The last room to reveal in our home renovation just so happens to be my favorite--the master bedroom!  Though I truly love every single room, I think I love this one most because it has become my little nest!  It is where I read, where I rest, and where I feel most comfortable.  I am excited to share its transformation with you, and hope that you love it too!  Here is a reminder of what this room looked like when we purchased the home.  

With 6 large windows and an exterior door, we wondered what this room was used for.  A friend of ours who researches old homes called this room a solarium (sun room), which was often used for gatherings and quite possibly a bedroom.  After talking with the granddaughter of the original owners of the home, she informed us that this was, in fact, her grandparents' bedroom!  She said that it also doubled as a sitting room, and guests would gather around the fireplace to chat after dinner.

In order to make this room our master bedroom, we knew we wanted to add a master bath and move a few doorways around.  Before we could get started, we had the daunting task of removing all of the bead board from the walls, once again!

We decided to close up the middle window to give us a place for our bed, as well as tear out and cover up the fireplace.  This fireplace was no longer in working order and had sustained some damage to the brick over time, so we decided that a solid wall might be of more use.  We had it insulated and sheet-rocked, and we were ready to roll!  The original floors turned out beautifully once refinished.

One night, two sweet friends came over to help me paint the walls so we could be one step closer to moving in!  You might recognize the blonde on the right, that's Katelyn! :)  When deciding on a paint color, I knew I wanted something cozy.  With so many windows and white trim, I knew a dark color would be the way to go.  I saw this bedroom (middle picture) on Pinterest and fell in love with the brown walls!  I ended up going with Less Brown SW6040 by Sherwin Williams , and I love how it turned out!

Now, for the finished room!  You enter our bedroom from the end of the hallway, right next to the guest bathroom.

Phillip built our bed, which turned out perfect for the space!  I was so glad that we decided to get rid of the middle window.  It is so fun to dream something up, and watch it come to life.  It wasn't so simple when I went on the search for our other bedroom furniture.  I just couldn't find anything I liked in the surrounding furniture stores--it all seemed so bulky and traditional.  I wanted a softer look, that would coordinate but not "match" the bed.  I finally decided to take a chance and order something online!  I was nervous, but I am so happy with my choice!  The night stands, dresser and chest of drawers came from Pier 1. 

I have also had the hardest time finding curtains that I liked, and could actually afford!  I had no idea that Ikea had a select few curtains available in 118".  They turned out to be beautiful--and I love how the white just brightens up the space!

One of my favorite things in our bedroom are my monogrammed pillow cases!  Our sweet Ms. Carolyn embroidered them by hand.  What a treasure!  It makes me happy every time I crawl into bed, and every time I make it up.  I just love the personal touch it adds to the room!

This view shows you how we moved the doorways around to make the master bath add-on make sense.

It worked out great that we ended up sheet-rocking over the fireplace.  Now we have a solid wall that provides enough space for our dresser.

Our most recent addition to the bedroom has been a sweet little crib for Lila!  Throughout our journey in foster care, one thing that we have realized is how uncertain things can be.  We decided to just plan on Lila being in our room for a little while, while we get used to this baby thing!  We had plenty of room to put the crib over by the windows.

It has been a sweet thing to look over and be reminded that she will be here so soon.  

As we anxiously await her arrival, we have prepared as much as possible!  I can't wait to see her sweet face, and bring her to this house we've made a home.  I hope she grows to love it as much as we do.

 I hope you have enjoyed the last Beech Street Bungalow Room Reveal!  Don't worry, there are still more projects to be finished and decorating to do--so this definitely won't be the last Beech Street blog.  I have a long list of things that I still want to share with you!  In the mean time, feel free to go back and relive our progress!

​Beech Street Bungalow: Before
Beech Street Bungalow: The Fireplace
Beech Street Bungalow: The Walls
Beech Street Bungalow: The Floors
Beech Street Bungalow: The Kitchen
Beech Street Bungalow: The Master Bath
Beech Street Bungalow: The Living and Dining Room
Beech Street Bungalow: Guest Bath
Beech Street Bungalow: The Laundry Room
Beech Street Bungalow: The Exterior
Beech Street Bungalow: Porch Planters
​Beech Street Bungalow: The Kid's Rooms

It's been quite some time since I've given an update on our home renovation--but hopefully it will be worth the wait!  With so much happening in our lives over the past few months, (IMPACT training, the holidays, home inspections, etc.) we have just now been able to tie up a few loose ends in our two extra bedrooms!  Although they aren't 100% complete, I just couldn't wait any longer to share them with you!  If you read the blog, Called to Care, you'll remember that a large factor in our home search involved finding a house that had three bedrooms. I was set on having at least three bedrooms because this would be necessary in foster care if you have children of the opposite sex in your home.  Here is a glimpse into what went through my mind while planning the kid's rooms in our home:

After we began putting our home back together, I started dreaming up what the "girl room" and "boy room" should look like.  I loved the idea of creating a comfortable and safe space that any child might love.  Lots of thought and planning has gone into these two special rooms in our home, and my heart is anxiously awaiting the day when these rooms will be finished and full.

