It was quite another productive week at the old casa. My painting angels came out again last Friday and we got the 2nd coat of paint on all the trimwork. Yay for progress! Getting all of that done in one day was such a good thing.
Dad and I have more board and batten to add, I’m adding some in the foyer and up the stairs too. I figure the more architectural interest I add, the better in this plain house.
Now that the trim is painted, we will get on the wall painting next. That is going to be so exciting! I cannot wait to get rid of the dark blue in the living room and paint my light and airy white in there.
Last week, we got all those old hardwoods torn out, they were just not worth saving and I’ve got better plans with new engineered flooring from Shaw Floors. Those floors are going to make such a difference in this house too.
Here’s a reminder of what the windows looked like when we got it. Rough cedar, not pretty. Big chunk out of one of the boards.
Dad and I worked on trimming out the foyer windows and at least put up new pine boards that look better already. We mitered the corners and fit the front boards on. You can see the small boards that are inside the windows. We decided to leave them and add to it to trim it out and they look so much better now.
Here’s the bottom of the window. Sad and ugly!
New front boards in place.
Now, to trim out the inside, my dad cut the inside trim pieces with the miter saw with the skinny side up. To cut at an angle for this sort of trim out, it’s like crown molding, you have to cut it standing on it’s side and not flat. It’s hard to see the angle in this pic, but there is an angle on it.
It then get’s nailed in like this and each piece is cut the same way and put together like a jigsaw puzzle.
And now it looks like this! So much better, don’t you think?
I caulked every seam and gap in between the old and the new and it is all painted out now. These windows look so much better. I’m really pleased with them now. So worth the effort to get them this way and for not a lot of money with buying a few pieces of lumber and trim. Remember, caulk is your best friend in a renovation. I think I’ve already gone through at least 4 tubes of caulk in my caulk gun. Messy, but necessary!
Caulked and ready to paint.
I’ve got a little more caulking to do, but here it is after one coat of paint. Much better, don’t you think?
Adding that trim to the inside and caulking it all makes a huge difference in the final look.
They look much more presentable now for my entryway.
We also tackled getting those old wood floors up in the dining room and kitchen and it is officially GONE! My dad got out his circular saw and cut it to help get it out of there.
And we hired a couple of young men to help us with that hard work. Dad cut and they pulled up the boards and hauled them out. My friend, Debbie’s son Andrew and his friend, Bryan came over for a few hours to help us out. They did a great job with the heavy lifting.
Working smart with Dad cutting and them pulling up the boards, they got it out piece by piece.
There were a million staples left in the plywood after it all came out, so that has to be taken care of too. We think they can be driven down in the wood and our felt and new floors should go right in over it.
Once all of our old materials are torn out, we will get a dumpster in for a few days to get rid of everything.
This is one of my interior doors that I’ll paint black. One of them has some repair work that needs to be done, so I’m trying to patch this one. I’ve already added wood putty and sanded it down and it will be ready to paint.
On Friday, we had our trim painting party and 4 friends came to help. New friend, Cindy, who with her husband, owns Great Harvest Bread Co. in West Cobb dropped by and painted one bedroom and she also supplied sandwiches for lunch from her wonderful shop. If you haven’t been by Great Harvest, it is a fabulous bread company with delicious treats and they serve breakfast and lunch too. It is not far from my new house and I know it will be a new stop for me when I get over there. Thanks again, Cindy for those delish sandwiches!
Sheila, Missi, and Susan also came by for the painting party and I’m happy to say, we got it all done. Yippee! Thanks again, girls, y’all really helped this job go easier.
Susan’s shirt was appropriate.
Here’s the dining room all painted on top. Wall color above is Benjamin Moore Rockport Gray. I had it mixed at Lowes in Valspar Paint and Primer in one and it covered in one coat. Once I finish my house, I’ll add all my paint colors in one spot.
I added one more coat of paint below after I took this pic, but it is officially done now.
SO pretty!
All that new white paint is blinding me. I love it!
Looking good.
Fresh white on the railing and up the stairs.
Can’t wait to cover up this blue.
Newly painted windows in one bedroom.
And the other one, which will be my office. That red is gonna be fun to cover up.
Last, the master bedroom trim is all white now too. It is feeling lighter already.
We haven’t tackled the den yet, but we will get to that soon. Next, will be adding more board and batten up the stairs, getting all the walls painted, and then it’s on to hardwood floors!
I’m still figuring out my kitchen cabinet plans, but right now it looks like I’m going for Ikea Shaker style cabinets. They really look great and you know what? The Southern Living Idea House had those exact cabinets installed and they look fantastic. I’ll show Part 1 of that house on Friday! You are going to LOVE it!
That’s it for the week!
