There was a vision....

It feels so good to be done with this project!  And it was a project!  We took up the floor and replaced all the floor joists, we made all new exterior walls, we insulated, drywalled, replaced all electrical and most of the plumbing.  The yard was redone.  New fences, new front entry way.  Basically it's a new house.  By the looks of it though it was worth it. It's cute, clean and user friendly!

The Kitchen.  The Ikea kitchen is a new favorite. It's surprisingly durable and really attractive.

This used to be the garage/entry way.  We put in some walls, added a master bedroom and bath and made room for laundry.

Looking into the house from the front door.

One of two existing bedrooms.  We turned one closet into an office.

The bathroom layout for the original two bedrooms pretty much stayed the same, we just put in all new sinks, toilet and lights.

Sophie's room.  Bed by Pottery Barn - great use of limited space.

Living room with pellet stove, which makes the room cozy in the winter.

An outdoor shower.

An local artist made the door out of reclaimed materials.  It's the door to the "shed"/Sue's studio.

Update in January 2012

The Juniper Nest. 

We bought it in June 2011 as a fixer upper that we would rent out as a furnished vacation rental.  We had a budget and a plan. 

We blew through the budget and the plan got shredded but it's all working out for the good. 

My sister is moved in - right before Christmas - with a good measure of stress added in. 

We made quite a few changes to the original plan - but it turned out beautifully and is truly a home that my sister is enjoying.  She loves it so much she has plans to buy it as soon as it's finished. 

Sometimes the best laid plans get thrown out to enable something bigger and more beautiful to occur. 

Here are some before pictures - adult discretion advised - it's pretty bad.

Some kitchen inspirations

Deborah Whitlaw Llewellyn (Coastal Living online) Tracey Rapisardi

Deborah Whitlaw Llewellyn (Coastal Living Online) Andrea Irvine/Rosselle Johnson designers

Here are a couple of great photos (sorry can't find the credit for the above photo).  I LOVE the contrast between the white cupboards and the wood counters.  I also really like the bead board as a back splash and wall covering.  Gives great texture and color.  Can't wait to get started on the kitchen! 

For The Love of A House

The above photos started my creative juices flowing - a white kitchen with wood floors.  YUM!  I am hoping that I can do something similar to this except instead of soapstone countertops, I would do butcher block from Ikea.

I'm not sure I would do this look in a rental house as I think cleaning the white chairs would drive me crazy, but I love the clean look.  The layered textures of sea grass rug, warm wood and cotton slipcovered chairs.



Juniper Drive

I am sitting here in Switzerland and decided that it's time to start a blog about my latest project; Juniper Drive.  Balin and I were approached by our friends on a deal about a foreclosure on Juniper Drive.  This foreclosure was the house across the street from them and they were hopefull that we would be willing to pour our (ok my) creative juices into it.   We went and checked out the house and from the moment we walked in I said - it's got good bones.  Granted all the floors, doors, kitchen and everything else would have to come out, but the bones are good.  So I have high hopes for this project of mine.  I will be keeping track of the progress on this blog and I'm very excited about the transformation that will soon take place.  Pictures will be forthcoming as soon as I get home and get started.