In prerpation of our first turn hosting Thanksgiving, we did some work in the dining room and kitchen.

The first picture is of the orginial dining room fixture. Not only did the style no fit our personalities, it was missing some "crystals." The new fixture, which we found on Lumens.com, really helps bring the room in line with our style.

In the kitchen, we put in a new cooktop. The 4-burner, gas cooktop was fine, but 1 of the burners didn't work. We scored a 5-burner at the Sears Outlet for $300. While a full kitchen renovation is in our future, this will do the trick for the time being. And, while bisque isn't exaclty cutting edge, I think the color actually works with the counters.

Front Door

I met with the door guy today (Kevin from Classic Sash & Door). I worked with him on the window project at the old house, and called him to start talking front door & trasom.

Our current doors are a mess! Hallow core. Mis-matched hardware. A peep hole a foot shorter than I am tall. And, oh yeah, a one-inch gap between the floor and door which invites the East wind into our house.

This is sure to be a long process. We are looking at about 10 weeks. I had no idea! But, at this point we are hoping to go with a door style produced by Crestview Doors in Austin. The Langston is our style of choice. The windows will be made of "narrow reed" glass, as will the transom.

More to come as the project unfolds.

Entry Tile

One of the things that I love about our house is the entry. As my boss put it, "Wow. You have the potential to spend a lot of money making this cool." Indeed! It is a big open space all its own. And, every single aspect of it needs to be updated.

We have made the first step. The floor. Now, I don't know how we did it. Or, if it was a full moon. But, C and I agreed on the tile selection immediately. Folks, this is unheard of! We don't agree on these things. Typically, one of us is stuborn until the other gives in, and then we decide that we are happy with the results after the fact. We do not agree at the beginning. Period.

The product that brought us together was a 12 by 12 slate in "California Gold." We found it at United Tile for about $5.60sf. Then, we went to Tile Outlet where it was $3.60sf. However, we bought from Tile for Less for $2.99sf. Plus, they have a bunny. Who doesn't love a bunny!

With the tile selected, we set out to demo the original tile. As it turns out, the tile was set directly into the concrete slab, and wasn't going anywhere.

Plan B - Set the slate on top of the old tile, and trim the doors.

The results. Ben Liebman, 503-314-8785, did the work. He did the bathroom/utility room tile at the old house, and is really great to work with!

Beware - Images of Ant Parade Ahead

We had a full inspection done prior to purchasing our house. What I failed to realize is that some pests don't come out until the sun does.

Back in May, when the temp was hitting the 70s, we started seeing ants around our patio. My wishful thinking had me focused on the hot tub, thinking that ants need water too. Unfortunately, these ants were carving out an home in the header of our lower level bathroom. The hot tub was not the destination, just a spot along the route of their commute "home."

Bruce "the bug guy" came to our rescue. (Bruce Gaddy, Advantage Pest Eliminiation 503-558-1092). First, he created a small hole in the wall with which to spray inside the wall. The ants started pouring out.

Then, we began removing sheetrock for clean up and further treatment. We were on hand with the shop vac to collect the dying critters. Yeah, the black on the bottom left is a mass of dead ants.

Lost in Translation

We bought a new couch for the family room today. While removing the packaging, we learned that the legs (there are five in the picture package) had a crystal clear self image.

Bathroom #1 - Wallpaper removal

The great thing about updating a 1969 house is finding, and in some cases removing, the remnants of 1969. Yesterday saw the launch of the first bathroom remodel. We have 3 bathrooms to tackle, and are starting with the lower level, guest bath. I removed the below pictured wallpaper, but had to snap a couple pictures as keepsakes. Can you imagine an entire room covered in such imagery?


















Take note of the "India Talc" and "Windsor Soap" in the first picture. Such detail!!

The New House

It has already been referred to as the Brady House. Our 1969, split entry just waiting for us to add our personal style throughout.

The 4 bedroom, 3 bath, quarter acre is far more than we were looking for in a house. Yet, we could not pass up the opportunity.

In many ways, the house is stuck in 1969. Fortunately for us, the prior owner was attempting to flip the house and had completed much of the demo we would have otherwise done ourselves. A big thank you to him for removal of carpet, etc.!

Some of our initial projects included a new furnace, water heater (tankless), refinishing the floors, carpet in bedrooms, roof repair, and thinning and removal of trees.

SOLD!

On April 22nd it was official ... we sold our first house. All that work will now be enjoyed by another couple. We have already started on our new project. More on that soon. For now, let's celebrate the successful closing of a home sale dispite the slowed market.