Paint It Black

To be fair, we actually saw 2 white doors instead of a red one, but you get the idea. Out of all the DIY projects Mr. O and I have executed (and there have been quite a few) painting the front and back doors and replacing their respective hardware was by FAR the biggest pain in the ass. Don't be fooled (as we were) into thinking this is an easy task. It's not. To begin, drill out your existing hardware. Hinges, locksets, and handles. You'll want everything to match in the end so it's best to knock it out all at once.

Once you've removed your hardware, prime and paint. We had the good fortune of being able to schedule this in the dead of August when it's so hot if you're working more than 5 minutes outside you start to see spots. If you've got cutouts in your door you'll want to hit these with a brush first then roll the rest. Once you're painted get ready for the fun stuff. Install your locksets first. Wiggling and jiggling is all a part of the process. Do your hinges next. This is what we had the most trouble with. Even though we tried to drill into the existing holes we just couldn't get the door on straight. If anyone has any tips please jump in. Do the strikes next and then pour yourself a damn huge glass of wine. Nay, stick a straw in the bottle.

BEFORE AND AFTER

Salon Revive

Hi Dolls, I'm going to take a moment to step away from the house and home thread and instead discuss the fabulosity that is Salon Revive on 9th. To those of you out there in need of a new hairdresser and those of you that just want to take another stylist for a spin, check this place out. I wouldn't recommend it unless it was really, really good. XOXO ~

You, Me, and Settee

The Sofia settee by Ballard Designs is gorgeous. As soon as I saw it I wanted it. My only hesitation was that it was too French Country and might not work in a contemporary space. I talked it over with the foremost expert in home interiors, my mommy. :) She advised that if you really love something, get it. You'll figure a way to make it work. She was right. Paired with some throw pillows it's every bit that modern glamour look that I love so much.

Also available in Chocolate.

Upstairs Hall

The white hall wasn't working for me, especially after we refinished the floors and they were covered with dust. I've always loved aqua and went through a couple versions before finally deciding on Interesting Aqua by Duron. See below for Before and After. BEFORE AFTER

The Pirates of PenDants

Ok so question - Can a pendant light go above anything other than a kitchen island? I love these little guys, but with a galley kitchen is there anywhere I can use them?

LovesThese from LampsPlus:

I'm Floored

Refinishing hardwood floors is a process - and we subcontracted out. Our downstairs prefinished oak was in good shape, but the pine upstairs was a disaster. I love the look of dark floors and knew that's what I wanted in my home so in the name of uniformity I opted to refinish the lighter colored oak as well. Initially we were just going to patch and repair the upstairs, but the floors were in such bad shape we ended up putting new floors down. (Note here - once we pulled up the carpet we realized our original hardwoods were nailed to the floor joists; we had no subfloor. At first I was like "WTH?! I'm going to be on my way to the bathroom and fall through to the kitchen." It's actually not that bad. In older homes like ours you'll find a lot of hardwoods with no subfloor. That was just the design in the early 1900s and it's ok; you won't fall through.) Ok so the first thing you want to make sure happens - whether you do it or your subcontractor does it - is cover your vents and protect any of your finishes.

The sanding dust will go everywhere and I do mean everywhere. We finished over a week ago and I'm still wiping down walls. Then you sand ...

Then you pick your stain ... (I picked the one on the bottom.)

Then you refinish! Here are some Before and Afters.

BEFORE

AFTER

What's Under There?

Well it certainly wasn't gorgeous hardwoods. When we first visited the little château Mr. O and I were thrilled when we pulled up a corner of the gross carpet to reveal hardwood floors. Unfortunately once we completely tore up the carpet we found a bit of a mess. Saying they needed some repair work would be putting it mildly. At the top of the stairs we found about a 12 square foot patch of cracked concrete with a damaged plywood subfloor. Disaster.

The least of our concerns was the fact that the floors had been painted a hideous doo-doo brown with a white spray overlay. Here's another pic:

Ehhhh ...

Pulling Carpet

I had never ripped up carpet before so I wasn't sure what to expect, but it was really easy. All you need is some heavy duty tape, a knife (a specialty one for cutting carpet is best because the blades last longer), a pry bar and hammer, and some gloves. Pick a corner and give it a good yank. Then take your knife and cut the carpet into about a 3 foot sections or whatever is manageable for you. Roll the carpet with the carpet side in and tape to hold the roll in place. Then do the same thing with the pad. By the end of this you'll have a mountain of carpet rolls to take to the dump. Or the recycling plant like we did. :) Green your routine, y'all! Depending on the size of your space it will prob look something like this: Then you've got to get up your tack strip. Be careful cause those things can hurt you. I wore gloves. Shimmy your pry bar under the tack strip and wack it with your hammer to get it good and under there. Then push down and the tack strip will lift up. You'll probably have to do this a couple of times before the strip will completely pull from the floor.

Then toss your tack strips and get ready for new floors!