Exciting times guys. Operation Ditch The Blue Trim is currently in progress! So while we sweat our way through un-blue-ing things on the second floor – that’s four bedrooms, a nice long hallway, and at least 10 doors – we thought it was high time we shared our master to-do list for the new house (and for anyone jonesing for trim-painting info/photos, we hope to finish up and be back with a full report for you on Wednesday).
These posts came about when people asked how we organize all the stuff we have on our to-do list. We explained that we basically have one long run-on document that we update as we go. Folks kept asking us to share it and it turned out to be a good time for us since public proclamations help keep our momentum up, and crossing things off gives me a nice mom-buzz. So here’s our first brain dump for the new house. Of course things tend to evolve as we go, so we’ll probably change our minds fifty times, but right now if you were to peel back our skulls and peek into our DIY-loving brains (you’re welcome for that delicious visual) this stuff would be banging around in there. #warningitslong
– The Front Yard (0% Complete) –
To Do:
- Dig up all the quickly spreading ground cover
- Remove the trees that are dead/decaying/diseased beyond repair (our house inspector helped confirm which ones had to go)
- Aerate, level, and seed the yard
- Make planting beds up front and mulch and plant them
- Repaint all exterior siding and trim (there’s peeling paint, some rot, etc)
- Redo old cracked concrete walkway from the driveway to the front door (add curves and pretty planting beds on both sides)
- Add some pretty hardscaping around the front (we’re still inspired by this house’s awesome landscaping – so we’d love to add something raised stone beds)
- Plant a few green dwarf maples (it’s our favorite thing that we planted one at our current house – you can see it in this post under the window on the right)
- Add exterior up-lighting (some of the neighbors have it and it’s crazy charming at night)
- Add low curved brick borders on either side of the driveway wired with lights (some of the houses nearby have ’em and we love them)
- Get the driveway paved
– The Portico (0% Complete) –
To Do:
- Repaint the portico (peeling paint = everywhere)
- Arch the portico ceiling (it’s low and one house up the street has an arched ceiling with a gorgeous hanging lantern)
- Add a few planters, a new door mat, new porch lighting, etc
- Paint the front door (we’re leaning towards a rich emerald color but we’ve also always loved a glossy red door)
– The Garage (0% Complete) –
To Do:
- Repaint garage doors and add some nice hardware to beef them up
- Add pergola over double garage doors with vines creeping over it
- Finish the interior of the garage with drywall to create a workshop on one side and storage around the perimeter (add pegboards, shelving for paint and tools, etc)
- Reuse kitchen cabinets in the garage if we can’t salvage them after the kitchen makeover (they’re dinged up and splintered in a bunch of spots, but would be great for the garage)
- Redo four steps that lead from garage to kitchen (remove old carpeting and paint them? rebuild them completely?)
- Build a box on casters for scrap wood storage in the garage (we need a system to keep it from being all over the place)
- Maybe we should get old lockers and paint them fun colors and remove some of the doors for storage? (love these!)
- Possibly add plumbing for a utility sink out there (we’ve always wanted one in our “workshop”)
– The Foyer (0% Complete) –
To Do:
- Remove the old carpet from the wood stairs
- Paint blue trim in foyer, including stair balusters
- Remove wallpaper and repaint the walls
- Remove the doors that block the flow into the kitchen (and the pretty view out the back windows that will someday be french doors)
- Depending on how things go as we move in/live there, we might add gates to the stairs and maybe a stair runner (seagrass? a colorful Dash & Albert runner?)
- Replace the old foyer light (paint existing one? so torn!)
- Replace tile? (only if it’s un-salvageable – there are a few areas where it’s pretty beat up)
- Since there are two closets in the foyer and we only need one for coats, so we want to build a craft and toy closet in the deeper foyer closet with a bunch of shelves to store Claraphernalia
– The Half Bathroom (0% Complete) –
To Do:
- Remove wallpaper
- Repaint all blue trim (and door)
- Upgrade door hardware & hinges
- Paint walls
- Replace vanity
- New mirror (something larger and higher – John can only see up to his shoulders now)
- Upgrade lighting
- Replace tile floor? (only if it’s un-salvageable)
- Here’s a shocker since this house is covered with old wallpaper, but we’re actually flirting with adding some cool new wallpaper since there’s no tub/shower in there (grass cloth? something charming like this or this?). Could be fun!
