SHOES AT BOTTOM

SHELF IN TOP OF CLOSET FOR STORAGE

SECOND BEDROOM

MUD BEDROOM

SAND BEDROOM

MUD CLOSET

SAND CLOSET

PRIME WALLS

PAINT WALLS GREEN

SEMI-GLOSS PATTERN ON WALL

PAINT CEILING

INSTAL FAN

MAKE CURTAINS-DOTS

HALLWAY

MUD HALLWAY

SAND HALLWAY

PRIME HALLWAY

DRAW 5’ CHAIR RAIL LINE

PAINT CEILING

PAINT BELOW CHAIR RAIL

HANG WALLPAPER ABOVE CHAIR RAIL

FIND LIGHT FIXTURE

INSTAL LIGHT FIXTURE

ENTRY ROOM

PUT LEGS ON BAR

BUILD BENCH

ADD TRIM AROUND BAR

PAINT FRONT DOOR

BUY UMBRELLA STAND

SPRAY PAINT UMBRELLA STAND

SOMEDAY BUILD TABLE

KITCHEN

SAND AND PAINT GLASS DOORS

GET GLASS CUT FOR DOORS

HANG GLASS DOORS

PAINT BACK DOOR

SAND AND MUD IN CLOSET

PAINT CLOSET

PUT UP SHELVES AND CLEANING STORAGE

BASE MOULDING

CAULK AROUND COUNTER TOP

PUT ON AIR VENT COVER

MAKE PLATE HOLDER FOR BLUE PLATES

GET BIG CONTAINERS FOR PET FOOD

FIND PERFECT DESK CHAIR

FIX CURTAIN BY STOVE

HANG SPICE SHELVES

DO A REAL RE-ORGANIZING

LIVING ROOM

BEAD BOARD DOORS ON BOOK CASE

TRIM AND BEAD BOARD ON WINDOW SEAT

36 X 36 PAINTING

PUT TRIM ON ARCH

CAULK AND PAINT ARCH TRIM

BUILD TV STAND

BOARD ACROSS BOOKSHELVES

ADD DESIGN TO LAMP SHADE

FIND LIGHTING FOR NEAR BOOKCASE

SAVE FOR AND BUY A RECLINER

THIRD BEDROOM

MUD CLOSET

SAND CLOSET

PRIME AND PAINT CLOSET

PUT IN TRUNK

ADD EASY CLOSE TO TRUNK

PUT FEET ON TRUNK

HANG CLOTHES ROD

PUT RED HANGERS IN CLOSET

MAKE HEADBOARD FROM DOOR

FIND SIDE TABLES

NEW WINDOW COVERINGS

ART OR PICTURES FOR WALLS

RUG FOR ROOM

CROWN AND BASE MOLDING

TRIM OUT WINDOW

LAUNDRY ROOM

CLEAN IT OUT

MUD WALLS AND CEILING

SAND MUD

PRIME AND PAINT

HANG CLOTHES BARS

PUT UP WALLMOUNT IRON BOARD

ORGANIZE AND DESIGN STORAGE

TRIM OUT WINDOW

MASTER BEDROOM

CUT OFF CORNERS OF RUGS

BUILD HEADBOARD

FIND PICTURES TO GO ABOVE BED

REDESIGN BEDSIDE TABLES

MAKE FOOTBOARD, OR BENCH

FIND 3X5 RUG FOR END OF BED

BASE MOLDING

BUY DUVET COVER

MASTER CLOSET

PATCH HOLES IN WALLS

PAINT CEILING

PUT ON LIGHT COVER

PUT BOARD IN SIDE TO SEAL OFF CLOSET

MASTER BATH

HANG L BRACKETS

CUT WOOD FOR SHELFS

STAIN WOOD

ATTACH WOOD TO SHELVES

PAINT CEILING

PUT ON VENT COVER

SCRAPE TILE

FILL IN MISSING GROUT

TOUCH UP AROUND CHAIR RAIL

HANG TOWEL HOOK

PATCH HOLES IN WALL

CLEAN SHOWER

CLEAN AND RESEAL TILE

FINISH OFF EDGE OF TILE

Gettin' Spicy

I may not be a gourmet chef, but I do like to add spices to food I'm cooking every once in a while, and since the renovation of the kitchen the spices have been stored on the top shelf of our pantry which happens to be very much out of my reach. We have this perfect space on the wall next to our stove that I've been day dreaming about putting floating spice shelves on. Yesterday, Matt was home sick (not homesick) so he lovingly built me a spice shelf.

