Other than those minor projects I tackled on my own, any changes to home sweet home have been limited to what needed to be done, like a new roof a few years ago after a wretched winter wind storm.
When the Rugged Mountain Man asked what I wanted for Valentine's Day, I was ready for him. "I want to paint the kitchen," I grinned and blurted out hopefully.
What I wanted though was the permission and the budget to change it... not for HIM to do it.
Ladies, sometimes we are just far too anxious to have our husbands do projects, but we're not very willing to have some skin in the game.
With his blessing, the kitchen project began.
Down came my little decorative attempts from eons ago to make the kitchen more like me.
(A little fruity?)
Down came those little strips that are commonly found in a modular/manufactured home.
(See left hand corner in previous pic.)
I dry-walled all those seams with pointers from my husband. The corners though were boogers. There were tears, even though I was determined NOT to cry. I WANTED IT TO BE SMOOTH. After more help from the Rugged Mountain Man, we conquered.
We had to prime with a really good primer to stick to the vinyl walls. I researched specifically how to paint over those walls so that my time would not be wasted.
I did lots of Pinterest research to choose this color because I didn't want to make a bad color choice! I wanted to highlight the oak-colored trim that isn't going anywhere any time soon. I wanted our current floors to look good and I wanted our house to look nice now, even though four very active girlies live here. I really, really, REALLY wanted something soothing and something the Rugged Mountain Man would love.
After much research, I chose the ever popular Revere Pewter by Benjamin Moore. I haven't regretted this "greige" color AT ALL. It's popular for a reason.
The house was chaotic as we worked, which is why we tackled one room at a time.
We finished the kitchen and I dismantled and then painted the living room.
I believe the Rugged Mountain Man's words were something like, "This.looks.FABULOUS."
And because everyone expects perfect "after" photos, it should be noted that in the previous three snap shots, there are bunnies running around on the floor and cries of "he pooped!" Blossom1 is grooming rabbits on the kitchen island. The stools were being used as showmanship stands. There are wet hoodies hanging everywhere because of the torrential downpour during choring this morning. Jake seems to be relishing a typical day here.
Dominique
PS - Take a peek at the before and after pics again and
you'll see some of the progress in the dining room/library.
