Progress

This may not look like much to you, but to me it's an absolutely beautiful sight. After months and months of waiting the tile in the laundry room is finally done! Now onto the grout and cabinets.

Office Redo

I'm currently working on changing the office into a playroom for Jack...much to the chagrin of my husband. He moaned and grumbled about the change until his sister told him a playroom was a 'necessity.' No more grumbling...in fact he's started to get rather involved in the planning. It's much more fun that way.

I wanted to spend as little $$$ as possible, but have the design be something that will last, since this will eventually turn into Jack's room when we decide to have another little one. I kept the wall color the same because really, who wants to paint? Ross has always said it was a kid's room color anyhow. I was also inspired by this picture which was painted by a former roommate. She created this in about 10 minutes one day when she was bored. Some people are so talented...I wish I could paint like this.


Here's what I've accomplished so far.

Project 1: Shelf Redo


Ross made this shelf when we first decorated the office. We thought it would be cheaper to make it than buy it. In hindsight we should have just bought it...assembling it took forever. However, Ross did a great job, so I wanted to reuse it. I repainted it white (it was black before) and found some buckets to stuff toys in. They fit perfectly. And I had to add a decorative touch. After all, I'm sure I'll be spending a lot of time in the playroom too.

Project 2: Art Work


I needed something fun, and cheap, to go above the desk area. Enter Microsoft Clipart. When paired with a color printer, there isn't much you can't do. Can't wait to see how it looks all hung up.

Nursery

I'm finally including more photos of my decorating projects, as promised. As I've mentioned previously, I'm horrible at taking before pictures...I just get too excited to start a project & inevitably forget to document the current state of a room.

Anyhow, today I'll be sharing Jack's nursery with you. Hope you enjoy.


This lovely picture is taken from the entrance. Yes, it's a small room, but after taking a look at some of the tiny rooms at this website I realized it's not such a bad size after all. We tried to keep our expenses to a minimum, seeing as how neither of us likes to spend lots of money. The rocking chair was courtesy of Ross' step mom, the shelves courtesy of Target. The cute train on the top shelf? A great $3 garage sale find. I love garage sales. The curtains/bedding set were bought on Craigslist. I was going for a gender-neutral pattern...something that would last through however many babies we have. I should have realized that by the time we have another baby I'll want to create another nursery. Decorating them is just too much fun to only have one go at it. Even so, I really like the color combinations...and it went well with the current paint color. It's not fun to paint when you're pregnant.


This fabulous changing table was also a garage sale find...$8. Have I mentioned that I love garage sales? Ross repainted it for me with some leftover paint from another project. The bins and changing pad were splurges from Wal-mart. It just seemed a little gross to put my baby on the used changing pad that came with the table, so I bought a new one. And the bins...well, they're just fun. Like I said, a splurge. The changing table also doubles as a bookcase. It's the perfect height for Jack to pick out his night-time stories. The artwork is handmade by yours truly. Nothing spectacular, just a picture of Jack along with his birth stats...height, weight, date, etc. The frame...you guessed it, from a garage sale. Don't remember how much we payed, but I'm guessing no more than $1.


And finally we have the crib. This was a splurge as well, though we found it on Craigslist. In a former life it was used for staging a home, so Jack was the first baby to actually sleep in it. We got it for a fabulous deal...even so, it was a bit pricey. But Ross really wanted something nice. To the right of the crib we have some hooks I got at Target...great for hanging up blankets, towels and such. Above the crib is a great sign made by my sister, complete with a painted border (also done with leftover paint). On good days it warms my heart, and on Jack's ornery days it reminds me to be more patient. And to the left is a corner bookcase that Ross & I got for our first apartment. Since we weren't using it anymore, we put it in here and painted it to match the changing table. On top is another garage sale find...the lamp. I think it cost us 50 cents.

Well, thanks for joining me for a tour of the nursery. More tours to come...I bet you can't wait.

Bathroom

Since Ross and I moved into our house about 2 1/2 years ago, we've continually been working on redoing it. So I figured, why not post some of the work that we've done? Our first renovation project was the bathroom. Upon first seeing it I swear it screamed, "Help me!" Seeing that lace shower curtain still makes me cringe. Altogether I think the renovation cost us about $500. Not bad for a bathroom.

Here is the before picture:

I got a little anxious to start the reno process, hence the wad of wallpaper on the vanity.

And here's the after picture:

I love going into my bathroom. Especially when it's clean. I think the best part of all is the dimmer switch...it's great for mornings when you're not quite awake yet.