This is the wall we planned to put the spices on. It's in perfect reach of the oven and prep spice below.

I searched high and low for spice bottles that were absolutely perfect, and in my price range (couldn't be more than a dollar each). There were some at IKEA online that have brushed nickel tops and frosted bands around them that I guess you could write the names of the spices on. Those bottles could have been great, except the $1.50 price tag, and the fact the closest IKEA is about 5 hours away. Then I came across these glass bottles with white tops at Bed Bath and Beyond for .99 cents each. Add in my $10-off-a-purchase-of-$30 coupon and we had a deal.

I had bought this chalkboard paint at Walmart for another project that never fully developed. I tried taping off with painter's tape the area I wanted to paint, but the round bottles kept making the lines malfunction. I decided to just free hand it. It took two coats on each, but really didn't take that long to paint them. If one was particularly off, I would use my finger to smooth out the shape then as you can see, just wiped it on the paper.

This is what one coat looked like, very blotchy but the second coat really evened it out.

These are the finished spice jars, with their two coats of paint. I tried using a stick of chalk to write the names, but the hard chalk would scratch the paint from the glass and it was difficult to write neatly. I had seen online that there are such things as chalk pens, so I found this Bistro Chalk Marker at Hobby Lobby. I had to get a pack of four (white, blue, red, and yellow) because that was my only option. It took me a while to bite the bullet and get the pack since all I needed was the white and the pack was $9.99. I did use my 40% coupon so it wasn't too horrible, I just don't like to pay for something I don't need.

Here is the spice shelf Matt built for me. It has a lip so the jars don't fall out and is just wide enough to hold 8 jars on each shelf.

View of the back. I caulked it last night, need to sand it today, then caulk it again where the nail gun made little indentions. Then I'll do one more final sanding and paint it all white.

See the indentions? Also how I need to sand it smooth and paint it.

Old Blue, meet New Blue

This is the current project happening in our house, along with a few others that just aren't as far along. We ordered a new front door and the last 5 windows for our house. The windows probably won't be in till this weekend but the door was ready for us to pick up yesterday.

We went to Riley's, the local hardware store, so I could pick the paint color and get a paint brush. Usually I'm not allowed to use nice paint brushes because when I'm the last one to use them they get mysteriously ruined. I blame the dog. Anyway, after getting the perfect blue, we drove a minute down the road to the factory where the doors and windows are made. They loaded up our lovely door, we drove home, pulled it out of the truck, then realized they had only cut a hole for the door knob, not for the dead bolt, so Matt and I loaded the door back up, and he drove to the factory, got them to drill another hole and then we were ready to start.

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First, here are a few pictures from Pinterest that were the inspiration for our front door.

This picture was the main inspiration for the front of our house. I love the glass door with the frosted look and the number left clear. I love the bright pop of color, the cool lights, patterned door mat, and greenery welcoming you in. Also, you can barely see it, but I'm sure that knocker is pretty sweet too.

This door is great, just missing the glass pane. I like the topiaries, the awesome shade of blue and the fun wreath, which is obviously for a holiday, but I once had a roommate (Lydia) who kept updating the wreath on our door for all seasons, holidays, and special occasions. She was a clever cat.

I also pinned this one for the blue door, grey siding, and the stone entry. I've been thinking the last few days that our cracked, cady-whompus sidewalk slab is a bit of a buzz-kill when it comes to the future beauty of our house. I would like to lay some natural stones or something similar as the sidewalk.


So this is the new front door for our house, sitting in the entry/dining room. I wanted to paint it before my husband installed it and put on the new hardware. You can also see the old front door through the window. It's white on the inside but the outside was a deep, somber shade of blue.

Here is the paint I used to paint the door. I barely even made a dent in that little can, but I guess I'll be able to do touch-ups for years. The color comes out strange on my screen but it is lovely. The name of the paint is Sleepy Seaside. Great name right? Sounds like the name of a beach house. Also, it's Valspar Medallion if anyone is curious.

Here is the door after getting the first coat of paint. It looks less purple in real life.


Before we could put in the new door, Matt had to remove the old one. Ended up being a tad more of a hassle than he thought. This picture is him using some tool or another to cut the nails holding the door to the house.


Here is the Old Blue front door after Matt pried, pulled, and hammered it out of place. I still like that door so we may store it in the garden shed till I figure out something to do with it.