Let's take a minute to look back at the before pictures of the middle bedroom, what became the "girl room".  We removed the pocket doors separating the bedrooms, and put them between the kitchen and laundry room.

I love how the light from the windows fill up this room!  We turned this doorway into a closet for this room, and moved the bedroom door to the right wall, opening to the hallway.

Once the sheetrock was up, I started dreaming of what this room would be!  I had a floral comforter that I loved, and knew I wanted to use in this room.  I pulled a light peachy color from it for the walls, Nearly Peach by Sherwin Williams.  I knew the wall color needed to be soft and welcoming to complement the natural light, and it turned out to be perfect.

My mom gave us my childhood bed to use in this room.  It is a special piece that fit seamlessly into the design.

An antique armoire provides extra closet space, since we were able to fit two beds into this room!

I desperately tried to scrub the yellow brick on this fireplace, hoping it would clean up nicely.  I tried every trick in the book, but nothing brightened it up.  I finally decided just to paint the fireplace white to give it a fresh new look.  I carefully taped off and lightly spray-painted the fireplace cover with a bronzy-gold finish.  We stripped down the original mantels to bring them back to life, leaving them their natural color.

This room seems so peaceful, yet fun, all at the same time!  I have baskets of books and stuffed animals in the room, just waiting to be loved!

Here is a look at the before pictures of the front bedroom, what we call the "boy room".  We turned the bathroom into a walk-in closet, which has been a wonderful place for extra storage.  The most fun part of this room is the bead-board accent over the fireplace that we decided to keep!  Since the whole house was filled with bead-board just like this, we thought it would be fun to keep it visible in one special place!

And here is the finished room!  We used the bead-board accent wall as inspiration for our wall and fireplace colors.  The wall color is Rushing River by Sherwin Williams, and the fireplace is Sea Serpent by Sherwin Williams--which is also our exterior color!  We stripped down this original mantel too, trying to avoid making the room look too busy.

Some very sweet friends of ours passed down this set of bunk beds to us.  They fit perfectly on this wall, allowing the room to still feel spacious. 

I tried to mix in a few patterns without getting too crazy, since there is already so much going on in this room.

Here is one more look at the fireplace.  It is a fun reminder of what all we went through to be where we are today!

I set up a desk area on one wall, hanging a few of my Papa's old paddles for decoration.

With a few books and toys, the room is set.  

Now that the "kid's rooms" are finished, we are ready to welcome children into our home!  This is such an exciting time that we feel like we have waited so long for, and I can't believe it is finally here!  We already have our first placement, and I can't wait to tell you all about it.  But that's another blog for another day!  

I hope you have enjoyed this update, and I hope you'll keep in touch!  I love hearing your thoughts about our progress while sharing this journey with you.

Check out more Beech Street Bungalow renovation stories here!

In the last Beech Street Bungalow blog, The Exterior, I mentioned that we were planning to build planters for our front porch!  I knew it would be a fun project, and that it would add a little something special to our porch area.  What we didn't realize was how much work we were in for!

Here is a look at what we were dealing with...

If you look at the pictures above, you will notice a patch of brick that obviously looks filled in.  We decided to remove this brick (since it was not original) and thought we could build planters to fill in the space where the brick was removed.

After the brick was removed, we were faced with the challenge of building planters that fit the space, and that were also functional.  I knew without a doubt that Phillip could build beautiful planters that flowed with the rest of the house--it was the inside of the planters that had us stumped!  We wanted these planters to last, so we wanted to make sure that the planters had a way to drain and that inside of the planters were protected from the damp conditions.

I searched for what seemed like hours trying to find a tutorial online.  What I knew was that the water needed to be able to drain, and that the wet soil didn't need to be in direct contact with the wood...I just couldn't find anyone to tell me how to make it happen!

We started by building the outside of the planters to fit the openings.  We purposefully built them wide enough to hang over the edge of the porch to provide a space for them to drain.  We also built them bottomless--our design will keep us from having to fill the entire box with soil.  (Which will save us money and still look great! :) 

​This tutorial will only work for planters that are located on the edge of a porch, so that there is a place for them to drain.  Like I said before, this will work for window boxes too since they can drain right into your flower beds.

The first step in creating this "V" shape is to cut braces that will hold a piece of plywood in place.  We measured and cut the braces for the smaller side of the "V" at a 45 degree angle.

The second step was to cut the braces for the longer side of the "V".

