Mirror, Mirror on the wall...

These are a couple of special pieces displayed on our vanity. The silver tray was my mothers who inherited from her grandmother and the little piece of blue & green art glass was my grandmother's. It's a small piece that I really wanted because it brings back sweet memories from my childhood.

Ready for another peek into my master bath redo on a shoe-string? This is something MANY of you will be able to do yourself. It's a super easy update and not a really new idea.

Master Bath Vanity "before" it's update.

As I mentioned last post, we had a bathroom that was showing some age and hadn't been touched since the builders called it a wrap over 12 years ago. It even still had the "builder beige" on the walls! That was an easy fix with two coats of "Whispering Spring" by Benjamin Moore, a lovely light teal/aqua blue with just enough yellow/green to keep it from feeling cold and icey.

The part I stressed over was the fact that I had a MASSIVE sheet mirror on the wall that would not be easy to remove by myself. Yes, hubby is helpful and very patient with a constantly evolving house, but I do this stuff on my own as much as possible... especially if I decided to do something that he will see no reason for. I mean why would you take down a perfectly good ginormous mirror? Umm... let me count the reasons!

Master Bath mirror and lights after update. Amazing what a little tweaking can do, isn't it?!

Seriously, there are some good aspects to a large mirror. You never fight over who gets to use it and it reflects tons of natural light, making a room fill twice as big. That said, it also looks cheap and dated. The automatic fix was to make a frame. I looked into the cost of Mirror Mate frames, but it still didn't fit into my shoe-string budget. Almost two years ago, I received a miter saw for Christmas from my parents (they know how to make this girl happy!) and one of the things on the immediate To Do list was to make mirror frames. After finishing the cabinet reface on the rental house I renovated last winter, I had leftover trim. I used part of it to make the sides and bottom of the frame (which had mitered corners) and used a simple piece of door casing trim across the top (no mitered cuts at top - just straight and easy). All pieces were primed and painted the same as my trim prior to installation. Then, I simply used Loctite Power Grab to glue it straight onto the mirror! Since the mirror is held on to the wall by metal clips I still have the possibility in the future to take it all out without ruining the drywall.

New towel rings and cabinet hardware in brushed nickel help to finish off the update. Be GONE shiny brass knobs!

This whole project took about two-three hours from start to finish if you include painting, letting it dry and recoating. And, since the only piece I bought was the case moulding that runs across the top, I only spent about $8-$10. A quick, easy, and cheap update that makes a HUGE difference.

Deck Spruce-Up

Our "new" deck!

O.k. I've been holding out on you. Over the last few months my posts have really lagged... for a couple of reasons, the biggest of which is that we have been working on some serious projects to share with you when time would allow me to finish them. Once of these was sprucing up our 12 year old deck.

Our poor deck. It was seriously in need of some TLC - or a sledge-hammer. I preferred the second option but once again that irksome budget thing decided to get in my way. Fortunately for us, Hubby works in the building supply industry. Funny thing is, on may occasions over the last few years "Fortunate" is not how we would have described it! Anyway, there is a fairly new product out there called Encore for wood decks and docks. What it does is basically turn your wood deck/dock into a composite encased deck without having to rebuild it! There is a similar product out there that I've seen at Home Depot called Restore, but the big advantage to me of the Encore is you can make it any color you want versus the limited palette of the Restore. Both only work on a deck/dock that is still structurally sound, though. There is a limit to the miracles you can put in a can!

This was our already rough looking deck when we bought the house several years ago:

The problems just continued to grow over the next few years. Everyday life with deep south humidity, trees, three boys, neighborhood kids and a dog didn't help! But, hey... that's what a decks for! So, out came the pressure washer and deck brush. I think Hubby spent more time taking off any peeling stain and "gunk" with our seriously underpowered pressure washer than he did actually painting it.

You can see a distint line here where he'd made it to as he was scrubbing the old off.

One day, Hubby is going to get a heavy duty pressure washer (wink, wink)
that could strip the deck right off the house! No scrubbing required!

This shot really shows how bad the seats and railing were looking. 

