Basement Reno - It is coming together!!!

From the beginning to now...here is a small idea of how far we've come...

And we thought clearing out the space was hard!

This basement renovation has really been an interesting learning experience for me. And don't get me wrong.  When I say interesting...I don't mean awe-inspiring, I mean equal parts AWFUL and INSPIRING.  There is something so incredibly inspirational in having a vision and then getting to watch it grow into something day by day.  And actually seeing the progress is really necessary and makes it all the more special to me.  I mean, when you hand over a 100 year old crappy basement, it is beyond impressive to see what can be done with a boat load of elbow grease and patience.

I guess that is why when I have a really hard reno day like today, and I am forced to stand witness to our contractor plow down a small portion of my neighbors' fence, I have to remind myself that this is all worth it.  It takes WORK and lots of it.  It is not going to just appear finished one day. There will be hiccups and blemishes in the process but I know it is a process.  It will be completed soon, though and I am confident that the finished product will be all 'us'.  

xoxo
L

Basement Remodel Step 1: DEMO

We're remodeling our basement!!!  All I have to say is, what a mess. 

Knockin down walls and taking names.

The basement toilet shed is gone!

The area formerly known as Bar 52

So much mess!

How exciting is this?!  We're adding a FULL BATH, LOUNGE AREA, laundry area, storage area, and a completely revamped BAR 52!  Pretty fun.  Except the living here through the renovation part.  As of now, we're hoping it will be completely done by Halloween.

Sinks are more fun than my rebellious uterus.

Since I've been home from taking the best vacation ever, life has been HECTIC! With a capital...everything.  You see, for the past year the hubs and I have been dealing with some rather annoying issues pertaining to a certain body part of mine that hates complying with the reason it is there to begin with.

Basically, my uterus is not up to snuff.  I first found out that things were amiss in May with doctor 1.  However, upon switching doctor's (to doctor 2), I found out that YES my uterus was still crazy-pants, but I was previously misdiagnosed.  Blah blah blah, surgery was needed (I was excited), a septum had to be removed and it all took place last week. I'm in the healing phase now and will hope to hear how things went on Monday.  Obla di, obla da.

However, I am a TERRIBLE waiter (both laying on the couch and working in a restaurant). I have the shortest attention span and I simply cannot sit still for too long. How long is too long? Probably around 29 seconds.  So, since I've already rearranged (aka - told Jeff where to move things) multiple rooms in the house, I figured it was time to focus on our 3 x 4 miniscule bathroom again.  Hooray!  

Out with the old sink (in the above link) and in with the new...

I can't wait for it to get here!  I mean, with the extra 4 inches of space we'll be getting, who knows what will happen! 

xoxo

L

Quick Fix: Tiny Bathroom Shelf

Does anyone else have a room that is completely different than the rest of their house? A room that "jumped the shark," if you will.

Well, I do.  And it's the smallest room ever. 

Basically, someone converted a small food pantry into a bathroom at some point in my house's long life and it's a space I find myself constantly wondering about.  How do I make this room bigger?  Appear bigger, at least?

Upon moving in, I had the magnificent idea of painting the farthest wall bright yellow to "open" the space up.  I'm not sure if it worked, but it definitely gave the room a different vibe from the rest of my shabby chic casa because after the wall painting came random circle mirrors, a new toilet and a small modern looking shelf thing from Target (not pictured). 

I thought I was all done.  What else is there to do in a 3x3 bathroom?!  Well, I found a small something and I love it. Powder blue shelf arms! Wooooooo!  I recommend this quick fix to anyone looking to spruce up a nasty wrought iron something-or-other.

Love it. Love it. Love it.  Next up...that sink. Eeee!

I have a lot of wine corks...

A LOT.


So, I think it's time I either make 90 coasters, OR a bathmat.

Hmmm...

http://abeautifulmess.typepad.com/my_weblog/2011/11/diy-thread-spool-wine-corks.html

When you drink wine, the possibilities are ENDLESS!

