#dwh2: The Den Floor

The den finally has new paint on the walls and new peel and stick flooring.  Yes, I saint peel and stick flooring.  Something I have been so very adamantly opposed to.  In this case, I will make an exception.

Here is my list as to why:
1. the floor was GREEN. Couldn't take it another day.
2. the den is right off the pool - flooring needs to be waterproof
3. peel and stick meant I could do it myself - easiest DIY ever.
4. peel and stick doesn't take very long
5. peel and stick is cost efficient. $46/box and readily available at Lowe's.
6. actually looks like hardwood

I think that list should suffice. It did for me. And away we went to Lowe's to buy the first boxes.

And now you're thinking, "Hmm, Hilary I think you skipped a step"...Yes this is true.
I accidentally deleted about 7 photos from my camera. Those 7 photos were the details between the picture above and the picture below.

So, now we have furniture moved back into the den and have it arranged differently than before. We brought a rug from another room in and the navy blue rug is rolled up waiting for another place to go.
The yellow curtains came from the breakfast room. They needed more space and a better space to "brighten". Mission accomplished on that front.  The parsons desk came from the guest bedroom.
Eventually, I'll get a tv console to put here but for now the parsons desk serves the purpose just fine.

There are still many things to be done in this room, but it is sort of back together. There are a few more things to receive "treatment" and art to hang, etc. But for the most part, the room is back in use.

Once I finished the den I was eager to continue into the laundry hallway.  And guess what, I wasn't paying attention to how many planks I had left and all the sudden...I was out. So I got this far and then left it like this for like 4 days.  It's okay, I only fidgeted a little bit.

By the time I got another box of planks I was completely impatient and just put them down. I wanted to floor covered and only had a small window of time to get it done. Alas, it looks way better than it did before. I had to remove the linoleum from the walls that was in place of base boards. For now, Magic Dave will just sand/paint those places.  Eventually when we do get different flooring, baseboards will go in more permanently.

In total, it took about 3 1/2 hours to do the den and about 1 1/2 hours to do the laundry hall area. But yay, it's done.  We are considering options for the kitchen next.  This flooring is the leading option but there are some other fun options for consideration.  Fortunately, it is nearly spring break so there might be a little bit of time to whip up something fun for the kitchen too!

#dwh2: The Den ... What's Happening Now

When I last posted about the den in #dwh2 it looked like this...

DARK. DARK. DARK.

...and a really odd color combination.

Green flooring, navy blue patterned rug. Brown furniture. Brown curtains, tan walls that were highly textured from the wallpaper that surely was up there at some point because why else would the walls be prickly and rough? The room has 1 over head fluorescent light and a mid century slit window.

So not a lot of light, hence the need for brightness.

 

Here are the before pictures....

So about 2 weeks ago Magical Dave came to save the day. He spent (what I thought was a looonnng time sanding the walls, and what a mess it was). I am very glad to have smooth walls once again, that 3-d wall  biz is for the birds. These are legit action shots of the work in progress. The room is now finished, but I have one more step to share. So let's relish on this "before" just a little bit longer.
The after is worth the wait.

#dwh2 - Random Improvements

Improvements continue at #dwh2 - little.........by......little. The collection of little things are starting to add up and make a difference. Paint obviously is the biggest wave, and following paint comes the ornamental elements that are the fun part.

One of the things that happened after the master bathrooms, the NYC bathroom, and the kitchen got painted...new roman shades.  These are nothing special, they're white.  They're from Lowe's.  I've used them before in #dwh1. They're cost effective and look good...and they're white. Did I mention that yet. You know I love white and it blends in 99.99999% of the time. Sometimes the window treatments don't need to be the focus. (Oh, Hilary…how you flip flop on those elements within your own house!)

The "situation" in the master bathrooms...tiny windows. The resolution, get a big shade and put it up to cover the entire potty nook in both of our bathrooms.  Covering just the window would have looked silly given the actual size of the wall. 

In my potty nook.

 In my potty nook with the shade down. 

 In Geoff's potty nook. You can see where the actual window is as the light shines in. 

From the outside, though, the window is tastefully covered.  

Also, you don't have to see us in the bathroom, that's no good...for anybody.

I just hate it when the curtain looks tacky from the outside.  One of my pet peeves. 

(The geriatric handles need to go...yes I know)
((When I took this photo it was right after handy-dandy Dave installed it…I hadn't adjusted it yet.))
(((How many of these do you think I can add in…?)))

On to random improvement worth sharing number 2.....

After the NYC sized bathroom got painted - the medicine cabinet was removed…It was tiny and rusty.
Done - and Donzo. Time for something prettier that would reflect more light. 

The hole was patched and a new mirror was hung.
New mirror via pottery barn.

I'm delighted.

Not a ground breaking improvement but something to change the wave in the right direction. 