Next, we measured and cut pieces of plywood to attach to the braces and give us a platform that would become the bottom of the planter.  Once we had one side of the "V" in place, it was time to cover it and protect the wood from water damage.

Phillip chose to use tar paper (the material used in roofing) to line the planters.  He felt like it was our most durable and waterproof option. We carefully lined the planters using nails and a small staple gun.  I brought the paper up high enough on the sides to protect the planter, but low enough that it wouldn't be noticed once it was filled with plants.

We added the second piece of plywood and covered it too.

Once the "V" was in place, there was a two inch gap where the water could drain.  Because of this gap, we used screen to line the bottom.  We knew that the screen wouldn't be enough to keep the soil from washing out, but it would create a draining  bottom for the planter.  

.e decided to use a material called Weed-X to line the planters, keeping the soil in when watered!  This material should do the trick.  Water passes through, but soil won't!  We gently laid this material along the inside of the planter, stapling it  to secure it to the sides. 
*You may be wondering why we couldn't skip the screen step, and the answer is because of the weight of the soil and plants.  We needed a sturdy, yet drainable, bottom for the planter.

Now we are ready for the fun part!  It is still hot (really hot) here in South Georgia, so we are going to wait a little while before we plant.  Keep an eye out though, I'll have a little help from my friends choosing the perfect plants to complement our porch!  If you have any ideas yourself (preferably hard to kill plants :), leave a comment below!  I'll take all the help I can get.

I hope this tutorial was helpful for those who are looking to do a similar project.  It is always fun for me to share tips we have picked up along the way!

Check out more Beech Street Bungalow renovation stories here!

​If you are not feeling ready to take on large container gardening, check out our selection of smaller pots in the store. Perfect for smaller gardening projects on your porch or patio!

I am so excited to share the progress on the exterior of our home with you!  I have been waiting on this day for a very long time.  After working tirelessly on this home for almost 2 1/2 years, I now smile when I drive up to it.  Although remodeling the inside of our home first was necessary, I often times wished we could switch to the outside for a while to make it look a little better! Even though I knew that so much progress was happening on the inside, it seemed as if the exterior was holding me back from enjoying the transformation.  I am now blown away, I couldn't have imagined our house turning out this pretty.

When we purchased this home, what use to be a screened in porch was closed in with glass to create an extra room.  We knew without a doubt that we wanted to open this space back up.  We thought that a porch this large would not only improve the curb appeal, but provide us with a fun place to entertain!

We loved the open feel our house now had.  One good thing about the porch being covered up all those years was that the floor and ceiling were in wonderful condition!  We did have to replace a few sections of flooring where the porch had always been open, as well as a few places in the ceiling due to water damage. One thing is for sure - restoring an old house is never easy!  The porch ceiling was made of of v-groove.  We looked all over for v-groove to purchase, but couldn't find it anywhere.  I had plenty of bead board left over from our demo days, but no v-groove.  Phillip decided that we would have to just make it ourselves. 

Phillip has plenty of experience making trim to match existing (really old) trim at work.  He said it would be no problem, so he purchased boards and a router blade that would cut a v the size we needed.  We began making v-groove, and boy was that a job.  We had to run each board through the router three times to give the boards the "v-grooves".  Then we had to run each board through the table saw twice.  We had to plane each board down to make it the correct thickness.  By the time we finished making all of the v-groove, I wondered how he did this for a living!  We spent hours recreating boards that would take us 30 minutes to nail into place.  I now understood the time and craftsmanship that goes into historical restorations.     

When we took out the exterior wall on the carport side of the house, we realized that two columns had been removed at some point.  We knew we would need to rebuild these columns, so we started trying to locate matching brick.  I'm not sure if you remember the fireplace blog, but we had a ton of old brick left over from that project.  However, that wouldn't even be enough brick to get started!  If you look at the pictures above, you will notice a patch of brick that obviously looks filled in.  We decided to remove this brick (since it was not original) and thought we could build planters to fill in the space where the brick was removed!

We now had enough brick, so we called a brick mason to come by and rebuild the bases to the columns so that we could keep moving on!  Once the bases were in place, Phillip got to work on building the new columns.  He set up shop right in our front yard!  He has been a trooper throughout this whole process. I bet we have loaded/unloaded his tool trailer a million times in the past two years!  

When we purchased the home, it had aluminum siding on the exterior.  Phillip quickly realized that wood siding was underneath.  He desperately wanted to take all of the aluminum siding off to expose the wood siding, but due to our budget and lack of free time, I resisted.  We were told by multiple painters that we could paint the aluminum siding, it just needed to be cleaned really well first.  We knew that taking the chance of exposing the wood siding could become timely and very expensive if we found problems.  When we uncovered the porch area, however, the wood siding was exposed and it was in beautiful shape!  We decided to expose all of the wood siding just under the porch area so that it would match. (We didn't have enough aluminum siding to cover this area!)

Remember when we turned an existing bathroom (that connected the front bedroom to the enclosed porch) into a closet for the front bedroom?  Well once that wall was framed, Phillip made wood siding to patch this area.

Now that we were starting to wind up the repairs on the exterior of our home, I could start thinking about paint!  For years I have pinned beautiful homes that caught my eye.  As I looked back through those images, I noticed a pattern.  I had a thing for dark blue houses with white trim!  I ran the idea by Phillip and he thought it was promising.  Here are two of the pins that really influenced my decision.  I loved the way the dark blue and bright white looked with the brick and dark stained accents.  Click either picture to visit their original site!

I used a dark blue paint on one project in the house, and was curious how it might look.   I decided to paint a small section on the house to see how I felt about it.  I didn't want anything too blue, or anything with a green tint to it, so this decision was hard!  When the sun hits this particular color, it is a little lighter than I wanted, but I was also afraid to go much darker.  I decided to live with this patch of color for a while to feel it out.  After about a month, we decided to just go with it!
(During this month, we ended up having to put a new roof on our house.  We were not expecting this expense, but are very happy with the result!)

The painters finally arrived and worked their magic!  I tried to take pictures along the way to show the transformation.  

Phillip and I weren't crazy about the brick on our home, so we looked for ways to give it an update.  I didn't want to paint it, but knew something needed to be done.  I found pictures of brick that I liked, and started asking a lot of questions!  Turns out that our painter, one of Phillip's co-workers, said he could do the job!  I showed him the picture on the left, and the picture on the right shows the before and after of the brick on our house.  This technique was just what our out-dated brick needed!

Here is a picture of our house painted, and the brick finished!

Here is a before and after shot of the columns once they were replaced.

Here is a look at the before and after of the area we closed in for a closet.

These might be my favorite before and after pictures yet!

We are so happy with the way things turned out, and we are so happy to call this house our home.  Now I'm busy dreaming about the landscaping!

​Check out more Beech Street Bungalow renovation stories here!

I am excited to show you one of the happiest rooms in our home today: The Laundry Room!  

You may remember that before we moved into our home, I was adamant about about completing the four major rooms in the back of the house where we would be living:  the Master Bed Room, Master Bath, Kitchen and Laundry Room.  Having these four rooms completed would be key to my sanity during the rest of our renovation.  We have had the basics finished in the laundry room, but it has taken me a while to write about it because I was waiting on something very special to show you!  Since that special piece is now in place, I can share our progress in this room with you!

When we purchased our home, you entered the laundry room from the hallway.  In the past this room was used as a bedroom, not a laundry room.  (The laundry hook ups were located in the kitchen.)  It didn't take us long to see the potential in making this a large laundry area!  

We knew that when adding the master bath, we would need to extend it into what would become the laundry room.  We weren't interested in removing the window or moving the exterior door--so we didn't have much of a choice where the wall would go!  We also extended into the hallway to create our master closet -which removed our entrance into the laundry room.

Our kitchen is so small, we envisioned the laundry room being an extension of usable space to make it feel a little bigger!  You probably remember from the Kitchen blog that we moved the giant pocket doors to separate the kitchen from the laundry room.  The pocket doors would be located to my left in the picture below.

Here is a look at what it looked like once it was torn out, studded and sheet rocked!

Once we put a fresh coat of paint on the walls, you almost didn't notice the place! 

Now, here's a glimpse at our laundry room from the kitchen today.

My favorite thing about this room is how bright it is!  I just love the wall color--I think it is perfect for a laundry room!  It is Sea Salt by Sherwin Williams.   This small table traveled with me from Athens.  It is actually from the bakery where I worked--so it makes me happy when I look at it!  It is a fun place where kids can eat or craft, I've used it for both!

Don't you just love all of the natural light?  (P.s. here is the first peek at what I've been waiting on!) 

I was hesitant about how the deep window sill would look when finished, but it ended up creating the perfect space for my little plants!  This room is so bright, it is like a green house!  My succulents and begonias love it in here!

I know you probably thought I was crazy when I said that the Laundry room was one of the happiest rooms in my house, but do you see why now?!  It is so bright,  full of color and plants!  Not to mention it now holds a very special piece.

When we realized how big our laundry room would be, I knew I wanted a sink.  One day, while we were living with my Nana, I was down at the barn while Phillip was washing his truck.  My Papa's old cast iron sink caught my eye.  Now this sink, that looks so clean and shiny, did not look in the least bit like this on that particular day.  I stole the water hose and began to scrub!  I didn't get it this clean, but I definitely saw it's potential!  Nana thought it was a great idea to use Papa's sink in our home. It sat for years collecting dirt and leaves--now it has been restored to its original glory!

