A Master of None: February 2013

Update--Sneek Peek (scroll down to see more updates as I complete each step)--This is how it currently looks:

Remodel--Bedroom 1

I am currently remodeling the first bedroom that two of our boys share.
The boys weren't loving the flower border, peach carpet and ruffled valance left by the previous owners of the house (this was their daughter's room). I wasn't loving the inefficiency of the closets. The big, heavy sliding doors are difficult for little boys to use and they were constantly getting caught on clothes that would inevitably fall off the too-shallow, too-high shelves that the boys couldn't easily reach. Plus, the closets were much larger than necessary, which equates to wasted space (a huge pet peeve of mine).

This is how the bedroom used to look:

Original Room

So, I've been at work creating a more functional room with more architectural interest. Here are my plans: Two individual closets separated by a reading nook with built-in book-shelves and drawers for the boys' books, nick-nacks, and collectibles. Now, both boys will have a good 7' of clothes bar to hang their clothes on with one bar high and one low so that the closets function both when they are little and when they are teenagers. They also have 13' of shelving for folded clothes, long and deep drawers with adjustable dividers for socks, underwear, sweaters, etc. The reading nook is proportioned to accept a crib mattress snugly and I will install a removable crib rail so that we have an automatic built-in crib or toddler bed for guests that may use the room. The rail and crib mattress can be stored in the cabinet above the reading nook when not in use.

Remodel Plans

I have the new closets almost completely built. I am currently working on the closet doors. While I wait for them to dry, I plan to foll nail holes with wood fill and wire the light fixture for the reading nook. Once the doors are all glued up (I only have enough clamps to glue one door per day), I can start sanding everything down, add crown and base moulding and then paint everything and install the new light fixture and the door and drawer hardware. I will also be beefing up the trim on the bedroom entry door, adding trim to the existing window, and replacing the peach carpet with something more masculine and neutral. This is what everything looks like right now:

Reading Nook and Closets Built

Building Closet Doors

Reading Nook Up Close

I will add updates to this blog post as things progress, but I'm not one to take the time to take pictures every step of the way (hence no pictures during the building stages). But, watch for the final reveal once I complete the room! I'm excited and the boys are anxious to move into their new room.

UPDATE:
Ready to prime (notice the light fixture I installed in the nook--pretty proud of myself for wiring that)

Reading Nook Light Fixture Wired and Installed

Primed (notice the old brass ceiling fan has a new schoolhouse light kit to match the nook light, and I painted it an oil-rubbed bronze finish to update as well)

Built-Ins Primed

Now onto touch-up spackle and paint . . . . Yay! Stay tuned . . . .

UPDATE:
I've been working on some details between coats of primer and paint. I updated the ceiling fan by replacing the light kit with a schoolhouse fixture, painting the brass and white all oil-rubbed bronze, and painting the gray/white blades a softer and creamier white to match the built-ins.

BEFORE: Ceiling Fan (sorry for the bad picture--only one I had)

AFTER: Ceiling Fan (again, bad picture, but gives you the idea)

I also wanted more prominent trim throughout the house, so I'm starting in this room and will update as I move throughout the house. Since it would cost too much to replace all the trim, I decided to just build it up by adding onto it with cheap lumber:

BEFORE Trim: notice the nearly non-existent baseboard and standard door casing

DURING Trim: Just routed the edge of some furring strips and added to the outside of the casings and bottom of the baseboards

AFTER Trim: baseboards after being painted

AFTER Trim: Door Casing after being painted

My husband's comment after seeing the finished trim: "I REALLY like the trim. I was skeptical as you were doing, but I really love the trim!" He kept going on and on and staring at the trim so, I guess it was a success. Yay!

The other little detail I've been working on is the door hinges. You may recall that I painted all the door knobs in our house a while back. Well, the hinges in the house were all painted white right along with the doors--like they were never removed, just painted over. So, I put off restoring them. But, I figured I would have to take the door off the hinges to paint it to match the room, so now was the perfect time to remove the hinges, strip them, and paint them properly. Stripping wasn't near as difficult as I thought it would be. I simply took the hinges apart and boiled them in an old pan with some water and baking soda. The paint came easily right off. I then scuffed them up with a wire brush and then spray painted them the oil-rubbed bronze to match all the other hardware.

BEFORE Hinges

AFTER Hinges

COMPLETED Door with updated hardware and trim

UPDATE:
I am getting really close to being done with the remodel. Here is what it looks like right now, all painted and with most of the doors installed:

Here's what I have left to do: finish installing clothes rods, hang the last door, install the drawer fronts, install the rest of the knobs and pulls, stain the bare wood, adhere the mirrors to the inside of the closet doors, hang tie and belt storage systems in the closets, install and stain window trim, paint the bedroom walls, and order new carpet. O.k., so I still have a few things to do, but the hard part is OVER! Yay! Then, the boys and I can decorate how they wish. They will be off of school for spring break this week, so I may take some time out to do some projects with them like making bulletin boards for their walls and storage bins to hold their little precious things in a tidy manner on their book shelves. It's all coming together and I couldn't be more pleased.

UPDATE: Drawer fronts are installed and hardware is all in.

Hardware installed

Cabinet above nook holds crib mattress that fits in nook

Drawer Fronts Installed

UPDATE: Bench is stained and bottom bookshelves painted. Window trim is in and ready to stain:

Bench Stained and Bottom Bookshelves Primed

Window Trim Installed and ready to Stain. Walls Painted.

UPDATE: Working on getting the boys' things moved in (don't mind the pink carpet that is STILL in the room--that will be replaced as soon as we can finalize our decision for its replacement).

Closets Stocked

Socks, Underwear, and Undershirts Stocked

Pajamas Stocked (don't know why Blogger insists on rotating these pics wrong)

Sweaters Stocked. Dirty Clothes in their drawer.

Ben's Books and Nick Nacks Arranged

Jesse's Books and Nick Nacks Arranged

Check out the Bulletin Board I made for the boys--Cheapo cork board from Walmart covered with Burlap and upholstery tacks. The boys started hanging their stuff on it before I even got it in the room!

UPDATE: The boys are moved in!!! We still need to decorate, but the room is now functional--The things we still need are nightstands, bed lamps, wall decor or bed canopies on the bed wall, quilts and pillows for the beds, cushion and/or pillows in the reading nook, a mirror on the back of the nook, window treatments, and CARPET.

Here's how the room looks today (again, please try to ignore the pink carpet)

Entering the room (notice how nicely my grandpa's old military trunk fits in--I love it)

Window is stained--My husband LOVES it, I'm still trying to decide whether or not I would like it better painted.

Bulletin Board has already been put to use by the boys

UPDATE: The carpet is halfway in! I will post pics when the installer finishes. Yay!
In the mean time, my sister insisted that I post a picture of me pregnant in the remodel (as well as one in the second bedroom remodel, which i will add to that post) since I've been doing the remodeling during my pregnancy. So, here it is: