The Nest

SEE OUR HOME JOURNEY HERE:

http://thediyshowoff.blogspot.com/2009/10/my-homediy-before-afters.html

We were married August 7, 2005.

Our first home 2007.

I have two daughters that I was raising on my own for 12 years when my husband joined us.  He's out-numbered but has adjusted to being around all of the female hormones.  It's wonderful having a man our lives.  He is amazing.  :)

We purchased our home in 2007, an old farmhouse built in 1927. We have DIY projects to last us a life time. We're enjoying making this old house our dream home. This is our journey. My Mudroom/Back Entry Way: Knock knock! Who's there? It's Niski! She says "welcome to our home"! We just recently completely finished (today!) our back entryway/mudroom! Here is the reveal: Mudroom & entryway to the back yard before we bought the house: Installation of French doors: New slate tile floor: Alphabet Chair accent (click HERE for DIY instructions): Key keeper for those who LOSE everything!. (click HERE for DIY instructions): We decided to repurpose this mirror that was hanging over the fireplace when we purchased our home (picture of living room before we bought the house). Remove very carefully. Luckily ours was only held in place by brackets. No glue. R did a great job framing the mirror (trim from Lowe's) and I stained the wood (Polyshades by Minwax) to match the cherry console and apothecary chest (JCP). He used finishing nails to attach the frame after the mirror was hung. I love how it turned out! I purchased a vinyl monogram from etsy seller singlestonestudios and applied it directly to the mirror after marking the center of the mirror with an eyeliner pencil and determining the center of the monogram. There are a few bubbles to work out. It's a little tedious but, use a razor blade to get the stubborn bubbles by scoring a tiny invisible line and smoothing. Ta-da, here are photos of the completed area. I love the atmosphere for arriving guests. Now...onto the next project! Ready for summer: Spring arrangement before mirror project completed: Back of the House Gets a Transformation: Finally! I can share the transformation of the back of our home! Here is our progress in pictures... Our home when we bought it. Hard to see from the distance, there were two single doors with awnings. Ugly. But I could see potential which is a good thing most of the time, except that "potential" doesn't happen over night! Right away, we installed two sets of French doors. I love them! It changes the entire look of the back of our house. However, the old sidewalks didn't line up and we lived with it for 2 years. And take a look at the old light fixtures. Yuck! So...this spring, we decided to put in a concrete patio. However - the concrete part wasn't DIY. It was way too big of an area and required professionals. See that progress here. We got some new furniture (the table/chairs go under the grape arbor when it's completed). Mr. DIY changed out the lights for me to give it an updated fresh look. Edited to add: Here's the link to my DIY candle jars! :) http://thediyshowoff.blogspot.com/2009/07/copper-penny-jar-candles.html We also hung window boxes to help disguise the upstairs windows which need replaced (another project for another time) and pull the main level and upper level together. Again - before: Now: You can't see the window boxes well in the pictures...but here is what they looked like before they were hung: Okay - I'm getting a little camera-happy...but I just can't believe the change in the back of our home. This is where everyone enters our house, so no more being embarrassed or giving "please watch your step" reminders! All that's left to do is fix the siding below were the old concrete ramp/sidewalk met the old single doors and plant grass! What do you think? We are SO happy it's just about done. It's going to be a great area for entertaining! Being The DIY Show Off Feature is so much fun - it feels so good to show the world our hard work, doesn't it?

My Barn Patio Before & After I'm so excited to share my barn before/after pictures. This space was completely un-usable, except to store/throw junk. Now it's a functional clean party space hidden from the rest of the house and road. I'm still working on some additional DIY touches, but in the meantime, I think you'll agree that the transformation is a HUGE improvement. To keep costs low since this area is only used for occasional entertaining, we re-used a lot of the things we discovered in the barn already (and more DIY coming). We also obtained a few things from estate sales. Before (left side): The "barn red" paint was faded to a really ugly pink. The 'floor' was dirt with broken bricks/pavers. There were LOTS of spiders. We took out the crumbling brick and concrete pavers that formed a broken floor on top of dirt, some broken glass and weeds. We added paneled siding to the back wall and painted. We poured a concrete patio (professionals did that part since it was a large area). My husband framed the door and the wreath was on clearance at Joann Fabrics for $8. I've had these old looking milk bottles for years ... in the basement/storage.I also have special plans for the short table (hope to finish it this week). The left side is still a work in progress...so updates coming in the future. Before (right side): Scary, huh? Ready for the after of this side? I love it. I changed my mind - it's not all about entertaining. This is a great spot to relax! The wicker furniture was picked up at an estate sale. Isn't the footstool the cutest? I didn't even bother with repainting it. I loved it the light faded blue that it is. I did give the wicker chairs a coat of white spray paint to freshen them up. I sewed cushion covers with fabric I bought at Goodwill. (I'll spare you the nasty before picture.) We found the old Coca Cola sign in the barn. I made a table from a crate and old window we also found in the barn. The other accents we got at estate sales (the book and gauge). The blue canning jar I confiscated from my brother. The bird house was hanging on the old grape arbor. The only thing new is the birdie cloche I got at TJ Maxx a few months ago (how perfect for a barn!) and the white lantern (above). I also ran out of time for replacing the hanging light bulb fixtures since I'm so indecisive. Since we have a BBQ coming up, my quick temporary solution was the paper lanterns (less than $2 on sale at Michaels). I already had the area rug too. I did make a chalkboard from one of the old windows. It's not hung up yet, but here it is: The tables looked liked this before. The first one was actually nailed to the back wall. Tables/etc. now: Now, with new legs and paint and a "found" bench...they're perfect for picnics, cookouts and to use as a buffet table. Here is the transformation one more time: Before New Back Wall New Concrete Patio Russ tries out the paint sprayer And now.... I do have a huge wall to decorate yet too and I'll share details as they happen. Edited to add: Remember this? It's the mantel I found in the loft of the barn. I'm pretty sure it's original to the house. It was filthy-dusty. The paint job also looks like it's 80-years-old. For now it just got a major scrubbing and I think I like the finish. Very rough old paint. I think it'll go here. What do you think? Our Dining Room Makeover: Our dining room (before) when we bought the house: And here it is now: Before: See that nasty carpet? After: Now: Hardwood floors refinished. Here's a peek of floor: Tonight, I'm happy. I remember. We have finished a thing or two. :) What we did:

