The RTH "Mascots"

I'm taking a break from the regularly scheduled programming...the DIY remodel...to introduce our two fur kids and the RTH mascots, Baby and Paris. These are not just "dogs", these are our kids. And since Paris attracted a world of attention in the Man Cave reveal video and the project coming up tomorrow was done by the girls, I thought they needed a proper introduction.

 Paris & Baby

First is the eldest, Baby. She is a 14 year old Mt. Feist and retired squirrel hunter. The only thing she hunts now is the couch or a sunny spot, which is where you will find her doing her favorite thing - sleeping the day away. Baby's other favorite thing is cheese, her kryptonite. I affectionately call her Frankendog, because of her massive under bite, Yoda ears, and chicken legs. 

Paris is our 7 year old, 5 pound Pomeranian and she is full of energy; Baby's complete opposite. She is my little shadow and doesn't think I can go anywhere without her. Her favorite game is hide-and-seek and she is really good at it! Paris is fiercely protective of her stuffed squeaky toys, so much so that you should guard your ankles when you walk past.

Aren't they just the cutest, little DIY helpers and mascots? You'll probably see them in some of the blog posts...they have a way of getting into the pictures. Thanks for letting me introduce my girls to you...and gush a little about them.

Built-ins Be Gone

Step inside the front door of my house and you are immediately greeted by some very large built-in cabinets. Really, they aren't even built-in, just an extension of the fireplace wall.

These suckers are huge, not just large. They are designed to store an old-school tube TV. They also severely limit the flow of the house and block off the open floor plan, which is one of the main reasons I fell in love with the house. So, why do we need to keep the in-the-way built-ins if they don't serve any functional or practical purpose? We don't.  Let the demolition begin!

First we removed everything we easily could - knobs, shelves, doors - and were left with some naked built-ins, and a large hole in the back of the cabinets. They didn't drill a hole in the back for access to power...they sawzalled a titanic fissure! That is so nice of the builders...

We were lucky to discover that the built-ins are two separate pieces and only held together by 4 screws - very safe. Thanks again builders. However, the two pieces made it much easier to take them apart and out the front door. And when we took the top unit off the base cabinets, we found that the cable wire was unthoughtfully shoved thru the drywall instead of coming from an outlet plate close to the floor. Wow, these builders were not very friendly to future DIYers. 

And this is what we were left with after removing the built-ins. A bare concrete floor (which I outlined in red), unfinished drywall (complete with an extra hole at the top), and missing base boards. Perfect - another project for a DIYer! 

The space might seem to need a lot of work to be finished...especially the concrete floor, but it is just another day and another project in our casa. The built-ins were so large that we gained 16 sq feet with those puppies outta there.  The space is open and much more welcoming now.

Share your thoughts on demo. Isn't it the best part of remodeling? Do you think I am crazy for removing the built-ins? Or have you recently opened up your entry way? Any stories on builders that are not-friendly-to-DIYers?

Let There Be Light...In the Driveway

The first task when we moved into the house was to de-gold/brass it. Trust me, this house had enough faux gold to be a Mr. T look-alike. It was both tacky and tarnished, and just plain ugly. Check out the casa page for some pre-us photos and all of it's goldness.

We completed that mission with ease inside the house, but there were two stragglers that remained - the outside lights by the garage. Let me show you how ugly they are.

I don't know why we haven't already replaced those sad lights. Shame on us for being bad home owners and not completing a mission 100%. But, I do need to defend myself for a second - I bought lights to replace the worn-out, grungy gold lights; however, the base was not large enough to cover the hole where the lights are, leaving a space all the way around the base of the new lights, so these were returned. (A small space is visible around the base of the old lights in the photo above.) Anyways, the old lights finally quit working. Not a light bulb-is-burned-out kinda quit. A flat out dead-as-a-door-nail, never-coming-alive-again quit working. And this is a good thing because now we had to replace them, which is exactly what we did.

This was an easy project for me...I just helped the hubby, who is an electrician by trade. He had both lights changed out in 10 minutes. Gotta love a handy hubby!

