Project Diary #11 – Living Room Before & After

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I know. I know! It’s about time I checked in with progress. It has been slow moving given it’s been just about exactly one year since we closed on this studio space. And it’s still a work in progress, especially upstairs in the apartment area but the commercial office/studio space on the main floor has just a few finishing touches left and I can call it done! Today, I just couldn’t help but share the living room transformation! 

And this isn’t the true true reveal with amazing photography using my good camera but I have been wanting to get something posted so I figured I’d upload some photos of how it’s changing with the living room and how it looks compared to when I bought the place to how we’re enjoying it today. The workshop transformation, main bathroom updates and some holiday decorating coming in the following days. Stay tuned!

Okay, let’s get started!

I call this the living room. It’s where small gatherings, iTOVI scans, Aroma Freedom Technique sessions and one-on-one meetings are held. I’m including the before photos so you can get an idea of what has changed. Really, not too much in the way of DIY – paint and some new furnishings and decor make a huge difference. I worked in a few furniture and decorative items left by previous owner with the new and thrifted purchases. I love the eclectic mix. 

Before this, this room was used as a waiting area for the law office by previous owner. Blue paint, library shelves and sparse on the furniture. 

before:

library before

now:

livingroom after

There was a reception type desk in this area as well. 

Before

blue room

After: (ahhh! and a sneak peek of the workshop!)

livingroom decor

Thrifted basket wall: basket wall blue walldecor livingroom

Before: DIY craft studio // workshop - before room makeover @diyshowoff

After: 

helloredreno livingroom

Really all that this room needed was updated paint and still could use a whole lotta caulk. Someday I’ll refinish the original pine floors and perhaps swap out the ceiling light fixture and see about getting the fireplace working. But the power of paint is one of my favorite DIY tools to a beautiful transformation. 

I love the the built-in bookcases for displaying products and organizing supplies in baskets.

built in bookcase builtin bookshelves studio livingroom

And the fireplace! Isn’t it gorgeous? Painting above the fireplace was the previous owners. I’ve incorporated a few of the things left behind. I love it! 

fireplacestudio livingroom

So, what do you think? Isn’t it cute? So cozy and comfy. C’mon over and we’ll catch up over a glass of wine! I could spend so much time curled up on that couch! 

Next up:

The workshop transformation. It’s my favorite! 

The building has so much historical charm. It’s about one block from our town’s Main Street. The bus stop is literally steps away. There’s a Bed & Breakfast across the street and an antique shop nearby. There are breweries, the YMCA, shops, restaurants, salons, florists, candy/coffee shop, holiday parades and festivals within walking distance. So fun! If renovation from blah to ahhhhh is your thing, stay tuned!

So subscribe and be reminded of updates as the renovations progress! I’ll share before and after photos, projects underway and updates, plans and design boards, sources and links as they relate as well as fun events going on in and around the downtown area. I’ll be using a specific hashtag on social media to keep things all neat and tidy and organized.

#helloredreno

I welcome your thoughts and ideas! And as always, thanks for your encouragement and support and for sharing in my joy and vision! Watch for #helloredreno!

Project Diary Entry #1 – Hello Red Reno!

Project Diary Entry #2 – Efficiency Apartment

Project Diary Entry #3 Color Passive Paint

Project Diary Entry #4 – Full Bathroom Demo Day

Project Diary Entry #5 – Sealing A Wood Plank / Shiplap Wall

Project Diary Entry #6: Bathroom Flooring

Project Diary Entry #7: Sealing Brick

Project Diary #8: Hardwood Floors

Project Diary #9: Carpeted Stairs

Project Diary #10 Vinyl Floor Tiles

Project Diary #11 – Living Room Before & After

 

Mancave – basement Flooring (Part 2)

Last week I shared the beginnings of a basement makeover with major clean up, a wall removed, fresh new paint (Mancave in Progress – Part 1) and today…you guys! I’m so excited to show you the floor! Hurray! One step closer to completion!

basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard

My contacts from A&S Carpet are Jeff and Frank and Frank stopped by to check out the area and do some measurements and since it’s a basement space, gave us some product recommendations. 