– The Dining Room (0% Complete) –
To Do:
- Clean and re-poly the wood floors
- Upgrade built-ins (remove scrolly tops? build up to ceiling? paint white?)
- Paint all of the blue trim
- Remove the wallpaper and repaint the walls
- Upgrade lighting and curtains
- Add furniture, a rug (?) and art
– The Living Room (0% Complete) –
To Do:
- Clean and re-poly the wood floors
- Prime and paint the bright pink walls
- Lose the curtains
- Prime and paint the thick woodwork that wraps around the bottom half of the room’s walls (we LOVE it, and think it’ll be gorgeous in white)
- Paint the brick fireplace wall in the first phase of lightening up the room (we always loved how our first house’s den looked after we cozied it up with paint)
- Retile fireplace (maybe something like this tile?) and get gas logs as phase two after we save up our bucks OR drywall fireplace wall and add a stone lip like this?
- Add more can lights to evenly light the room (there are just three near the fireplace)
- Turn the overhead beams into a coffered ceiling (like these)
- Build/find a nice big built-in-looking cabinet that holds the TV (across from the window, we think)? We’ll have to see where we end up on this one…
– The Office (0% Complete) –
To Do:
- Lose the curtains
- Clean and re-poly the wood floors
- Paint walls and trim and ceiling
- Add double desk work area somewhere – perhaps coming out from the middle of the left wall (or the right wall between the windows)?
- Bring in storage (bookcase, file cabinet, etc) – possibly cool build-ins around the bay window
- Add curtains/window treatments
- Hang art & create a brainstorm-zone on the walls (bulletin board? chalkboard?)
- Add two large potted plants (lemon trees? fiddle leaf figs?) in front of the two front-facing windows
– The Kitchen (0% Complete) –
To Do:
- Remove the wallpaper and paint the walls
- Lose the curtains
- Convert giant triple window into french doors leading onto deck
- Open wall between kitchen & living room then add built-ins on either side (sort of like the dining room built-ins in our current house)
- Prime and paint the woodwork that wraps around the bottom half of the room’s walls
- Full kitchen reno (replace the faux brick linoleum, damaged cabinets, laminate counters, bad lighting, old broken appliances, etc)
- Perhaps try our hand at heated floors under some fresh tile (that might spill into the foyer and hall bath if we can’t salvage that tile)
- Organize the pantry with pull out drawers and bins and containers (and paint the door a fun color or replace it with frosted glass?)
- Amp up the “command center” area across from the triple windows
- Paint the new kitchen french doors and door to the sunroom (black? charcoal? soft turquoise? white?)
- Get water filter for under the sink
- Add window treatment and pendant over the sink & a larger new light fixture over the eat-in area
- Figure out how to create a drop zone for coats, shoes, etc (maybe in the garage if not in here?)
– The Sunroom (0% Complete) –
To Do:
- Rip up old stinky carpet and padding
- Seal in the smell somehow (so the concrete doesn’t leech odor forever)
- Stain or paint the concrete floor as part of Phase 1
- Permanently remove the broken base heater
- Eventually retile the floor with outdoor-safe stone to upgrade the old concrete floors (down the line for Phase 2)
- Convert sunroom to an open covered porch with new columns and no more sliders (many of the sliders are bad and the posts are rotten) – we’re envisioning something like this
- Build a brick outdoor fireplace off of the sunroom after we open it up? Kind of like this, but different…
- Add beadboard to the ceiling and paint it soft blue?
– Our Bedroom (1% Complete) –
To Do:
Remove old carpetingand install hardwoods- Repaint all of the cream trim and doors
- Repaint the off-white ceilings and walls
- Add built-ins along the entire window wall (with integrated window seats, hidden storage, and display shelves with thick molding)?