Stripped down and ready to go.

This was primarily a hubby project. We both worked on the first coat, but hubby did the second and all the railings. I have to admit, I had my doubts it could turn out this nice, but was pleasantly surprised. It's still not a cheap redo, but compared to replacing a deck, it was pennies on the dollar. Our's had hit the point that something had to be done and it simply couldn't be put off any longer. Structurally it was sound, but some boards were starting to warp and splinter and the stain was long gone. We didn't want any rot to set in so cue the Encore.

                                

This stuff is super thick and dries really quick, so you have to work fast and efficiently (especially in southern heat/sun!). It layers the entire deck surface with a thick gritty composite like coating without the plastic look. No more splinters or even obvious cracks if you put it on thick enough (and put a few hundred wood screw into flatten out warped boards!).

There was a good bit of prep work, as with the garage floor painting, but that is crucial for how well the end product holds up.  In order to get a good color match to the brick, I simply took a scrap piece of brick into Home Depot and had them match the color in Behr (Chocolate Sparkle!) exterior latex gloss (which has the most enamel/toughness) which was then added into the mix to tint it. On the railings, we simply mixed the paint with another product of their's called Polymatrx that extends the life of exterior paint.

So, for few hundred dollars, we have a new looking deck and you have a better idea how I've been passing time! There's more to come, so stay tuned:)

Garage Door Reveal

My "New" garage/side entry door. The door was painted Rust-o-leum Gloss Oil Black, a simple steel door
decoration was bought at Hobby Lobby, spraypainted white, then hung with neodymium (i.e. really strong)
magnets to the steel door. No screws, glue or hardware required! 

At long last, I have some pictures to show you of the rest of my garage redo. When I showed you my interior redo, I told you I still had some things to show you about the outside, but that the weather wasn't permitting me to get any shots in to share with you. Now, um...lets see...probably a MONTH later, I finally have some. Crazy how time can fly when you're busy!

Anyhoo, let's see those before and after shots, shall we?

Before - and Oh, so blah! Builder basic all the way.  I still plan to repaint the hanging light fixtures,
but I have to do things as time allows (i.e. when school is back in session!).

 Like my "New" garage door?

 I have to tell you, when my sister-in-law drove up the other day and exclaimed "You got a new garage door!" I couldn't have been more pleased:). Bingo! My old garage door has morphed into a set of carriage doors at a total cost of about $5.00 and some elbow grease. Can't beat that!

Up close view of the upper "hinges".

 In order to create the illusion, I did a little research on options and found I could one of three things to get the more custom look of carriage doors without actually buying them.

1. Order faux metal hinges and handles to screw onto the door,
2. Order magnetic metal faux hinges to just stick on the door,
3. Make a stencil and paint them on.

Up close shot of the lower "hinges".

 I knew Hubby would flip if I painted or screwed on "hinges and handles" to the door, so it looked like the magnetic option was for me. Then I looked at the price on Ebay. It's actually really economical, BUT still not within my budget for now. So, I started looking for another option. Surely I could find a cheaper, albeit not as realistic as the magnetic, way to get the look for now.

View of the center of the door with it's new "handles" and "crack" between the "two" carriage doors.

Enter a trip to Lowe's. I love to stroll down the aisles at my home improvement stores brainstorming. I challenge myself to come up with as many out of the box uses for everyday items as I can - all for the sake of getting the luxe look of items I want but can't afford. Truthfully, it's really more of a creative outlet and to see if I can overcome the challenge.

Up close view of the new carriage door "handles".

When I stumbled upon a roll of contact paper with a mottled black and gray appearance, it suddenly hit me. Just draw the hinges and handles on that, cut them out and stick them on! How much easier and cheaper can you get?! I came home, found some hinges and handles I liked on-line, printed out the image, blew it up on the printer, then traced them onto the contact paper and cut them out. Before applying them, I pressure washed the whole door throughly, then just stuck them on. The center where the two doors meet is just a long skinny strip cut off the edge or the roll. To create a little more of a realistic look on the handles, I took some metallic silver paint and lightly dry brushed some where the handles would curve and onto the shadow part of the handle that I made sure to cut out WITH the main part. Illusion complete! It apparently is good enough that, without really close inspection, you don't even realize it's contact paper. Hubby nearly blew a gasket when he thought I'd painted them on without talking to him first:) I giggled inwardly as I happily told him it was just contact paper that is "supposed" to peel off cleanly with a little heat from the hair dryer:) And, if there is any adhesive left, then I know a little "Goof Off" will get it, so we're all good. Eventually I want to order the magnetic pieces, but for now these look pretty good.