This is my test of the frosted spray paint on an extra piece of glass we had lying around. I didn't spray it very evenly because I am rather impatient when it comes to home renovation. The top strip of clear was where I put frog tape, and the bottom two sections are from contact paper, which is probably what we'll have to use since the house number will be kind of big.

Here is our rediculously messy, moldy, over-grown front yard. The door, windows, and roof are the only things that have even been given a second look. Someday, oh someday, it will be lovely and I'll post a before and after picture.

So there is a discussion going on in my house as to whether the numbers should be in the middle of the glass pane or at the bottom. I prefer the bottom, but Matt says it should be higher up so you can see who is at the door. I know, I know. That does make more since, but I have a hard time looking at things from a practical point-of-view. I prefer to choose things based on their aesthetics. So here are the two options, middle or bottom. I also think I want to do the two thin stripes like I have taped off in these pictures. All of this is just a sample, the real spray day will be much more precise.

House number located in the middle for all those practical people.

But again, the numbers at the bottom, looking oh so nice.

Spice'n it up with spice jars

Our spices are stored in a shoe box, on the top shelf of our pantry, which happens to be so far over my head I have to get the step ladder to get them down. I want to make a more convenient and definitely more attractive way of storing our spices. I looked on Pinterest for some inspiration, then searched, shopped, and saved for some jars. These are the pictures I used for inspiration.

This is a cheap, green option for spice storage. Baby food jars, lids painted with chalk board paint, and spices written on top. They would fit in most shallow drawers.

I do like this option a lot. The wall is painted with magnetic paint, then chalkboard paint. The coloring of our kitchen wouldn't really jive with having a big black space on the wall. I know you can make chalkboard paint in different colors, but I'm more for the quick and easy for this project. Saved it in Pinterest.

These spice jars found through Pinterest, from To-be-charmed.com are pretty good, but not exactly what I've been imagining.

I like the cork tops on these sweet spice jars. Don't think it would really be the most functional option for our kitchen, but it does look beautiful.

Frosted pane, no pain at all

Matt and I are working on getting the living room finished. My tiny project for the day was to frost the glass on the door that goes from the living room, into the future garage. Even though we cleaned out and organized the garage this weekend and it looks much better than it did, it is still not very relaxing to look into Matt's work room.

First we had to take off the grid from the living room side of the door. There were about 12 screws, but it only took a minute to remove them all using the screw gun. You can see the grid sitting to the right of the door. Next I cleaned the glass with some ecofriendly glass cleaner and a paper towel. After it dried up, we followed the step by step for adhering the rice paper patterned contact paper.

Once adhered, Matt cut of the little bit of excess and I finished using a credit card to smooth out the last of the little bubbles.

We reattached the grill and were done. Frosted glass

The unexpected path to finding our first home

The artist and the carpenter is a blog about my husband Matt , me (Amelia), and our first real home together. We'd been married almost a year when we decided to purchase some real estate. Seeing as we live, work, and play in Tupelo, MS we wanted to find a home close by. It had to be just far enough in the country to make Matt happy, but close enough to the city that I don't feel like coyotes will be scratching at the back door.

The first house we seriously considered (and even put an offer on) was a quaint little yellow two bedroom, one bath with one old oak tree in the front yard. The rest of the yard was barren, the neighbors were pretty close, but seeing as it was in our price range, newly remodeled, and in the area we'd considered living we tried for a loan to purchase it. The bank turned down our loan application which was disheartening at first but turned out to be a blessing.

The next day we were looking at another house we'd been told was for sale and both fell in love immediately. At first glance, the house itself was in pretty rough shape. It was a bank-owned forclosure and no one had lived there for 4 or 5 years. There was a blatantly obvious addition made with low quality board on half the exterior. It needed a new roof, new windows, new siding, central heating and air, you name it, it needed fixing. But driving up to it you pass a wooded area, and can barely see the house until you turn on the circle drive. The landscaping reminded me of The Secret Garden, which just so happens to be one of my favorite movies and books. There are several beautiful dogwood trees, ancient pines, giant azaleas, vibrant hydrangeas, and plenty of other plants I have yet to learn the names of. In my mind it was ours before we even stepped foot through that beautiful blue front door.

When first entering you are slapped in the face by the horrendous smell. Soured carpet, mold, and stale air are not really the fragance you want to welcome you into your home. On the upside, the entry room had two big windows, a built in bookcase, and an archway down into the livingroom. I could see the potential already. The living room used to be the carport so it has a step down to go into it, and the room itself is long and rectangular with the highest ceiling in the house. The windows have a wall of bookcases around them, and there's an old brick floor in the corner (which we eventually tore up) where the pot bellied stove used to sit. Off the living room is the falling-in, damp and moldy utility room (our future laundry room). There's also a giant room off the living room which will someday serve as our garage but at the moment is where all the woodworking is done.