- Add a ceiling light fixture (there’s nothing in there)
- Maybe add some textured wallpaper like this to the ceiling, just to spice things up…
- Bring in art, curtains, etc.
- Add wood blinds to all windows (it gets crazy sunny in here in the afternoon!)
– Our Bathroom (0% Complete) –
To Do:
- Completely redo our bathroom (the fun blue hex floor tile is in rough shape and we want to expand the footprint into the sink nook area so it’s all one space (soaker tub? tiled shower as well? double sink? should be fun!)
- Bring privacy to the window in there (frost it? window treatment?)
– Our Closet (0% Complete) –
To Do:
- Repaint all of the cream trim
- New light fixture
- Organize/build out/pimp the entire space (we’re envisioning cabinetry with drawers, shelves, rods at different heights, etc)
-Upstairs Hallway (1% Complete) –
To Do:
Remove old carpetingand install hardwoods- Replace the old hallway lights (or paint existing ones? not sure)
- Repaint all of the blue trim and doors glossy white
- Get all new hinges and door knobs (they’re not only bright brass, many of them are rusted/corroded so they can’t just be sprayed)
- Convert hallway linen closet into built-in open shelves or cabinets with shelves over them (sort of like this?)
- Upgrade to a Nest thermostat (we hear nothing but great things about them, and John is drooling for one)
- Add crown molding
- Add thick wood wainscoting (like we have in the kitchen and living room) to the upstairs hallway to break up the long space?
– Clara’s Room (1% Complete) –
To Do:
Remove old carpetingand install hardwoods- Repaint all of the blue trim and doors
- Make entire wall of built-ins somewhere? Maybe bookcases surrounding the windows?
- Build a bench seat in Clara’s deep sloped ceiling-ed closet nook with beadboard on the ceiling and wallpaper on the back wall
- Prime and paint Clara’s big girl dresser and attach leather pulls
- Add crown molding
- Add a ceiling light fixture (boo! there’s nothing in there!)
- Add window blinds, curtains, art, etc.
– Spare Room/Possible Someday Nursery (1% Complete) –
To Do:
Remove old carpetingand install hardwoods- Repaint all of the mauve trim and doors
- Repaint the dingy ceilings
- We’re going to hold off on major decorating decisions until this room actually has a use (if/when baby #2 is on the way, we’d love for this to become a nursery)
- Repaint the walls
- Add crown molding
- Add a ceiling light fixture (boo! there’s nothing in there!)
- Add wood blinds (for light blocking) and curtains
– The Guest Bedroom / Craft Room (1% Complete) –
To Do:
Remove old carpeting andinstall hardwoods- Repaint all of the cream trim and doors
- Bring in a bed and a dresser/desk that can accommodate my sewing machine/crafting so this room can multi-task (it has the prettiest view/light – I’d love to creep in there and sew/paint on Sunday afternoons)
- Organize and build out some craft/gift wrap shelving in closet (lots of shelves and bins, etc)
- Add crown molding
- Add a ceiling light fixture (nope, there’s nothing in there either!)
– The Hall Bathroom (0% Complete) –
To Do:
- A complete redo is in order (the old tile is stained/cracked, the tub and fixtures are crusty enough to make grown men cry, etc). Maybe we’ll do herringbone slate? Marble? Extra long rectangles of tile like this?
– Laundry Nook (1% Complete) –
To Do:
Remove old carpeting andinstall hardwoods (with washer in a water-safe metal tray on the floor for leak protection)- Completely redo nook (new doors for noise control, updated energy star appliances, new counter, new cabinets – or more cabs if we re-use the existing ones)
- Add tile backsplash and some great art/lighting (I want to make it a fun little surprise jewel box in the back of the hallway)
– Unfinished Storage Room (o% Complete) –
To Do:
- This will serve as an awesomely large storage room for a while (we have no current need for additional finished rooms), but down the line we’d love to finish it – maybe as a movie room / bunk room for older kiddos? This’ll be waaay down the line, but we dream of:
- Adding drywall
- Getting flooring
- Adding lighting
- Building out the closets (so there’s still some storage under the eaves)
- Furnishing the space with built in beds, a TV, a big sectional for lounging, etc – wahoo!
