Just a gallon full of paint, makes the ugliness go away :)

Yes, you can hum the title to the tune of "Just a spoonful of sugar…" That was my goal :).

And you guessed it, we were painting machines this weekend. And by "we" I mean "me." Not that the Fox didn't offer, it's just best he stick with other duties, like attaching hinges & hardware…his painting could be compared to a kindergardener. Love ya, hun!

Nevertheless, the painting of the kitchen is 90% complete. 90% because we have to wait on a electrician to come move an outlet and make one for the over the range microwave/vent. There isn't currently a space for said microwave, so in order to move it off of the counter, we need to build a cabinet and have electrical run to it so there isn't an extension cord running across the wall. Once that's completed, I'll finish painting the rest of the wall.

To bring you up to speed, the to-do list look like this:

1. Bring the hardwoods under the linoleum back to life. 
2. Build bench seating for the dining area3. Cushions for the bench seating4. New appliances (Stove, Fridge, Micro)5. Paint cabinets6. New counters, backsplash & sink7. Additional cabinet space8. Close up doorway into bedroom and make it more functional9. Paint walls & trim10. Update lighting & add light above sink11. Build cabinet for microwave (move receptacle)

Not a lot different, but we're getting there. 

The paint on the cabinets is Silver Dollar by Benjamin Moore. (If you need paint, ACE Hardware is marking down all their BM paint due to a lost contact. So go get you some!) And the paint on the walls is Fallen Timber, which is a rich, warm brown color. I really love it. 

We decided to buy new hardware because the other was pretty outdated, but when we went to find new hinges, there was nothing! After a lot of back & forth, we finally decided to just use the old ones. We liked the shape, we could reattach them with no problem, and after a little scrubbing, they turned out to be a great copper color!

What a difference, right! Who knew that was under all that rust. We paired the hinges with rubbed bronze handles and it matches perfectly. Saved us a few bucks and we get to keep something original to the house (along with the cabinets)!

I didn't want to show all our work, so you get a sneak peek here:

And for those who were following the bench project, it's FINALLY complete. Those little cushion things? Ugh, what a pain. They took FOREVER! But, it's a labor of love and the good thing? I know how to make piped cushions now…

And you get another peek of what the wall color is. It really makes the bench pop!

We will continue working on our to-do list, but in the meantime…I'm trying to buy a house!

Who knew it would be so dang hard. Yes, I could buy a regular ole house. No problem. Buuuuttt, I don't want a regular ole house. The house mentioned in the previous post is still a contender, but we have some work to do before it can be ours. 

I'm putting this one in the hands of the Universe. If it's meant to be, it will work out. Only time will tell…

Hope everyone had a fabulous St. Paddy's Day! Is anyone else ready for the warm weather to stay! Blah, what a last couple of days...

Cha-cha-changes

At this point I'm not sure why I am posting. It's been so long since my last one, I'm sure any followers have since moved on to better (and more frequent) postings. But, since it has been some time since my last update, I figured I would share the goings on in Ebonn's life-ola!

1. The Fox's Kitchen - 

We're trying to update The Fox's kitchen. It's not a complete overhaul, but more of a makeover. It was a little outdated, so we're sprucing it up in hopes that we can sell the house and move to something bigger! The to-do list is lengthy, but we've accomplished a good bit of it so far:

1. Bring the hardwoods under the linoleum back to life. 
2. Build bench seating for the dining area
3. Cushions for the bench seating
4. New appliances (Stove, Fridge, Micro)
5. Paint cabinets
6. New counters & sink
7. Additional cabinet space
8. Close up doorway into bedroom and make it more functional
9. Paint walls & trim
10. Update lighting & add light above sink
11. Build cabinet for microwave (move receptacle)

We've done all of the things above that have been struck through, but we still have several things to go. As an update, this was the before of said kitchen…

  

  

That ugly linoleum was like a basket weave or something. The cabinets were white, but they were outdated (& dirty). The appliances were/are white and the walls are beige.

This was the process for the floors…

When we pulled up all (three layers) of the linoleum, there was a layer of tar paper underneath. We spent far too much time using a wallpaper steamer to get it up, but later rented a sander to get down to the original wood.

Safety first!

The end result was wonderful!

Then we moved onto the bench…

This was by far the most difficult part of the reno. With not so straight walls, there was a lot of shimming, cussing & lots of caulking afterwards. We finally completed it, but boy was it a challenge. (I eventually finished the other cushion, but this was prior to.)

Next are the cabinets, and we are still working on these.

As of now:

They were just a grimy white, but now they are a nice light grey color. We aren't sure what we are going to paint the walls, but it's probably going to be some shade of brown.

So that's what's happening in The Fox's kitchen. Still lots to do, but we're getting there. Next on the list is to finish the cabinets, then the rest will follow.

2. Looking for a house - 

For the last several months, I've been looking for a house. I've got the itch to renovate (like The Fox's kitchen isn't enough work?). We put an offer in on these two beauties, but sadly thankfully, they didn't work out.

Why? Several reasons I'm sure, but hopefully to make way for this one!

It's not official yet. And I don't want to jinx it, but we're waiting for my offer to be accepted/denied and then we'll go from there…if ever my patience were tested it's been this past week. I put in an offer on Tuesday and we've still not gotten to a resolve! Fingers crossed it works out!

So that's it! Other than working, this is what's been a-happenin' in my world.

I'm sure I'll have many more updates in the coming weeks, but this should tied those who've still hung on over for a while. Have a great week everyone!