Gettin' Fit and Trim

The first thing I noticed when I came to look at this house those years ago was its lack of curb appeal. It did not immediately grab me as an overly attractive or unattractive house from the exterior. Thankfully, the inside had amazing bones and I fell in love with making the inside feel like a home. Unfortunately, the outside was kind of forgotten this year between our high amounts of rain and incredibly hot days.

When we first moved in, I painted the front door to try to give the house a little character. It started out looking like this.

We added a little color with the new red/orange entrance.

Around the same time, we got rid of our old numbers and replaced them with more modern ones that I love.

This was followed by Mom and I attempting to fix some of the landscaping. Unfortunately, it's going to take much more work to get the greenery under control, but at least it became more tame.

It was about a year ago that I was at a friend's house in northern Kentucky who had just worked on the front of their house. Their trim color was a great brownish charcoal gray and I loved it. I asked them for the color name and ended up bringing home the bottom of their last gallon, which was just enough to paint the garage door, large window trim, and around the front door.

This is a color that I had seen on many homes online that had the same colors as our house. The Bedford stone made it a little difficult to color match things, so I had to go by lots of not-quite-the-same reference shots to see how it would look. Overall, they really shared the feel that I wanted to go for. A very modern, cozy vibe that was clean, but welcoming.

I hadn't touched the trim since that day. I put it off because I was afraid that exterior paint would be really expensive and that the color matching would be a pain.

Thankfully, I got a wild hair the other day, when the outside temperatures were very mild and the rain was supposed to hold off for a few days, to continue my exterior trim painting journey. I grabbed the old gallon that was empty and headed to Home Depot. I walked up to the color swatches and within three attempted samples, I had one that fit perfectly. $30 later, I had a paint & primer in one.

It's called Behr Intellectual and it's really dreamy.

 I started with areas that were nearest to that which I'd already painted. For example, the garage door had been painted, but not the surround for it, so I began by giving it some color.

I used a paintbrush for the cracks, crevasses, and gutter and a large roller for the soffit. The painting actually went pretty quickly for me working by myself, and a couple of hours later, I had a first coat on the front. I know that I need to go back and do a second coat to get a richer color and better coverage in some areas, but until it stops raining again, this first coat is going to have to do.

So here is the before.

And the after.

I love it! I think it gives a nice contrast against the stone and really gives the whole house some much needed character.

The darker color also helps our little windows stand out on the ever-forgotten right side of our house. They butt up against the roof and have almost no frame, so the previously tan trim just made them disappear.

Now it feels like we put eyeliner on and really made them stand out as features.

I really love how the yellows and oranges of Fall help bring out the dark, grounded trim color, too. Right now, with our tree bright yellow and leaves all around, the front yard is finally showing the curb appeal it's always needed.

Is it done? No, but this is a really dramatic step in the right direction. I would also love to fix some of our outdoor lighting so it's not so dark. Right now, our front door and garage only have a light that is built into the soffit for illumination.

Yes, I know that the bright yellow bush is dead.

I think that if we flanked them with some modern lanterns, it would really add some nice details to the front. It would also bring more light to our entry area.

Photoshop representation of what it might look like.

But for right now, I'm just happy every time I pull into the driveway and get to see (what feels like) a brand new house.

What do you think? Are you a fan of a bold, contrasty trim? Are you more comfortable with something that blends in or is traditional? Let me know in the comments!

The Case of the Killer Plant

Yes, I know.

Halloween was Saturday and these posts are a bit late.

Yes.

But I didn't have any time to write posts during the spooky season because I was too busy creating new and fun things to hopefully inspire your next Halloween!

The first project for this year was probably my favorite. I had seen inspiration picture on Pinterest and thought that it looked both really easy and really spooky. This is the image that caught my eye from the Hometalk website.

Pretty cool, right? It was an awesome basic form, but I thought it needed a little sprucing up. I did some more image searches for reference and came across a couple of examples of desk top versions of the killer plant idea on the blog 102 Wicked Things to Do.

I used the same basic concept as the Hometalk one. I started with a $5 paper mache pumpkin from Jo Anns.

I sketched out the teeth and cut them out. I then painted it all green and the inside red. I found a stick in the backyard and attached the pumpkin with screws so it would stay on reliably. I then "rooted" it in an old flower pot with some expanding foam with rocks on the bottom as a counterweight. I covered the foam with Spanish moss from the dollar store.