basement // mancave makeover

After looking at TONS of samples, we fell in love with a hardwood called Maverick from Shaw Floors. We love the color, the rustic design, how it looked next to the slate tile on the stairs, the durability and the distressing. It would have been love at first sight for you too. Not too dark, not too light. Lots of character! 

basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard

Pretty detail!!!basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard

And the professional hardwood floor team A&S sent over had it installed in just a few short hours! There’s something about watching professionals … they make it look so easy. basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard

Tim has installed over a million square feet of flooring! basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard

Maverick is a 7″ ply-core engineered Hickory with a pretty texture unlike any other product in the Shaw Hardwood Collection. It showcases a timeworn rustic distressed look with circular saw marks randomly peppered throughout the design. It gives the appearance of reclaimed old flooring in a wider width. 

basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard Shaw Maverick Leather basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard Shaw Maverick Leather basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard Shaw Maverick Leather basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard Shaw Maverick Leather

See that random light piece in the middle?basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard Shaw Maverick Leather

I loved that light piece and anticipated random light pieces throughout the design. However, when that didn’t seem to be the case, I requested it be removed. Thankfully the glue hadn’t completely dried and the guys got it swapped out. basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard Shaw Maverick Leather basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard Shaw Maverick Leather basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard Shaw Maverick Leather basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard Shaw Maverick Leather basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard Shaw Maverick Leather basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard Shaw Maverick Leather basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard Shaw Maverick Leather

We went with the color “leather”.

basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard Shaw Maverick Leather basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard Shaw Maverick Leather

Isn’t it pretty? Isn’t the distressing awesome?

basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard Shaw Maverick Leather basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard Shaw Maverick Leather basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard Shaw Maverick Leather basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard Shaw Maverick Leather basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard Shaw Maverick Leather

Since this will be a space for entertaining and play, it’s a great durable option!  What do you think? 

Do you have a finished basement? Is it a mancave type space? What type of flooring did you choose?

 

Mancave in Progress (Part 1)

We have a mancave makeover in progress! Hurray!!! 

basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard

Well, to be precise…we’ve never had a mancave in our home so we’re doing a basement makeover and creating a mancave for Russ. When it comes to our home, my husband has pretty much given me free reign to DIY, design and decorate as I please. We call it my life sized doll house. As you know, it’s kind of my thing, what I love to do and it’s still a work in progress with lots to be done but last summer, we started cleaning out the basement and it was time to start planning a space just for him. 500+ square feet all dedicated to him, his hobbies and his likes. He’s a home brewer so the mancave will include a bar for entertaining and because he enjoys football season, a living room area with enormous television…I’d call that a mancave, right?

I want him to make the decisions on this space but I appreciate that he includes me in his decision making and asks my opinion. See my Pinterest Board of Mancave Inspiration here

 

Our basement is two parts. 1 part old 1927 below the original house with ceilings so low he has to duck his head and 1 part newer addition – we’re guessing sometime in the early 1990s. The overflowing storage of junk had reached our puke point. We had a yard sale last summer. He tore down a wall that separated the space. Here are some before photos when the wall was removed and the junk was heading out the door…

basement // mancave makeover basement // mancave makeover basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard Shaw Maverick Leather

We’ve been here going on 12 years and never really did anything with the space other than he ripped up some nasty carpet when we moved in and we did have a wood burner for a while before insulating our home and new windows. But mostly, it just sat collecting junk, dirt and dust. It often also served as a workshop for DIY projects upstairs so lots of sawdust too! 

basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard

The duct work that sits head-hitting low for his 6’3″ height will be encased in cabinetry. More details on why coming up later!

basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboardbasement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard

Once we got it empty, he patched, primed and painted walls.

basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard

He really liked the sage green walls we used to have in our kitchen and I really like gray so we decided on a gray-green. He used Benjamin Moore Aura paint color matched  – Sherwin Williams Comfort Gray.

basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard

Then we started the search for flooring. We had our local Shaw Floors dealer stop by to determine which floor covering suited our space best. Frank from our local Shaw dealer, A&S Carpet recommended engineered hardwood for our basement. 

basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard basement // mancave makeover #shawstyleboard

Stay tuned for Part 2 for what we chose and installation!