Entryway – Painting the Grout and Door

June 30, 2022
The entryway in my house has seen better days. The grout was so dirty. This was not the first impression I wanted my family or guest to have when they visited. I’m not a fan of slate tiles but replacing them was not in the budget just yet. I had to do something. It was looking so shabby. I did some research and decided I could paint the grout. This would clean it up. 

I also wanted to paint the door since it had never been painted. I thought black would be lovely since I just painted the handrail black. There was also the issue of missing cement by the door. This was allowing a lot of cold air to penetrate thru the cracks. I had to fix that as well.

I used paint from Sherwin William. I also used liquid cement from Home Depot. It fills up the cracks nicely. Unfortunately, I wind up using the entire tube! That is how bad the gaps were.

I taped the area and primed the door. I also cleaned the tiles to remove all the dirt.

This is the finished product. It turned out well. Now I won’t be embarrassed to have guests over!
I even painted the cement so you wouldn’t see it. Instead, it blended well with the grout.


admin
Uncategorized

Adding a Countertop in my Kitchen

June 16, 2022

Until I can remodel my kitchen, I’m on a mission to create beautiful spaces using what I have. My kitchen had an area that was not usable. At the time, I had the cat litter, water dispenser, and recycle bin in that space. I was not thrilled. I wanted to create a place to use, so I decided to add a countertop.

The first thing I had to do was locate a wood countertop. Thank goodness Home Depot had them. I measure to see what would fit in that space. Then I had to measure the height and ensure all the brackets were leveled. Perfection!

 

 I had to make sure the stools would fit under the countertop.

 

Once the countertop came in, I stained it a beautiful rich color. Love it!

 

 

The final step before was sealing the countertop to protect the wood. I use EZ-DO since it’s food-safe.
It was time to install the countertop and anchor them in. I had some help with that since it was a bit heavy. I loved the result, and I now had a place to eat and an extra countertop workspace.

 

admin
Uncategorized

Painting my Handrails

June 2, 2022

Painting my Handrails

When I moved into my current home, one of the first things that I tackled was the handrails. I wouldn’t say I didn’t like the stain color at all. It was so outdated. I wanted something that would pop when you came into my home. So I decided to go with a black and white color theme.

This is what it looked like before I went to work. 

It wasn’t easy to paint due to the height. So I had to come up with a way to reach it so I could paint it. Ok, perhaps not the safest way but definitely, the cleverest! Putting the stirs on a 50-gallon storage box!

What a difference. I love the way it came out

admin
Uncategorized

Lisa’s New Living Room

May 19, 2022
Lisa is a client I have been working with for a few years. It started with her children’s bedroom, basement den, master bedroom, kitchen, and dining room. So it’s safe to say we work well together. But, of course, after doing all those rooms, the living room was looking a bit old and shabby—time to update.

Here are some before pictures. As you can see, it’s outdated. We removed the heavy drapery that was obsolete. The sofa has seen better days. There wasn’t anything that we wanted to keep. 




As you can see, the design mixes rustic with traditional and contemporary. It’s lighter, brighter, and a lot more appealing design. 

admin
Uncategorized

Doreen’s Living Room Renovations

May 5, 2022
I recently did an update on a very outdated living room. The sofas were old and not too scale. The layout wasn’t working, and the floor color was a bit dark and obsolete.

I decided that I was not too fond of the layout. It seemed to me, too, everything was on one side of the space. The balance was off. And since my client no longer wanted the piano, I thought that would be an ideal place for the TV fireplace console. This way, we would be utilizing the entire space.

Here are the before pictures.

I am not fond of walking into a space and seeing the back of a sofa, much less a recliner!

The piano was being removed so we could utilize the entire space. We were making the living room area much more extensive.

As you can see, it completely changed the look of the space. The living room was more extensive and more open concept than before.

It often happens with my clients. Once they see how beautiful the space is, they wind up remodeling. In this case, we updated the dining room. I kept the tables but purchased new chairs and a new credenza.


 

admin
Uncategorized

Melanie & Harry’s Kitchen

April 21, 2022

One of my latest projects was a major kitchen renovation. It was a small kitchen, not enough counters old appliances, and it was not functional. Overall it was not a well-designed kitchen.

Here are some before pictures of the kitchen.

.


We took down the wall of pantry. This way, they would have an open concept. We also eliminated the windows by the table to extend the cabinets. Giving her much-needed cabinets.

We went shopping for all the items we would need. If you’ve ever done a kitchen reno, you know that’s a lot of shopping!! This is what was chosen.

The construction part of the project was done, and the items were all in. Some things took a while due to covid. But the end result is spectacular. Delighted clients!!



 

admin
Uncategorized

Adding Storage to the Bathroom

March 24, 2022
Recently I have been working on my main bathroom. I just finished painting my cabinet a beautiful blue. When I moved into my current home, there was a washer and dryer in the bathroom. I hated that but it was so convenient I decided to keep it there. 

Unfortunately, the washer broke and I decide to remove it from the bathroom and install it in the basement where it should have been from the beginning.

The issue is now I have holes in the walls!! Since remodeling the entire bathroom is not within the budget, I had to come up with an idea.

I decided to add a storage cabinet. When I went shopping online, I couldn’t find one. Everything was out of stock due to Covid!

So I figured why not build one? How hard can it be?? Famous last words right? Actually, it really wasn’t that hard to build. And the result was just what I needed and wanted.

This is what it looked like with the washer and dryer. Not very attractive, I know.

It was such a mess getting it out. It didn’t fit the doorway, so we had to take it apart.
First thing was to create a plan. Figure out the measurements.

Buy all the materials. Home Depot is great because they will cut the pieces for you.

The box was built, now to add the feet.

Ikea had the feet that I want. They were white metal. I spackle the raw edges and caulked in the seams


I ordered storage containers from Target. Just waiting for them to come in.
Finally, they arrived and I was able to finish the project. So much better than before.


 

admin
Uncategorized

Do You Like Armless Sofas??

December 9, 2021

Have you ever consider buying an armless sofa? Most people have not. Their argument here is there is no place to prop a pillow or support to lean on.

But the best feature of an armless sofa, they offer more seating than a regular sofa. It allows people to sit on the edge, creating more seating options. It tends to have a more contemporary feel to the design. It’s more of a Scandinavian design.

Like anything else, armless sofas have a place in designs. Would you consider buying an armless sofa???

 

admin
Uncategorized

Kitchen Pulls & Knobs in Wood

November 25, 2021

In the past drawer pull and knobs have always been metal. But recently there has been a trend towards wood. Wood pulls give character and warmth that metal pulls or knobs do not.  They add texture and depth to the kitchen and a great alternative to the standard pulls and knobs.

So when designing your kitchen don’t overlook wood pulls or knobs. I think you will be pleasantly surprised!!

admin
Uncategorized

Slim Console Tables

November 11, 2021

Slim console tables are great when a standard size takes up too much space. They are very versatile, allowing you to use these tables in areas that don’t need seating but you need to fill in the wall space.

They can be used to display decor, collections, or a place to drop off your keys when coming home. They are a great solution when your foyer is very small.

admin
Uncategorized