The Penny Parlor: Trimwork

Family Room Progress

7/19/2012

Every feel like you have too many projects going on at once? That's me all the time. I need to buckle down and finish one thing before I jump to another room/project. I started re-decorating my family room since we got rid of the couch that was way too big for the space (we got it for our last house).

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Before/After

Project Basement Part 2

4/24/2012

We have paint, trim, tile and a wet bar to reveal. The tile featured above is MARAZZI Terra 12 in. x 12 in. Bengal Slate Porcelain Floor and Wall Tile from The Home Depot. We used it in the powder room as well with natural grey grout.

Powder Room Flooring

We were able to curve the tile-to-carpet transition strip using a method my brother-in-law came up with. Flexible transitions are hard to come by. We would have had to purchase them online for triple the price, plus shipping. I will have a follow up post on how our tile installer curved the strip with additional photos.

Finished tile for wetbar (grout is still wet)

Wet bar installed. The cabinets are Kraftmaid. The back cabinets will be receiving granite in colonial cream. The wood bar top is getting a routered ogee edge and a dark stain. It is a piece of oak from Ikea $129 (can't beat that!).

Backsplash options

Pendants above bar

Powder room: Allen + Roth stock vanity from Lowe's, Onyx stock vanity top from The Home Depot, smudge free Moen faucet from The Home Depot

I used Benjamin Moore, Revere Pewter, throughout the whole basement. It is a mixture between grey and beige.

Before/After

A Penny Parlor Nursery Part 1

2/28/2011

It's about time I get back to blogging! I've been delaying projects for a number of excuses, mostly due to being pregnant. A nursery seems the most practical subject to start back up again.

When I started thinking about a baby's room, I knew I didn't want anything too "babyish". I truthfully wasn't even going in a pink direction for a girl, until I saw crib bedding that I just could not resist. It is classy and elegant, but most importantly for me doesn't scream baby with teddy bears and ducks. (No offense to readers, just my own taste).

CoCaLo Daniella Bedding

The room was completely a blank canvas, as you can see:

When planning for this space, I thought it best to keep the walls light since I picked out dark furniture and because the room is not particularly large. I went with Valspar paint from Lowe's. The bottom color is China Silk and the top color is Bombay all with Antique White trim by Duron.

If I had done a chair rail, rather than a plate rail to separate the colors, I would have done the darker color on the bottom because a chair rail would be a lot lower. I like how the dark furniture stands out against the lighter color.

Trim: I used flat pieces of primed MDF in 3.5" x 8' lengths for the plate rail and crown molding where the wall meets the ceiling. In the corners of the crown I used pre-made blocks. I cannot stress enough how EASY they are to use and make crown molding something ANYONE can do. You can find them at Lowe's. No miter cuts at all. I also used them in my powder room, you can find the post HERE.

Pre-painting the trim before install makes for easy touch up and finishing after the molding is up.

After installing the trim, caulk the seams, fill in any nail holes and touch up with paint.

The crib furniture is Baby Cache Royale and can be found at Babies R Us. Here's a tip, look for floor samples in the furniture department. We were able to get the changing table for less than half of the original price.

Stay tuned for more nursery related projects as I work to complete this space.

Before/After

Trimwork Makeover::: Part 2

11/13/2010

Following up on my previous post, Trimwork Makeover::: Part 1, I wanted to show you an update of how things are looking now that it's complete. My dining room is still unfurnished. I'm not ever sure I want it to be a dining room, but the trim looks so LOVELY I will enjoy the space whatever it may become.

Here are the before and after photos. As always, click on any image to enlarge detail.

Before/After

Trimwork Makeover::: Part 1

9/16/2010

I will be doing a series of posts wrapped around the trimwork transformation taking place at our home these next couple of weeks. We built our home about a year ago, but did not get much done as far as trim... or paint. I just couldn't stand the blank white (antique white) walls EVERYWHERE. Plus, none of our doorways and windows were cased out. A lot of builder's are doing this to save $$, but there is nothing like trimwork to finish off a home and give it a custom look. So I convinced the hubs to undergo this project with me. I thought about doing it myself, but a number of factors led us to hiring a pro...and I'm glad we did because I'm learning a lot! Enough to take on trim in other areas of the home :)

Here are a series of project progress pictures (say that five times fast!), we'll just call it "before and after part 1" (click on any picture to enlarge):