House-iversary

We celebrated  a big milestone at the Teal & Lime house last week.  It was our two year anniversary in this house. I called it our house-iversary!  To commemorate the occasion I created an infographic to recap the last two years.  Project by project we are taking this builder basic house and transforming it into a DIY modern home.

Links: Floor Plan, Basement Finishing, Whole House Color Scheme, Linear Crystal Chandelier, Quatrefoil Drum Shade Pendant, Globe Pendant Lights, Ceiling Drapes Aglow, Tiny Party, Milk & Cookies Party, Where The Wild Things Are Party, Lego Party, Bugs Party, She is Going to Pop Baby Shower

Paint

We have certainly come a long way in two short years.  One of the first things we did was banish the tan (aka builder beige) paint throughout the house.  We selected a whole house color scheme and then started repainting room by room.  I am happy to report with the exception of bedroom closets and the boys bathroom, the tan has been replaced.

Lighting

Our home was a “spec” home, meaning it was built by the builder and ready to move in.  The builder chose all the finishes in the home.  Spec homes are generally built to appeal to the widest audience possible, hence the tan walls.  I think nothing but boring comes from trying to appeal to as many people as possible.  The lighting the builder chose was definitely boring.  All the fixtures throughout the main living areas and bedrooms were bronze with textured amber shades.  We have not replaced them all yet, but we have made a good start.

The dining room chandelier was replaced with my DIY linear crystal chandelier.

The semi-flush mount lights in the adjacent entry hall were disguised with billowing fabric, aka ceiling drapes.

The trio above the kitchen island were replaced with globe lights.

The mini chandelier over the kitchen table was replaced with a DIY drum shade pendant.

Window Dressing

Dressing windows is one of the easiest ways to soften a space, as well as add color and texture.  The day after we moved in we installed white 2″ blinds throughout the house.  They provided the necessary privacy and light control, but the window dressing did not stop there.  We have hung quite a few drapes.  Oddly enough it all started in the laundry room…yes my laundry room has drapes.

We added some store-bought drapes in the dining room.  They are a beautiful blue velvet.

I turned a shower curtain into a pair of drapes for the nursery.

Most recently I whipped up some drapes for the master bedroom with Ikea fabric.

Additions

Before doing anything drastic, we started with simple paint, lighting, and window dressing changes.  Soon enough we got the itch to do more.  To do bigger changes.  It started simply enough with the board and batten in the dining room.  We wanted to give the space a little more architectural interest.

Then we got the itch to do something about the door to nowhere in the kitchen.  Last fall we hired a contractor to build us a deck.  We actually interviewed three different contractors and provided input to three different deck designs.  We ultimately chose the best combination of price and design.  The deck project was a big learning experience on how to work with a contractor.

When the itch came to do the basement, we used our deck experience to select a different contractor better equipped to handle the job on the schedule we wanted.  We just broke ground on the basement earlier this month and expect drywall to be done by the end of the week.  We put a lot of thought into the project approach and how to minimize costs.

Time Flies

How quickly two years flies by.  We signed a purchase agreement on this home with a newborn infant in arms and closed when he was just over a month old.  I spent my maternity leave packing up our town home and then unpacking us into our new home.  Thankfully my baby was healthy sleeper.  Now here we are two years later, with one son about to start kindergarten and that newborn baby is now in his terrible twos.  We are doing so much more than just redecorating this house, we are making memories here.  Memories are what makes a house a home.

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