Living Room

 As with in our master bedroom, we are also installing a custom fireplace in the living room.  We are in the process.  The first contractor we hired was really difficult to work with and quit mid-project, leaving us with a half-job. So, we still need to build and install the mantel and overmantel.  The process has been quite the nightmare which I won't bore you with, but I'm very unimpressed with Mendota as well (the fireplace manufacturer).  We now have a MUCH better contractor, Shane Chuning, who pays attention to detail and doesn't mind working with home-owners like myself to whom detail is very important.  We plan to install wood flooring and a built-in daybed in the bay window.  We had Shane pull out the gigantic drywalled bookshelves (I hope I can find some before pictures of that) and will replace them with pretty built-in furniture style shelves similar to the ones I built in the library.  We (well, Shane's guy, Mark) FINALLY painted over the hideous flesh colored paint we have lived with for over a decade with a more soothing creamy white. Mark is a hard worker.  That was ALOT of painting.  Again, we custom ordered the handmade tile for the fireplace, which turned out GORGEOUS. We also had Shane raise the arch (so that my tall husband and sons don't hit their heads on it anymore) and add a faux beam he made by hand over the bay window.  Photos are limited again (I'm the worst), but here is what I have thus far:

Living room BEFORE

My attempt at a color rendering

Low arch

Super low arch that we have now raised high.

My design drawings for the fireplace design

Wall sconces going in

My amazing handyman, Jeremy Snyder, laying out the handmade tile we custom ordered for the hearth. Jeremy is a miracle-worker with tile:  he is seriously SO good.

New faux beam and ceiling fan and paint

Arch raised and corner drywalled bookshelf gone.  I haven't yet decided how I want to trim out the opening.  I will likely case it with white casing to match the other casing throughout the house.

Design drawings for the bay window daybed (and the master bedroom window seat)

Working with the tile maker to get our tile just right.  She was seriously talented.  I need to find her name and business name so I can reference her.

Finally got the wood flooring done with this gorgeous walnut inlay. It was installed by Robert Arnold and he did a fabulous job. 

Haven't built the window seat or bookshelves yet so the furnishing is temporary, but I find this rug in the perfect size and colors for the room. 

I got tired of waiting for the workers to get around to the trim (the tore it all out a year and a half ago), so I just installed all the trim on the main floor:  baseboards, casings, and picture rail (in the library).

Master Bedroom

 While we have been remodeling our master en suite, we have slowly been plugging away at the bedroom as well.  Again, I don't really have any before pictures.  But, we installed a faux beam over the window seat and added walnut window sills that are gorgeous.  We are in the process of adding a custom fireplace and building out the window seat to be more functional and visually appealing.  The fireplace will have an overmantel mirror that is a special mirror that hides the tv when not in use and that allows the picture to show through when the tv I turned on.  I also had some handmade tiles made for the fireplace surround which turned out gorgeous.  I will add more pictures as I get a chance to take more, but here are some pictures in the mean time of what is going on, including the fireplace design:

My fireplace design drawings

I don't really know how to do renderings, but this is my color rendering to get an idea for colors.

New ceiling fan that is much prettier and less visually intrusive than the old one. The fan matches the beam over the window seat perfectly and the jute cage matches coordinates with the plant baskets I have throughout the bedroom and en suite exceptionally well.  Similarly, the bronze hardware ties into all the bronze ceiling fixtures I have installed throughout the house.

Entryway

We are getting the entryway under way.  Of course, I forgot to take before pictures again. After more than a decade of living with the hideous "flesh-colored" paint, we FINALLY painted the walls the creamy white I like (and by "we", I mean my contractor's right-hand man, Mark).  We will be renovating the whole staircase and removing the carpet to make way for wood with a runner. Our contractor, Shane Chuning, installed gorgeous faux beams he built and finished by hand out of alder.  Stay tuned for more pictures of the entryway and stairs as we make more progress.  

Finally settled on a light fixture.  I knew the style I wanted but couldn't find it in the size and finish I wanted.  So, I purchased this one in a brass finish (which was actually a very pretty finish and would have matched my raw brass sconces I made perfectly, but I wanted to keep things cohesive with all my ceiling fixtures being a dark bronze finish), and I disassembled it and spray painted it with a Rustoleum bronze paint.  My body was exhausted from balancing while installing it (my husband was sick that day and my kids were otherwise engaged so I didn't have any extra hands to help me), but it turned out gorgeous!  If I were to shop for one again, I would save myself the time and hassle of trying to find the right finish and just get the perfect light and paint it.  It took way less time to paint it than it took searching for the perfect light in the finish I wanted.  Not sure why I didn't think of it sooner, as that is how I updated the ceiling fans in the kids' bedrooms years ago.  Live and learn . . . .  I will take this lesson with me as I search for my dining room and library lights. 

The scale and height of the fixture works perfectly for the tall, narrow entryway/stairwell.  It looks beautiful in the day with the light off as well.

Finally got the flooring refinished to take the orange out of the red oak (like there still is in the banister) and found this gorgeous antique hall tree at a local antique store. The brass spitoon was my mom's. She gifted it to me and we use it to store shoe covers. 

I designed and had this custom walnut front door built. We just got it installed and now all we need is to put an oil finish on it for protection and to condition and darken the natural wood tones. It's so wonderful to have decent natural light in the entry now! 

Got this gorgeous doorknob set. I love it so much! I didn't take a close up but the hinges are also gorgeous ball finial hinges that I love. 

My assume painter, Omar, got the oil on the door and the sidelites and trim painted and cleaned up. We used RedCan Parafin Oil. It is gorgeous and really brings out the natural beauty of the walnut. 

The entryway is really coming together beautifully. I love the walnut door with the walnut inlay on the floor and my bronze light fixture (which I really need to clean the drywall dust off of) with the bronze hardware on the door and the antique hall tree. I cannot wait until we get the stairs done too! 

Once we remodel the balustrade/stairway and find the perfect pot for the entryway tree that we want to grow in here, then, it will just be down to adding artwork and such.  Stay tuned.