– General Whole House Ideas (0% Complete) –
To Do:
- Slowly upgrade all lights in the house to LEDs to save energy
- Replace all of the gold/wallpapered/off-white switchplates and outlets in the house (there are about ten million of those to tend to)
- Upgrade to nicer frames, drapes, sheets, and curtain rods over time (they’re not cheap, but we’d love to be “grown ups” someday – even if it takes us 10 years or so to get there!)
– The Back Deck (0% Complete) –
To Do:
- Power wash and stain/seal deck and replace rotten/ warped boards
- Remove the giant oak tree that’s practically growing into the house (the inspection indicated that the roots could severely damage the house’s foundation if we don’t get ‘er down – which is pretty sad since it’s cute but just way too close)
- Build a pergola for more architecture and shade off of the back of house where the future kitchen french doors will be (square to the sunroom)
- Build outdoor furniture like a table or lounge chairs for the deck
– The Backyard (0% Complete) –
To Do:
- Remove random slate paths from backyard and aerate and seed
- Transplant a few things for a better layout, like the pretty peony bushes in the middle of nowhere (not pictured)
- Plant holly bushes for privacy from the other houses that our wooded lot backs up to (Phase 1)
- Build a fun wooden playhouse tucked back into the woods for Clara
- Plant an edible garden
- Build a swing set
- Redo old cracked concrete walkway between garage and deck (not pictured) <– we’ll be whipping up an outdoor video tour for you guys soon, which should help show a lot more than a few pictures can
- Add more privacy plantings – tiered trees, bushes, and flowers (Phase 2)
- Build some raised planters and hardscaping
- Add a patio area somewhere around the deck
- Make a wooden lean-to in the corner of the backyard with Clara and then plant some vines to grow up around it to make a cool little hideaway
- Build air conditioner cover with wood boards like this
In summary, we’ve got big plans for this baby. And thankfully we’ve learned that we’re hopelessly in love with the act of upgrading a house (we did this stuff for fun far before we did this as an actual job) and the journey is actually a lot more exciting than the destination is for us (more on that here). We’ve also learned just to take things one day/project/victory at a time to avoid getting too overwhelmed and sucking the joy right out of things. And seriously, is there anything more fun than crossing things off of a giant list called Listy McListerson? (NO. The answer is NO).
As for the method to our “project order,” we don’t really think there is one. We just do whatever we’re in the mood for (barring anything that needs to be moved to the top of the list for safety or other extreme-urgency reasons). And we jump around from room to room just to stay excited and to avoid feeling too forced into doing something that we might not be ready to deal with yet – like gutting a kitchen or bathroom (we like to live in a house for a while to see how we use those spaces before completely retooling them).
As of this very moment, we’re thinking that we’d love to tackle these before we move in a few weeks (might not get it all done, but it’s nice to dream…):
- repaint all of the trim and doors on the second floor (we hope to be done and share details by Wednesday)
- lay our new hardwood floors in the four bedrooms and hallway
- lose the floral curtains in the office, dining room, kitchen, and living room
- remove the extraneous flow-blocking doors on the first floor (between the foyer and kitchen, dining room and kitchen, and living room and kitchen)
So those are “on deck” for ya. How do you guys make your house to-do lists? Do you keep them on your phone? On post-its? How do you decide what to tackle next? Is there any method to your madness?
Raisa T. says
Hi there,
And I’m saying ‘hi’ for the first time since reading your blog daily since 2008 (as in refreshing your homepage at work starting at 8:50am CST (because sometimes you guys post early) and reading every word and following some of your tutorials and ideas — wow, I sound like your blog stalker). Anyway, I’ve yet to comment because I just love reading and laughing with you guys and I just love everything you do (and sing). I love your new home (and the fab wooden backyard – so jealous!).
But, I digress. I decided to comment today because I am in love IN. LOVE. with that thick woodwork that wraps around the bottom half of the living room’s walls. Although I completely understand and respect that you guys make your own decisions and I know you are just throwing out some ideas right now. But, as a loyal reader (and haha this is no threat, I will forever continue to be your loyal reader), I’d like to suggest and just throw out this idea — please don’t paint that wood :)
Thanks for hearing me out. Love you both!!