It was looking okay, but I needed leaves. I ended up at Hobby Lobby where I found three large leaves that were a great canvas to add some fun color detail. I attached them with wire and by drilling holes in the "stem" and inserting them.

I painted it with regular spray paint, but then realized that it wouldn't show up under the black lights that we had all around the house. I turned to florescent spray paint for the added color I was looking for.

Obviously not the colors I used, but the same brand and type for reference.

When it was finished, I was pretty impressed with myself.

Just life-like enough to make people hesitate, but fantastical and kind of goofy at the same time. I was pretty happy with how the leaves turned out, too, considering it mostly involved spray paint detail that I'm not used to doing.

I made the sign using Photoshop, then mounted it on a piece of cardboard to keep it stiff. It is hung with twine just draped over the teeth so it can be taken off for storage.

In the blacklight, it looks even cooler.

Using the florescent paint really helped him pop in the dark. There are no extra effects on the paper, though it is printed linen paper left over from our wedding.

Extra detail shots:

He ended up greeting people next to our bar for our Halloween party and the reactions were pretty wonderful.

Did you create any monsters of fancy or fancy monsters for your Halloween holiday? Let me know in the comments! I'd love to see pictures!

One if by land, Nine if by Spray Paint

When we got married, we did a lot of the wedding DIY. One thing we were really lucky on were some lanterns that we picked up from Pier 1 for only $3 each. They were metal, green, and had panes of glass in them to hold our centerpieces for the tables at the reception. Notice it holding the white flower in the bottom center of the picture below.

During our Father/Daughter dance. Photo taken by Ronda Sturdivant.

Not only were they perfect for the day, but we kept them afterward and now they adorn our backyard during the sunny months. Unfortunately, when I pulled them out this year, I could see the evidence of summers past.

They were a little worse for wear. They weren't rusted, just really sun-worn and dirty. Since metal lanterns this size are really in style now, I didn't want to replace them. That would have cost a fortune. Instead, I decided to just revamp the ones I had and make them like new again.

I started by taking them apart. The top wire and lids come completely off, so I washed them with dish washing soap. I let them dry really well while I worked on the next step.

Some of the lanterns had candles still stuck in them, so before I could really proceed, they had to be dewaxed. Here is a perfect example.

After an hour in the freezer, the candle shattered enough to come right out in chunks. Thankfully they were not all this bad. I think I would have run out of freezer space...

I was then able to do a first cleaning. I ran each one underwater with soap, rinsed, then put them back on the counter for the second big phase: taking out the glass.

The glass pieces were held in with little metal tabs that just needed to be carefully bent back. I only had to undo the top ones, as I was able to pull the glass straight up and out of the lanterns. There were four pieces per lantern (to keep candles from blowing out in the wind), so this task took a while.

Once all the glass was removed, the lanterns were rewashed. They weren't perfectly clean, but they were clean enough that the dirt and grime were gone from the outside, allowing the paint to stick. They were then allowed to dry.

The glass was all cleaned as well, then very carefully laid out to dry.

Once everything was a-okay, I was ready to paint. I decided on a bright yellow because it would really stand out against our very green backyard. I ended up using two cans of the Rustoleum with primer to get a nice even coat.

I began with them upside-down. I then flipped them right side up and got the top edge. I did not do the insides because I felt that the pattern didn't make that necessary. When you do see both colors, they just look like lemon lime.

When they were completed, I laid out the lids and painted their undersides first. After they dried, I flipped them over and sprayed the tops. Each side took two coats for good coverage. The wires were painted by hanging them from a string so I could do all the sides at once. They only took one awkward coat.

When they were completed, I brought everything inside for reassembly. Here is the inside of one that I'm getting ready to put a glass pane in. You can see how the inside is still green.

 

It's amazing what a new coat of paint can do for something. If you know me, you know that I'll spray paint just about anything, but these guys are probably my newest triumph.

Not only are they clean, but they are bright and cheery spots in our backyard.

I'll update with a night picture once our weather is nice enough to actually get one. Till then, I hope your outdoor projects are allowing you to enjoy your yards, too!

