It’s taken me 19 months (give or take nine years) and DIY detours through just about every room in this house to finally get here…
Finally, already. Geesh.
I’ve been in my house nearly 12 years, and until about a month ago it never really felt like it was mine. I mean the dust, clutter, piles of laundry, Nerf darts, random Lego pieces and little green army men were all mine; but the feel of the space where I spent most of my time was all wrong. And I got it wrong really, really well.
Lots of wrong. Even photos of that recliner give me heartburn.
Goodbye to Wrong v. 2.0. (Not the kids, the 25-year-old sofa I slip covered.)
The problem was I didn’t know what would feel right.
Not this.
So last year when we decided to finally finish the basement for the boys (big and small) to have a rumpus space, we grabbed it as our opportunity to figure out what made us happy. We decided to change this place from top to bottom, starting from scratch in some areas. Which totally makes sense when you’re clueless about what you like.
Studs.
We tore down some walls, put up some new ones, ripped out the floor, repurposed some rooms and spent a year {mostly} laughing our way through learning how to frame, drywall, install hardwood floors and not get electrocuted too much.
I prefer this, actually.
And when we were all done with the renovations (and by “done” I mean “close enough”), we loved it all — except the part that felt wrong to begin with, because my kitchen and family room were still filled with all my old not-right stuff.
Sigh.
I think I’m a blue girl, so why can’t this be love?
Then I stumbled upon my inspiration fabric during my first-ever trip to the brand new Hobby Lobby in town, and it all came together in my mind. Well, not really, but I finally found something I knew I loved. And it had blue! I’m a blue girl after all.
I think I have me figured out. I’m a traditional girl at heart. Who knew.
We’ve already established that making decisions gives me hives and hot flashes, so it was a process filled with second guessing, third guessing and returns. But I finally made it to the other side by picking out a few new pieces and giving lots of love to other people’s junk.
Not wrong. Yay!
My new table, the heart of it all for me, caused major stress and consternation. I had to have it custom made by the local Amish folks because my onerequirement was a solid wood top — no leaves — and most companies just don’t make big tables that way. (Note to most companies: make tables that way.) With as much stuff as my boys spill, I wasdone with gaps in the middle of my table. We all know that milk, when given the choice, never runs off the side — it runs down through the gaps and makes a royal mess in the gears and whatnot. No leaves. Period.So I fretted and drove everyone crazy, but I’m sure they will all agree it was worth it because I really do love my table. And can I just say that when we had our first spill, we all just sat there and watched the milk pool in the middle of the table. And it was wonderful.
I know, fake flowers are bad, but I don’t care. They make me happy.
Perfect Mason. Amen.
We also picked out a new sofa and leather tilt-back chair/ottoman, which finally feel right.
The sofa table will eventually find a new home in the basement, but it stays for now.
And we’re sending thoughts of ill will to that 12-year-old TV, but he’s a tough one.
See that chair in the left corner? She’s my problem chair, and she has a twin. I wanted something small for extra seating when we have our family in town and I found two matching chairs at a local thrift store. Matt helped me sand so I could stain the legs, and I’m going to reupholster it in that brown flowered fabric. I think. Or not. But possibly. Unless I don’t.
What to do, what to do?
I finally worked blue into a room that feels like home. I painted the dresser and a side table Rain by Sherwin Williams and made some curtains and pillows that tie in the chocolate and blue-green. When I found my inspiration fabric, I wasn’t sure where I would use it in the room. In the end, I made curtains with it, and they make me happy.
Hello, happy.
The dresser by the window was in rather sad shape. It was a roadside find and had substantial water damage on the bottom and miscellaneous trouble everywhere else. I also discovered a bit of history associated with it that made me seriously wonder if reclaiming it was the right thing to do. But then I decided that the owner would have trashed it if he didn’t want someone to put a little love into it, so I decided to strip it down and give it a go. It was a lot of work to fix it up just to distress is again, but I like how it works in the room. And I probably wouldn’t have had the guts to paint it blue if it hadn’t been free.
Free is good. Even when it’s bad.
Love, indeed.
I also love my hydrangeas. And they’re not technically fake, just dead.
One thing I didn’t change was the pictures of my boys as babies over my mantel. The other stuff will come and go, but these pictures make me smile every time I look at them.
I’m hoping you’ll be too distracted by the babies to notice more fake flowers.
If you’ve noticed the Post-it notes on the walls, no, I’m not trying to start a new trend or incorporate more blue in the laziest way ever. They approximate the spacing between the future board and batten. I couldn’t wait and painted the walls white, but the fireplace framing, crown moulding and batten won’t go up for quite a while because we’re in the middle of this mess in the basement:
Forty-four days left to get this wired, drywalled, mudded and painted before
eight Iowan in-laws arrive for the holidays. Stop laughing.
After all this time, it finally feels not wrong. And it feels like home.
Cassity Kmetzsch started Remodelaholic after graduating from Utah State University with a degree in Interior Design. Remodelaholic is the place to share her love for knocking out walls, and building everything back up again to not only add function but beauty to her home. Together with her husband Justin, they have remodeled 6 homes and are working on a seventh. She is a mother of four amazing girls. Making a house a home is her favorite hobby.
This project was contributed by one of our fabulous readers! We love to share your projects with this great blogging community. So, if you have projects from kitchen renovation ideas to small bathroom remodels, overhauled and repurposed furniture, spray paint updates you name it please send it in! Thanks for reading Remodelaholic!
Love it! What beautiful changes/upgrades! 🙂 Love the colors you’ve chosen too…
Laura, I would agree, they did an awesome job.