January Goals

Oh 2015, I have such high hopes for you! This will be the year we are able to move into the Myrtle House and actually have a home again!

For December, we did okay on our goals:

• Settle the bathroom flooring saga (stone, ceramic, vinyl???) - Done. Going with vinyl. Quick and cost effective and durable.
• Have original windows repaired by construction team (hooray!) - Not exactly sure where we stand on this. Probably haven't started yet.
• Find a mason to repair the fallen chimney (proving harder than you would think...) - No. :( We have to remove the whole thing due to the enormous cost. So bummed.
• Finish spec sheet for each room to determine remaining finishes costs - Yes! While not the number I was hoping for, it is nice to have an end goal in sight and know what we are working with.
• Find two more lights for closets at the Restore (and paint) - Yes!

So that leaves me with January. I don't even know where to begin! Between frigid gloomy weather and my stomach expecting holiday goodies on a daily basis as has been the norm, I have been having a hard time getting my rear in gear and being proactive. Everything is taking so much longer than expected with the house, and there have already been other financial hurdles in the New Year besides renovation things (new tires, I am talking about you). At this rate, I am not sure what we will realistically accomplish this month on the house, but I will try to be optimistic!

• Windows repaired... maybe? Hopefully? If we get these things fixed, the Myrtle House will officially be air tight! No more animal feces inside (unfortunately a true story).
• Begin insulation
• Attempt to cut out most wheat from my diet. I finished reading "Wheat Belly" and it was very enlightening
• Start training for half marathon
• Settle on interior paint colors

Not very exciting goals this month, but with the house progress creeping along, I am going to try and make these goals realistic. Happy 2015!

Dreaming about countertops

Cozy Christmas at the beach

Getting my craft on

The best Craigslist deal of my life - a free sink!

Inexpensive Curtain Rods | Design

If you ever move into a new house without window treatments, that usually becomes your number one priority. Forget painting, forget updating bathrooms, heck - forget running water! A girl needs some privacy. However, purchasing window treatments for an entire house can get pretty pricey at $20-$50 a pop in hardware alone. For the Brooklyn House, we were located downtown and our house was literally six feet from one of our neighbors. I didn't have time to shop around and ended up buying the same satin-nickel curtain rod with glass ball finials from Target for all of the windows. This neighborhood is nicer, so it made more sense to splurge on nicer hardware (a rule I use across the board in renovations).

For the Myrtle House, we have had plenty of time to scour for deals. I realized on our last visit to the house that our large, original windows are in fact 60" wide, so that means we need longer curtain rods than the standard 24"-48" kind (ie more expensive). Bummer.

I first started the shopping search online, and then after becoming desperate, started looking into DIY options. (PVC or electrical conduit?) I came across a link of a cute curtain rod from Hobby Lobby of all places. At $7.99 each, I think they are a steal. I have seen them marked down 30% online, but I know Hobby Lobby also circulates a 40% off coupon quite often. (Click the images to link to the product pages).

Another unexpected curtain rod treasure trove was at Ross! I actually ended up buying all of the needed curtain rods for the Myrtle House (minus two) for $40 total. They are not fancy or tremendously ornate, but given the area and price point of the house, they are a perfect fit. Plus I know that we will not have to sleep with one eye open due to lack of privacy those first few nights. :) If your budget is a little grander than our Myrtle House budget, check out HomeGoods. They have lovely hardware at very reasonable prices.

When it comes to window treatments, do you splurge or try to save? Any other stores I should check out?

Brass to Beautiful | Myrtle House

I have learned a lot about the timeline for construction during this reno. For example, our HVAC went in before electrical. I would have thought it would be the other way around. Another task that I thought would come last would be painting, but that in fact will have to come rather soon so that our electrician can install our new light fixtures. This realization left me scrambling at the Restore for inexpensive fixtures that could look amazing with some TLC. I finally got around to painting some of these gems. I had a can of Rustoleum's Oil-Rubbed Bronze spray paint on hand, so that is what I used. The finish turned out great!

I also spray painted these guys, but am waiting on a few finishing parts and don't have the final product quite ready.

Of course, not all DIY projects have a happy ending. I think I prefer the "before" version better of these sconces; the details get lost in the oil-rubbed bronze. They look a little Medieval and heavy in this finish... I am going to try a chrome paint next.

Red Door | Myrtle House

For those of you who know me, you know that really the only colors I use for decorating in my own house are blues and grays, with the occasional bold black. Sure I can range from a green-blue to a beige-gray, but that is about as crazy as I get. Brian almost always lets me make all of the design choices. I did major in interior design, so it makes sense. Usually he goes along with whatever I select, unless I suggest something crazy like "let's add black trim to the cabinets" (true story). He is good about reigning me in when I venture into that crazy design land we all ultimately visit after too many late nights working combined with breathing in paint fumes. ;)

Throughout this extensive and long Myrtle House renovation, the only suggestion (and hinting request) has been for a red door. Hm. Red. That and orange are probably my least favorite colors in the world. However, this poor man has been in this mess of a house, carrying out flooring covered in mouse droppings. The least I could do is agree to his choice of door color. Here is the house in it's current condition, as well as the best photo I have of the original door. Do you think our little Myrtle House can pull off the red?

I am not going to lie, red is tricky. It can't be too orange, or too purple. I want what I am calling "an aged cherry" color. I foresee many red color samples in our future... Until then, here are the inspiration photos I am drawn to.

Renee Finberg

This Old House

Sophia's Decor

NJ.com

My current favorite color is Cardinal by Sherwin Williams (possibly discontinued?) - not too burgundy, not too orange, and not too dark. Vibrant, without hurting your eyes. Plus, since the Cardinal is the official bird for North Carolina, I feel like it is meant to be. Any red suggestions? Do any of you pick out paint colors based on their name like I do? I get that from my mom. :)

December Goals

2014 is rapidly coming to a close. In all honesty, I am not sad to see this year wrap up. It has been stressful, expensive, and tiring. Living in this weird sort of limbo has been difficult, but Brian and I have learned so much, and even my younger brother pointed out (hey, Jared!) that if we can make it through this, we should be able to make it through most things. :) Here is how we did for November:

• Start electrical @ Myrtle - Done! He just needs to install the light fixtures after walls and ceilings have been painted
• Run in the OBX half with my sister and Brian (his first!) - Done! Not our best time, but pleased we finished running. Trying to figure out the next one to sign up for...
• Meet my niece! - Yes. Such a cutie. :)
• Celebrate my Grandfather's 90th birthday - Yep!
• Master a homemade Southern mac and cheese recipe (any suggestions?) - Not really, but the version I made wasn't terrible
• Complete Christmas shopping - Pretty much!

We have purposefully slowed down for December. For a stretch there between October and November, we had traveled five out of six weekends, so December has been a nice break. The house is getting so close for our contractor to hand it back to us, and we are itching to get this beast livable, but until then, here is our agenda for the rest of the year. :)

• Settle the bathroom flooring saga (stone, ceramic, vinyl???)
• Have original windows repaired by construction team (hooray!)
• Find a mason to repair the fallen chimney (proving harder than you would think...)
• Finish spec sheet for each room to determine remaining finishes costs
• Find two more lights for closets at the Restore (and paint)

I hope your December is relaxing as well during this festive month!

Surprised by how festive our little rental looks!

Rare quality time when all three sisters are in the same place!

So refreshing to see new fixtures going into Myrtle!

A quick trip to my favorite place, Atlantic Beach, NC