Swanky Bedroom Windows

So I still haven't posted bedroom pix, but I wish they included curtains like these! Love how the rod goes over both windows. Not sure if I could do that with my three windows, but still very cool. From a before-and-after on Apartment Therapy.

Wishful Thinking

I've decided this will also be the place where I keep track of design ideas I want to copy, plans that I can't afford yet, etc. Here are a few:

Snapping deck tiles by VIFAH, found on Apartment Therapy, where I find most ideas. For when I turn the parking slap into a patio, though I think pavers are more likely. Still a cool idea.










Okay you can't see it very well in this picture, but the back wall of the kitchen is a wall of windows (and a glass door). I loooove this, especially since this kitchen has the same galley-style layout as mine. I guess I'd need to get an alarm system, since I couldn't do security bars. From a Washington Post article on narrow rowhouses.







I want a walk-in shower like this one on the first floor, and I like how the wall of the shower comes out just past the vanity. I probably wouldn't go sooo modern, but other than that I love this. From the same WaPo article.














Oh yeah, definitely want a rainwater shower head. That tile's pretty, too. Unfortunately won't be able to get any natural light into the first-floor bath, cuz we're putting the shed on the outside wall of it. From Design Sponge.














Bathroom chandelier? Oh yeah. Apartment Therapy.

Renovation Gets in the Way of Renovation Blog

So it turns out there isn't much time to blog when you're doing a renovation, even if it's a blog devoted to the renovation. But here are some pictures of the house mid-renovation. These aren't up-to-date, because I still need to take more now that the place is looking better, but I want to do some more cleaning and stuff. So here we go:

Got all that crap out of the living room and started over. My uncle's guys came to help out.






That ductwork at the ceiling is gonna get boxed in, with recessed lights.






That's Gustavo. He taught me how to spackle. :)









Mom and Dad also helped out a whole bunch. That's the new utility closet on the left.








Don't worry, I helped, too.









We had a big mess for a very long time. That's my new water heater in the big box. We ate several Subway lunches in those camp chairs, pretending that was a patio.





So remember the kitchen? The exposed ducts? The lack of cabinets? The freaking furnace?






Right, that furnace. Ew. Get ready for the kitchen mid-renovation...






Yay! Those are my medium-brown Adel cabinets from Ikea. The table is also from Ikea, a discontinued model that we got on sale. The stainless steel appliances are Whirlpool for Ikea, also gotten with my spiffy brand-new Ikea credit card. Oh yeah, sink, too. It's a stainless steel, two-bowl corner sink. I wanted an undermount one, but apparently they're like $800 to get that style, so inset it is. Digging the double bowl thing so far.



The other wall of cabinets. Because of issues with the waste line, we couldn't get the sink over here, under the window, like we wanted, but it's kind of nice having this side as a sort of prep/serving area. That's the awesome pantry cabinet on the right. Was a pain in the butt to get there (had to redo a wall and move a light switch), but it was worth it.




From a different angle you can see the glass cabinet doors (there are two, the rest are regular wood) and the utility closet to the right, with my Craigslist stacking washer/dryer. High-efficiency Bosch, sounds like a jet taking off. But works well. That window faces the alley.





A sneak peek at where the living room is heading, with the ductwork boxed in (and recessed lighting started) and the built-in bookcase on the left. Also the new TV mounted on the wall!

There She Is

So here's where my money's going for the next 30 years of my life. I close on my first house in two weeks. I'm pretty excited to be a homeowner for the first time, but it's going to be a while before this house is, well, even close to perfect. It's got a million electrical problems, there's a leak in one of the two bathrooms, everything needs paint, I've got to move and/or replace the furnace, which is in the middle of the kitchen (??) along with the hot water heater, the roof needs repairs, there's no washer or dryer, and the kitchen needs all new appliances and cabinets (which I'm having a hard time picking out!). Oh and I basically am spending all of my money buying the house and won't have much left for repairs. So that's all...


The first-floor bathroom (the leak is at the faucet, where some of the hideous tile is damaged) was added by the previous owners, I think, sometime in the last decade or two. The house itself was built in 1890.






The sink looks pretty new, but no storage, and not that pretty. Ew, and that tile again!








The back half of the living room (or should we say the dining room?) leads to the first-floor bathroom, and that's some ugly duct work up on the ceiling (which is pretty darn high, yay!). Not exactly sure why you have to step up into the bathroom, but somebody explained it to me.








I think that's the vent from the fan in the bathroom. But really? Did they think that was the best way to do it? It looks like something from "Ghostbusters."









So that's the extent of the cabinets in the kitchen. And yes, more ugly duct work. Oh, but it gets worse.







Yeah so that's one of the two windows in the kitchen, obscured by the furnace, water heater and a bunch of duct work -- and oh yeah, it's a carbon monoxide hazard.









Out back, the illegal flue from the water heater (I think?). And Daddy on the parking slab. He will be helping out a lot.