Laundry Room Remodel...

So what have you been doing with your extra time?  We have been cooking a lot and doing a few projects.  I should say I have been cooking and Russ has been doing projects for me.  Thank you Russ!

When we moved in 8 years ago my contractor put together a laundry room for us, it was really just a place to do laundry, no real plan.  As time went by I felt like we needed a little bit of an upgrade, nothing major, just an upgrade.  Well with this little bit of extra time Russ came to the rescue of the laundry room.  I helped too!

Before

After

You can see from the before and after a bit of paint and some elbow grease go along way.  New flooring, paint, shelving, and cabinets were added.   The flooring is a wood grain, floating, laminate from Menards and it was installed over our linoleum tile.  Russ did have to remove the base molding and replace it to keep the new flooring in place.

In addition we added shelving above the washer and dryer.  In a perfect world I would have built in the washer and dryer, however, all of the plumbing and electric was put in place at the higher height so we just added the shelving above for extra workspace.

Our old space had a spot to hang clothing as we did laundry but we had a lot of wasted space.  We purchased two cabinets and placed the laundry rod between the two.  I was able to move my cleaning supplies and laundry/ironing supplies to the upper cabinets freeing up space below for crafting and Callie.  Callie now has her own space behind the curtain...litter box, dry food, and water all behind the curtain!

My addition to the project, beside design and artwork, was painting the cabinets.  I used Rustoleum Satin in black.  I usually use Benjamin Moore paint for projects but the price was not worth it for this project.  All of the extras were shopped from my collection of tchotchkes I keep around just in case I need them.

There you have it a quick and reasonably priced redo of the room that gets the second most action in our house...the kitchen is first.  With the changes we made the room is cleaner, has better organization, and the girls and I now have the whole counter top area for crafting and projects.

Hope you have a great weekend!

Tiffany

Front Porch Update

After three years of being in the house it was time to paint.  One thing led to another and we decided to give our 1984 home a little bit of a face lift.

BEFORE

DURING

AFTER

We wanted the front door to be the focal point of the house so we started my moving the pillars and adding a small portico.  It was clear once we did that the the exterior landscape would need an update also.  In the end we ended up with a new porch, landscape, paint, and we are awaiting gutters.

We also added a few details to parts of the front facade so that the whole front of the house was coordinated.  We added shake to the bay window and an arch to the front gable to match the new portico.

We also added new lighting which we were in desperate need of....

The pumpkins from our "fill your car" pumpkin patch adventure were the perfect touch for our Fall decor.  Overall I love how our project turned out the front of the house is open and inviting and you don't have to fight the landscape to get in the house!

Craft center and office update........

The girls and I share office space, actually, the office is one of the most used spaces in our house.  I spend all of my time editing, paying bills, checking grades, etc. in the office.  The boys do homework in the office. Russ catches up on work in the office and all of the girls toys find a home there.  My office was in need of a good organizing and toy removal....it was first on the list for 2014.  I started my cleaning out my files and getting all of my items organized and under control.  Once I finished my side it was on to the toys.  The girls spend most of their time crafting, coloring, doing puzzles, and I can't forget playing with play doh.  I wanted the girls to have an area where they could get to all of their supplies without having to go into cabinets and closets.  Since they had outgrown the plastic kitchen and a few other toys I rearranged and created a craft area....now they have a place of their own!  It has worked out fabulously and we can all enjoy the office at the same time!

I just thought I would mention the table and chairs is from IKEA and the metal baskets are from Home Goods.  There is so much fun stuff out there for quick projects!  Hope you enjoyed your visit, thanks for stopping by.

The Pantry

As many of you know, we just remodeled an older home and moved in back in August.  Our goal of remodeling was three fold: update, maximize livable/usable living space, and increase storage.  By moving our laundry room to the basement we were able to build a great mud room and add an extra-large pantry, both must haves for a family of seven.  Well, over time my extra-large pantry became a collect all for all miscellaneous items that ended up in the kitchen.....it needed help.  There were lots of great ideas floating around on Pinterest so I got busy!

Here you get to see my dirty little secret.  Let me tell you, I am not organized.  Although, I would like to be one of those people that has a home for everything, that is just not me.  Even if I did have a home for everything, I am sure that six other people in my house would not.  My house usually looks clean and put together, but open any closet and this is what you get.  If my pantry experiment works, perhaps I will put my new found skills to work on all of the other closets in the house....it should only take me 16 years!

