It’s been quite a year for changes in our home! Â I left my space as a vendor at Lucketts in January and that freed me up to work on my home more. Â We had been putting off a lot of projects because I was so busy with my retail space, so now I actually had time to work on things for me! Â I also ended up with a lot of home-related freelance projects for the kitchen and master suite, so those helped push me along. It’s awesome when your business and DIY to-do lists are one and the same!
As I was putting this post together, I can hardly believe how much we accomplished. Â Here are the main projects we worked on…
We kicked off the new year by installing new engineered hardwood floors in our family room and master bedroom.
We repaved our driveway, which isn’t very fun or decorative, but it took something that’s been an eyesore since we bought the house and made it look really nice. Â It also made it more functional.
We also put about $300 into landscaping the front yard…a little. Â We spruced it up, anyway.
I went through three dining room tables.
We gave our master bathroom a total makeover. Â We did a lot of the work ourselves, but had the tiling and electrical professionally done and we had some help removing the old tub and installing the new.
 I am happy every time I take a bath or shower in there.  It’s just beautiful.
We built and installed a custom range hood and butcher block counters in our kitchen…
…and my dad and I installed a marble tile back splash, which was a learning process for sure.
I added a new cow to my herd…”Gwendolyn” painted by Cindy Austin.
It’s not glamorous, but we painted the walls and floors and hung lights in the 1940’s part of the basement and that’s now become my main work area.  I really needed more room and this gave it to me without having to move or rent a space.
I’ve worked really hard on purging and organizing. Â I still have a lot to do, but it’s getting better all the time…
I finally got my dream bed  and did some projects in the master bedroom … like planking the ceiling, swapping the ceiling fan for a chandelier, making new curtains and doing a starched fabric feature wall.
I made over some dining chairs found on Craig’s List…
And those were just the bigger projects! Â We do still need to finish a lot of these projects, though. Â For the freelance projects, we did just enough to make them photo-ready, so we still need to finish some trim work, install thresholds, etc. Â Overall, though, I am absolutely thrilled with the projects we completed and most of them are things I envisioned the first day I set foot in our house. Â It’s been a lot of fun to work on them with my family and see them come to a reality.
For 2014, we already have some things planned. Â First of all, we want to finish the things that are unfinished from 2013 and the list looks a little something like this (hon, don’t freak out)…
- 3/4 height wainscoting in family room
- build out master closet
- work on the boy’s room (custom beds, storage, paint)
- refresh guest room
- family gallery wall & fresh paint in stairwell
- new slipcovers for family room wing chairs
- move my work space completely to the basement and give my current office to my husband
I guess that list isn’t too bad. Â I’d like to work on the upstairs bathroom, but it really needs an overhaul (new sink, new toilet, reglazed tub, new tile, new floor) and I just don’t know if we’re ready for another bathroom renovation. Â Maybe we’ll chip away at it. Â Maybe we’ll just leave it alone. Â I have lots of other smaller projects I’d like to complete as well, but I like the idea of working on whatever I’m excited about. Â The good news is that we are running out of big projects, but we still have a few more…
All that blood, sweat and tears has really paid off, because it all looks beautiful and really flows. We are going to work on our master bedroom this coming year. I’ll stay tuned for more inspiration.
I think you’ve did a fantastic job! To me your home is peaceful and being lovely too is icing on the cake. Talent is God given Miss M and you’ve been blessed. 🙂
JaG
I noticed you did butcher block in kitchen. That’s what my husband wants but I’m not sold. Do you like them? Is that something you did yourself? Thanks!
Yes, we finished them, routed the edges, cut them, etc. ourselves. I love them. I was really careful with them at first, but have found that they are very durable and forgiving. The finish we used, Waterlox Original was the key for certain. You can find the full tutorial on the HGTV.com articles page at the top of my blog under kitchen.
You have a beautiful home! Just wondering… when you are finished then what? Are you going to sell it and buy another fixer to keep your blog going? 🙂
Oh, I’ll never have a lack of things to do! I’ll probably start doing more stuff to sell at that point.
Wow! That’s a lot of work you and your husband did this year!
Here is to an equally successful but less busy New Year!
Merry Christmas, Marian!
You were one busy woman!!! I loved all your improvements. Stunning!!!
It still cracks me up that you named the cow Gwendolyn!
I’ve enjoyed watching the completion of all of your projects this year! You are such an inspiration!
Merry Christmas to you and all the best throughout the new year!
great recap!!! Happy New Year! Marcy
I am curious if your husband works outside the home? When mine was younger, he would do projects around the house on weekends, but now that he is 55, he does not feel like doing many projects. Does yours ever complain about too many projects while having to work a long work week as well? Maybe it is just my husband, or you ended up with one that loves to keep busy. 🙂
Everything looks so nice and he does a great job. He must be an angel. 🙂 Mine would be complaining about the “honey do list”.
Blessings
Your blog has been such an inspiration and delight to me this year! Merry Christmas!
I’ve just recently found your blog (a little tardy to the party) and I love seeing the before and after shots. I’m getting ready to gut my bathroom and you gave me tons of inspiration. Thanks!
Ultimate posts for the interior designs are provided for the online readers and everyone is different in designs. Really, your blogger posts have made me more creative in designing interiors. Thank you for suggestions in terms of your blog posts.