*Side Note:  Bar Keepers Friend worked wonders on the rust stains in this sink!  It did not, however, work on the stains in our cast iron tub.

My Papa had this sink hooked up at the barn to clean fish in.  My grandparents had a small pond behind their house where all of us grandchildren learned to fish.   I can remember standing at this sink learning how to scale a fish with a spoon.  Fishing was one of my Papa's great loves--and that is what I am reminded of when I look at this sink.  Sweet memories--these things are what makes a house a home.

Phillip outdid himself on this piece.  He used reclaimed rough cut pine to carefully craft this sink base.  He spent days preparing the lumber, designing the look, building and sealing it.  I couldn't have asked for anything more perfect.

It is amazing to watch him do what he does best.  This piece will forever be cherished and will now become a family heirloom! 

I hope you've enjoyed this little look into our life, and how talented my husband is!  I just love my laundry room so much, it makes doing laundry not so bad!

​Check out more Beech Street Bungalow renovation stories here!

Happy New Year from the Beech Street Bungalow!  This holiday season has been a busy one for us, but we are finally settling in nicely.  In case you didn't know, we now have a porch!  It is far from being completed, but it sure does make this house start to look like a home!  Look how pretty it was in the snow!

We managed to complete a majority of our list, with only a few minor projects left to accomplish.  Some of the things left to do are important, some are not.  Either way, I'm feeling good about our progress!  One of the most helpful things we were able to do was to finish the closet in the "boy" and "girl" room. ​

The closet in the girl room was a simple project.  The old closet in this room jutted out into the main hallway.  We knew we wanted to remove this obstruction to improve the flow. We were lucky enough to have a convenient place to add another closet --where a small hallway lead from the bedroom to the guest bathroom.  It is simple, but I think it turned out nice!  

​Nesting feels good, nesting feels right, especially in the start of a new year!  Though you may not be in a similar situation as me, maybe you should nest (or re-nest) a little!  Pick a closet or cabinet and go through it--donate or throw away what you don't need, refold or reorganize it!  There is just something refreshing about starting the new year in a clean and tidy home.  Home is such a special place to be, we should enjoy every minute of it.  I am finally getting to a place where I walk in and feel at home--not at a construction site.  It is my happy place.  I hope your home is your happy place, and if there is anything that you can do to make it happier, then do it!  I'll just be over here nesting away.

​Check out more Beech Street Bungalow renovation stories here!

Last Saturday was Ocilla's annual Sweet Potato Day!  Phillip and I decided to invite all of our family and friends over for lunch now that we live in the heart of downtown.  With that being said, you know that I had a pretty large to-do list for us to work on before the big day!  Our guest bathroom was on the top of our list.  I knew that our guests would be using this room, so it was the perfect excuse to finally finish everything up!  As a reminder, here is what the bathroom looked like when we purchased our home.

We knew we wanted a shower in this bathroom, as well as the original cast iron tub.  Though this seems like a simple wish list, we had a difficult time dreaming up the design of the bathroom.

You don't typically want the plumbing for a shower located on an exterior wall due to the difficulty of getting to, and fixing, problems in the future.  For this reason, along with the shape of our tub, our only option was to leave the tub where it sat and work around it!  This posed many challenges, but also made re-plumbing a breeze!  We decided to leave the toilet in the same location as well as the sink.  This was super convenient, considering the floor in this room is 8 inches of concrete!  

Now, I had to wrap my mind around creating a shower out of a floating tub.  I went to Pinterest to help me solve my dilemma.  I stumbled across the picture on the left.  I thought this was a wonderful way to create a shower and lower the ceiling without creating awkward space!  I could add a pantry on one side and have open shelving on the other.  

The picture on the right was my inspiration picture for the bathroom as a whole.   I loved everything about this bathroom and knew I wanted to incorporate some of the same elements in my own.

Once the walls were down, we realized that we had the option to add about a foot to the width of our bathroom by exposing brick and a cast iron ventilation pipe.  However, this decision was all or nothing!  The original wall covered these elements, and pushing the wall back would reveal them.  I was going for an industrial look in this bathroom...so we decided to go with it!  We framed up the walls around the tub and we were set! 

By pushing the wall back in the bathroom, we created a void in the floor.  Phillip filled in the gap with concrete and made his mark.

We added a light over the shower since we lowered the ceiling.  

We plumbed the shower next so we could hang the concrete board.

Once the concrete board was hung, I could begin the tiling process!  I decided to stick with the subway tile for this bathroom as well.  The good news was that tiling to a tub was MUCH easier than tiling a shower from scratch!

