Formica be Gone!

When we bought our house we were in love. It was perfect and we would rather live here than anywhere else.

Then we lived here for one day and realized there were changes we would make--someday.

Someday arrived on Friday.

Someday arrived in the name of Giallo Portofino.

It arrived and I am in heaven.

I am still walking into my kitchen and feeling like I'm not in my own house.

(Except no one seems to want to clean it but me!)

As we all know nothing makes you appreciate a change as much as seeing what you once had. So, here's the beginning--

The strong worker types taking away my old stainless steel sink and replacing it with a granite composite sink.

These two guys transformed my kitchen in about 7 and a half hours from what you see above to total magnificence.

WARNING: These pictures may make you drool with delight and anticipation of doing the same thing!

And, because it's my blog and my sweet grandparents came for a visit, I have to post some cute shots of them. There are several good ones I got of my grandma and the picture of my Papa was very telling of how he spent his time--serving others. He repaired all of our honey-dos. So, consequently, there are not a lot of shots of him.

My Remodel

So, that bathroom that I started in July? I finally finished it this week! I had finished most of it before Thanksgiving, but I had to wait for my hubby to do the new light fixture--which ended up being a huge headache of course (and you don't even see it in the picture)--I don't think that God has remodeling in my future. I think I'm supposed to be working more on remodeling myself and leave my house alone.

Now, for the great reveal! (Imagine me running through a picture of the old bathroom.)

For those who like my color choice--and you know you all do--it's Benjamin Moore's Soft Fern and Rosemary Sprig. And even funnier, the toilet even looks whiter--as though it's been made over too!

And, this is the beautiful cross-stitch that my dad made for me for my birthday last year. I just got it framed and it looks absolutely gorgeous in our bathroom.

Let's Get Ready to Ruuuumble!!!

Evil--thy name is wallpaper. I had this great idea to redo my downstairs half-bath. It has some dated wallpaper that was in need of fixing and I thought it would be a great first attempt at home repair. I bought all the chemicals and tools that you're supposed to buy to make the job a breeze. It should've gone according to plan, but it hasn't.

Who are these people who have wallpaper that comes off in large strips? I think that only happens in the movies.

At first, my wallpaper wouldn't come off at all! Then, I got more aggressive and it started coming off in about 1 centimeter segments. There had to be a better way.

Thank you internet. I created a vinegar/water solution and sprayed it on the walls and viola! there goes the wallpaper.

You may be hearing lately about how wallpaper is coming back into fashion. I even thought about putting up some cute wallpaper and matching it to a paint myself. Now, I know. Wallpaper you are evil.

This is my sub-contractor--isn't she cute?