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, thanks Raisa! We definitely won’t rush into anything – so we’ll have to see where we end up! The whole house feels really dark in person (heavy curtains, wallpaper, dark trim, wood everywhere, etc) but who knows where this house journey will take us. I’m sure we’ll be surprised too!
xo
s
Jenny J. says
I’m so excited to watch your progress in the new house! My husband and I bought a very similar fixer-upper (right down to the wallpapered switch plates and blue trim!)six months ago, and we’ve been slowly but surely making many of the same updates you’ll be making to your new house. My goal was to complete all the renovations in a year. We’re half-way there. The biggest project so far was the gut rehab of the master bath, which we expanded to include a double vanity and soaker tub.
I love your blog, and your “one step at a time” approach inspired me to realize that I (just an average home owner with no training in carpentry or construction) could take on a giant home renovation project too. Thank you! I can’t wait to read about what you do next!
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks Jenny! Best of luck with everything!
xo
s
Marissa says
This is so exciting…it’s like a whole new season of Sarah’s House and I can’t wait to see all the finished rooms :)
Haley says
I’ve been reading your blog for a while now (maybe 2 years?) and I am so excited about your new house / projects! We just bought our first home and are planning a lot of similar stuff for our place, so we’ll kinda be playing along at home :) You’ve inspired me to make my own master list of things to do by room.
Kelly says
I’m excited to see what new doors you get for your laundry area as my laundry is in a similar closet but in my kitchen (my current doors look very similar). I actually love the location because it makes it easy to multitask with cooking and laundry, but it’s definitely VERY noisy so if you get something that dampens some of that noise I can’t wait to see what it is.
My prioritization is usually based on what bugs me the most factored with the amount of time/$ needed. It’s definitely not a fancy system. I love the idea of a running list though. I think it would also make me feel better about what I’ve already accomplished.
Rachel says
i am SO excited to start from the beginning of a house with you! I only started reading you blog a few months ago, so seeing the whole process will be fun.
Jessica A says
Whew… I just landscaped the front of my house this weekend (and it took every free minute of 2 whole days), so this list makes me tired!
Props to you guys wanting to start over with a clean slate!
Oh, and I’m definitely on Team Emerald Door! Can’t wait to see!
Tori says
Congrats on the new home! So happy for you! Just a little FYI…have you looked into seeing if those tiles in the kitchen are asbestos tile? Just asking because we had the same in our house when we were renovating and they turned out to be asbestos…just be careful!
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks Tori! We originally assumed we’d find an asbestos liner under the linoluem (that’s what happened in our first and current house, so we floored right over them, sealing them in, which is the recommended measure. The only thing we learned is that this house was built a smidge past the time asbestos was most commonly used (a lot of it was phased out in the mid seventies and this house was built about 7 years later) so we are cautiously optimistic that there’s no asbestos, but if it’s there we know how to be extremely careful with it and follow protocol :)
xo
s
Kady says
I’m exhausted just reading all of that! I’m sure it’ll be a lot of fun and it’ll come out amazing! Congratulations :)
Elle says
Awesome! I’m super jealous of your unfinished space. I am not jealous of all the work you’ll have to put in, I’m happy to sit here and watch it unfold. ;)
For lists, I’ve become addicted to Workflowy. It’s basically a bullet point system, but you can collapse sub-bullets to keep from getting overwhelmed and drag things around to reorganize your lists. It saved me from having a ton of different lists and losing track of stuff, thus defeating the lists.
YoungHouseLove says
Sounds fun!
xo
s
Erin Moria says
awesome! I want to check out Workflowy now. I have the hardest time keeping the same notebook and staying organized. I feel like I just can never find a home for all my notes and to-do’s. This sounds promising. Thanks!
Marge says
I love lists and I love all the planning – this House will be epic! Excited here.