I knew I wanted a bold tile for this bathroom floor, like in my inspiration picture!  I visited our local tile stores and searched the internet over.  I wasn't able to choose a cement tile, which was what I really wanted.  This bathroom floor was already higher than the hallway and we didn't need to add another 3/4 inch by using a cement tile.  I did, however, find a similar look in a ceramic tile...finally!

Here is a glimpse of the bathroom once the walls and tile were in place!  We decided to go with the "shiplap" look in the bathroom to add to the industrial feel.  We painted everything bright white to keep it light and clean.  

Here is what my view from the kitchen island looks like now!

I absolutely love how this guest bathroom turned out!  I think I even love it more than my master bath!

The subway tile just fits right in with the industrial look I was going for.  

Phillip built a special frame for the mirror that would wrap around the brick chimney.  This worked perfectly to cover up the damaged area that you saw above.  I went with a more feminine choice for lighting, hoping it would tie in the (somewhat) floral patterned tile.

Phillip also custom-built this vanity straight from my dreams!  I looked at our local cabinet shop and online, and couldn't seem to find exactly what I wanted.  Phillip did a beautiful job!  The butcher block counter top and the dark hardware perfect the look.

By exposing the cast iron ventilation pipe, we created an awkward space between the wall and the toilet.  I took this opportunity to incorporate a few plant stands and live plants to add a little color!  

The pantry provides us with wonderful storage space and blends right in with the vanity.  On the right side of the shower, Phillip has created a cubby hole where we will add in a few floating shelves. (Eventually!)

Unfortunately, we did not have many original door knobs in the house.  We did, however, find these beautiful reproductions online.

So, now that you've seen the details, here is another look at the before...and after!

This bathroom was so much fun to dream up, and now it is so much fun to use.  I love how every little detail makes us smile.  This is a happy little room that I hope our guests enjoy using!

​Check out more Beech Street Bungalow renovation stories here!

If you have been joining me on this journey, then you know how long we've been at it!  My first blog about our home renovation, Beech Street Bungalow: Before, was posted in May of last year.  Now, well over a year later, I can show you the progress that we've made in my favorite room(s) in the whole house!  Here is a little refresher of what the living and dining room looked like when we purchased our home.

We knew we loved the coffered ceilings, but we couldn't wait to update them a bit!  We also looked forward to relocating the glass french doors from both sides of the fireplace to other areas in the house.  Other than those two tasks, the most noticeable change was that we made the fireplace become the focal point in both rooms.  If you have time, check out Beech Street Bungalow: The Fireplace for all of the details!  Here is a glimpse of the room once we removed the walls and brick from around the fireplace.

Once the sheet rock was hung and our floors were refinished, it started to look like a home!  (You can check out Beech Street Bungalow: The Walls and Beech Street Bungalow: The Floors if you haven't already!)

Now it was time to get to work.  We had to remove all of the old trim from the ceiling beams in order to patch the problem areas.  Once the beams were repaired, we were able to hang new crown molding, and boy was that a job.  But, if you think that is bad, try caulking and painting it all!  We chose to paint the ceiling a flat "ceiling white" and paint the beams and trim semi-gloss white.  Me and my neck seriously wanted to throw in the towel on this one.  Jobs that are over your head are almost unbearable--I don't know how painters do it every day!  Other than caulking and painting, I also had to sand the beams in some areas to smooth them out due to the multiple layers of paint applied over the years.  I'll have to say, as miserable as it was, I'd do it all over again for these results.

Since we were able to keep the bead board wall on the West end, we had to find a way to finish the corners where it met the sheet rock.  We decided to go with lattice strips to create a smooth corner.  Once they were caulked and painted, they made the transition seamless!

​I chose "Still Water" by Sherwin Williams for the walls.  I knew this was a risky move, but I wanted to take the chance! And I'm so glad I did.  This big room, full of light and white trim, needed a dark color to add a little drama!

Not only did we have to caulk and paint the ceiling, but also the windows, door trim, and baseboard!  Thankfully, my mom was there to help me!  She worked on sanding the windows and painting the baseboard while I caulked and painted the windows.  This job was too big for one person, and I am forever grateful for how helpful our family has been.

We were able to use the original light fixture in the dining room and we ordered a brass colored ceiling fan for the living room.  (Can you tell how impatient my husband was about hanging our TV?!)

We chose to go with a carrara style tile for the hearth.  We thought this clean surface would complement the beautiful white ceilings! After I finished all of my painting jobs, I started tiling!  We had to build up the hearth with concrete to give me a (somewhat) level surface to work with.

I just love the combination of the brick, the bright coffered ceiling, the natural light from the windows, the carrara style tile and the dramatic wall color.  It couldn't have turned out any more perfect!

Phillip trimmed out the hearth and we were done! 

