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 Posted: Wed Aug 15, 2007 10:11 am |
We bought a house!!
Yeah!!!! 
We take possession today. The house is pretty okay, just a little small and old-ladyish...so we want to do some updating as money allows. Most major changes will have to wait a year or so until I start working (after PR is granted). So, I thought it would be helpful to list what we know we hope to change/improve now so that we can keep our goal list on hand and to get opinions from you guys!
HOUSE EXTERIOR - timeline: fall 2007 or spring 2008
I HATE the color of the house exterior. Okay, it's not terrible, but it just doesn't work for me. It's white and baby blue, with white the top 1/2 and blue the bottom 1/2....I'm thinking of a two-tone sage (lighter on top with darker shade on bottom) and cream or white trim. It is wood siding and has a grey roof. I also would like to change the "columns" on the porch and car port from those with cut-out design to something more solid like simple square columns painted the trim color....
KITCHEN/DINING AREA - timeline: winter 2008 or spring 2009
The kitchen is small...it's basically a galley style which opens into the dining nook. The counter tops definitely need replacing....they are chipped along the edges and are a faded blue/grey color. The cabinets are in good shape. They have pretty nice hardware and are a white color. The floor is not terrible but more of that blue/grey in linoleum that flows from the carport entryway to the kitchen and into the dining area. It would be nice to replace but I haven't settled on a color or material, etc yet. The walls in the kitchen/dining area are this horrible stripped blue/yellow/grey mix of wall covering. I want to pull that off and replace with paint and possibly tile the kitchen back splash area. Our dining table is a dark chocolate color so I want the wall color to flow throughout both rooms, along with complimenting the tile and flooring. Right now I'm considering a very subtle yellow for the walls, with an dark burnt orange as accent....not sure yet. As I said it's a small space so I don't want too many dark colors. We are considering tearing down the wall between the kitchen and the living room and placing a bar/cabinet w/ range there. I'll probably hang some kitcheny window coverings too.
FREE-STANDING GAS STOVE - timeline: winter 2007
The gas stove is black and is nice enough. It sits in the middle of the house, along the inside kitchen wall btw the kitchen, dining room and living room...kinda where the "hallway" sits. I don't mind the location of the stove, especially since we don't have any kids. It may be an issue then....but for now okay. What I don't like about it is that it has this fake brick stuff on the base and "chimney" area. I want to take that off, since it's cracked in places anyway, and tile it. I had in mind a deep blue but I have changed my mind. It will need to be something that matches the kitchen, dining room, and living room. Maybe a cream tile or a tanish orange?
LIVING ROOM - timeline: spring 2008
okay, so there is PINK SHAG CARPET! in the living room. We've been told there is hardwood underneath, so that will definitely be coming up as soon as possible. We have no idea what condition the hardwood is in, so we may need to put more carpet down. Our living room furniture is a dark cherry wood with brown fabric and slight hint of burgundy and greens. It's actually quite pretty. So I think that since we have dark furniture, again, we need to have lighter walls and floors. I think hardwood would look GREAT with it, but we'll see. If carpet is necessary, we'll go with a light tan probably. I think the walls would look nice in a color, but not sure yet what to choose. There is a HUGE window in the living room, which needs special drapes. Currently it has this built-in cover thing so that the curtain top is hidden behind it...not too bad looking but I'd like great fabric on a nice big window like that.
BATHROOM - timeline: summer 2008
The bathroom is not bad...small thought. It's got more of the lino as flooring and all the fixtures are white and fairly new. It has a built-in mirror which is recessed into the wall for cabinet space...so that might be hard to deal with, not sure. The bath has some small light brown and grey specked tiles about 1 foot up the wall from the tub rim. I don't have many plans for the bath. Robair wants to paint it a brightish green and white and put a claw foot tub in it. I think that would be nice but it's in good shape now so we'll see. I guess I can let him have one room to be master-changer over....JUST KIDDING!!!!! It would be nice to put some tile flooring down, maybe a white w/ big squares. I think the green would look great and the claw foot tub too....but maybe we should put those luxuries in our NEW add-on bath (hopefully in a couple years).
BEDROOMS - timeline: spring 2008
Okay, so the bedrooms are small but workable. The master has a blonde hardwood floor which needs some work...it's got some wear but I'm not sure how to remedy that. We have this beautiful quilt Rob's mom gave us as a wedding gift that I plan to use as the decorating inspiration for the master bedroom. It's a wedding ring pattern with cream as the base, and harvest gold and 2 shades of rich green in the rings. I'm thinking a light green to match the ring color on the walls, with a cream faux-fur rug for the floor and some cream curtains...plus gold and cream and green pillows on the bed. Our furniture is dark oak and black (think stained whiskey barrels...we got some awesome hand-made side-tables from my last employer made from whiskey barrels). Our closets are small....they need enlarging.
The guest room is pretty plain and we don't plan to do much to it for a while...just paint the walls and store stuff in it.
