House Update – The Kitchen

I finally have one more room ‘done’! When I was still at Craftsy I got some fabric that I thought would make great curtains and I decided roman shades would be perfect in the kitchen. Now that I’ve had a chance to make the curtains, the kitchen is finally feeling finished. Sure, I need to paint the ceiling and touch up some other stuff, but for now I think I can shift focus onto another room. The curtains were a little more labor intensive than I’d anticipated, but after the first one I learned a lot and was able to make the second in an afternoon. Totally worth it for an all in cost of $30, rather than $300 for store bought – and they happen to match my accidental red and blue theme perfectly!

I do like this little kitchen. There is really usable space and I love how I have these open shelves to feature my books, my scale and my blue Le Creuset, and that my Roy Lichentein poster gets front and center attention (even though it’s not kitchen related). I’m not super fond of the built-in, but it has become a rather convenient coffee bar/tool box/linen drawer unit. Before the curtains I did make some other updates, such as removing the pot rack (it really opens up the room) and changing the light fixture from a modernist track lighting that burned out after 40 minutes on, to a nice alabaster looking hanging dome.

All in all, I feel like these small changes and additions made a big difference.

Instructions on making your own roman shades are here – she does a much better job than I could ever try to recreate.

Kitchen Before:

Kitchen After:

The Renovation

It was so exciting to make some BIG updates to the house right away. The biggest thing to tackle was the back addition: replacing decrepit windows, tearing off lead paint covered siding and changing the color scheme. Looking at the before pictures now, it’s hard to believe that I wasn’t deterred from the get go!

I love how it turned out and the new fresh colors that I chose (specifically what I had in mind when I chose my roof). I wouldn’t have been able to do it without my parents and am so so grateful for all the work they put in.

It was also nice to be able to utilize my guest room and second bathroom in the way that I intended them to be used when I chose the house. My parents were comfy down there with their own space for an entire month, and since then I’ve made some updates that I think will make it even better the next time.

So without further ado, the picts that will tell you more than I could explain!

The exterior before and after:

The interior before and after:

 

Home

I bought a house! Just one of the many reasons I haven’t been blogging at all. But now with winter here and crafting abounding, I think you’ll be hearing a little more of me.

I’d been looking to buy for some time in San Francisco, but of course what I could afford was a tiny one bedroom with parking if I was lucky. So when I came to Denver started to like it and realized that in my budget I could afford an entire single family home rather than just a tiny apartment, I figured it was worth considering. Denver is booming right now with everyone bemoaning increasing house prices; however, from what-I-can-afford and an investment perspective I’m feeling pretty good about it.

I love love love houses with period charm and they abound in Denver. While there are a lot of these homes, it is hard to find them with a lot of original details in tact and with updates that aren’t too funky. It took me a long time to find (mostly) everything I was looking for, but it finally happened in a charming 1914 brick bungalow in the neighborhood of Sunnyside. The area is a little more ‘up and coming’ but the house was the right one, I’m only a few blocks from some great restaurants/bars, 10 minutes from downtown and my neighbors are nice!

My parents came out for the entire month of October to help make some of the initial updates and every day it feels more and more like home. The project that they helped tackle was replacing the siding and installing new windows on the back extension as well. It looks AMAZING!! Buying a house (especially by myself) was a MUCH more overwhelming process than I ever could have imagined. Mostly because I didn’t really know what I was doing/what I was looking for and partly because it’s only one of the biggest investments you can make, but with my family and friends by my side I kept on going and am now a very happy homeowner.

Finally the photos! I’m taking my time putting the big rooms together, so more pictures will come as I’m done, but here are some snippets to get it started (specific reno post to come too!):

the house!

main living area before

back before

back after

entry before and after

bathroom before and after

The (new) Kitchen

Moving is always a beast. It’s why I only moved twice in my seven years in San Francisco and why it’s important to me to be selective in the apartments I choose. It’s not just the moving process that is intense, but it always takes time to build a new home. It’s impossible to make an entire place feel like home at once, so I’m approaching my home building in a room by room kind of way.

So far I’m loving my new apartment. It’s a little louder and more exposed than the last unit, but I’m in a corner of the top floor, with tons of light, and views of the mountains in the distance. I ended up getting more for less here in Denver, which is awesome – I now have a real bedroom! A parking spot! A 15 minute commute! It’s pretty amazing.

Not only do I have a bedroom, I also have a (slightly) larger kitchen with amenities – dishwasher, garbage disposal and huge pantry, oh my! It is of course the first room in the house that I made sure to settle first.