It didn’t take long after Hunter and I got engaged in February that I started getting these grand ideas of repainting the house, decorating, buying new furniture — the whole nine yards. It also didn’t take long for me to realize how expensive redecorating projects are and how much work it actually takes to do all that. Hunter was quick to point it out. We decided to do a little at a time, starting with painting since everything would have to be cleared out until the painting was complete. We decided to start with our bedroom, painting walls, moldings and baseboards on our own, but after way too many coats of paint, crooked lines, splatters and rough edges, we’ve moved that to the back of the list to re-do our re-do. Moving on to the next phase, we picked colors for the living room, dining space and kitchen, which all connect plus new paint for all the trim and huge vaulted ceilings. The last thing I wanted to do was spend a week making sure every crack and corner of this big project was covered, so we did the smart thing and hired a professional. In no time at all, we had fresh paint! The dull brown ceiling and boring beige walls were a thing of the past. We’re still working our way through the house, room by room, but thanks to a spiffy paint job and lots of kitchen-related wedding gifts, I think we are ready to check this room off our list. Of course, I love anything black and white, so I wanted to incorporate those colors, but I also wanted to make sure there was lots of energy in the wall color (in hopes I might be inspired to spend time in there cooking!).
Before: (sort-of, this was after the first coat of paint on the ceilings)
The picture is a little fuzzy, but you can see the basics are there. It just needed a little brightening up.
After:
Bright white ceilings, red walls and plenty of black and white accents. Fun, fun, fun! It’s some of my stuff, some of his stuff and some post-wedding stuff. I love our little bar area, even though Hunter hates my penguin and we only have one bottle in the cool dispenser. I got the New York street canvas from Pottery Barn a few years ago. We toasted with the champagne glasses at our wedding and purchased most of the other bottles on the in St. Lucia. The bar itself came from my old apartment.
A few of the little things that I love: this kitchen timer and grocery list pad from Anthropologie. So fun to use! Stay tuned for the rest of the rooms. They’re not all finished, but I’m hoping they will be one day.