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Garage Reveal - Finally!

Like my beach cruiser? I love that bike. I also like our new wall clock in the garage. No excuses for not being in
on time for dinner, ball games/practice, or bedtime anymore (he, he! Aren't I a stinker?! Pretty and practical!)

Forgive me, dear readers (OMG! I sound like Dear, Abby!). I've taken some much needed time to collect my thoughts and take a family vacation, so I've been absent for some time from the blogging world. Life has been VERY full over the last year and I just had to step back for a while to regain some direction and do a little soul searching. Ever been there? So many things have happened, both good and bad that I began to feel like I had lost my focus. I just needed to take some time to figure out what the next step is. I'm still not really sure and most recent news of my other grandmother's diagnosis of early Alzheimer's hasn't helped, but I do feel much more gathered after some time off. We took a wonderful, much-needed-by-everyone, family vaction to Sanibel Island, FL last week. It was so nice to just lounge by the pool and  on the beach! I'll be sharing photos soon:)

In the meantime, I FINALLY got around to getting some after shots of our garage that has been mostly completed for a few weeks now. There are still a few finishing touches to do yet, but for the most part it's  finished. Ready? No laughing at the befores, which I'll start with a few of! I'm showing just how bad it really was so you can truly appreciate the redo:

Forgive the fuzziness. Unfortunately, I can't retake these! See how horrible the baseboards looked in here?! 

Gross! The walls had never really been painted (just spray primed when built)
and the baseboard were disgusting and peeling). 

This is why I painted the doors black. See all the nastiness little hands leave? It's hidden much better by oil-based glossy black and is about as scrubbable as you can get. Not to mention it just looks way better. 

This floor was driving me batty! Hubby painted it Gull Gray, which is a gorgeous color if no one lives on it.
Around this part of the country with red mud, it showed every speck of dirt and tire prints like bright white. Yuck!

We even inherited holes in the front wall where the previous owners had apparently driven or backed into it!
These weren't even the worst. I found literal holes all the way through
behind the shelving and had to put my patching skills to use.

GROSS! I hate bugs and this was the constant behind the blinds. I pulled those suckers out and pressure washed them, removing everything from dirt dobber nests to spiders. Makes my skin crawl looking at all those little critters!

I tested ever color I had on hand before finally just dumping all the white and creams
into one five gallon bucket to get the final color on the walls. 

Now, a little improvement and one of my favorite things... my newly painted glossy black doors!

My new glossy black doors, magnetic house number, thrift store coat rack,
entry table with sunscreen/bug spray bucket (a.k.a shelving), door mat
and hardwood hand rail courtesy of Habitat for Humanity ReStore.

All my shelving is currently covered with vinyl table cloths and work as entry tables of a sort.
I still plan to find a better way to cover and store items so that they are out of sight,
but for now this will suffice.

I was determined to put up a wall clock the "men" could see so I no longer had to come tell them it was time to come in. Instead, now I can just give them a time to be in:)

Many trips were made to Goodwill, boards painted and installed in studs, hooks hung and items organized. By it all being on the front wall, no one sees it unless they literally come into the garage.
The door can be left open and no one driving by can see all our toys and tools.

Don't you like my newly painted floors? I am proud to say that when this picture was taken, a car had been parked in and out numerous times. Other than sweeping I did no cleaning for this picture and
it shows little evidence of black tires, unlike the before shot.

I am really proud of my planters this year. they have gone gang-busters and look so healthy for mid summer!

