If I had to describe my house, I would say that it is the economy version of a mass produced starter home, complete with miniature versions of everything you'd find in your middle-class, family home in surburbia-land. And the problem is that we're stranded here because we're swimming in a sea of foreclosures and rentals.
So, in an effort to make metaphorical lemonade of lemons, I'm launching...
Operation Decor8
Eight essential projects to take our house from cookie-cutter to coolness this spring.
#1 Hardwood Floors
Eight years ago, when our little house was shiny and new, somebody spilled root beer in the center of our living room carpet and there the stain has resided for the past eight years, reluctantly hidden under a couch. It was the first of thousands of stains which have preceded it and given our highly stainable, highly un-cleanable carpet a very dirty reputation. It's also one of the reasons that I fantasize about hardwood floors and I'm so thrilled that after years of well planned and practiced nagging, Clarke is now on my side and, together, we're gung-ho hardwood floors.
Can I get an Amen??
#2 Sparkly, White Cabinets
So, last month I promised Clarke that I would probably be a better cook if my cabinets were painted white. And if they had a little bit of bead board to give it that joie de vivre that they are so desperately lacking, I'd probably bake better desserts too. And he said yes. If I did the painting myself that is. So, we've got a date with our kitchen cabinets. He will dazzle them with woodwork and I will glorify them with paint. In the end, they'll be gleaming white and sensational. And who knows, maybe I'll even come through on my cooking promise.
#3 Subway Tile Backsplash
I can't help it. There's just something about shiny, light reflective subway tile that sort of gives me a thrill. For years we've been flippantly contemplating a tile backsplash that would stretch from our countertops to our cabinets. Contemplating, here, is another way of saying that I drag Clarke to the tile department at Lowe's and wave tile samples before his eyes--hoping to hypnotize him into buying! He is either sick of looking at tile or realizes how chic it would look in our kitchen, but he and I are now on the same page! Plus he gets to rent a wet saw (or whatever it's called) and whenever tools are involved, Clarke is an easy one to convince. Plus, he said that it would be an inexpensive project, so double yay! We have chosen white subway tiles!
#4 Re-Fabulize Our Red Front Door
My cousin recently painted her front door red...and it dried pink! Yikes! I guess we got lucky the first time we painted our front door because our red paint was really red. Only too bad for us because it was also a flat finish. Now, my front door is a combination of flat, red paint and too many paint scratches to count. Our front door is going to be re-fabulized (which means to make fabulous...again) with a fresh layer of glossy red paint. But we have to wait for spring, if that blessed season ever happens....
#5 Colorize bedrooms
A few years ago, I had this delusion that a green bedroom (Lyndhurst Castle Sand to be exact) would be zen and peaceful. Now it reminds me of creamy guacamole and the thought of it gives me heartburn. Even though I love guacamole, I no longer want to feel like I'm being enveloped by it every time I'm in my own room. So, I've chosen Lament Blue as a peaceful, sort of coastal-waves-crashing-against-a-sandy-beach-on-a-foggy-day alternative to guacamole. When paired with white woodwork and chocolate brown accessories, this is a winning color! I already love my room this color and it's not even painted yet!
There is one bedroom in crisis, however. It's the guest room/catch-all/storage room that I gleefully drenched in shades of yellow paint last year and am now regretting. At the time I called it butter and cheese and felt like I was dipped into some rich, French food fantasy whenever I walked into the room. Now, it feels morel like food poisoning! Did you know that more people fight and argue in rooms painted yellow than any other color? Repainting that room is HIGH on my list of priorities. I just have chosen a color yet...
#6 Glam up Master Bathroom
Third times a charm?
Our very first bathroom decor as a married couple was sage and eggplant. I remember driving home one day and receiving a call from Clarke who said that he was grossed out by the colors in our bathroom and he had tossed everything. I was mad, but realized that compromise was in order and chose a masculine khaki, yellow and red theme. It was ugly, so, recently, I had the privilege to throw everything out. Now we must start fresh for a third time. So, in an effort to create a cohesive transition from the Lament Blue walls of our bedroom into the master bathroom, I have created a complimentary and contrasty color scheme! First of all the walls will be painted a neutral shade of light blue called Sweet Slumber. The walls will be offset by white bead board and trim. The cabinet and wood work (and maybe mirror frame???) will be painted a dark brown, called Deep Earth, and all the accessories, towels and such, will be a pumpkin orange.
#7 Crown Molding
This one is Clarke's idea! He's going to move our upper kitchen cabinets south by about 2" to accommodate some snazzy crown molding along the top (and bottom!!!). Moving the cabinets down will also accommodate his very short wife who makes use of a kitchen ladder, daily. Yay for crown! Yay for short me!
#8 Gas Range
You'd think that since Clarke works at the gas company, we would have had purchased all gas appliances long ago. Not so! We've been waffling on one particular appliance: the range. Right now, our electric range is a nightmare. It works okay, but cleaning it is a real pain and unless I scrub it every day, the poor thing is just an eye-sore. LUCKILY, we can mark this one off our list b/c last weekend we bought a gas range! Woot! It will make a remarkable contribution to our spruced up kitchen and hardwood floors.
So, one down. Seven to go. By summer, this place is going to be awesome!
