Tuesday, April 12, 2022

Before and After (on the new house)




In March, Kaysee and I began to take all the wallpaper off the walls of this house. Literally every room except one was covered in wallpaper and it was a daunting task. We started from one end of the house and worked our way to the other end of the house, including the upstairs. As we pulled that last of the wallpaper off, we laughed and cried. :-) 

Before


 
During




After  







We painted each room, first with primer, and then with two coats of paint. We have also changed out many of the fixtures, using only items that we've either made or purchased at second-hand stores. The paint we also purchased from the Habitat for Humanity ReStore, so we had limited color options, but we were very pleased with the quality of the paint and how everything has turned out. The entire project has cost us less than $200. The original quote I received to remove all the wallpaper was $15,000. 

Before



The chandelier that was hanging in this entryway was a lethal weapon to all tall people. I was happy to see it go. 

After 





I struggled A LOT with the tall places in this room, perched precariously on the ladder at over 22 feet. But, I lived to tell the tale. :-) 

Before




After









The boys' bathroom still needs to have the shower gold painted, but otherwise it's finished. They love it! 

Before



After





I don't have any before pictures of the hallway, but here is after. Please note the garish light fixtures on the left hand side of the wall. I am working on replacing these with a unique idea, but since I don't yet have them completed, that will have to wait for another blog entry. 





Declan and Kelton's bedroom

Before



After 





To remove the wallpaper, we had to wipe the entire section with 1 part white vinegar to 3 parts hot water. Then, scrape the top layer off. Then, we had to re-wipe the same section with the same liquid mixture and start peeling off the second layer. Some sections had particularly challenging glue underneath and had to be scraped one tiny piece at a time. We found for the entire project that a metal cheese slicer and a metal spatula were more effective and useful than the putty knives recommended to us by all the professionals. 

Before




During









After





 
We replaced the gas stove top/oven with the one from our other house (which is almost new), are replacing the dishwasher with a new silver one that our dear friends gave us, swapped out all the handles (in the entire house as they were in every room) which were white porcelain with flowers and gold. We changed out the shallow stainless steel sink for a deeper cast iron sink that we picked up at the ReStore for $20.






                                                   

When I went to remove the wallpaper from the staircase area, I realized I would have to remove the (ugly) cream colored carpet from the stairs, as the wallpaper went at least 2.5 inches below the carpet line.  So,  I pulled up the carpet and found particle board underneath. UGH. 

I don't have the time at this point to go crazy on making the stairs what we want (wood covered), so I mudded them lightly, then put on two coats of primer and two coats of paint. Lastly, I added (stapled on) a couple runners to make them a little nicer to traverse. We're pretty happy with the end project. 

Before



During








After




Then, for our bedroom. THAT is where the glue underneath the wallpaper was a real bear. 

Before



After







We replaced the hideous gold fan/light that bumped up against our bed with this dragonfly light we found at Goodwill for $5. Originally $300, and it is so delightful! 


My writing alcove. 


The kitchen had blinding florescent lights, so we took those out. About 2 years ago, I was out wandering in the woods and found this exquisite piece of wood in the burn scar from the Schultz Fire. One side was charred from the old fire, and the other side was beautifully preserved in the soil below. It is a beautiful dark pine color. So, we gave it a new life as the fixture in our kitchen. We also repurposed some of our metal soup bowls. :-)  








I still have one wall to finish in the back living room. It is free of wallpaper, but it is 25+ feet high and painting it is rather daunting. So... I will post pics once that task is completed. I have completed most of that room, however, and added some of the wood pieces that Madigan and I have found in the woods/streams/waterfalls over the past couple of years as decoration. 




Our new dog treat container. This stump was also found up near my tree. It had so much character, I couldn't leave it behind. 


Madigan hauled this beautiful piece out of a waterfall and carried a very long distance to bring it home to me. I absolutely love it. 


There is still much to be done, but we have accomplished a great deal and this house feels so much more like home to us now. We really really love it. We will continue changing out old light fixtures (we've found some beautiful pieces for free or for next to nothing in various places) over the next several weeks and it's amazing how far that goes in making a place come together for the better.