• HOME
  • ABOUT
  • CONTACT

This is Thirty Something

Hold my beer, I got this.

Home Renovations

The dream is free

The hustle is sold separately

 

 

Our Craftsman Home -Part One

July 16, 2018

This never made it to the blog in real time due to all the chaos of moving and renting and having babies!

So here is a follow up post I have been meaning to share for a long time.

Here are the befores and afters of our first home be bought.

Starting with exterior updates:

BEFORE

AFTER

 

One of the first things I did was garden beds next to the front steps.

I hated not having a defined area and it made it difficult to keep the grass edge crisp and weeds out.

I also wanted to plant some bushes to hide the ugly exposed foundation.

We added pavers, ground cloths, dirt and bark with a few new plants.

 We also replaced the 2nd floor and basement windows from the original wood framed to white vinyl.

This left me with a bunch of cool vintage window frames to do things with!

I sold a few on Craigslist ( to a woman building a chicken coop), a few to my friend April to use for her wedding and kept some for my own arts and crafts.

The last four, I hung on the front porch with chains. I love that the new owners of the home still have them up too. I think they look so cool.

A post about that can be found HERE

Here is a view after we painted to exterior.

 Having the old single pane glass windows out of the basement made me feel SO much safer inside the house. I hated being on the top floor ( where our bedroom was) and knowing someone could easier kick the old window out and enter the house and I wouldn’t hear a thing.

These also opened properly, which is a huge plus!

Next came painting the house.

I hated the fetus color from the moment we first saw the house before we bought it.

I never found out what the original color of the house was when it was built back in the 20’s.

All the photos we have are black and white!

But I know this tan shade was not original.

I also hated how it was basically all one color. The trim and the body all ran together.

We did all the prep and painting ourselves

along with the help of a few friends and a scissor lift.

 

Added a new back door

A post about that can be found HERE

On the front of the house I changed out the 505 house numbers to these way better house numbers.

I found them on Ebay.

We opted to keep the original front door. It was in excellent shape and during the entire renovation process we kept as many things original as possible.

We had an advantage since we were only the second owners of this home and very little had ever been done to it aside from a kitchen update in the 90’s.

We also repoured the front and back steps.

They were literally crumbling and pulling away from the house. The front steps were also not to code and very shallow. We hardly ever used the front door because of this.

This wasn’t one of the funnest projects. We had to jackhammer out the old steps and then reframe and pour concrete into the forms. They turned out gorgeous and made a huge difference in the overall look.

The previous owner put a bandaid over the problem on the back steps and built larger wood steps over the existing broken concrete.

That worked fine but didn’t look great.

Backyard space before

And after

While we were in the middle of demoing out the old steps( and simultaneously remodeling the kitchen because we are crazy ), our basement flooded. So we had to put those projects on hold while we just put in a french drain right quick! When it rains, it pours. Literally. Then we resealed our basement floors and bottom couple feet of the walls. I wish we had done this before we moved in. It was twice the work when your basement is already full of junk!

We knew putting in a french drain was on our list of things to do. The house previously had this goofy makeshift PVC pipe system build around the back of it to connect to the down spouts and run the water away from the house. It was clear that there had been an issue at one point and this would need to be addressed. It is just a lot nicer to tackle things like that on your own time and not be forced into it by a small catastrophe!

And Finally we tore up the existing backyard and took out a few over grown trees.

We added in a garden area in the back corner that matched the pavers I had used out front.

Then put bark down in the opposite corner and made a sand box /toy area for Clark and a few raised garden beds for veggies.

Here is the backyard when we moved into the house

Short old fence with no privacy

The lovely tarp city our neighbors had going on behind us definitely needed to be hidden

Cutting down the tree

Grinding out the stump took forever

We refenced the entire yard and built a gate across the back where the driveway met the back steps to create a patio area and a way to close off the backyard from the street.  The existing garage was being used as more of a shed for us, so gating this off wasn’t an issue.

Building the new fence

 

The Dad’s came over to help us out.

Of course I didn’t want just a plain old fence.

I needed to be extra.