Thank you so much for sharing your home with us. I look forward to each and every one of your posts. Because of you, I learned to sew slipcovers and pillows, painted and stripped furniture, rediscovered a love of blue, scoured thrift stores for ironstone, redid a half bath, and was just generally encouraged to try new things around my home. You took the scary out of DIY 🙂
I can’t thank you enough for all your hard work in keeping us inspired! Merry Christmas to you and your beautiful family.
Pure Talent! Your home is absolutely beautiful, you are a true inspiration. Wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas! btw…pls keep us posted on upcoming trips to Raleigh, would LOVE to tag along with you at the flea market. I’d even consider sharing a few of my favorite spots 🙂
Wishing y’all a very happy Christmas and lovely 2014!
Marian,
What a great recap of all of your projects. I especially love the bathroom re-do and the new wood floors. Our budget went to replace our roof this year which isn’t too glam but it does make the house look so much nicer. Best wishes for a Happy 2014!
Tres chic! Joyeux Noël et bonne année !
Ditto to what Sharon had to say! Merry Christmas and a Happy and Healthy New to You and Yours.
Lots of sweat equity to enjoy! Have a beautiful Christmas!
Awesome! You are an inspiration!
So much fun to look over the past year and see projects accomplished. Merry Christmas. Oh, maybe in 2014 you could also update your blogroll. I love to use it to see what is out there and I think you probably have some new “friends” you could share with us. Just a thought…
What a brilliant thing to do at the end of the year–a list of accomplishments! It’s so important to take inventory, as it were, of all the things we got done and feel great about. It gives the “to do” list new meaning because you can see how the must-get-done has paid off. Brava! I hope you and your lovely family have a wonderful and blessed Christmas.
Alexis
Thanks so much for sharing your projects from 2013 with us. I feel so inspired and want to tackle some of my projects that I’ve been putting off. Your house looks fantastic. Great job!
Loved reading your list. It made me go back and look at my painted furniture projects folio to see what I’d accomplished over the year. The best part — you made me not afraid to try. Thanks and Happy New Year! Susan
Thank you for sharing all the wonderful projects you did this year. I so appreciate your creativity and inspiration. It made me ponder my own progress on my home throughout the year, and I am pretty happy as I look around my house. Thank you for sharing the “can do” spirit but also the “just do” mentality. I also want to thank you for sharing your personal growth throughout the year.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you and yours. May 2014 bea splendid gift to you.
We bought a short-sale home a year ago and although it is not yet seven years old, and my country French style, I’ve been slowly getting ideas on how to tweak it to reflect who we are. Thanks to you, several ideas came directly from your website, and I am looking forward to incorporating them into my home. Unfortunately, we recently learned that the front of the home had major structural damage that will take a big bite out of our nest egg. The good news is that many of your projects and your can-do attitude have helped me to realize that even though my bigger project of re-facing the fireplace will have to wait, I have plenty of milk paint projects and decorating/organizing projects that I can still work on, little by little. Thank you for your website….love it!
So great to see a recap of all your beautiful projects! Hard to believe so much accomplished in 1 year. We are definitely trying to de-clutter and hope to do a better job with that in 2014 so we can tackle some of our bigger projects. Looking forward to more inspiration in 2014. Have a very Merry Christmas and a joyful New Year!
So many things I want to copy.
As much as I love reading your posts every day, you do deserve a break. Don’t hesitate to take a day off.
Merry Christmas.
Absolutely gorgeous, each and every room! Fabulous job, Marian. Merry Christmas!
Your recap was wonderful…wish I could say the same about mine, but some years are definitely more productive than others. It’s sometimes nice to just rest.
I really love the direction you’ve taken things this year although I did like your Aunt’s DR table. I also cringe when you mention “refreshing” the guest room. That’s probably my favourite room in your house and while I love the inspiration picture the current bed is so charming and somehow suits you house. Your BR is gorgeous; have you ever considered covering the side lamps with the same fabric as the walls? That would look beautiful.
I think the problem is so many choices and so few rooms, or in my case so many bed and not enough bedrooms! 🙂 Whatever you do looks gorgeous. Have a wonderful Xmas!
Why would I freak out? I’ve got the easy job, following along by reading your blog. You are an inspiration and appreciate the hard work you do in showcasing your projects.
Merry Christmas; God’s blessings on the work of your hands and heart.
What beautiful projects! I’m hoping to be a bit more organized in my approach to my own projects this year! It’s fun to dream…and then get to work! Merry Christmas! Melissa
Hi Marian – I remember each one of those projects. They really added up. Great job. I really need to do more in my own home – I have been working too much outside, making other people’s homes prettier. It’s the cobbler’s kids story…they go shoeless I guess. I brought the subject up with my husband the other night at a Christmas party about our re-doing our upstairs bathrooms which really need it. I didn’t pick the right time to bring it up…so I will try to convince him after Christmas!
Beautiful work…as always!
Linda
MERRY CHRISTMAS, Marion! Have a Blessed day!
Plus you did other stuff for your home you’d try out and sell so you can double your list!!! It’s amazing to see it all written out for you skipped all the work it was!!! Sounds so simple: oh and we put in Butcherblock counters!!! Groan!!! The work you’ve put in your house and in your company has our heads swirling!!! It was fun to see the changes all in a post!
And Merry Christmas!!!!!
You got so much accomplished. All of your posts have inspired me so I bought myself a sewing machine. Going to try and make simple slips for my dining room chairs. Hope you will get back to Lucketts one of these days soon.