ADDITIONS - timeline: fall 2008 or spring 2009
hopefully we will be able to make some additions sometime in the next few years. we'd like to add a garage to the back yard since we have alley access. We'd also like to add another bedroom and bath, to become our master. Robair thinks we can add this onto the back part of the house. We've also discussed enclosing the carport and making that a workout/mud room area. We also want to take the window in the dining room out and put in a french door to open onto a deck....
YARD & FENCE: - timeline: NOW
We are looking at fencing options. I personally like a privacy fence but Robair thinks a smaller fence will be best. For looks, a smaller one is probably best. We are pondering if we should get a vinyl, wood, or chainlink fence. We are thinking we might be able to purchase lumber and make our own wood fence cheaper than purchasing it but we still have lots of shopping around to do. A chain link is probably what we'll end up with, but I just really don't like the looks of it. However, Robair says that we could probably plant some of those tall bush/tree things to hide the fence. Our dog probably wouldn't run away if we didn't have a fence but I just like the idea of the yard being enclosed.
I want to redo the flowers, or lack thereof! It seems the lady tried to create a flower garden along the edge of the yard, but it looks pretty crapy, honestly. I want to add some of those russian sage flowers and some other pretty purples and pastels to the front to line the walk and sit under the HUGE living room window. I also want to add some flowers to the back to replace what the previous owner had done.
WATER HEATER - timeline: spring 2008
The water heater is like a million years old so we definitely need to replace it soon. We are leaning toward a tankless style that works for the entire house.
OTHER
I'd also like a garbage disposal in the sink, and a new front door.
SO....any suggestions or tips? Obviously, there are lots of plans but also lots of costs, so we're looking for ways to save. Please share!!!!
_________________
Think of the ripple effect -- how a stone thrown into a pond creates increasingly larger circles. Your impact on people can have the same effect. So the question is: What kind of impression do you want to leave?
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Posted: Wed Aug 15, 2007 6:54 pm
Uh, first of all, try and do as much as you can yourselves. Contractors are a hassle, are expensive, and don't always do what you envision. Of course, if you're like me and can barely use a hammer properly, then that may not be an option.
Also, perhaps whittle down what's really necessary and what's not. Pink shag carpet?(ew) That's gotta go. Free standing gas stove? I think that could wait. Also, maybe bump up the water heater. If it's as old as you exaggerate, then I'd replace it before you wake up to find a flooded basement.
_________________
Banking institutions are more dangerous to our liberties than standing armies.
-Thomas Jefferson
The men the American people admire most extravagantly are the most daring liars; the men they detest most violently are those who try to tell them the truth.
-H. L. Mencken
Posted: Wed Aug 15, 2007 8:37 pm
You guys moved to Penticton right? Congrats on being able to afford a house in that market.
_________________
"I always say that if, at a given time, I believed that Canada was really the Canada of Stephen Harper, and that we were going against abortion, that we were going against gay marriage, that we were moving backwards in 10,000 different ways, maybe I would think of wanting to make Quebec a country." Justin Trudeau
Posted: Thu Aug 16, 2007 12:31 am
Congrats! 
Xerxes is right, try to do as much as you can yourself (we did our house completely ourselves, from top to bottom, including new bathroom, drainage, kitchen, and what more).
Start with your livingroom. You are going to spend much time there, so that should be perfect. Throw out the pink carpet (nice...  ) and sand the wooden floor underneath. Some lacquer over it, and you are good to go. You can make drapes yourself. It is not that hard (or you can have them made, ofcourse).
Tiling the kitchen is perfect! It makes it easy to clean, and it looks great! If you don't like the colour of your cabinets, you can always paint them. Lacquer it and there you are. Cheap but your taste!
Have fun making your new home yours!
_________________
When you come to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on.
"Why do people say 'grow some balls'? Balls are weak and sensitive. If you wanna get tough, grow a vagina. Those things take a pounding." -- Betty White
Posted: Thu Aug 16, 2007 12:50 am
You've got some great ideas! My suggestion would be to live in the house a bit before making major changes. Sometimes our ideas are better suited to our previous house.
I've alwys had linoleum floors, but my new place is tile. If you plan to have kids, keep in mind that tile is very hard on dishes and glassware. It's also very hard to stand on, although a mat by the sink and work counter can help keep away sore legs/feet. Check out laminate floors, or maybe consider hardwood for your kitchen. My cousin has that, and she loves it.
Have fun in the garden. When you're taking your dog for walks, keep your eye on the neighbours flower gardens for some ideas as to what does well in your area. It also lets you know what's really common, so you might want to get something different. I looked at my neighbours' yards, and went with other ideas - after all, I could enjoy their magnolias, hydrangeas, etc without having to plant my own.
Plant lots of bulbs this fall - you'll have masses of colour in the spring.
