House Update: First Floor Tour & Plans
The journey so far of making our new house our home
We have been living in our new home for a little over 7 months and it’s gone through lots of changes with lots of changes ahead. At the end of January we drove cross country and moved into our new home. It’s important to say: we are not DIY’ers. Our skillset is pretty simple and if it can’t be changed with paint or quick photo or change of hardware, we typically hold off till we have a clearer plans and timeline for how long we will be in the house. We fell in-love with our home because of the neighborhood, the great floor plan, wood inset cabinets and extra trim options.
we wanted a clean neutral base with sprinkles of texture, contrasts and coziness.
We’ve touched and/or painted almost every single room on the first floor. If you are curious about our plan or inspiration for the house, you can find more information about that here. All the walls AND ceilings in the house were painted a mid-tone gray that ate up a ton of light. The trim was quite worn and needed a fresh coat of paint too. We painted the busy dark tile backsplash in our kitchen (tutorial here) and changed the hardware in the kitchen which made a HUGE difference.
Let’s look at the before:
And here’s the after
the kitchen
We painted our kitchen backsplash and it lightened the whole thing up. All the walls were painted Benjamin Moore Simply White and that also took the brightness to a whole other level. We switched out old square hardware for pulls and knobs from Rejuvenation in a polished nickel finish. It truly changed the whole look of the kitchen. Do not underestimate the power of simple cosmetic finishes.
Moving forward I’d love to replace the tile with something more classic and character filled. I’d also love to address our pantry with a beautiful doorknob and revamp the inside to be an extra fun surprise. A long vintage looking runner in front of the sink could bring the whole thing together. The hunt and projects continue for this room.
Our entryway
It came to life when we built this super cute cabinet from Target, our Eleanor print from Juniper Print Shop, and this super cheap $15 bench I scored second hand on Facebook Market Place. We painted the bench and doors in Benjamin Moore Revere Pewter (the best greige-y color around). We need to change lighting, paint the rest of the doors to match and add a peg rail for some added character and functionality. A big rug would also add some warmth and could help tie everything together. And lastly, a new light fixture to add some character and a little more interest in the room.
Our Family Room
The big change happened when we painted the walls, ceiling, and fireplace in Benjamin Moore Simply White. It instantly brightened the room and made it feel so much bigger. We took down the blinds and hung white drapes from Target Threshold curtain rods. I’d love to change the fan to a light fixture and really spruce up our fireplace. One of our favorite editions has been this rug. It’s flat style makes it super easy for vacuuming and every day living. And I love that it’s crafted in a way to get better with age.
We took down the blinds, hung up IKEA curtains on a Target Threshold rod, and painted the fireplace the same shade of white. The mantle is still a work in progress, but I love change these small updates have given us.
Can you spot the dog bone? Life of dog-ownership.
OUR BEDROOM
Our bedroom was one of the first rooms that we painted (remember paint-gate? I wrote more about that here) The majority of the change/budget went to upgrading our bed to a king-sized bed and getting an appropriate bed frame. MAN, we love our Casper mattress. If you scroll on up to that before picture you’ll notice the walls were that same darker gray color and it ate up so much sunlight. We painted the walls same bright white, left the trim a contrasting lighter gray, and added some art to have some tranquil vibes.
I couldn’t find nightstands that I loved, that also felt functional and affordable, so we are using these chairs as a stand in. Finding a temporary solution that feels nice and livable is a huge goal of mine when settling into the house. It doesn’t have to be all or nothing, and sometimes the temporary solution is hanging out in another room.
Well we still have tons of plans like more painting, building peg rails, and poooossibly doing some tiling in the future (I would love something more classic that adds a feeling of more character). I’m always keeping my eye out for affordable lighting, new handle hardware, and more art to add to our walls. I’ll keep sharing all of our small bits of progress on instagram, so stay tuned.
Hugs,
Mere
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