The kitchen was one of the strangest rooms. It had mismatched cabinets, green walls, peel-and-stick-tile floor, a totally random and nonfunctional square cut out of the wall that looked into the entry room, and a pantry about 11 inches wide. Also, on the cabinet doors, where there should have been a handle, they'd replaced each one with two small, brushed nickel knobs. We still can't make sense of why they did that. Convenient for us, that was the finish we would be using throughout the house so I salvaged those.

The next room we went to was the guest bedroom. It wasn't in such bad shape except for the terrible old soured carpet. Across the hall from the guest bedroom is the hall bath. It had a yellow tub, yellow sink, peculiar old wallpaper and a small, cobweb filled window. The house examination continued down the hallway,passed the linen closet, to the bedroom at the end on the right. It too had soured carpet, but also two windows and a pretty big closet. Not a bad room all in all.

The final room in the house was the master bedroom. The windows in the master had been broken out and boarded up so we could only look by the light of our phones. The closet was decent but a little small. There was also a little half bath which had become quite moldy. I later saw the cast iron sink, which is a fun shade of blue so I saved it, but haven't found a use for it yet.

Obviously we knew this house would be a fixer-upper when we bought it for $17,000. Did I mention its nearly 1700 square feet, when you include the garage? That makes it about $10 a square foot. A great deal, but we'll also be working on it for years to come. The lot is 1.5 acres, with an old wood barn, a creek that runs around the property, and later we discovered two other little buildings farther behind the barn. Our lot is like a tall skinny triangle. The house is at the front part and it gets narrower as you go back. So that is the gyst of what we saw (and smelled) on our first expedition into the belly of this beast.

Beginning of the Process

This is my version of a panoramic photo of the house. It may be surprising that we chose this house from the way the outside looks, but we see it's potential. One day all the exterior will be one color with beautiful landscaping, a new roof and windows, and pops of color.

This is what I call our entry room. It will someday be the dining room. It opens up into the living room, kitchen, and our hallway. The arch leads into the living room.

These windows will be replaced eventually. The old delapidated ceiling fan must go.

This is the view of the front door.

The entry room from the living room. The door by the front door will be our coat closet. I want to line it with cedar and have a bench and coat hanger to the left of the closet.

This is a view of the kitchen, the pantry door, and the back door. I'm going to have a wall of pantries, not just that one door.

Our back door and kitchen sink. Notice the door knobs that there are two of instead of having a handle. Will be getting a new back door and windows as well.

The opening into the living room will be closed up and have our refrigerator put in it. All of the cabinets and walls come down for us to design from scratch.

Another view of the kitchen.

This is one side of the utility room/future laundry room. This side will have the front loading washer and dryer.

The future laundry room standing and looking the other direction. I want to keep that wall-mount ironing board, but don't know how the rest of the lay out will go.

This is the hallway, it leads to 3 bedrooms, a linen closet and a bathroom.

Our lovely yellow guest bath, with it's yellow sink, tub, and layers of wallpaper.

The yellow tub on the left and the sink would be across from it with the toilet behind me.

Our future one car garage. Until we turn it into one, its used as storage and a work room for all the things we're building.

That door goes out to the front of the house. It's in about the same place the garage door would be.

Our it's-seen-better-days linen closet.

Living room, looking into the kitchen and entry room.

Living room, built in book case and beautiful big window. The blue door goes into the garage.

Old rounded wood planks, that I'm not really a big fan of. They look like they should be in someone's cottage in the mountains. Not in our house.

The rounded brick place on the floor used to have a pot-bellied stove. This room was once the carport and the door on the back wall goes into the laundry room.

The room we refer to as the third bedroom.

You see the window when you walk in the door so the bed will go under it someday.

The window is kind of high up but a good 70" wide.

Our 3rd bedroom, looking from the corner back to the door.

This is our 2nd bedroom. Its closet bumps up to the master bedroom.

Note the really gross carpet. I had to pull and scrape that up with a little razor blade. It took forever.

View of the 2nd bedroom when you first walk through the door.

Note: I don't have any true beginning shots of the master bedroom because the windows were boarded up and there was no light in the ceiling. I will post pictures that are more of a during stage.