Staining Everything

The new gate to close off the backyard and back porch

Digging up the old yard

The old yard was 50% moss. The huge tree we took out shaded it a little too well. We rototilled everything and then leveled and reseeded the area. Here is Steve dragging a pallet to knock down any high spots. Of course Clark couldn’t pass up an opportunity for a free ride.

More friends and family we convinced to come help us out

End product!

 

 

 

 

 

CATEGORIES // Home Renovations

Powder Room Redo

May 11, 2018

This downstairs bathroom has been my little project since we moved into this house. I have a large collection of eclectic items.

Many of which are still in boxes from our last home.

A lot of the things I have just never found a place in this house.

The style of our home is a lot more contemporary and they just don’t vibe.

The things that are unpacked and out all kind of got pushing into one location and that ended up being the bathroom!

If I had free reign my whole house would look like the decor in this space.

I live with this other person…..my husband…and he happens to be a bit more conservative in his design choices than me.

Marriage and compromise and all that. What a trap.

Anyway. Here she is.

 

BEFORE 

 

AFTER

 

I think it’s kinda amazing.

Also, John Stamos. Swoon.

I painted the walls Forest Black by Glidden

Then I wallpapered using Blazing Poppies removable paper from Anthropologie ( Link )

All the art and frames I already had just waiting for the perfect home

The mirror I found at Target ( Link) and the light fixture is from Amazon ( Link)

The Pedestal Sink was a find off Craigslist

Faucet and Toilet are from Home Depot

CATEGORIES // Home Renovations

Bathroom Update

May 11, 2018

Upstairs Guest Bathroom Redo.

Here is what the bathroom looked like when we moved into the house.

 

Time for new everything

 

 

On to the Master bath now!

CATEGORIES // Home Renovations

Don’t mind the penis on the wall

August 20, 2014

Well, it’s been awhile and I thought, what better way to say hello again than sharing my home search with you! 
I mean, who doesn’t want to see torn up drywall and penis graffiti on bedroom walls? 
Yes, you read that right. 
We have gone through a lot of transitions in the last 2 months. 
From finally putting our house on the market to looking at houses in Maple Valley. 
Making offers that were drowned out by other offers, to reevaluating our career path and considering moving to Kansas. 
Where we could buy a MANSION.
 A literal mansion for less than a 1970’s split level in Seattle. 
Then coming to our senses and realizing that the Midwest needs to just curl up and die.
 I lived in Missouri once and swore I would never look back. 
And Kansas is dangerously close to Missouri. 
However, they do have Hobby Lobby. 
Their one saving Grace. Pun intended. 
In the end, we did a 180 and are now looking at homes North of Seattle. 
Think Lynnwood ( Lynnhood) Mukilteo, Edmonds, Mill Creek, Snohomish, Lake Stevens area. Yes, a far cry from Maple Valley right?! 
Anyway, the inventory up there is VERY different than what we had been looking at in the south end. 
So different that I just couldn’t keep it to myself. 
So, here you go. 
We looked at 8 houses last night. 
None of them will be our future ex wife. 
House 1- Bank owned property aka diamond in the rough…or maybe just rough.
Let’s start with the redeeming qualities:
Amazing detail throughout

Granite windowsills 

Chunky molding, arches and general fanciness

Delightful Wood inlays 
The downside?
The last owners obviously left angry and the odd additions and alterations made us think multiple families may have lived here, so it’s just kind of an awkward layout.
 OH, and also the house is completely trashed. 
Gorilla glue in all the locks, running water left on to flood the bathroom, BB gun shot through windows, major rat problem in what looked to be a garage bay turned prep kitchen, bad MDF siding and well…..take a look.

Clark says “WTF Mom!”

There was tile here at one time….

Leaky ceiling 

Oh,it gets better. 
Just wait.

Is it food or feces? 
We will never know.

Yum.

Yes, I can see past new drywall and paint.
New windows, doors, trim, appliances, counters, ceilings, banisters, fences and even exploding dicks. 
But for the low low price of 380k ( jokes) I don’t think this is my future dwelling.

Will we ever find a place to live?!