Oh and Sherry, I saw your exact double in the supermarket, here in Finland :P She was picking up some organic tomatoes and looked exactly like you – almost went and said hi and wanted to talk about the House :)
YoungHouseLove says
So funny!
xo
s
Beth A. says
So excited for you guys and can’t wait to follow along every step of the way!!
Maggie S says
I’m tired just reading that list!!
You mentioned about planting some trees –even if you are not ready to do your yard for a while think about planting the trees this fall (best time to plant). If you don’t do your landscaping for 2-3 years the trees will be quietly growing and getting bigger each year. little trees are a lot easier to plant!
Totally did not do this at our last house –and it would have been such a good idea. We waited 3 years until we were ready to do the whole yard.
YoungHouseLove says
Love that idea!
xo
s
Debbie says
I glory in your spunk…I know I’d be very intimidated by the length/breadth of this list. I’m looking forward to reading along as you start to check things off. I didn’t discover you all until you’d been in your second house for a while, so I’m anxious to see your process (and beautiful successes) from start to finish.
Meredith says
How exciting! The action items on this list are going to do wonders for an already wonderful home :) Can’t wait to follow along! (My fiance and I are just about to begin looking for a place to buy… I’ve bookmarked so many of your tutorials and I know they’ll come in handy!)
Amy Button says
Holy cow! That’s a lot of work but the house has such great bones I can’t wait to see the progress.
My family is at the end of our first fixer- which will hopefully be our last fixer! I definitely couldn’t do it over and over again so I admire your stamina :)
becca says
Hey!
Love this list! Can’t wait to see the process!
Question: noticing that John is using a sprayer to paint the trim, would you advise using that method if you are painting trim over carpet? or just stick with a good ol’ fashioned paint brush?
Thanks!
YoungHouseLove says
Trim over carpet, hmm. I’d probably use a paint brush just because I’d worry the sprayer would somehow get on the carpet…
xo
s
Sandy says
Your are not going to believe this!!!!! I was so into reading your post that I completely let myself go and slacked off from being on the look out for my boss. Yep… I slacked off and couldn’t believe my eyes when she creeped up on me (I wanted to scream “JUST LET ME DIE!!!”). What saved me was … wait for this … she made this crazy loud noise and yelled … ARENT’ THEY GREAT!! I LOVE THEM!! and ran back to her office to read the post! Talk about a close call! I’m still shaking in my pants! Whew!
YoungHouseLove says
Hahahahah! No way!! I love that.
xo
s
John says
Wow! Think you have more to do then God had to do in six days. The unfinished storage room could be your woman cave, John can have the garage. Use real stone for the planters, so much nicer than the concrete block that pretends to look like stone.
Katherine says
Woo that’s quite a list. Not sure if mine seems longer or shorter now. My husband and I recently bought our first house and I’m knee deep in list-making. I like using a Google document for the list that way I can add on to it no matter where I am, and share it easily with the husband. We have prioritized the “big” projects (kitchen and bathrooms will be almost-but-not-quite gutted), but the rest will probably get eaten away as the mood/inspiration/paint-chip/pinterest post strikes.
I really appreciate your advice to live in a space and figure out how you actually use it before making big changes. I’ll admit I’m impatiently chomping at the bit while we wait for the old bank account to recover, but I do know waiting will be worth it in the long run. (And nothing’s stopping me from collecting samples and doing some research in the mean time!)
Kelsey says
LOVE your lists! I’m a seriously type A person with a major obsession for lists (and crossing things off of them).
As for the Nest–my mom has one in her two-story house and ADORES it. She highly recommends it!
YoungHouseLove says
That’s awesome!
xo
s
V@Sproutshouse says
Wow Wow Wow! I am in total awe! This is going to be a fabulous project. Can’t wait to see how it all turns out. Definitely going to try making a list of all the things I want to get done on our house – perhaps it’ll stop them swirling around my head in the middle of the night! Great work guys – keep it up!!
Lisa says
Super exciting times!!! I have to ask… how are you getting packing done at the current house while having adequate time to paint and do hardwood floors??!!!?? All while parenting a busy 3 year old! I am amazed!