What do you think?  Much better.  The pantry has been organized for about a week.  I like it, but I do not think the kids do, they liked it much better when they could see the food boxes.  One thing I really like about this type of organization, is I know what I have, which will certainly help with my grocery list!

I found most of my supplies on line.  The snap top containers are Lock& Lock, from QVC, and the crates are from Storables.  I made the labels out of chalkboard contact paper, all you need is contact paper, a paper punch, and a chalkboard marker.  I put a Ziploc in the pantry filled with supplies to relabel when I bring something new home.

There you have it, my first attempt at some "real" organization.  Happy Wednesday!

Kleinworth and Company

In the Moment

The remodel....just about done

Well, here we are.  A little over a year since we decided to sell the house we had called home for about 8 years.  It has been a long year, however, a good year.  We have had many ups and downs on our journey, stress, excitement, fear, but in the end it certainly has been worth the journey.  For all of you who have been following this journey these are probably the last photos you will see of our remodel.....we are just about done for now.  Here are some before shots.  You can see updates HERE, HERE, and HERE if you are interested.   Just a warning, this post is picture heavy....I had a lot of fun taking these pictures!

Before

 These pictures include the main gathering areas of the house, the living room, the kitchen, and the family room.  I loved the house and knew we could turn it into the perfect home for our family.

After

Family room and Kitchen

We moved a load bearing wall in the family room to give us more space.  Moving this wall decreased the size of the living room, which is now my office, and gave us room for an entertainment center.  We still have to finish the top and put knobs on the doors, however, not having knobs keeps a certain little she devil out of the cabinets.

This is a view from the hallway and main entrance.  I love how you can see through all the way to the sun room.   I also love the front door, which must have been a favorite of the builder, because many of the houses in our neighborhood have the same front door.

Kitchen and Mudroom

I love to cook and bake. I would have liked a double oven, however, with the the layout of the kitchen it just would not work, so we had to go with a professional stove....it boils water really fast:). 

I still have not decided on a back splash, but this is one of my favorites.

Source: desiretoinspire.net via Tiffany on Pinterest

As I said in a previous post we made the laundry room into a mudroom.With only one closet on the first floor and 14 pairs of shoes floating around on any given day it was a must.  It is a bummer carrying laundry down two flights of stairs, but is was the best decision.  I like having a place for backpacks, shoes, and jackets.  I also like having a full laundry room that doubles as a small craft room and storage area.

The area with the glass cabinet was a full wall, we knocked it out and put a pantry behind it which helped with limited storage in the kitchen.

I am still waiting for this sign for the mudroom,  I can't wait to hang it up!

Source: etsy.com via Tiffany on Pinterest

Sunroom

The sunroom was great, new molding and paint made it perfect!  I love to drink my morning coffee here after I feed the fish in the pond. 

The Office

The office is great, it looks out into the front yard and is bright and sunny most of the day.  The area you can't see in the pictures is filled with the girls toys.  Most of the time the tables are filled with crayons, papers, and glue (thank goodness for wet wipes).  June is a crafter and is quickly teaching the small one how to craft too.

My dad sells office furniture so we have never been short of storage or file cabinets....thanks dad!  Also, he turned this old dining table into a desk for me, I hope to paint it in the Spring.  The table works great as a desk, because, both Russ and I can work at the same time and still have lots of room for all the papers we collect in the week, lots of paper.

This "pin" was inspiration to me when we were working on the kitchen.

The Girls rooms

The girls are sharing a bedroom and bathroom.  As you may remember, we had lots of plumbing problems when we moved in.  We did not change the bathrooms and hope to update them in a few years, with all of the problems it will probably be sooner rather than later.  Thank goodness for Target....you can brighten a room for a reasonable price!

The girls now share a room.  This has been a challenge, they have the most stuff combined and I had to combine the decor from both of there old rooms to make one....what you don't see are the numerous stuffed animals and books, UGH!  On the bright side the girls love being together,  Bedtime is especially sweet and I   enjoy seeing there relationship grow....I love that my girls both have a sister.

I have learned so much on this journey, it has been a physical, emotional, and spiritual  journey for me. I am, thankful, grateful and I am blessed.  Our journey was long and at many times difficult, however, we are in the right place for our family.  Russ and I are so grateful for all of the help we received along the way from friends and family.  We are indebted to my parents, they gave us their time, their home, and their support.....the words "thank you" do not touch the tip of the iceberg for what they have done for us this past year.  Thank you Mom and Dad.