I'm glad to have new paint, shower curtain (Nate Berkus for Target), roman shade (Lowe's), and mirror in this bathroom. I'd like to get a new sink/faucet and black toilet seat for this bathroom. This will likely be the first bathroom to experience a gut job. It's the smallest thusly giving us the most harmless chance to experiment. I don't know when said reno will happen - maybe years.  But for now, the room is a little bit more my jive. 

Flooring is in the works in the den…

Stay tuned for a larger, more significant improvement(s) in the days to come.

University of Memphis Campus Photos

As of this semester, I spend a considerable amount of time at The University of Memphis. 

I traded my regular NPR/WKNO Radio work for a Graduate Assistantship. 

Working out just fine...

 

On Friday afternoon I had several stops to make on campus and took the time to document a few of my favorite views of the campus through the lens of my trusty Instagram app on my iPhone.

All photos taken by me  - not that you would - but please don't use without permission.

#dwh2 : Den...Before

The den is under construction this week at #dwh2. Here are a few before shots for perspective.
This room is as from when we moved into the house. Furniture and such is in the exact same place.
Paint, flooring, and different furniture coming your way! I've been collecting "inspiration" for a while. 8.5 months in - Time to act. Eventually, this room will be a bedroom and we will convert our garage into a den and build out the side of the house to include a few more things, including another garage to replace the one that will become the den.  BUT - that's not happening for a while, so I don't want to deal with crazytown in the meantime. This room feeds out into the pool room so it is kind of a nice view.  The house really doesn't need a bigger den as it does have an out door room kind of in the middle of the house, a big living room (with a tv built into the wall) and an indoor pool - but you know. Think "up".

Cool flooring, huh? 

NOT!

I used to really like this rug - the mix of pattern is making my eyes jiggle. 

YIKES!
My thoughts exactly.

Let's do this THANG...

Inspiration Photos for #dwh2

While hunting for a possible #dwh2  - we kept in mind that we/I wanted a "project".
I think we did succeed with this wee task. Needless to say my inspiration file folder was bursting with photos I liked of traditional homes that fit more of the Midtown Memphis- 4 square build. And as fate would happen, this folder was emptied as of April last year and I started again.  As you can see from previous post in the latter months...#dwh2 is not of the traditional persuasion.

I thought I would share a few of the photos from my new folder of inspiration having had 7 months in the new house.

#dwh2 is not likely to ever have a staircase in it - it is a 1 story show. But our dining room does look out to the pool. It is neat to see that is a commonality of mid century design. 

While I would absolutely love rip out the kitchen and start over. We are not going to do it. At least not for years to come. The photos above are the inspiration for what we do have. Wood cabinets, nearly identical to the two kitchens above - the question is whether to paint them white like the two photos on the top or leave them as they are like the two photos on the bottom.  White marble counter tops are to come as well as new lighting.  I love the fixtures in the bottom right and top left photos above but I think they're a little big for our kitchen. Alas, a beautiful touch. 

Oh my gosh. I love these photos. Have you ever? LAH-VE IT! Alas, I'm not moving to LA for the view. I'll have to manage with the view of our landscaping/fence/neighbors, etc. What I do really identify with in these photos is the interior style, the floor to ceiling windows, and the stone floors.
Our house looks like a very flat, short, ranch from the curb, but past the interior walls, we have mid century design. 

 

The title for this collection of photos actually made me blush. 

The top right corner is from Rachel Zoe and Roger Berman's bedroom from the first season of Rachel Zoe project. I like watching the first season now that we live in a mid - century house. It gives me all kinds of ideas.  And naturally, her house is white...which I love.  The bottom photo has a painted stone fireplace, an element we used for our living room. The fixture next to the fireplace, yep it's also a winner.  White bedding...check. White. White. and more white.

Kelly Werstler (pictured in the bottom right photos with her sons) has the most beautiful home and an incredible sense of stylish design.  She's really an artist. Her home is pictured in the "statement office" section. While I am not using this as the basis for my home office/lady room. I do enjoy the combination of color and textures. I like white, on white, on white. So you see, this is helpful.

Mid-century pool design is of interest as we make plans to style up the indoor pool at #dwh2.

It is hard to find actual indoor pools (believe it or not) but this general style will do to inspire.

Decorating is always the fun part. Painting the interior walls, placing furniture, etc.  This is on going - as the months and seasons change. We have now been in the house long enough to start talking about some larger scale options towards renovation and some larger scale projects. But for now, talk is what we're doing.

Photos Via : Paloma's Pinterest Page

Which will then take you to her fabulous blog : La Dolce Vita and a guest post by Small Shop Studio

Two of my favorite spots for inspiration - you must check them out!

#dwh2 : Entry...After

 Remember the before and during photos of our entry way?

Now that you've seen the before and the during...

here comes the after! 

 My mother thinks we now need sunglasses because the walls are so bright....thanks Ma! 

There's more to come - furniture to be placed and art to be hung.  When a space is newly painted it takes me a while to hang something up on the fresh walls - so time shall tell what goes up on these babies.

Until then - white walls, yay!