 Since these pictures were taken, we have moved our dining room furniture in! It was so fun to unpack our boxes of china and linens and put them in their place.  We have since hosted multiple dinners with family and friends, as well as a game night! We love being able to use this space and enjoy all of our hard work.  Breeze even loves this room too!

I hope you have enjoyed stepping into our construction zone!  We can see the light, and we are so excited.  We can't wait to put all of the finishing touches on the house and enjoy every minute of being "at home".

​Check out more Beech Street Bungalow renovation stories here!

On the last Beech Street Bungalow update, I shared our progress in the kitchen.  Since then, we are excited to say that we have moved in!  This means we are living in a construction zone, but it is so nice to finally have our own little nest.  ​

We had quite a time drawing up our master bathroom, but I had no trouble at all dreaming  it up.  When you get down to the nitty gritty of planing out a solid floor plan, you realize that the space you thought was plenty of room for a toilet turns out to only be half of the space you need.  The area for the bathroom we were working with was limited in order to avoid relocating an exterior door.  The space was also made a bit tricky due to the location of a window, keeping the brick along the bottom left wall, and including a bathroom door (original re-located glass french doors to be exact) and closet door.  After hours upon hours of trying different layouts, we finally agreed on one we thought would work.  

Now, the fun part.  Remember all that dreaming I was doing before the drawing got in the way?  Back to that.  I loved the look of the subway tile with the dark grout.  I thought it was so classic, yet edgy!  I also loved the gold hardware and fixtures.  Phillip wouldn't let me use gold in the kitchen (he thought it was a bit trendy), so he compromised with the master bath.  Here were my pinterest inspirations for the look I was going for in our bathroom. 

You may not know this about me, but I'm pretty crafty.  When we talked about doing a tile shower, I was like, "Yeah, I can do that."  So confident, and so mistaken.  Luckily, my Dad has tiled a shower or two in the past, so he agreed to help me!  With a handy-dandy tile book, his past experience, and my determination - we tiled our shower.  Let me just tell you, it was miserable. 

It was about as fun as it looks.  I was so involved that I totally forgot to take pictures along the way.  With only being able to work on it two days out of the week, it took us almost two months to completely finish the shower.  Knowing what I know now, I would have chosen a larger tile and built a smaller shower.  Haha!  It is full of imperfections (as you can imagine), but honestly, I do love our shower.

Here's a look at the bathroom once it was sheetrocked, somewhat painted and tiled. 

The bathroom fixtures that I chose were Champagne Bronze by Delta.  This is similar to gold, but much softer, giving you the gold look.  The hardest thing to pick out for our bathroom was the lights!  I knew we would have can lights, but I really wanted sconces on either side of the mirror.  Trying to find a sconce that matched the finish of our fixtures was impossible!  Finally, I took a chance and just ordered the lights that I liked.  When they came in, I realized that they were in fact the wrong color.   Roxie suggested spray painting them rather than heading back to my search.  This made me nervous, considering how expensive lights are these days, but I finally decided to give it a shot.  The closest match in spray paint that I could find was a shade of Rust-Oleum Metallic.  I taped up the parts that didn't need to be painted and sprayed away!  Below you can see the difference in the Champagne Bronze and the original color of the light fixtures.

I thought that the lights turned out beautifully!  It still isn't an exact match, but it is much better than the original finish.  We chose to use the same cabinets and counter tops as in the kitchen, so those will look familiar to you.

Now, here is a look at our finished master bathroom!  Notice the glass french doors--one set was relocated here from the living room!

I love the paint color for this room, Artistic Taupe by Sherwin Williams.  Phillip wasn't sure about it at first, but he loves it now!  I think it is the perfect complement to the bright white trim, gold fixtures and hardwood floors.

Here's a closer look at the Champagne Bronze fixtures with our tile and quartz counters.

The hardware on the cabinets was our finishing touch to the master bath.

You probably don't remember, but we decided to push into the hallway in order to add a master closet.  This choice made the most sense because all we had to do for it to work was make the opening to the kitchen a bit smaller.  Phillip added custom built-ins to maximize our hanging and storage space.

There you have it.  Our master bath was a slow process but well worth the wait.  The guest bathroom will also have tile, but after this, my tiling days are over!  The master bath was a very educational experience for me, and though I joke about it, it is nice to gain a skill like tiling.  I am so thankful to be as far along as we are, but I cannot wait for it to be completely finished.  We are enjoying life in town, and Breeze sure does love our back yard.  

