DIY // The Kitchen/Mudroom Renovation - What We Love & What We Don't

It's been a good 6 months since we finished our Kitchen/Mudroom renovation, so I thought I'd share a breakdown of what we have loved and what we kind of don't.



Let's start with the positives and a good ol' before and after as a refresher of how much this space has changed since we first moved in back in December 2011.

Apartment Therapy's Renovation Diary // Bringing in the Professionals

Our next installment of Apartment Therapy's Renovation Diary is live.  Let me just say...it's pretty electrifying!

Oh, I just crack myself up.

Apartment Therapy's Renovation Diary // Demo Begins

It's hump day!  Get over that mid-week slump and pop on over to Apartment Therapy to catch our first Renovation Diary progress post  - we're diving in and tearing down walls.

So thankful for all the help we received on this project.  Definitely couldn't have done it without our family!

Apartment Therapy's Renovation Diary // Inspiration for Our Mudroom & Kitchen Nook

Last week Apartment Therapy shared our DIY renovation plan for our mudroom and kitchen nook.  If you missed it, we're opening up a couple walls and building a few built-ins.  It's going to be amazing.  Well, this week we're dropping some eye candy on you.

Check out our latest feature to see our inspiration for the space - but just try not to drool.  Our inspirations are full of pretty built-ins, lots of natural lighting and an overabundance of pillows!

Be sure to check out our post next week where we talk all things budget!

Apartment Therapy's Renovation Diary // Mudroom & Kitchen Nook Renovation

It's been a few months since I gushed on social media about an exciting new opportunity and then all was silent....I am so excited to FINALLY be able to share the news.  We're working with Apartment Therapy and contributing to their Renovation Diary feature - we'll be chronicling our DIY renovation from start to finish...all the good and the bad!

Check out our very first feature here and stay tuned for weekly updates!

So, think we'll come in on budget and on time?

DIY HOME: Choosing Flooring for Your Remodel

Since the hubs is a teacher....and is in grad school....and fishes in Alaska during the summers (man he's busy!), we typically use his break time to get some projects done around the house.  With Spring Break only a few weeks away, we're drowning in last minute planning for the mudroom room and breakfast nook.  You can check out our general plan here and here which will hopefully look similar to this with built-in features like a laundry closet and bench.

While most of the design was easy to decide, we have been struggling picking flooring.  A few months back when we installed the window and put the drywall up I had ordered some easy to install stick on premium vinyl tiles, but as soon as I made the purchase online my stomach tied in knots and I began sweating profusely.  This nauseated feeling stuck with me through the night as I tossed and turned. For both my conscience and my home's well-being, a fast, convenient, inexpensive and potentially harmful (for our home's air quality and the environment) fix was just not as important as using more eco-friendly options.

Mudroom Update and Inspiration

Have I told you how much I love mudrooms?  They're a perfect place to drop your boots, toss your jacket and leave every trace of mud and rain behind.  As I'm more partial to finished mudrooms as opposed to unfinished - we're gearing up to work on ours this weekend.  When we bought our home the room wasn't too bad and we saw all the potential it had.  We thought it'd be a quick update with a new door and window, but this was one of those rooms that had an unwelcome surprise around every corner.

From the rotting foundation beam and subfloor to the scary electrical and plumbing work - this room has definitely been a headache. It's been in a state of limbo and disarray for the past 6 months after we put in the new door and replaced the subfloor.  Our mudroom has come a long way but it still has a long way to go.

DIY // How To Install Vintage Glass-Paned Door

I'm sure Lewis & Clark would have made that exclamation if they were here to see our door transformation.  Remember our back door...or better yet, lack thereof?  Our mudroom has been open to the elements aside from a sheet of black plastic for quite awhile now while we've been working on the foundation and subfloor.  Luckily there's about a million doors in this house and the back of the house has two entry doors so security was never an issue, but it was still an eyesore.  I don't know about you, but I'm not too keen on plastic doorways.  They just don't have that "welcome" feel that I like to have at my home.  Little by little we've tackled each obstacle and finally we were at the point of putting the door back in and no way was that hideous old door returning.

In terms of picking a new door, you may think the choices are endless, right?  Not in our case.