Posted: Thu Aug 16, 2007 7:57 am
thanks for the tips guys. yeah, we plan to do pretty much everything ourselves....probably only get contractors for electrical or something. we've pretty much agreed that our first tasks will be to add a fence and do the house painting...then change the hot water heater. Brenda brings up a good point that the living room is a top spot for activity. That may be the fourth item on the list. I'm just learning to sew now but I've got lots of plans for home decorations to make myself, like pillows and curtains and place mats, etc. Yes, I think living in the house for a while will help us solidify our desires for changes. I think we'll only tile the floor in the bathroom right now...see how that goes. My mom has slate tiles in her kitchen and they are lovely but as you said they can cause damage to dishes, as well as being damaged by them.
_________________
Think of the ripple effect -- how a stone thrown into a pond creates increasingly larger circles. Your impact on people can have the same effect. So the question is: What kind of impression do you want to leave?
Posted: Sun Aug 19, 2007 2:35 am
When you're doing it yourselves, a great place for supplies is at second hand dealers for contracting supplies... sometimes, these guys have really nice doors, windows, or other accessories you might need for a quarter of the price.
Landfills sometimes have buildings that contractors can put left overs from house contract supplies, to save on landfill space and help cut costs for someone in the community. (new left over tiles, underlay, light fixtures etc)
Freecycle.Org in your area - might have someone who just redid a part of their home and the materials are still good, sometimes folks buy sinks, shower units, laundry room cabinets or whatever- on special and put them away for a later date and when the day comes, it doesn't fit or fit in - so they can't return it and post it instead...
Mistints in major hardware stores come in real handy if you're one of the first to be there when they put out the paints, ask and they'll tell you when they will be putting out their month's supplies.
Wallmart and Home Depot, always have a section with "last of the stock in supply" - you can get new carpet on special, cabinets, counters and a slew of stuff over time, by just checking it out every so often....
Sounds like a great wish list... have fun :>)
_________________
**War and abuse make me hurt for the world,
but a rescue that makes the news - gives me hope for mankind...
quote
Posted: Sun Aug 19, 2007 8:33 pm
Measure your lot for the fence and pm me some measurements and I will see what kind of deal I can get for you in wood fence and other materials at contractor price. I only live 2 hrs from you so it wouldn't be a big deal to run a lift down if the price was right for you and Robair.
_________________
The aim of an argument or discussion should not be victory, but progress.
- Joseph Joubert
Posted: Fri Sep 21, 2007 10:26 am
 On your life together and your new home.Lotsa 'first' all at once!
I woudn't consider myself an 'expert' on marriage but I do know quite a bit about renovating old houses. What works, what doesn't etc. Simple tricks,saving money and grief,scrounging,bargain hunting, things to do and things definitely to stay away from! I too am in the process of restoring/renovating another old house, this one , I think shall be my last.
I am certified in all aspects of flooring and when I am working that is what I do. I am now in the process of setting up a company which focuses on renovation/repair and helping the 'do it yourselfer' 'do it'.
Just a few pointers,( pics would be helpful). Bedroom floor- blond oak- surface 'wear&tear'. May be possible to bring this back with just a light sanding ( with steel wool pads on an old floor polisher) to abraid the existing finish and then recoat with a urethane ( most durable and bondes with most finishes) or waterbase finish. Must be compatible with the existing finish or else the sanding must go right down to the wood. Test in a closet area first.
Counters: I have built many different types of counter tops and am now trying one out that I made from oak flooring. It has a diamond-coat finish that is very durable, should a knife slip off of the cutting board and scratch the surface it will be easy to repair, plus it won't damage the edge on the knife like granite or tile or even corian, ( which if damaged is difficult as well as expensive to repair).
For 'On-demand' water heater, go to e-bay. About 1/4 of the price for exactly the same unit from a 'big-box' store.I am seriously considering the 'Paloma'. Available to look at and research on the web or at Home Depot.Do your home-work on this one so that you get one that EXCEEDS your needs.
Keep an eye open in your city and don't be afraid to approch other houses that you see undergoing renos. Quite often those home owners/contractors will give you materials that they don't want. Put an ad in your local paper and grocery store that you are looking for all kinds of used building supplies.
Most important is to 'sit & think, think, think, before you do anything! And enjoy your project and the fruits of your labor.Always something you can be proud of!
_________________
My old aunts used to come up to me at weddings, poking me in the ribs and cackling "Youre next".
They stopped after I started doing the same thing to them at funerals!
A little Muslim kid, crying, can’t find his mother in the supermarket.
The store attendant says ‘What does your mother look like?’
The kid says “I have no fucking idea?”
Posted: Mon Sep 24, 2007 8:57 am
Thanks for the tips. Lots of reno's going on around here! We are definitely taking our time and our plans may change depending on the circumstances that arise over time. I guess it depends on how long we plan to stay in this house and if we plan to sell or rent it in the future how elaborate our reno will be.
_________________
Think of the ripple effect -- how a stone thrown into a pond creates increasingly larger circles. Your impact on people can have the same effect. So the question is: What kind of impression do you want to leave?
Anonymous
Posted: Tue Dec 04, 2007 12:47 pm
Hello, nice site 
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