2.18.2011

At last, a home tour

I thought it is about time that I share with yall the before state of our house. We wont move in until all of the remodeling is complete, so everything you see is not ours.


Come on in...

This is the view from the front door, a long narrow hallway. We hope to take all of it out except for the wall at the left. It is a shame that the floors weren't done neutral, otherwise we would probably leave them as is, but the giant red stripe around the perimeter of the house is not our style. Instead we will be staining them dark brown.


This is the view once you step inside. A very typical floor plan for a 1970's ranch. That wall to the back of the photo with the painting hanging will be going too.

We aren't sure yet if we will be able to remove this whole wall or just a very large opening in it, only time will tell.

This is the view if you stand next to our "Built In Bookshelf" and look back toward the door.

I have no idea how I have no photos of the family room. This is the only view I have. It is very large and open with vaulted ceilings{which I love}, 1970's ceiling fans, 1970's wood paneling, and early 1990's light fixtures. I think the biggest thing that bothers me about this room is how the fireplace just stops half way up the wall and there is a random piece of trim at the same height that tops off the paneling. Oh where to even begin!? So many ideas, so little time. If you step around the corner with the fireplace behind you, this is the view to the kitchen. The wall on the left is the one we plan on getting rid of.


As much as y'all know that I love gray, this gray and maroon combo just does not work. Sidenote:: I dont know if I have ever mentioned it before, but I LOATHE the colors maroon and hunter green, Brad hates aqua, keep that in mind as you finish your tour.

We hope to add more lighting to brighten up the space, as well as all new light fixtures.


Since the kitchen is less than 10 years old, we would like to be able to repurpose as much as possible. I am sure that some people love oak cabinets, but we do not. The cabinets are going to be painted, we just arent 100% sure what color that will be yet.

Once again, as much as I love gray, the counter tops just dont do it for me... but we are going to work on loving them. Hopefully a coat of paint on the cabinets will bring out the best in them.

The back splash has to go... I never thought I would say this, but it is TOO MUCH GRAY! Once I realized this, I came to the sad conclusion that my coveted gray kitchen cabinets were out of the question.

Stepping out of the kitchen and into the hallway, this is your view. Lonngggggg and narrrrooowwww. I dont necessarily mind the paneling on the walls here, but it needs to be painted much lower contrast.

The door to the right goes down to the basement. Its a totally wet, creepy basement but its full of old furniture treasures that I want to revamp! The door on the left is the laundry room. I say we should move the laundry room down to the basement and utilize this space as a half bath and large pantry. We havent come to a conclusion here just yet.

The second door on the right is this massive hall bathroom painted a pretty shade of swimming pool aqua. All of the tile in here is new, so I am going to keep it... but I will have to find a paint color to downplay the orangey shades in it. Suggestions? We are also ripping out the vanity and mirror.

This is the smaller of the bedrooms, but still decent sized {much bigger than the rooms in our old house} The lavender will be going. As will the hunter green carpet. Gotta love the lasting effect the 90's had on home decor.

This is the second bedroom, which we will probably use as Keating's room. Its much more room than he needs right now, but plenty of room to grow in to.

And this ladies and gentlemen, is where the magic happens. HAHA KIDDING. There would be no magic making in this room under the current conditions... Luckily it will look nothing like this when we move in. Once again, gotta love the green carpet.
The only perk to this tiny master "suite" is that it has a large window... that will be knocked out so that we can add on to the back of the house. Also the only closet in the entire master bedroom is behind the narrow sliding doors. That just doesn't work for me. Not one bit. Neither does shiny paint on walls.


We are adding on because THIS is our master bathroom. Once again, it was all redone pretty recently, but its aqua, extremely small, lacks storage, has no tub, and its not our style.

Well friends, that's all for now. I hope the pastels didn't burn your retinas! Does anyone have any great NEUTRAL paint colors that they swear by? I have found a few I love, but I am open to suggestions. Shades of greige are appreciated!

8 comments:

  1. I have always thought that it would be a lot of fun to "flip" a house. It sounds like ya'll have a ton of work before you. Good luck and I can't wait to see pictures of the after.

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  2. Oh I can see so much potential!! I know you are going to make it gorgeous!! Cant wait to see your ideas!! :)

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  3. So excited to see it done! Good luck!

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  4. Your house has great "bones". I'm sure it will look fabolous when it's finished! I don't know if their paint is way more expensive or not, but try Restoration Hardware for good neutral paint colors. I have loved everything from there. Also- any color from the opposite side of the color wheel will make orange look way more orange. Try a color that will compliment the orange hues, but draw your eye away from it. Just a suggestion from an artists' daughter :) Keep the updates coming!!

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  5. I can't wait to see everything you guys do! I know it's going to be amazing, whatever you decide. I think some white paint on those kitchen cabinets would make a world of different with the countertops. They're actually nice looking and I think that contrast would be just the ticket.

    Do you read "August Fields?" If not, let me just apologize for introducing you to your new addiction because she, too, is a lover of GREY! And her house is freaking amazing. You would get a ton of awesome ideas from her, I just know it. She also details all of her paint colors in the house, which is helpful.

    http://augustfields.blogspot.com/

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  6. You've got great space to work with and nice floors! I can't wait to see what you all do with some of the spaces!!! I love home overs -- congrats!

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  7. Sherwin Williams Amazing Gray is my go to greige color. It looks gray in certain light, and taupe in others. I'm crazy about it!

    You can see if here in our home:
    http://thebowtieandtheskirt.blogspot.com/2011/01/strickland-house-interior.html

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  8. Hey! I have been following for a while but I don't think I have ever commented. Anyway I just wanted to say that I can't wait to see how the house turns out once you put your touches on it. My absolute favorite paint color is called Chickory by Porter Paint. I think it is the perfect neutral color but it is more of a brownish, goldish color than grey. If you want to check it out, you can probably see it in the background of some of my pictures at my house.

    http://4ourhappilyeverafter.blogspot.com/

    Good luck!

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