CATEGORIES // Home Renovations

My back door is a Jerk

May 9, 2014

This damn door has been a pain since we moved in.

I always said i wanted to replace it and it just got worse and worse with each change of the season.
Sometimes it would stick, sometimes it wouldn’t.
Sometimes you had to slam it , some times you didn’t.
Since it was the point of entry into the house every time, i found that it set me up for a bad mood.
The frustration I had with that door…..
I don’t think Steve was able to relate.
He isn’t bothered by nearly as many things as me in general.
But specifically this door, I don’t think it ever impacted him the same as it did me.
He is a guy, he is stronger than me, he opens and closes it with more force, naturally.
There wasn’t as much struggle for him to shut it tight.
He also tends to have his hands free when he is going out and locking the door.
As opposed to my exiting of the house……. I have a struggling to break free toddler , (used to be a just as awkward baby car seat carrier) a huge diaper bag, a beverage of some type,

as well as another bag usually, filled with Clark’s things or toys or groceries or stuff on its way to my destination.So all this resulted in me usually having to make two trips.

One to put everything in the car and come back and shut and lock the door.
 Or either set everything down on the porch after just gathering it all up to go out the door, meanwhile grabbing for Clark so he doesn’t make his way down the steps alone, pulling the door to hold it shut with one hand and lock it with the other .
You had to pull this door WHILE you locked it.
Not only that, the lock wasn’t smooth, so you were also jiggling your key trying to get it to spin in there or to try and pull it our after you locked the dead bolt.
 It was a PAIN i tell you.
So finally we replaced the door and it took a lot of work.
The problem with old houses is that nothing is straight.
So you can’t remove something and replace it so easily.
Everything must be trimmed and skimmed and shored up and shimmed and filled and puttied and sanded and on and on.
So we spent the entire afternoon ( We, being Steve and my Dad) pulling the old door out and putting the new door in.
 Even after getting it in, it still didn’t work as nicely as it should have.
So Steve spent another couple hours making it perfect.
Which I am grateful for multiple times a day when I go in and out through this door.
He has no idea.
It’s just a nicer door to him, that’s all.
To me, it sets the tone of how my day is going to go.
Fighting with that door is one less thing I have to deal with and I am pretty happy about that.
But why didn’t we do this 3 years ago?

 Just wanted to torture myself I guess.

 

CATEGORIES // Home Renovations

Home makeover on a diet

April 15, 2014

This was maybe not the best idea.
I have been doing a round of HCG this last month.
( Down 16.4 lbs, yay!)
The diet happened to coincide with the hubs vacation between projects at work.
Which he planned a kitchen remodel around!
Yes!
Let’s tear the house apart, stay up till 2 am night after night doing manual labor, all while totally Hangry, detoxing and hallucinating due to sugar withdrawals.
Oh and take care of a toddler somehow in  there too.
Sounds like a good time had by all.
Oh wait, that doesn’t sound like enough going on at once.
Let’s have the in laws come stay with us so they can help out.
( which WAS A HUGE HELP, but if you have ever had house guests, it can add a little stress having people stay with you. Family or not. It’s just the way it is)
Also,I’m gonna need you to go ahead and seal the basement floor, replace the back steps, tear out and re sod the back yard, then update the downspouts and install a french drain.
Oh, and I almost forgot, put in a new back door.
Easy Peasy.
ALL ON A DIET.
If this isn’t the time to eat delivery and pizza, I don’t know when is. 
I don’t have a functioning oven and I am washing dishes in the bathroom sink.
Might I add, our little craftsman only has ONE bathroom.
So I hope no one needs to go potty because I need to clean my spoons.
I will do a formal remodel before and after post when everything is finished but here are a few progress shots! 
( Clark was also a big help)

Stay Posted for more updates on the renovations!