First I turned off the breaker so there wouldn't be any power going to the light. Then he removed the old lights, which was disgusting! The hole for the wires was filled with dead bugs and wasp nests. Eww!!

After cleaning up the holes, it was time to wire up the new lights. Yup, I just held the light while he did all the work.

And just like the other lights I bought which were too small, so are these. The bases are not large enough and leave a hole around the edge. I don't know about you, but I don't want dead bugs and wasps living behind my lights, so we need to fix the gap. This is done by using a caulk gun and mortar repair in a tube.

 

Here is a new light. Much better. And if you look closely, you can see the wet mortar filling in the holes.

It cost about $30 for the pair of lights, on sale at Lowe's. Also, the lights have a photo cell which enable them to automatically come on when it gets dark and turn off at dusk. This was a very easy upgrade that added some major curb appeal. I think the de-gold mission is 100% complete now!

Any experience changing out light fixtures? Are you on a de-gold mission at your house?



It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like...

Christmas! Just typing the word makes me smile. It is such a magical time of year.

I am running a little behind and just got my tree up. I always put my decorations up the weekend after Thanksgiving. However, this year I had the help of my five year old niece, so I waited an extra week for her. My tree is a little different this year than previous years. I usually decorate a fancy-like tree, keeping with a certain color and/or theme. Last year, the tree was lime green and copper.

This year I wanted more of a rustic look, not so froo-froo fancy. We kept the colors limited and went with red and gold-to-copper colors, but instead of using floral mesh, we used grapevines for texture. Grapevines? Yes, and they are much cheaper than the floral mesh.  I had planned on using grapevine garland...but it was $14! Yikes, that is way too expensive for me! Instead, I picked up 4 grapevine wreaths for $2 each, on sale. To make the wreaths like garland, snip the large outside vine and unwind the wreath. Easy.

I know you are ready for the pics of my tree, so here ya go. However, my disclaimer is that it is stinking hard to photograph a Christmas tree! 

I added burlap for the skirt.



And here is my mantle. I didn't do anything extravagant with it - 4 glitter trees, a Merry Christmas banner, floral mesh, and a Santa picture. I still need to add some grapevine to the mantle.

My centerpiece on the dining room table is a framed chalkboard with some glitter presents. Easy and simple.

And since my niece was in the Christmas decorating mood, I let her decorate a tree all by herself. She picked the ornaments and where to put them on the tree. I think it is the prettiest tree I've ever seen. We used a sheepskin rug as the tree skirt since it looks a little like snow...or a polar bear as my niece said.

Do you have your Christmas decorations up yet? And advice on photographing a Christmas tree? Have you used any non-traditional items in your Christmas decorating?

Me Woman, You Man Cave - REVEAL

You might remember that I started the Man Cave makeover project one weekend while my unaware hubby was out of town at deer camp. Since it is his room, I hadn't laid a decorating-hand on it. However, I felt that the room was under used and a thrifty weekend update was exactly what it needed to make the used-to-be-storage-room into a proper Man Cave.The goals for the remodel were to add storage and make it usable...without it looking like a game room or bar. Well, I am pleased to announce that the makeover is complete.

But first, let me remind you what the Man Cave looked like when we first moved in:

Yes, it was in need of a makeover. It looked more like a dorm room with the futon, sparse furnishings and moving day boxes than a man-worthy Man Cave. Actually, the room functioned more like a make-shift storage unit and was never used. Very sad.

Project List:
No-sew curtains made from sheets
Asymmetrical wall arrangement
Graphic and modern art
Reupholstered ottoman
Storage boxes, painted to match
Pillows made from sheets - using my no-sew method

Edit - the hubby helped spray paint the bike frame. He wanted me to make sure that I said that...

Man Cave Makeover Cost Breakdown:

Curtains              $8

Pillows                 $5

Rug                     $15

Artwork                $10.69

Asym. Art             $13

Sofa                     $149

Accessories         $15

TOTAL                 $215.69

Yes! A total room makeover for 215 bucks! Not too bad, if I say so myself. And, if you take out the sofa (since we had planned on upgrading the futon anyways), it totals $66.69. Wow!