Project Numero Uno

Family Room BeforeFamily Room After


The day we closed on this house we started ripping out the oh-so-lovely 1980's mauve carpet. We then spent over a month trying to sand and refinish all the heart pine flooring in the house. It was cupped and we now realize had a few layers of milk paint and faux grain glaze on the outer borders. To say that is was a bitch to do would be stating it mildly. I don't have any work in progress pics because it would simply be a shot of a dust cloud. Oh the dust!! We ended up with about a three foot tall pile of it in the back yard. I don't recall exactly how many passes with the sander it took, WAY too many for sure. They're still not perfect and some rooms you can still see the dark center where the wood had oxidized over the years. Luckily, I didn't want perfect, I wanted to save some of the old rustic look.

We hand applied a low luster tung oil to finish. Six or seven layers of it. Remember Karate Kid - "wax on - wax off"? This is about the time we realized we were no spring chickens anymore. Finally we just gave up and decided to move in. That's the beauty of tung oil, you can always go back and add another coat. No scratching the finish off and I'll tell you the best part...it hides dirt extremely well.

After moving in we did el-zippo other than unpack for a while. Given that the housing market tanked within milliseconds after we signed our listing agreement it was a little scary paying two mortgages. All our major plans were put on hold for fear of becoming el-broko.

Just before Thanksgiving, while M's parents were visiting, the guys dug paths leading from the driveway to the house. Then had a load of gravel delivered and spread it all out BY HAND over the driveway and the paths. I can't recall the reason it needed to be done by hand, but eventually we could finally get to the house without wallowing in the muck. We considered it a temporary solution, but now that we've lived with it, I like it and think they'll stay. Fits the rustic feel of the farmhouse. They also ran some wiring and installed some light fixtures out on the porch. You don't realize how dark it gets out here in the boonies until you have no light and no moon. Makes the creepy noises coming from the woods even creepier. Also makes the trek from the car to the house a quick one before the auto headlights shut off!

We sold the house and closed just before Christmas. Immediately afterward I started stripping the cutesy country wallpaper borders from the kitchen and family room and painting ensued. That, along with some much needed window treatments, makes the place much more livable.