Brick House: Kitchen Before & After

Are you ready for a dramatic change? Even though I didn't change the layout; changing the wall color, countertops and appliances made a real difference! 

 I had almost forgot I took the upper cabinets down.... From the first the didn't look right to me.

 Oh that orange! Yikes!

I traded this fridge with my brother for a stove! It was just too big for the kitchen!

 I'm not a fan of the no-cabinet-hardware look. Doesn't look finished to me! So I added simple handles and knobs.

Mandy and I took some of the cabinets that we took down and added them here. I think it looks a little like an old fashioned wall of cabinets! I wasn't sure how the space of baskets would turn out and no one else seemed to understand what I was trying to do, but when I finished they agreed it wasn't  bad!

There are still a few small things that need to be done. But I have found a lovely family to rent and they will be moving in the end of the month!! They are so excited about the big yard and all the flowerbeds. I am so excited and yet at the same time sad.... Even though the Brick House is still mine, I didn't think it would be this hard to turn the house over to someone else..... I have loved refreshing it and bring it back to life!

Now it is time to get back to my cottage and work on a few projects there!

Brick House: Bathroom Before & After

BEFORE

BEFORE

BEFORE

A big improvement, wouldn't you say?!

A lot of things needed to be refreshed; the paneling removed from the walls, the space eating vanity removed, the sad flooring and dim light. We also installed a baseboard and door trim, curtain rod, toilet paper holder and hooks for towels. Plus all new plumbing!

BEFORE

This is one of the only before pictures I have with the carpeting. Couldn't wait to get it out of there! 

Looking down the hallway toward the back bedroom. Plenty of lovely wood floors!

 I love how the sun comes in through this window on the stairs. It faces west and gets the most beautiful evening sunshine!

As soon as I tidy up the kitchen and remove the last of the tools, I will be back with more before & after pictures!

Brick House Update: the Basement and Limewash

We had a little excitement a couple of weeks ago as suddenly one night after heavy rain the neighbors tree leaned over. When I was working on the house the night before the tree was fine, next morning it looked like this. From the looks of it the poor tree had rotten roots, so once the ground thawed there wasn't anything holding it up anymore. Thankfully, it very gently sagged it way to the ground and the neighbor was able to chop it up before it came down with a crash and damage the Brick House tree (Which it was leaning on!).

 The last two weeks have been concentrated on the basement. Not very glamorous. Basements and attics are not my favorite spaces. Too dark and too many possibilities of creepy crawly jumping out at you. 

But since the laundry area at the Brick House is in the basement, I have been trying hard to make it less dark and creepy.

 So I decided to give Limewash a try! Limewash is also called whitewash, but whitewash can be confused as painting any surface with a thin white coat of any type paint. Where as Limewash is good old fashioned Whitewash made using hydrated lime. 

 It really isn't as scary as it sounds. The basic recipe I found online several places. I ended up using more lime then usually called for. It made it "stick" better and I wanted a nice thick white coat. Limewash has been used for centuries as a inexpensive coating on houses, masonry, barns, outbuilding and outhouses. It is a very breathable coating, naturally anti-fungal because of it's high alkaline level and a bug deterrent.
Sounds perfect for a basement, right? 

I mixed two gallon batches at a time. Using a one quart canning jar to measure I used two gallons of water, one quart pickling salt and 8 quarts lime. This makes a very thin mixture that is slightly thicker than water. But when it goes on brick (at lest my thirsty bricks) it thickens up and sticks. When I painted it on wood, it looked thinner for longer.

Before Limewashing

Here are a couple of before photos. The walls weren't too bad. But they certainly could use a freshening up!

Before Limewashing

Definitely helps brightens the place up!

We have also been working on the basement steps. They needed a railing. But when we went to add a railing we discovered the bottom step was rotten and wouldn't hold the post and bolts. So we also replaced the step. In the photo above I was in the middle of painting, hence the half white post!

I have also been working on the basement stairwell walls. When we took the plaster ceiling down, an inch or two of the walls also came down. We had to take a small part of the new drywall down to run a wire for a the outside light. The larger spot to the right was where the old switch was. I patch lath back in and ran the wire over the ceiling to the other switch there. Now both switches are together and it tidier. And now I was finally able to plaster the walls!

One side done!

This side drying. Next up; limewashing the plaster!

Spring Cleaning the Front Porch

One of my favorite things to do come Spring is clean the front porch! Somehow it really makes it feel like the warm weather is back. Mom and I started in on the porch bright and early Saturday morning. We weren't sure how the weather was going to turn out as we had planned on starting our cleaning on Friday, but there was a stiff North breeze.

 It always amazes us how dirty it gets! Floors, windows, walls and furniture all get washed down. The cushion covers also get taken off and put through the wash.

And any miscellaneous flotsam and jetsam that has accumulated over the winter gets put somewhere else. Including the salt bucket and shovels!

You can see I have already put out my pinwheels!

We also drag the rug on the porch and the rug in the entry to the backyard and give them a good scrubbing. We always marvel at these Waterhog rugs. They have to be going on 15 years and they still look good! They are so good at keeping all the snow and dirt in check. And nothing sticks to them! Muddy boots, plaster dust, dog throw up, greasy car parts; it has all come up. After a good wash, we hang them over the rocking chairs to dry in the sun.

Saturday turned out to be a beautiful day! 65 degrees and so sunny! So we decided the floor needed a bit of sprucing this year. I happened to have a pint of Sherman William's floor paint on hand and off I went!

It always feels so fresh after a good clean! And a faint aroma of new paint helps too!

These little lanterns we found at the dollar store. They have battery operated tea lights in the bottoms. We can't wait to try them out!

 I never seem to know what to do with this side of the porch. This is the side that chronically get piled with odds and ends. It is getting better though! The bench has helped! I would like to get another little table to use as a plant stand.  

Last year I wasn't sure if I like the green, but as you can see, it is still green! I love the new pillows for it. I think it compliments the green very nicely, yet ties it to the colors on the other side of the porch.

How could I resist houses!?!

Have I ever showed you my doorbell? It doesn't work, but I couldn't take it out. It's so cute!

April Snow

Did everyone survive the April snow? I am so thankful our snow only lasted a few hours on the ground and then it melted. It sure was crazy when it was snowing though. More ice balls then snow flakes!

I also put another mitten pattern on Ravelry. Which I thought was perfect timing! These mittens are a basic fingering weight mitten, which I happen to be wearing in the photo above! They are our favorite for the in-between weather. And because they aren't too bulky, perfect for keeping in jacket pockets for just-in-case. You can find the pattern HERE for free!

 The daffodils and tulips didn't even notice the snow, they are growing like crazy! Actually, this photo was taken a couple of weeks ago and they are huge now! We have four buds about to open!

Since this post is full of Spring randomness, I thought a Kerri photo would be nice to include. She loves the Spring!

I also put a cowl pattern up on Raverly! This was such a fun make! It is the Inside Out Upside Down Cowl. Anyway you wear it, it is pretty! I love the Woolstock yarn I used, so fluffy and wooly.

Isn't this the prettiest cereal bowl? I found two of these at a thrift store recently. The are Fire King milk glass. I had no idea what I was going to use them for when I bought them, but they were too pretty to pass up!