There you go. There's a few more things to show you on the outside, but the weather hasn't cooperated and I wasn't willing to wait longer to post the inside pictures. The outside before and after will just have to wait until I can get a good sunny shot.

See, I really have been working on a garage for ... um... a while. But it was worth it. I'm no longer embarrassed by my totally untouched, cluttered and filthy garage that EVERYONE uses as the main entrance to our home. Instead, I'm proud to say it now looks presentable and sets a good impression... like any good FRONT door should:)

Reno Reveal: Part 2

Alrighty! Ready to see the rest of the rental redo, aka Face-lift on the Cheap? Let's continue on with the walk-through. I'm not feeling so hot tonight, so I'm not up to typing much. After three to four weeks and two trips to the doctor, I'm still not up to par. Whatever this bug is I've had is wicked! So, due to a huge desire and need to rest, I'll be brief and hope this makes sense (because I'm feeling a little woozy:)!

From the dining room I moved on to the Family Room. Here's two "Before" pictures:

"Before" shot with all the old carpet and louvered sliding door to the hallway that was removed.

Be gone old blue curtains and darkness!

 The new hardwood flooring was continued on into here and the hallway. The walls were painted SW Muslin, a new ceiling fan and storm door were installed, and new window dressings. All trim was once again scrubbed down with TSP and re-stained.

So much airier, light and bright! 

Then there was the hallway to tackle:

Paneling, carpet, louvered sliding door...!

The homeowner had started down the right path to lighten the hallway by painting the paneling,
but the colors were just all wrong. It was the same cold toned green/gray.

Out came the paint cans again, and the same treatment was given here as everywhere else. The top was the SW Muslin and from the chair rail down was the custom mix.

All trim and doors were re-stained. The light was replaced
as well as continuing the hardwood flooring into the hallway.

Then came the master bedroom and bath. Here's the before shots:

Some nice tenant had painted the master bedroom lemon yellow. Ugh!

If I'd have had the money in the budget, this would have been a gut job. Gotta love the
old laminate countertop, chipping painted vanity, Hollywood strip lighting, and gold fixtures!

 The master bedroom and bath both received the trim treatment and paint as well as new carpet.

Much better.

In the master bath, I started with stripping down the vanity. I have to say, the master bath and the kitchen were by far where I spent the majority of my time. My furniture revamping skills came in handy with both rooms, but particularly with the master vanity. See for yourself.

Lots of nastiness!

Then is was all sanded down.

Scottie Dog had to check out the action:)

Then the first coat of my favorite stain, Minwax Dark Walnut went on.
Don't you just love the gold toilet with the wooden seat?!

Next, a new vanity top and faucet were installed before the second coat of stain went on.

The homeowner had changed out the lighting and installed new laminate flooring. Some Polycrylic and new chrome hardware left the homeowners having a hard time believing it was even the same vanity! Bingo! Add a new white shower curtain and nice chrome rings, chrome accessories, white towels, toilet update and it was a whole new room.
One I'd actually like to spend time in getting dressed each morning:)

I was pretty happy with the final results:)

There you have it. The finished tour of what I've been working on for the last two months! Looking at it now, it's hard to believe it took so much work, but oh, my word, did it take work! God was gracious, though. By his grace, and ONLY by his grace, I was able to finish on time even though I was sick and ready to drop the last week. It became a constant battle to keep moving. There were so many little times he reminded me he was there holding me up. For instance, when I walked into the family room to see a little wren just sitting on the mantle! He'd managed to squeeze in through the few inches I'd cracked the garage door for fresh air. It may seem totally unrelated, but it was at that point I was really needing his uplifting hand to keep going. Seeing that little bird just sitting there and how easy it was to open the door and watch it fly out, made me truly feel his presence. It was like he was saying, "See the bird and remember,

Matthew 10:29-31

"Not even a sparrow, worth only half a 

penny, can fall to the ground without your 

Father knowing it. And the very hairs on 

your head are all numbered. So don’t be 

afraid; you are more valuable to Him than 

a whole flock of sparrows."

Philippians 4:13

"For I can do everything with the help of 

Christ who gives me the strength I need."

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