• Took down old ceiling tiles
• Installed smooth drywall ceiling
• Ripped out old filthy carpet
• Sanded and poly'd hardwood floor
• New light fixture
• Painted

To do:

• Paint door to office
• Convince Mr. DIY that we need new furniture

Powder Room #1 Transformation: First, let's take a look at the before picture. Keep in mind that previous owners foreclosed on this old farmhouse and that we lived with this room stripped completely for over a year (that nasty carpet and fixtures were gone)! Thank goodness for my ability to see potential, otherwise this alone would have had us running the other direction! And it had brass accents. Here is the door/hook before: Here is my design board: And "TA-DA". Here are the shots of the fresh, new and CLEAN powder room: Still to do: Install built-in shelves for wash basin/pitcher and accessories above the toilet. I cut off the bottom of the curtain to hem it to correct length and had a little leftover to dress up the towel. And I liked the idea of the hook on the door for hanging the towel (using a curtain clip for easy removal/washing) since the space is too small for a towel bar! One Tough Chick hook is from one of my favorite stores - Mod Cloth. And look at the door knob! So much better than gold brassy! Tile floor: I thank my talented husband from the bottom of my heart. The tile is gorgeous! After work yesterday, he installed and hooked up the pedestal sink, hung the vanity mirror, changed out the flusher, installed the curtain rod, toilet paper holder, door, towel hook and door knob. He was on a roll. NONE of this would have been possible without all of his hard work. I did the easy part...I played designer and picked things out but he was the real genius behind the scenes! So, what do you think? I'm just so happy that I don't have to be embarrassed when guest ask to use the bathroom! Wall Color: Benjamin Moore Smoke Trim Color: BM Designer White Tile: Shore/bocachica Pedestal Sink: Glacier Bay (Home Depot) Faucet: Pegasus 9000 (Home Depot) Light Fixture: Tear Drop Chandelier (Urban Outfitters) Curtain: Abstract Floral/mist (Brocade Home) Vanity Mirror: Kingston Wall Mirror Shelf (Overstock.com) One Tough Chick Wall Hook: (One of my favorite shopping sites) Modcloth.com Pitcher/Basin: Homegoods/TJ Maxx Caldrea Liquid Hand Soap: Organize.com Bud Vases: Organize.com (no longer available) Glass Door Knob: Home Depot Let's take a walk up my stairs beforehand. When we bought the house, it was covered in nasty dirty carpet. Mr. Handy ripped it all out. Here is the picture of the stairs when we bought the house: After the carpet was torn out, here we go up the gouged staircase... And after turning the corner and a few more stairs. Here is what it looked like before. Not so lovely, huh? Then: Also in this project is this little storage cube (before): Not very appealing, is it? Now, let's take that same path today: And this is the new landing. A little paint (Ralph Lauren mahogany) and new knobs give the dresser a cleaner and more modern look. I think it's over 40 years old and needed a face lift. Notice the storage cube - I sewed a cover and cushion. All covered and pretty. I also sewed a table runner to help protect the top (Mr. Handy likes to toss a drill or other tools here.) All of the doors here have glass knobs. I love them. I wish we had the old skeleton keys. The dresser also has locks on each drawer, but...again, no keys. Thanks for stopping by to see our home! What do you think? Do you have before/after or DIY home improvement pictures? I'd love to see 'em! Email me at thediyshowoff.blogspot. I can take your info directly from your blog post or blog not necessary - just send me a note with pics. :)

New doors: 

We can tell our landscape was once loved but it's overgrown and out of control, however too many priority projects on the inside yet to consider before making the yard pretty. 

Here is the front yard.  Yikes!  Somewhere in there is a concrete grotto with a statue of the Virgin Mary also.

GHOST TREE