Please do a post on how time-wise this all shakes out for you. And any packing tips? We hope to buy our first home this fall. YAY! We’ll have a busy 21 month old, a 3 month old. I work full time (and will be able to bring baby to work with me), while hubby for now is home with the toddler. We haven’t even found a home yet, but I am already dreading the packing process and finding time to do it! Please share!
YoungHouseLove says
Ahhhhh! We don’t have time. We’re completely crazy. I have no idea what we’re thinking. Haha! We’ll have to see if we make it. We might have to move in with only half of the floors done upstairs and finish them after we’re in…
As for packing tips, we’d love to share those as we go!
xo
s
Vanessa says
Congrats on the new house! Can’t wait to see the projects unfold!
Val says
I’m tired just reading all of this! I hope y’all do go all built-in happy like you’re thinking…I want to know how to do that.
KA says
I was wondering if you considered switching the hall bathroom and laundry room. Reason being Clara and Guest will have the bathroom on their side. Master bedroom will have more privacy and laundry room will be closer to the master bedroom.
YoungHouseLove says
We didn’t think about it but it probably wouldn’t work since the bathroom is a good deal bigger than that laundry nook, and switching all of that stuff (adding a tub/toilet/redoing a lot of plumbing, etc) might be really expensive. But you never know where we’ll end up!
xo
s
Monique says
I just got tired reading your list. Looks like you have great plans ahead and I’m so looking forward to seeing the many changes you are going to make on this beautiful home.
Brandi says
So excited to see all of your ideas come together. You’ve really given me some great ideas for my own house.
Janine says
I’m just crazy about the new house. I love the style of the house and if it were sale in MY city, I would have bought it too. My boyfriend has been jonesing to get a sprayer for painting a house interior, and when he sees your posts about spraying your doors, trim and maybe walls with a sprayer, he’s going to flip out.
Felicia says
There are few things in life better than a list. Thank you for sharing yours with all of us. I can’t wait to see the new life you bring to this house.
A side note, I’m pretty sure Claraphernalia is my new favorite word.
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, thanks Felicia!
xo
s
Erin Moria says
Ou Ou I know – for the office: maybe a floating desk in the middle of the room where you and John sit on opposite sides face each other. Then a nice big chandelier over the desk and a large area rug under it. You could make the desk just a big square one – so each have enough leg room. That way the entire left wall (the one without the window) could be a floor to ceiling built-in for storage. And you MUST put a bench in the window for Clara! Just an idea!.
YoungHouseLove says
That would be fun!
xo
s
Lindsay B says
I can’t wait to see how this house turns out! I’m especially excited to see what you do to that kitchen. It has so much potential!
Hopefully I didn’t miss it if you already mentioned in the post, but do you have any plans to replace the wooden banister on your staircase? We just got an estimate from a contractor for ours ($4000!) and I thought…hmm…maybe the Petersiks will replace theirs and show me how to do it myself. Ha!
YoungHouseLove says
Woah that’s a ton of money! We’re planning to use ours (just repaint it). Will keep you posted as we go :)
xo
s
Rosemarie says
Too bad about the tree in the back deck. It’s my favorite part of the deck.
Can’t wait to watch you turn this house around.
tjack432 says
I think it would look so sick to have the entire left wall in the office become a chalkboard/pegboard brainstorm wall.
Your ideas for the sunroom/converted porch are pretty cool. Talk about inspiring!
YoungHouseLove says
Ahhh! That would be fun!
xo
s
Lil says
That would be so cool!
Ruthie says
Can’t wait to see! Curious if your going to do white cabinets again in the kitchen? C’mon let’s see something crazy, Petersiks! hahaha
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, you never know. We have been loving the whole tuxedo look lately!
xo
s
Jill says
Since you bought a new washer and dryer for current house…are you bringing them with you? We are about to put our house on the market and we have a gorgeous fridge that I love, everyone keeps asking if I’m bringing it when we move and I think I would if we didn’t have to remove a door frame to get it in there in the first place!