Living a Life of Vanity

This is truly one of the most wonderful times of the year. I am referring, of course, to Tax Return Season. The season that allows you to accomplish that thing or things you can't do for the rest of the year. The season of promise, hope, and at least for us, home improvement.

For Scott and I, we used our tax return in many ways. One way has been overdue for a while.

Our master bathroom has always reminded me a bit of a men's gym bathroom. The sink attached directly to the wall with no cabinet. The tile was old and a horrible color blue. The tub was practically stained yellow. It needed some work.

Avid readers of the blog will recall that I have already painted the tile and walls in there. It was a nice fix for a while, but unfortunately, it did not last. Using the sample pots of paint meant that they were matte finished. When we took showers, the paint would literally drip from the walls, leaving marks and really gross residue all over our tiny bathroom. Besides, I liked the color, but I was never in love with it. It was better than what was there, but it still wasn't at the top of its game.

Let's just say it still needed tweaking.

When we found out what our tax return looked like, we were able to say, "Okay, it's vanity time". Nothing could have made me happier than the day I realized that this bathroom had a future. To prep it, though, I wanted to get rid of the green. I was sitting in the living room the other day and I thought, "I bet the blue paint from behind the TV (of which I have half a gallon left) would look great in there". The dark color would be a nice contrast against the white tiles in such a light space plus, it was a gloss finish. One paintbrush purchase later and I was on my first step to a new room.

I even took some time out to fix our switch box. It had only ever been secured on one side, so I put a screw through the loose side. This meant that every time I unplugged something, the whole outlet wouldn't come out of the wall anymore.

It's the little things.

At this point, I had been shopping online for a vanity that fit our needs. We were aiming for under $200 with a lot of storage space, a white top, and a small footprint. I found this Glacier Bay vanity on Home Depots's website and I knew that it was the one.

Unfortunately, a couple of days later, it wasn't on the site anymore. My friend Laurie and I rushed over to the Depot and found that there was only one left. In Lexington. And it was the floor model. I was so happy they had any left, I went for it. I didn't see anything else I liked and to be frank, anything would be better than this.

Scott took little time in removing the old sink. It was attached to the wall through the tile with a large iron bracket, so once it was unhooked from the water and drainage pipes, it just lifted off the wall. We then took the faucet and drain out to reuse them on the new vanity. They were in perfect condition, so there was no use in spending extra money.

It's worth noting that during this bit of disassembly/reassembly, we had an audience watching from our bedroom.

Left to right: Scooter and Loki (who we were dogsitting) and Sam (Leela was in another room)

We brought in the new vanity and set it in place, making sure that it allowed access to all the water lines. We ended up having to purchase longer water supply lines because it is taller than the old sink. Scott also found a drain extender that looks like a bendy straw, allowing it to maneuver slightly to accommodate the space in the cabinet.

Once it was installed, we couldn't believe what an impact it made.

It has a toilet paper holder! There has never been a toilet paper holder in our bathroom before! And it's the correct height, so you don't feel like you're straining your back to wash your hands or brush your teeth. The couple of inches of counter space that surround the sink have acres of potential usable space compared to zero counter space with the old sink. Best of all is the cool shape of the sink entry and the awesome added storage of a slide out drawer at the top.

The whole room was really coming together, but there was something missing. I have been wanting to bring more plants into my home, but finding places for them where they will receive enough sun has been difficult. It occurred to be that a hanging plant in the bathroom would be a great addition to the space as well as a nice start to my indoor plant collection. Mom and I purchased a small $5 plant at Lowes which I then placed in a $5 ceramic planter I found at TJ Max. I plugged the hole in the bottom using a rubber wine cork and some caulking (at my Dad's suggestion). After purchasing some hemp twine, I followed this tutorial to create the hanger.

When Scott got home, he anchored and assembled the hook in the ceiling. Then I just planted the plant and hung it up. I love how it makes the room feel.

The whole room together feels so nice that I'm almost afraid to use it. I feel like someone is going to knock on the door while I'm taking a shower and tell me to get out of their bathroom. It just feels unreal how, in under a week, it has gone from feeling like a men's gymnasium locker room to an honest to goodness residential bath.

We also have more improvements that have taken place in the last week, but I'm saving those for another post. Make sure you like us on Facebook so you know when the next post is! It'll be a real SPLASH!