Since we ended up staying home I'm going to take you on a photo tour of La Maison Hall Conley since I have yet to post a house tour.
Our lovely home at the Open House February 2006
Red doors are a sign of prosperity in Chinese culture, good sign
February 21, 2006 Aww snap, We are HOMEOWNERS!!!
Our front porch - After
Arrrggh ye mateys! *my favorite flag*
You may not tell but we repainted the red door and changed the doorknob. Antz also re-tiled that top row on the stairs after our clumsy gardener, Jose broke most of them dragging up his lawnmower. D'oh!
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| Our lovely door wreath is from Etsy *Knock Knocking* |
Our garage roof/deck - Before
It leaked, it felt like you were walking on a trampoline and it was the biggest nightmare renovation project we've ever encountered
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| After a light rain |
We decided that March 2010 *whilst I was 7 months pregnant* we would have the garage roof repaired because we didn't want the growing mold in the garage to effect our unborn baby's health *good enough reason, right?* and we didn't want our soon to be child to one day fall through the paper thin deck/roof. It was supposed to be a five days project *I had to snort when I wrote 5 days because turned out to be more like 5 weeks+* I guess that's what happens when you begin a project on Friday the 13th.
All this progress took place in the course of ONE day. They were moving at lightening speed and they covered the roof that night for upcoming rain...which ended up turning into FIVE long weeks of NO WORK!! Between permits, city inspections, rain and our contractor avoiding us to work on another *more expensive* project, I almost lost my marbles with stress from this well-intentioned upgrade. Many times I wished we had just let it be.
Somehow my prayers were answered and ONE day before our Bebe Shower we finally got the new garage roof/deck completed.
Our new pricey, city mandated, fire wall. Talk about no bang for your buck!
This was the only shot of David our contractor, *he's probably on the phone with Anthony for the millionth time trying to assure us it will be done in time for our shower* He helped the crew paint the 12th coat of white paint because the wood wasn't pretreated so it soaked up paint like a sponge.
The garage roof/deck - After Well, it doesn't leak anymore!
Living room - Before we moved in
One aspect that sold us was the lovely Tiffany-style ceiling fans and the abundance of original crown molding and baseboards....Love at first sight!
Living Room - During our move
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| The room is full of windows and bright |
Out of our hundreds of friends *and many of them we have helped move in the past* only Antz older sister, Clinnie, generously helped us move into our new house. Not only that but it was cold and rainy and she had to go to work later that day. She even scrubbed our bathtub with CLR...we vowed then to NEVER move without hiring professional again!
EDITOR'S ERROR: I humbly apologize to Leslie & Stephen Saiz, our wonderful amigos and our daughter's Godparents. I somehow blanked that they did help up carry our heavy as shit furniture up our 20 stairs....in the rain. I'll say it again, I'll NEVER move without hiring people again. Sorry, guys!
Anyone who helps a friend move gets like 2,000,000 kharma points!
I drove this monster truck close to 100 miles roundtrip during our move.
Seeing the previous owner's furniture worried us about the spaciousness of the living room layout but once we added out bright-white, beachy furniture it gave the room more depth.
Living Room - The first week
This is me and my MIL sitting on our old tiny Ikea sofa that ended up in Antz office.
We didn't buy our current couch until my birthday, March 20th. It was our first $1000 purchase but I did bargain free same day shipping since it was my b-day.
It's more than clear we had no clue about design, and we were living on a budget *how lame is that $30 brown rug from Target?* I never noticed how clunky our old TV was until we got a flat screen.
Our Living Room - After
Eeek, those mini blinds! Atrocious! Our Urban Outfitters curtains transform the room.
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| Fresh cut flowers make me so happy! |
Our Living Room - Now
The Dining room - Before we moved in
The other side of our Living Room/Dining area - After
Love our beautiful congas my Mom gave us as New Parents gift *which Liv has gotten much practice on*
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| I hope to one day buy a table and chairs and actually use the space as a dining area |
Antz made the find of a Century when he brought home this $12 desk and painted it cheery turquoise
I now have the crafting table of my dreams, just in time for the arrival of my new Hello Kitty sewing machine.
I adore my new Anthropologie Orimono lamp shade/thrift store lamp *that Antz spray painted white*
Our Living room niche - Before we moved in
Our niche - Now *baby photos of Antz and me, btw*
The fireplace *it's tragic we can't use it or our house will burn down*
Our Fireplace - After Antz re-tiled using the original tiles *amazing job, babe*
Our Kitchen - Before we moved in
Our Kitchen - After we moved in
We had to cut the cabinets over the fridge to fit our brand new Samsung fridge into the space.
Our remedy to cover the now doorless cabinets? Anthropologie dish towels!
And what lives behind those towels now? My beloved Domino collection!
Our Kitchen - After
More Anthropologie Dish Towels *as curtains*
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| breakfast nook |
Our old stove/range
I cannot believe we lived with this disgusting old stove for 4 years!
Our new stove/microwave range
One of my favorite presents from hubby, my light blue Kitchenaid Artisan Mixer
*UPDATE* Liz from the future here. We finally remodeled our kitchen! New copper pipes, new Ikea cabinets/countertops, new lovely hardwood floors and A DISHWASHER!! It turned out gorgeous.
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| We painted the inside of the cabinets a happy pop of blue |
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| FINALLY Water pressure!! |
Our Laundry Nook - Before
Note to any future home sellers: unless you own a kick ass $5,000 fancy washer and dryer, leave your old washer & dryer for the new homeowners! You will be able to afford a sweet Electrolux set in cherry red when you buy your new house. We ended spending $1000 on a set of $299 basic washer and dryer from Sears and it ticks me off they took their old set with them when we asked for ALL appliances in our sales contract.
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| I do love our laundry nook since our old apartment was 2 flights of stairs to the shared laundry room. |
Antz painted the pantry door with chalkboard paint, we love it!
Our ancient hot water heater - Before
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| This water heater was 17 years old when we bought the house |
Water Heater - After
The hallway - Now
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| *Removing the popcorn ceiling is on the list for our next project* |
First Bedroom - Before we moved in
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| Can you believe this was a nursery for their daughter, ick |
Antz Office - Before
What possessed us to paint the room red/brown still remains a mystery to me.
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| We rarely used the room when it was his man-cave |
We actually sold this Ikea TV stand and our old couch for a whooping $110!!
Olivia's Nursery - Before
New old French door *so we can peek on our bebe*
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| Antz removed the popcorn ceiling himself |
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| The orange curtains are from Pottery Barn Baby |
Olivia's Nursery - After
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| Antz made this mobile of our family |
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| I adore this rug, the color palette gave me the design inspiration for the room |
Then we moved Antz old desk out of her room so she can have more room to play.
This is the newest addition to Olivia's nursery. Antz made it for her birthday
Master Bedroom - Before we moved in
Master Bedroom - After
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| Bye Bye poorly painted red room! |
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| New Orla Kiely bedding and a new bed frame |
Bathroom - Before we moved in
Our Bathroom - After we moved in
Bathroom - After
Bathroom - After our mini remodel
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| The old flooring was disgusting! |
Remember we left a note for any future homeowners describing our family and the time we spent in the house. I wish I could be around when someone finds it!
After - It was a tough four day DIY but totally worth it
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| I love our toy collection in the bathroom |
Backyard - Before we moved in
Backyard - After
We have a Tibetan prayer wheel, I really do believe it works!
Our cat Lola has the most glamourous lifestyle
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| Our new grill |
I hope you've enjoyed our house tour. Henry our Gnome says "Smell ya later!"
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