YoungHouseLove says
We sold all of the appliances with the house (that’s really common in our area since you never know if your fridge will fit in the next house, etc.
xo,
s
Lil says
Wow. That is a big list! I CANNOT wait to see what you do with the place. Opinion on the upstairs hall lights…keep and paint them. They have character.
Jessie says
HI..love the ideas but I keep reading – “getting new appliances, lighting, etc..) are you not taking any of your appliances from your current house, fridge, dishwasher, etc???
YoungHouseLove says
In our area when you sell a turn key house those convey. No one wants to buy new ones and bringing them along us hard (they might not even fit, for example the fridge book might be a different size). So that’s standard to sell the house with them (they’re built into the price).
xo,
s
Lindsey says
I’m sure y’all have done a run down of this in the past, but what is your painting routine (for trim). My husband and I just bought our 2nd fixer-upper and we’ve got to paint EVERYTHING this go-around. What brand & type of paint are you using?
YoungHouseLove says
We have tried tons of paint but our favorite is Benjamin Moore Advanced for cabinets and furniture (in satin) and Benjamin Moore Natura (it’s no-VOC) in eggshell for walls :)
xo,
s
Kara says
I am like middle-schooler-at-a-boy-band-concert excited about the paint sprayer pic at the top of this post. The list gives me anxiety–I need to meditate on your “it’s the journey” attitude.
I’m about to bite the the bullet and paint all our natural wood trim and doors. I love the natural wood look in theory, but our house was a parsonage and then a rental for most of its life (built in 1959) so the wood is not in great shape. And it has a really brassy tone. Excited to see your door technique!
Barbara says
Loving the new house!!
I think the tile in your foyer might be slate…you might already realize that…but having worked in the tile industry that is what it looks like to me. Obviously not the fun colorful stuff that is popular now but the old school slate from Vermont or Pensylvania like this http://www.floortileandslate.com/Slate/Pages/Vermont_Slate.html#2
It might actually be easy to get more that would still match.
I could very well be wrong but I figured Im would mention it anyway. :D
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks!
xo,
s
Laura & the Shell says
Wow, this is such a beautiful house! I can see all the amazing potential! Yay for years worth of good blog reading! Haha. :)
Melissa says
I’m incredible excited to see how this all comes together over the next few years!
Just wondering, but when you move, could you include some tips as to how you end up moving in the big stuff, like how you get the “30 dead bodies” bed up the stairs without ending in tragedy? I’ve never moved before but might be soon, and I can’t seem to find any surefire way of moving heavy things up stairs without calling in the pros.
YoungHouseLove says
Will do!
xo,
s
Fiddle1 says
Sorry..I owe you both an apology! I just took the time to review old posts, and by golly, there’s a slew of them featuring using what you already had in your other homes!! Please forgive my hasty comment!
YoungHouseLove says
No worries at all!
xo,
s
Lauren says
LOVE IT! These posts are great: the from-the-beginning starts to see what you have in mind to the as-we-go-along posts (because crossing things off is fun for you and easier for me as a reader to envision what you have left). Thanks for doing these.
H. says
Hot damn! That is going to be one sexy fireplace in the living room when you are done with it. So modern and cool!
Juliet says
Oh wow, I didn’t realize the blue was so…um…pervasive! I’m guessing you guys are staying a 1-car family with the workshop plans…good for you!
Jane B. says
What a list! Looking forward to following you through the e-waves along the way.
What about the appliances from the current/old (not sure how you describe it these days) house, especially the laundry/dryer. Are you bringing anything to the ‘brand new’ home?
YoungHouseLove says
In turn key houses in our area all of those things are sold with the house so ours will stay back (moving a fridge to a new house can be dicey since it might not fit in the fridge spot there so selling them with the house and buying something fitted to the new house works nicely :)
xo,
s
debtperception says
Holy to-do list, Batman! You’ve got your work cut out for you :)
Nick says
Love the new house. Take up the baseboard. When you lay the new floors it’s going to lower the height of the baseboard.
The previous owners of my fixer upper layed tile right up to the baseboard and now that I want to add a more significant base board it’s a pain to get the baseboard out,
plus the gap between the tile and the floor is wider than the base board. I now have to add quarter round and base board.