This gets more exciting with every new development. When you are complete will you list all the paint colors you used? I really love how the dining room is shaping up.
looking good!!! how nice you have so many people that are willing to help. :o)
Amazing what a difference the white trim makes. I love all the light that comes in throughout the house- it’s great to have so many windows!
You are so very blessed to have wonderful friends and family to help you through the process of renovating your new home. It looks wonderful each and every day…I love seeing the progress!…Everything looks wonderful..what a difference trim makes!!…
I look forward to these posts every single week!! So excited for you and I learn so much!!
Rhoda,
I love the paint color in your dining room, what color is it? (Sorry if you mentioned it in an earlier post). My husband and I are going to contract on our first home on Saturday and I’m so excited to start pulling ideas 🙂
Hi, Heather, that color is Rockport Gray by Ben Moore. I had it mixed at Lowes in Valspar Primer & Paint & it covered in one coat. I’m really loving the color too, should look nice with my fabric and chairs in there.
This may sound stupid, but how do you mix BM paint color at Lowe’s or Home Depot? How do they know how to mix it? Thanks for you help during your busy time!
Rhoda- I read every word and I am so excited by all you have done. You are doing a great job with working with what you have there…and adding to it as you need to. We rehabbed 14 houses over the years (living in most of them during rehab) so I know exactly what you are going through.
My dd installed Ikea’s Shaker style cabinetry and they love it. She is very pleased with it. The one thing they found out during installation is that the cabinet’s measurements DO NOT INCLUDE the finished side piece to the cabinet. That meant some last minute gnashing of the teeth to make sure everything fit perfectly and that had a terrible time in one spot…..just telling you so you can be aware of that. Her cabinets look beautiful and you would not know they were not high end. She also purchased Ikea’s farmhouse sink and loves that, too. Good luck- can’t wait to see what you have done to the doors. xo Diana
Hey, Diana, good to know that, thanks for the tips. My neighbor next door has these same cabinets and they are going to let me photograph their house to show you all. He’s going to walk me through the cabinets.
I am just amazed at the hard work your dad can still do. Those pics of him bending over and cutting the boards on the floor are inspiring. Everything is shaping up, and it is so exciting to see a new installment of your house renovations each week.
As Euripides said, “Friends show their love in times of trouble.” Apparently, this extends to DIY projects as well. 🙂
Rhoda,
You, your parents and fellow blogging friends are moving full steam ahead! Your dining room and the windows look fantastic. It always amazes me how much impact a can of paint can make. I think the Ikea cabinets for your kitchen are a great choice.
Your Friend,
Deborah
Rhoda,
Love reading & seeing the pictures of the process of your new house.
You are so blessed to have family & friends to help you. It is hard work and everything is looking so good & will be worth it at the end. So excited for you.
Thanks for sharing…Debbie Parrish
Hey Rhoda, so glad to see everything coming together for you!! I really enjoy these posts and i appreciate the hard work you guys are doing over there, having gone through it myself! Your dad really knows his stuff, tell him he does great work for me!!
Hi Rhoda,
It looks beautiful! I can hardly wait to see it all furnished and you settled in.
Suzan
Ladybug Cottage
Hi Rhoda,
Wow, you are getting a lot done. It is all starting to come together. It is going to look great! Your dad is such a hard worker, he reminds my of how my dad was. (I sure miss him) Nobody works as hard as that generation that went through the depression. Our generation are hard workers as well, I don’t seem to see the same work ethic in the younger 20’s crowd.
Your house is really starting to look good….It’s amazing, isn’t it, how repairing window frames and paint can make such a difference ….I look forward to seeing the progress every week…..Your Dad looks so sweet, what a great worker ….Thanks, Roda, for sharing all the progress with everyone…..Take care…
It looks great. No wonder you were excited to have help painting the trim. There is a lot of it in your house. It’s coming along nicely.
Wow, what wonderful improvements you’ve made in such a short time! I’m so inspired by the potential you see in this house (I see it too!) and by the support of your family and friends to renovate it with love 🙂
I am excited to see your board and batten up the stairs! Do you think you’d be able to post a tutorial about how you did that? I would love to install that in our home, but wouldn’t even know how to begin! Thanks for sharing such great information!
I love seeing the transformation. The new window sills/trim make such a big difference! Do you have any caulking tips? I have such an unsteady hand that my caulking always looks worse than no caulk at all!
Wow! The dining room looks great with the walls done! You sure have accomplished a lot with all the help and the paint angels! It will be exciting to see everything that you do with this house. It’s great the you are documenting everything. It’s also nice that you get a chance to work on it while it’s empty.
Fantabulous, Rhoda. If I lived nearby I would love to help out. Enjoying this wonderful transformation.