CATEGORIES // Home Renovations, Ohgraciepie Blogspot Posts

It’s not easy being green

April 12, 2014

I have a problem.
Not pictured: Another shade of green in the form of a milkshake maker
I love green.
That wonderful retro green.
I have built a nice collection of decor, small appliances and art in this green.
The problem is that not all green is created equal. 
I am nearing the end of my kitchen remodel and thinning the heard, if you will, on my green things. 
I want to be able to leave a few things out on my counters for a pop of color since so much of the kitchen is now white.
Except when you get all the green things together in a party, you can see that none of them are the same shade of green.
So now I am considering transitioning a few things to white and just keeping the Kitchen aid green. 
( Which happens to be discontinued, so I will never find another item that shade again to go with it! )
I can’t give it up though!
My coffee pot happens to be the black sheep.
It’s black.
See what I did there?
So I am thinking about getting a new coffee maker and toaster in white to share the space with my green mixer.
The Bella Diamond collection tickles my fancy.
Wait, it comes in turquoise?!
Damn it.

CATEGORIES // Home Renovations, Ohgraciepie Blogspot Posts

Baby Bird Baby Bird

June 3, 2013

No, I’m not talking about feeding Clark regurgitated food out of my mouth like Alicia Silverstone, I mean a literal bird. 
We took out the last tree of a series of 3 in the back yard this weekend. 
After we started sectioning it up we discovered a Robin’s nest in it with little eggies. 
Sad face. 
We didn’t mess with it and set it aside but Steve said they wouldn’t come back for eggs. 
I guess at least they weren’t chicks. 
I would have felt awful!

I wish that these trees didn’t have to come out.
It seems so dumb since we are probably just going to replant more trees where these ones were.
Redundancy is redundant.
I was also told my the neighbor that this Pine was planted by Ethel’s dad when they built the house. 
(1905)
I think that bothers me the most about removing it. 
I know she didn’t want to take it out and had a bit of an emotional tie to it.
It was just becoming a hazard and leaning more and more into the house next door.
Not to mention it blocked almost all the sun from our backyard which has caused it to become a carpet of moss rather than grass. 
It was so large and growing at an angle it also caused the 2 trees next to it to grow sideways because they were trying to get sunshine. 
So now everybody’s trees are goofy and crooked.
Next step:
A new Fence !!!
Then we won’t have to see the Meth Shed behind us or the ugly house next door that desperately needs a paint job. 
Then probably replant new trees
and
A swing set for Clark!!

(And  maybe for me too)
PS- We left the nest out over night and the next morning one egg was missing!
Honey Badger.

CATEGORIES // Home Renovations, Ohgraciepie Blogspot Posts

Old windows, New home

May 8, 2013

I decided it was time to do something with the old windows I had been hoarding in the basement.
Project one:
Faux enclosed porch

I used eye hooks and chain to connect the frames and secure the tops and bottoms to the railings.
I went for a “rustic” look. 
Which means, I brushed off the debris and called it a day.
When we paint our house ( hopefully this summer) I will paint them with the trim color.
Project two:
Make the shed look cool

I’m not finished yet, but this is a good start to the project!

Clark approves.

CATEGORIES // Home Renovations, Ohgraciepie Blogspot Posts

Finally found a use for those wooden clogs

April 29, 2013

Spring is here
This was a super easy and quick project.
I filled a lot of containers that I was able to put out on my front and back deck.
Using a succulent garden tile that I cut into smaller chunks, I planted sections in old cake pans, a fruit bowl and even clogs!
I got the clogs as part of a baby shower gift.
The white fruit bowl you can see behind them has been in my basement waiting to be used for a while now.
I will take a few pics when the plants grow bigger and fill out, I think they will really look good by the summer. 

Now I just need to get started on my lettuce container garden!

CATEGORIES // Home Renovations, Ohgraciepie Blogspot Posts

CATEGORIES

  • A day in the life
  • Home Renovations
  • House Flips
  • Ohgraciepie Blogspot Posts

Other Junk

  • Bloglovin
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest

SUBSCRIBE TO MY BLOG

LOOKING FOR SOMETHING?

ARCHIVES

POPULAR POSTS

Must. Bake.Cupcakes.

1 YeAr BLog ANniverSary * GIVEAWAY*!!!!

Christmas memories

This error message is only visible to WordPress admins

Error: No feed found.

Please go to the Instagram Feed settings page to create a feed.

© 2018 THIS IS THIRTY SOMETHING