Yesterday I spent 2 hours looking at all our pictures from 2009-present. What I was supposed to be doing is writing up a blog post. So what was supposed to be 1 hour spent on a blog post turned out to be 3 hours. lol. It is just so fun to look back on all we did and I am glad to say that we will be having a bit more DIY home remodel pics from here on out (I do like to share some of the personal stuff too, as I think it helps you all to get to know us a little better).
Immediately after Christmas we got straight out of vacation mode and into get-er-done mode.
Kyle created a threshold for the French doors:
He simply bought 2 of those already made wood threshold that you can get at home depot and screwed them in side-by-side. It’s all shiny because he put some stain on it and then some polyurethane (because we like the shiny dark wood look). Right now it’s drying.
And here’s a picture of the French doors all hooked up and open.
I would now like to give you the before pic of this angle:
As you can see the French doors open it up a lot. We have also been smoothing out the walls with joint compound, so that unfinished drywall is now “finished”. And there’s a door to close off the master bedroom from the stairway which wasn’t there before.
Here’s a side-by-side pic of the before and after-but-not-done-yet, so it’s easy to see the difference so far:
Now here’s Kyle smoothing out the finishing touches on the walls. We were really adamant about getting it all perfect, but over time, we realized we really just needed to get it done, and flaws meant character. hehe.
I promise I did some work too, but someone had to take some pics (otherwise we’d have nothing to show you all!).
About a week later, we started painting. We (I) decided to go with a color called Bonjour Beige from Glidden. Now, I know what you all are thinking: “Beige is so boring!” But for some reason I’ve always wanted to have a beige room and having always lived in houses with white walls, beige was actually a stretch for me. Also, I find this color soothing and cheerful all at the same time, which is what I would want to wake up to. Plus it had a French word and I’m a fan of the French language so it just worked out perfectly for me. Luckily Kyle has no strong opinions about color, so I got to do the color picking (with Kyle’s approval, of course).
Here’s Kyle painting the wall:
And Kyle finally got his haircut! 
All done with that wall.
Kyle is tall enough to reach the top of the wall with his roller, whereas I either had to get on a ladder or something, or I would sometimes just paint the lower half of the wall and have Kyle paint the top.
Here’s a side-by-side picture of this before and after-but-not done-yet:
It’s not the exact same angle, but I think you get the idea.
If you want to see some more before pics, you can visit our post on the Ugly Master Bedroom Tour.
Well, that’s it for today. Tomorrow is Sea World day so we’ll show you some awesome sea animal pics of that oceanly awesomeness. Kyle’s parents got us an annual membership to Sea World for Christmas, so we tried to get our use out of them. If you’ve never been to a Sea World, I guess this will be your chance to go vicariously through us.
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Wow, the french doors were a HUGE improvement!
And lately I’m leaning towards bringing out living room back to beige, and having pops of colour through pillows and furniture, but I don’t know yet!
Ashley recently posted..Old House Mystery
Hi Ashley, Whatever you do with color should be the easiest thing for you to change. Keep the things that are difficult or expensive to change neutral. That way if you ever want to change your color pallet, you don’t have to do a whole room makeover, and it won’t cost you a fortune
Looks like you’re gonna paint the ceiling beige, too, huh?
Reuben recently posted..Homemade Wood Blocks
Hi Reuben, yes actually we are painting the ceiling beige, and we’re going to put up crown moulding, so even if we weren’t going to paint the ceiling it would be okay if we messed up the corners
~Lisha
What an awesome improvement! I’ve always wanted french doors. Maybe in the next house.
Shannon @ Bungalow960 recently posted..a bungalow tour: the living room
HI Shannon, French doors are really awesome to have. It gives the room a whole new feel. They are difficult to install though, unlike a single door. They are also typically expensive, but we got these on Craigslist for just $100!!! ~Lisha
Nice and bright! A must for California.
Linda @ MyCraftyHomeLife recently posted..Etsy Elephants
Thanks for stopping by, Linda
Definitely love the French doors! They had so much light!
Hi Ashley, I agree, it makes the room so much brighter
~Lisha
I love the french doors! Wish we had them in our house. And for what it’s worth, I like beige paint!
Jennifer recently posted..Guest Blog: Making Food Fun for Toddlers
Hi Jennifer, thanks for the positive encouragement about beige paint.
~Lisha
Love the French doors and all that light. Being 5’2″ I totally get not getting the high up places. Great work so far!
Brittany {Tip Top Nest} recently posted..It All Started with the Kitchen
Thanks for stopping by Brittany. I am going to have to check out your blog today
~Lisha
I like the french doors lots. You both did a great job with that house.
Alysa recently posted..Albertson’s Wish Big Win Big or Win Small?
Hello my Sister! I’m glad you came by to see our blog. Thanks on the compliment. Yes, it was a lot of work, but I must say I am proud
I don’t know why, but I like that pic of Kyle painting (I know you’re thinking “Which one? There are like 857 of them on this post!”)
The one directly above “And kyle finally got his haircut!”
Christina @ The Fantastic Voyage recently posted..Toddler Poop And The Joys Of Parenting
lol, Christina. You crack me up. It’s always a joy to read your comments
~Lisha
Wowza! Lookin’ goooood! And those french doors are beautiful.
Thanks Meagan!