So, we moved again. Even less fun this time than before, because guess what? The more kids you have, the more stuff you accumulate, and therefore the more you have to pack-load-unload-unpack etc. When you add the fact that one of those children you have happen to be in infant into the mix... this is gonna take a while!
Finding a place to rent close to hubs work was not easy. All the nice places were crazy over priced for the area, and all the others needed lots of work. Besides those points, all of them we looked at were only 2 bedrooms. . . and I'm not saying I am too good for it, but I have 3 kiddos now... we just will not fit into a 2 bedroom place anymore. (unless maybe there was a full basement or usable attic space which was not the case in anything) We did however finally find a perfectly spaced home with 4 bedrooms, and a nice flat yard that we could actually afford. I was amazed this even existed, but when I saw the interior, I knew why it hadn't been snatched up quickly.
I am a do-it-yourself kindof gal, and this made me cringe a bit, and think, can I make this a happy space? My before photos do not even shed light (a pun since it was so dark) on how dreary it was. Dark paneling on all the walls, dark wood doors on every room, dark trim, dark shag green carpet in living room, dining room, and a bedroom, and matching ugly green torn linoleum in laundry/entry room, kitchen, and bath. It was an outdated nightmare for someone who loves light, and bright. Here are some photos . . .
See, I wasn't kidding lol. We armed ourselves with lots of paint and primer and work ethic (cause painting paneling takes a long time and is a hard job... dont let anyone tell you different). First we removed the old flooring . . . it was gross lemme tell ya. Then we primed EVERYTHING. With the good primer, kilz I think, anywho, we asked for the best, and were pointed to it. I was glad too, cause I would have had to put 10 gallons of color on the walls instead of just one coat (maybe 2 in places) if I hadn't. Anywho, I have listed below before and after photos as an ensample of how, even on a budget (boy we are on one) that with effort, you can transform a space from something dreary, into something light and bright.
Here is the Laundry/Back Entry Before:
and after
we chose a pale neutral color for the walls, like a light nutty tan, and well, I love aqua, and thus the door.
And here is before and after of the kitchen. The new (inexpensive) linoleum and light walls really transformed the feel in there. I also (while everything was torn out) hit those white metal cabinets with a fresh coat of epoxy spray paint from walmart. They shine bright white like new, it even covers rust spots, and was less than $5 a can.
This is the other side of the kitchen, looking into the hallway. That green was just awful.
And here is the after! So much lighter! and perfect space for my little coffee station I made. I also painted it aqua :)
The before pic of the dining room wasn't a good one. I love the amount of light that streams through those windows, but even that couldn't kill the dull in there with that carpet. But look at the after! (lovin my aqua) so bright and airy
And then here is the living room. Ugly, ugly, ugly.
And here is a before, even with our super dark brown leather, and near black- hardwood, this space is light and bright! Really makes it feel happier. If that makes sense at all!
In case you were wondering, there was natural (but damaged) hardwood under all that carpet. I squeeled a bit when we tore it up. We had hoped to stain it, but it had been stained, in random areas, and I didnt have time nor money to rent an industrial floor sander to remove that, so, I ran to google and pinterest, and decided on the best method for painting. I swept, scrubbed, scrubbed again, let dry, then hubs rolled on an indoor/outdoor heavy traffic porch paint from glidden. It was awesome, and covered great. I gallon can covered living room, dining room, and a bedroom floors.
Here is hubs making that floor pretty.
The bath, tho lots of character now, is too small to get a good picture in, id have to take 10 at different angles to show it all, here is just a peek of one of my favorite things, the old existing medicine cabinet. I primed these (odd trailer-like) walls and painted with my left over aqua, then repainted the mirror frame with the white. We intend to replace that vanity also, but I didn't want to wait till then for this before and after.
The owner paid for the linoleum replacement before we moved it. So, all in all, we spent about $200 on paint and painting supplies. That's really not bad at all for taking your living space from depressing, to light and airy. :)
God Bless!
