When you are an interior designer, your home is always a work in progress. I don’t think there is a single point in time in which I don’t have a list of projects that I want to take on in our home. And 2020, is no different. So here’s what I’m working on improving – aside from myself 😉
As I mentioned, I have my list, but my family has one too. And since money and time are not unlimited, we are prioritizing the list based on all of our needs.
A 5th BEDROOM
Our home already has 4 bedrooms – which technically would be enough. However, one of those bedrooms is attached to our master bedroom, to which we use as an office. While my step daughter is only with us on weekends and holidays, she still needs to have a proper room. We have made due by giving her at least a closed in space the last year, while our guests have slept out in the open space – but the time has come for us to build that extra room on the second floor.
Biggest Challenge: Keeping the historic look of the rest of the house in the new space and limiting scope creep (in drawing up the plans its already expanded to a walk in closet and guest space).
BASEMENT FAMILY ROOM
While we mainly use our basement for storage and letting the kids play hockey, we would also like to create a small “cave” which can be a cozy place for us to hang out. Currently, the only place with a TV is upstairs on the second floor. We don’t have a TV on our main floor and don’t intend to put one in the near future. This project is also a by-product of sorts to the second floor renovation as with a smaller entertainment area due to the additional room, we need a bigger family space.
Biggest Challenge: Working with the low ceiling, uneven floor and sporadically placed support posts.
MASTER BATH PAINT JOB
I’m in love with the brightness of our home, but I also love to add in some dark colours as well. However, this becomes a challenge when you have rooms that already flow together very nicely. I’ve also been totally inspired by some other blogger’s use of dark colours in the bathroom. This is an easy one – I’ve already picked out the colour and just need a weekend to do it. This is one of those “low-hanging fruit” projects that I should be able to knock off quite quickly – depending on the hockey schedule.
Biggest Challenge: Finding a free weekend.
FRONT PORCH
Last winter, which was our first in the house, we had big time issues with our front porch. The previous owners had painted the wood, which actually made the steps super slippery and hazardous. In addition, once spring rolled around, all that paint was totally chipping off. We got to work pressure washing it off, which wasn’t hard on the newer steps, but on the original porch, we found layers of paint that were next to impossible to remove. This spring, I would like to take a final crack at sanding it down, and if it still doesn’t work, we will simply change the boards. I would also like to extend the stairs all the way to the house to avoid having railing in front of the window – if we end up changing the boards.
Biggest Challenge: The pain of trying to strip the paint.
PAINT REFRESH ON THE BACK DECK
While this deck is in very good shape, the posts and railings on the original deck (not the new stairs we just built this year) need a good sanding and paint job. Sanding down the railings and balusters will be a long, annoying process, so we will likely change out the railing to match that of the ones we did everywhere else in the backyard.
Biggest Challenge: Getting motivated to do this project in the summer when we want to be relaxing by the pool.
WHAT WAS ON MY LIST BUT WILL HAVE TO WAIT
LAUNDRY ROOM UPDATE
This was meant to be my “one-room challenge” for the year. But, because I have a pretty decent laundry room that just needs a few small tweaks to brighten it up and make it a bit more functional, it probably isn’t worth squeezing into this year. What I had in mind: more sturdy laundry sink (although I would like to also create a place to shower the dog), along with a counter top and some storage over the washer and dryer. Some nicer light fixtures would also be amazing. I will try and at least share my inspiration for that renovation with you.
KITCHEN RENOVATION
I have a country kitchen in mind for our home, however, it will be a huge project. We won’t be able to get away with a less expensive upgrade like our last home due to floor to ceiling cabinets (which I would actually like to remove the uppers), the heated floors, and the narrow space. I would love to change the counters only (as the black shows everything). But if the plan is to change it eventually, switching the counters seems a bit wasteful.
And there you have it, the “TO DO LIST” for 2020. Stay tuned for all the updates throughout the year including inspiration and mood boards, design process and buying guides.
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