Last week made it an entire year that we have been working on our home.  After some reflection, I have realized that I have allowed the last year of my life to revolve around a house.  Though it seems (and to some extent is) honorable and good to work so hard towards building a home, I believe that I have allowed this renovation to steal my purpose and joy this past year.  Luckily, I have realized the effect it has had on me and have made a decision to now put people first.  The house can wait, loving people cannot.  Though it seems as if I have fallen short this past year at loving the people around me, I will strive to love them even better than before in the years to come.  It is a fine line finding a balance between the responsibilities and stressors of everyday life and living as Jesus calls us to.  I am thankful for His grace and all of the support Phillip and I have had throughout this journey.  We look forward to the day when our home is used as a tool to love others.  Until then, we will make time for the people around us - including each other.   

​Check out more Beech Street Bungalow renovation stories here!

In my last renovation update, Beech Street Bungalow: The Floors, I was able to show you pictures of our beautiful refinished floors!  After the floors were completely dry, we did our best to cover every inch of them with thick paper!  The last thing we wanted to do was scuff them up or drip paint all over them.

The next project on our list was to begin painting! Phillip informed me that as soon as the kitchen was painted, he could begin installing our cabinets and counter tops!  That was enough motivation for me, so off to Sherwin Williams I went!  I didn't have a problem choosing the color families of my paint, but narrowing it down to a specific color took me a while!  As I joked in an Instagram post, it's easy to pick paint colors when you already have favorite polish colors. And if you know me, you know I have tons of favorite polish colors! (Check out: Why Nails Were Meant to be Painted)

So, my first bite would be to focus on the kitchen!  After analyzing, over analyzing, and analyzing some more, I finally decided on Eider White for the walls!

​I had already visited the Cabinet Warehouse in Fitzgerald to shop for cabinets and counter tops.  Phillip worked with this company for about 7 years, so he is pretty knowledgeable in this area!  He was able to save us a good bit of money by installing them himself. We chose a simple grey cabinet and white quartz counter tops, so I thought that Eider White would work well with those components as well as the other colors in my home.

After painting the kitchen and butler's pantry, Phillip began installing the cabinets!  This was so much fun (for me, not him) and made the house start to resemble a home.  I don't know about you, but the kitchen is always one of my favorite rooms in a house!  I spend so much time in that space doing what I love to do--cooking, baking, (eating), talking, laughing; all with the people I love. 

Just like most of the world today, I love Pinterest!  I love how organized and inspiring this tool is.  Not only do I have a "Home Sweet Home" board, but I also have a secret board for each room in my house!  This was the perfect way for me to organize my thoughts and ideas all in one place.  Later on, I'll share a few tips with you on how to stay organized (and on budget) during a major renovation like this!  Here are three pictures (each linked to the original source) that gave me a little inspiration for this space:

I just loved everything about the last picture you see above.  I love the soft color scheme, the two-toned cabinets, the counter tops, and of course, the lights.  I too would have a large island with a sink so this kitchen was speaking my language. 

Now that you know what direction my wheels were turning, let me remind you what we were working with.

This was the opening we made for our large pocket doors to be relocated.

And with a fresh coat of paint, they were ready to be hung!

We taped off the layout of the island and cabinets to help us determine where plumbing would need to be run and outlets should be put.

Now for the fun stuff.  Here is what our kitchen looks like today:

Phillip was able to build a vent hood cover, and I just love it! It gives this crisp and clean kitchen a farmhouse feel.
*Side note: The Keurig and electric kettle on the counter came in handy while working in 30 degree weather!  Coffee and warm water for the caulk bucket made my workers happy. :)

I searched for the perfect pendants to hang over the island, and all of the ones I absolutely loved (like the ones in the Pinterest picture) were way out of my price range.  I finally found a similar style within my budget, and I am quite pleased with how they look! I also LOVE how the bead board wall turned out once it was painted.  I guess all of the scraping was worth it!  

After we installed the vent hood cover, we liked it so much that we decided to incorporate that look into the island as well.  I knew I didn't want to have a solid grey panel on the back of the island, but I wasn't quite sure what I did want.  Phillip suggested for us to try the matching wood running horizontal along the back and we both just loved it!  This was a great decision, because it not only will be more durable over time, but it also brings the look together (and cost us a little less)!

This view allows you a sneak peek at our beautiful butler's pantry!  I just love how much storage and practical space it provides.  The Cabinet Warehouse was wonderful to work with and they were able to order the exact glass doors that I wanted for this space! I am so happy with how it is looking and I can't wait to put on the finishing touches!  

You can also see how opening up that wall in the kitchen where we placed the pocket doors brings so much light into the room!  It also makes the kitchen feel much bigger when they are open.

Well there it is.  With the exception of cabinet hardware and appliances, we are ready to roll!  Our bedroom, bathroom and laundry room are coming along nicely as well.  We are having so much fun seeing our dreams come to life and we can't wait to relax in our new home.  More updates are coming your way, so be sure to keep up with The Southern Mercantile Facebook page and sign up for our email list on the home page for a weekly website update!

​​Check out more Beech Street Bungalow renovation stories here!