Looking Back and Forth

Well, the holidays are over and I’m still recovering! We had an unexpected extended stay in California thanks to a massive snow storm on the East Coast, and while I’m a born-and-bred New Englander and love the snow I was not sorry to miss all of that. It was much nicer to take a stroll in my mother-in-law’s garden on a sunny 60-degree day, and go for a drive to Half Moon Bay, than it would have been to dig out from 18″ of snow. Fortunately most of it has melted and we’re settling back into work and daycare.

On December 29, 2009 I outlined all of my home improvement resolutions for the year. Given that I spent half of 2010 pregnant, those goals were pretty lofty and not all were completed. Here’s the breakdown and what I’ve got cooking for 2011:

Buy a bench for the entryway and paint the whole space
I bought the bench (Crate & Barrel’s “Porto”), and it’s a very expensive cat bed. The only family member who sits on it is Whiskey, who enjoys looking out the window at the birds in the holly bush. Eventually, the bench purchase led to an entryway makeover that’s still in progress, although I don’t think that painting will happen this year since we have other priorities. When we do paint it, the walls will be a warmer but still neutral color, and not the teal that I originally had in mind. I’m just not that daring, and decided to make over my old childhood dresser with bold teal paint instead. This year (well, hopefully this weekend), I plan to finish hanging artwork in the other section of the entryway, and call this project done for now.

Buy a new dining room set
With all of the expenses related to bringing a child into the world, this purchase simply didn’t happen. I’ve removed it from my goals for 2011, too. We have a set; I just don’t like it. With so many other things to buy and do, my dislike for it isn’t enough to justify purchasing a new one.

Make over the 3rd bedroom
This was a very big and necessary task, since our 3rd bedroom became Junior’s nursery! Happily, it now looks like this:

Frame the big bathroom mirrors
We got to one out of three in 2010 – our half-bath. Replacing the leaky faucet led to a whole bathroom makeover, which included framing out the mirror with spray-painted decorative trim. I plan to frame the other two bathroom mirrors this year, but it’s a low priority.

Add built-in bookcases to the living room
This didn’t happen in 2010, so I’ve added it to the list for 2011. I found a local chain that sells unfinished bookcases in custom sizes, which may be exactly what we need. This project will involve ripping out the baseboard and hiring an electrician to move an electrical outlet. However, we really need the toy storage so I think the effort and expense will be worthwhile in the long term. Here’s an example of the semi-custom bookcases I have my eye on:
 

millstores.com
Upgrade the living room rug
Thanks to HomeGoods, our living room got a new 8′x10′ wool rug in a design that’s remarkably similar to one I found at Ballard Designs.

Paint the kitchen/dining room
We didn’t get around to this in 2010, but we did select some very nice tiles for the back splash. They’ve been sitting in my dad’s basement for months while he and Mr. JC coordinate their schedules to cut and install them (easier said than done!). The tiles will look fine with our existing wall color, but I still want to paint the connected kitchen/dining room with Ben Moore’s Lenox Tan.

Turn our boring backyard into a warm and inviting summertime space
Although we didn’t do as much landscaping as I’d hoped, my mom and I planted some perennials and an herb garden, and my BFF’s mom helped us to plan a landscape design that we can work on over time. We also upgraded our patio set, which vastly improved both the appearance and comfort of our little patio. In 2011, we’ll definitely add a gate to completely enclose our yard and patio. We recently had an issue with trespassing, so I’m very concerned about Junior’s safety once he starts toddling around outside this summer.

This year I hope to prioritize better, instead of randomly doing things all over the house. So in order of importance, here is our 2011 home project list!

Install back splash tile in kitchen
Put a gate at the front of the house to enclose the back yard
Add much-needed storage in the living room with semi built-in bookcases
Make a curtain for the back door (the paper shade that’s been there for 2+ years drives my mom crazy)
Frame out the mirror in my bathroom
Replace the living room curtains  because they’re too short, permanently wrinkled, and allowthe heat/AC to blow right up between the fabric and inner lining (I’m eying these)
Make over the master bathroom (paint, frame the mirror, upgrade the faucets)

I fully expect that there will be things on this list that don’t get done by December 31, 2011. That’s the reality of life! But, having a list in mind helps me to focus.

I hope all of you had a wonderful Christmas and New Year’s! If you could only do one home improvement in this new year, what would it be?

• January 4, 2011
• our house
• 3 comments