I survived. Barely.

It's almost done, folks. Home improvement projects, that is. I had no idea that my body would ache this much, that it would take almost 12 hours a day for 3 days straight, that I would love it as much as I do.

There are still an array of things to do. Crown molding, moving and replacing some of the baseboards, trim work around bath cabinets, rugs need to be purchased, artwork is needed in some places and some other small things. But the big stuff is done.


Ready for the before and afters? (Keep in mind my photography skills are lacking a little. Really a lot, but no need to point that out.)

This is the awful entry way. It was cluttered and stuffed with random furniture and crap that didn't belong. I got rid of a lot of this stuff or moved it somewhere in the house that made more sense. I hated walking in the door to see this disaster.

And here's the after. Oh how I love thee. I painted, replaced the flooring and furniture and accessories. Emma approves. To complete the look I'd like to get a rug eventually.

The next room is right off the entryway. This is the office/guest room. Let me say that I'm totally embarrassed at how horrible this room was. This was the room that all the random left over things got put to die. Crappy bed? Big over sized ugly desk? Shit that I didn't need? All in this one room. Friends and family slept in this room. No wonder they don't come back often.


Because that room was so bad I took a ton of pictures of the after in this room. I'm really proud of how it turned out. I'd be happy to accommodate a guest in here now.

The flooring is off color in this picture, but you get the idea. I replaced the shitty bed with a futon/couch from West Elm.


Because I am decorating on the cheap I bought a cute little desk, chair, filing cabinet, shelves and storage containers all from IKEA for a grand total of around $200.

The curtains look odd, I know. I need to trim the side curtains and throw the middle curtain into the dryer to get rid of wrinkles. This room is also in desperate need of artwork and an area rug. I love Flor tiles so I think I'll be getting those.

The next room is the living room. Gah, I hate these couches. They served their purpose, for my ass to have a place to rest. Other than that? They made me wanna cry because I hated them.

Now, I love my living room. New sofa and a chair, flooring, new paint and a rug. The curtains need something, I'm working on that.

I also replaced the floors in both bathrooms. When I bought the house I had one option, laminate flooring. It's gone now and I don't miss it at all.

This picture most accurately shows the flooring color. It's a warm cherry color. I'm obviously not done in here putting it back together. New rugs are coming soon.

The only rooms not pictured that got an overhaul are the guest bath and my bedroom. My bedroom is a snooze fest until I can decide on paint colors and bedding and curtains. Until then it's a white square with furniture and a pretty floor.

I don't think the pictures do the place justice at all, especially the guest/office space. But you get the gist. I'm super happy with the results and with a little tweaking here and there I'll be even more happy.

Up next, kitchen improvements! But that will have to wait till next year. I need to recover from this project first.

You can see more photos here on my Flickr page.

Now, I'm going to take a 32 year nap.