Tuesday, October 21, 2014

Retro Bedroom Makeover



It has been busy around here lately. Lots of projects started, finished,or abandoned till next year, you all know how it goes! Two big projects have been finished, our roof and our bedroom. Brent has been working on a new roof for the past couple of summers. He did a great job and I could share some pictures but it is a grey asphalt tile roof. Not too exciting. He did a major section every summer. We all used to tease him he had a bar fridge, a couch and a flat screen TV up there as he seemed to spend a lot of time up there banging and crashing around. But it is done now and the Leahey Lounge is officially closed! Yay Brent!!

We have finally finished redoing our bedroom. This is an epic event around here. It has been a long term project, not weeks or months, we are talking a few years. Every time we would chose a paint colour or a floor sample, like clockwork, the phone would ring. We have spent more than the last decade care giving for all the elders and dealing with some other serious health issues in our own family. That phone would ring at an odd time, we'd both look at each other and think whose turn is it now?  Time passes and all our parents have ....left this vale of tears, our four aged kitties are gone too and things are on a more even keel here. If that is ever possible!


I should have taken a before picture, but I never thought to. Trust me, it wasn't looking so good! We knew the carpet was toast and we wanted a new paint colour for the walls. Picking paint is hard, at least I find it hard. You look at the chip, look at it on your wall, watch the light change on the chip, pick up another chip and on and on it goes. I know you can buy paint in small amounts and paint test patches but that would be too easy and less stressful for me. I love the colour we chose, it's a Benjamin Moore paint called Mayonnaise. It is considered a shaded white, it has a bit of yellow in it and when the sun hits it the room really lights up. It is a warm, cheerful colour, but not too yellowy.


Brent laid a lovely wood floor.


We have some old mid century modern furniture. It was originally my parents, but we have had it since the eighties! I have always wanted to paint it but for some unknown reason painting wood is an utter travesty in the male mind. Finally, finally, finally, someone agreed he would give it a try, and he loves it!



notice uncluttered corner




We painted the furniture white, it seems all the paints available now are a primer/ paint blend. I am not sold on these paints. I find their finish is softer and marks more easily. I guess that's why some people will put a few layers of Varathane or a suitable sealer on as a finishing coat. This is not a high traffic area so it will be just fine.



We did buy new baseboards and new closet doors. I love the new closet door handles and light fixture.



I love my satellite mirror.


 We reused and re purposed what we could and the rest we purchased at sales at home and hardware stores.

I will admit I am a clutterbug and we are both a pair of junk-a -toonies! However, we both love this clean uncluttered space and we have both promised to ourselves not to mess it up. So far so good. Hopefully we can adopt this frame of mind to the rest of the house!! Okay, everyone, you can all wake up now I am done talking about my bedroom!!




We travelled down to Victoria recently to spend Thanksgiving with our daughter. I cooked a turkey before we left and although it seemed like a total pain in the butt at the time, it was a good idea. I like to cook and my family knows it. No one seems to assume cooking duties as soon as I hit the door. Dang! Unfortunately the day after we arrived our daughter got nailed by a nasty flu which then morphed into both a sinus and chest infection. Ick!! Then Brent got sick. Double Ick!! Archie had a routine visit to the Vet's for a kennel cough booster and we discovered he had fleas!! Triple Ick!! Our visit was extended several days and there was much sneezing, coughing, moaning and scratching in a very small 500 sq. ft apartment. Priceless!! I made a lot of soup for the sickies. This is one of my favs.


This is a Curried Butternut Squash Soup. I use lots of curry powder and freshly grated ginger in this recipe. Sometimes I get a little too enthusiastic with my spices ( for some), a dollop (yes a dollop) of sour cream really cools it down and it tastes great. Everyone is on the mend now and we are home again. Archie, sans fleas, came back with us too.




Have a great week friends

Keep smiling!

Chris

Ross Bay

16 comments:

  1. Impressive work ! really impressive ! Your new bedroom is simply amazing. I love the colors... very good choice ! Have a lovely day !

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    1. Thank you so much Geraldine! It was a long time coming but we did finish it. On to the next room!!

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  2. I love your new bedroom makeover - it's really great. We have painted lots and lots of wooden furniture. Save buying more and getting rid of perfectly good furniture just because it looks old fashioned or whatever.

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    1. Yes it sure is great to reuse old stuff, it sure is well made. It's just a coat of paint or two but sure makes a big difference,

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  3. I think your bedroom looks like it should be featured in a catalog or magazine, it is beautiful. Everything about it looks new and wonderful. Hope everyone is feeling much better now.
    Hugs,
    Meredith

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    1. Aww thanks Meredith. The big trick will be to keep it clutter free. I read your comment to my husband and he was pretty excited! This has given us a great incentive to tackle another room

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  4. Super stylish! Sounds like you have a very handy hubby. Must be nice. ;o) Glad you're all feeling better. Sick is ick. :(

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    1. Yes Tammy everyone is feeling much better thank goodness. My husband likes to quote Red Green " if the ladies don't find you handsome , they better find you handy!" Sometimes I think it's a lot easier and quicker if you bring in the professionals!

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  5. I love that shot of the bay Chris! And how wonderful that your family has you to cook for them! That soup...it looks amazing! But let's talk about that bedroom! It rocks! I love everything about it! So fresh and those bedroom pieces have the coolest lines! A job well done! You had me chuckling about everyone being so sick and the dog having fleas....I have been there! Isn't that life?!!? I hope everyone is on the mend now. So sorry that you have had a rough couple of years...you deserve that beautiful retreat! A wonderful week to you Chris! Nicole xoxo

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  6. Hey Nicole, we all sure seem to hit lots of bumps in the road in life. One thing about having friends is we realize we all go through it. A great antidote is to funnel some energy into doing something fun and creative ! I am being successful for the most part at keeping my bedroom clean and uncluttered, big big challenge for me !!nice to see you back!

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  7. As soon as I've finished typing I'm handing the laptop to my husband so he can see those bedroom pics ... he's another who refuses to paint wooden furniture and we have some that is crying out for a coat of something.

    I love your makeover, and I really like the sound of that soup.

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    1. Right on! You know its a couple of coats of paint. If you don't like it you can strip it. Honestly these men!! Now he is gung ho to paint some more furniture ha! It sure makes a difference. The other thing I did was to start walking through furniture stores together and talked about buying new stuff. Someone sure jumped to attention to that one!! That paint brush came out pretty fast!!!

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  8. Love the reno's!! That mirror is
    out of this world!
    Cheers, Anita.

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    1. Thanks Anita, I love the mirror too. It's interesting how it catches the light and the colours from outside. Thanks for stopping by.

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  9. I can identify with a renovation that takes its time- we have been working on our house for years. Life gets in the way and we have periods that we run out of funds. Renovations can be pricy,especially when your house has costly quirks. Your bedroom looks terrific. I like the paired down look and wish my own place was less cluttered.

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    1. Always something to do in these older houses. By the time you finish, it will be time to start all over again. Our bedroom is our least cluttered room, I should do a post on our basement, but I might be recruited to be on A\E Hoarders !!!

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