Things that Make me Laugh...

Why does Remy have to do something SO cute involving how messy my pajama drawer is?  I talked to him about this!!!  Nonetheless, this cannot go unseen.  Upon hearing the rattling of my jewelry tree from my office, I scurried into my bedroom to find Remy going above and beyond in his mission to attain the MOST comfortable sunny spot.  Hard wood floors a little too hard, ey?

 Cleaning party later!

HOME-GROWN: Fancy fancy Chandelier 3

 Jeff and I had the brilliant idea to change out all of our downstairs light fixtures this year.  Our house is almost a hundred years old and the lighting was probably last updated in the early 80's.  Making a change of this kind does wonders for an old home, but of course there is a downside...

 You never know what you're going to find.

Like...WHAT is THAT?!

Nonetheless...we trucked on, in a most improvisational kind of way.

Tested our electric...

Laughed in the face of our old, brassy fixture...

And made it to the finish line!

Ta da!  It's always worth the pain, isn't it?

Fixer Upper - Motel edition

Found the coolest dream motel fixer upper in Burbank, CA this weekend.  Nothing on the website admits that it may have formerly been the divey-est creepiest pay-by-the-hour motel, but I just know it had to be.  It had an essence.

Pulling up, Tangerine still looks a bit like a crappy motel with an orange paint and wood panel face lift, but luckily we weren't scared off.  Not to mention it had stellar ratings online and only cost a hundred bucks.  Once inside, my jealousy reached an all time high.  Someone had defintely bought an old motel and made it into their passion project.  This place was awesome.  The layout...old skool motel.  Everything else...A-MAZING.  Poured concrete floors, huge new king size beds, modern lighting, flat screen telly's, and the cutest little pool area I've ever seen.

Staying at Tangerine made me realize you don't need to knock down everything old in order for it to be better.  Old is still cool, as long as it's clean.

I also realized...I really need to buy a motel.

http://tangerinehotel.com/relax.html

 Street view

 Signage

 Cutesy poopsie pool and cool pavers.

 Loving all the tangerine!

 and of course the pool!

HOME-GROWN: Grinch Tree

Tis the season for...Grinch Trees!

While they may look as though they've traveled straight from the cave where the Fraggles once rocked, they're actually right at Home Depot in the landscaping/tree/outdoorsy area.  And they're perfect for pretty-ing up your house this time of year!

Purchased from: Home Depot

Time Required: under 10 minutes

Must Haves: Shovel, Grinch tree, and a place to plop it.

We really need to rake.

Please note the pup in the doorway. Always guarding...

HOME-GROWN: Fancy fancy Chandelier 2

Since the lighting in our house is seriously busted, I've become quite determined to salvage, paint, and repurpose what I can.

First up...our old brass front door chandelier. 

Purchased:  White spray paint and rounder, quirkier light bulbs to replace the old drippy candle ones.

Time required: Overnight - to allow time for the paint to dry.

Must haves: Top Chef playing in the back ground, striped pajama pants, a tiny dog for quality checking purposes and a touch of patience.  It's just hard to wait when the end result looks so undeniably cool and the paint is still too wet to touch.

Framed.

I love books.  (Enough so, that I've written one - insert Diary Girl plug here)  So in an era ruled by Kindle's and Nook's, I figured what better way to pay homage to my favorite ones, than by framing some of the best pages!  Plus, it gives people something to do while they're waiting on me to get ready or inevitably searching every single room for my my purse before leaving the house - how do I always drop it in a different place each day?!

I started with a couple pages from The Giver...

HOME-GROWN: Fancy fancy Chandelier 1

This chandelier was a PAIN to put up in our nearly 100 year old house, but it was also well worth it due to the dazzling, copious amounts of shiny glass droplets.

Purchased from: Pottery Barn & Home Depot (ceiling medallion)

Time required: HOURS...and hours...and hours (they individually wrapped each glassy droplet!)

Must haves: Patience, actual tools, and wine. Lots of wine.