Find Simplicity

This should be my mantra living in a fixer-upper:

goodbye, 2010

another year has come and gone here at irvington bungalow.  2010 was perhaps our most eventful year yet, both housewise and otherwise.  the biggest change?  well, baby, of course.  but we did get to cross the following off of our house to-do list:

• refinish floors
• repair plaster walls
• install drywall where needed
• repair ceilings
• prime and paint bedrooms
• start bathroom/ new plumbing (only demo and purchasing so far)
• new HVAC/heater/AC (this was unplanned)

still on our to do list for 2011:

• finish bathroom/plumbing
• paint LR and DR
• hang pictures
• make outdoor table

the bathroom continues to be an ordeal.  i can't even tell you how disappointed i am with the place we ordered the tile from SIX months ago.  this better be the best tile EVER.

happy new year!!

update - "to do" list slowly dwindling



as usual, it's been awhile since i've last posted.  things have been moving swiftly here at irvington bungalow.  a lot of our neighbors have been seeing chad dragging in drywall, stripping furniture and noticing family members at the house helping out.  the joke is that we maybe we should have decided to have a baby sooner!!

no pics to post just yet as work is still finishing up (and it better be soon since we have four short weeks before our due date)!  however, just wanted to post a quick update.  blinds have been ordered, floors will hopefully be refinished soon, the drywall is up in all of the bedrooms and only one more room left to mud and sand.  soon we'll paint and finally (FINALLY) decorate.  the one setback is that the bathroom tile is due to arrive next week which is just too late in the pregnancy to start that project.  we're postponing till early winter.  but that is okay.  stay tuned - before & after pics of the rest of the house to post within the next couple of weeks!!

SLOWLY but surely

progress is, in fact, occurring but it is happening slowly.  wouldn't want to switch it up on all of you, now would we??

baby room -

we cleaned out the room, including the closet.  and i have been removing wall paper with the added bonus of a layer of paint!  so fun.

the closet progress.  i still need to remove the glue and then i'm officially finished removing paper in the baby room.  two more closets to go and i'm officially FINISHED!

we took an impromptu day trip to columbus, OH recently.  we went to an architectural salvage store and then out to eat in an area called german village.

we bought a coal shoot door (just like ours but in much better shape), a cold air return grate that matches our original grates we have in the house currently and a pair of sidelight windows.

close-up of the glass:

LOVE this glass!  we're going to use them (eventually) when we finish the attic space for the bedroom.

work still progresses on the duct work for the HVAC.  the tile still hasn't been ordered.  i have no idea why.  ugh.  till next time.

end of june progress report

so here we are.  the last day of june.  fifteen weeks left until our little bundle of joy is set to join us here at irvington bungalow.  and where are we in the progress of work on this old house?  read on, my friends.

bathroom - we received the tile sample for the floor. 

this is the design and basically the colors. we put white pieces of paper over the gray colored tile the tile guy suggested we use (you can see it in the top row of the whole sample).  the picture on the right shows a hex shaped tile but that is just to portray the actual shade of white that the tile will be (since the paper was a bright, stark white).

in the next couple of days we'll order the tile. so excited and a bit apprehensive as this guy has been taking FOREVER to get back to us about anything.  so annoying.  but i'm trying to be optimistic that once he has a down payment, things will move more smoothly???  maybe???  hopefully!!

air conditioner - did i mention our A/C unit went out a few weeks ago?  yes, it has been a fun challenge to add that huge project to our list completely unexpectedly.  after four quotes, we finally found a wonderful contractor who helped us out and temporarily fixed the problem for us because it turned so hot outside.  we're getting a whole new HVAC system installed within the next week.  so excited.  complete with duct work to the attic and basement which will one day be finished out for living space.

chad poured a new concrete slab where the new unit will go.  he is so proud (and so am i).  it looks great!

and that's about all that has happened since the last time i wrote.  things are moving forward, faster than they probably have up until this point.  from here on out it will be a whirlwind until the baby is due.  here is my wish list, not in the correct order:

walls painted in the whole house

floors refinished in the whole house

nursery finished (new drywall installed and paint)

guest bedroom finished (new drywall installed and paint)

wood blinds purchased and installed in the bedrooms

new HVAC

new bathroom

new plumbing

we can get this done in 15 weeks.  right???  hahahahaha...........

till next time.

weekly update

let's see, what's been happening at irvington bungalow?  well, first we just returned from a long holiday weekend in pensacola, FL. thank God we were able to have our annual visit before stupid BP ruined the beaches.  jerks.

shelby enjoyed herself swimming in the bay. and we enjoyed watching her!

and this is chad and i, post beachtime, outside our favorite beachside eatery - Peg Leg Pete's. 
that's Peg Leg, of course.

just in time for the weather to turn warm (hot) and for me to be 20 weeks pregos (and have a summer cold), our air conditioner broke.  unfortunately, we have to buy a new one.  great.  i've been promised that this will not compromise the bathroom project.  this fan is my favorite heat relief:

our garden decided to grow by leaps and bounds while we were gone:

finally, i did finish removing the wall of wallpaper and glue last week before we left for vacation:

top two pics: left - before removal, right - before glue removal

bottom two pics: left - after glue removal (thanks Mom for helping me!), right - don't tell my doctor that i was on a ladder in 85 degree weather, with no air, removing wall paper. 

still waiting on our bathroom floor tile sample.  can't wait to tell you NOT to use this tile place. 

till next time!

weekly update

this week seemed SOOO long. here's a summary:

work sucked this week, so i'm sure that had something to do with it.  plus i haven't been sleeping well with this pregnancy and it is making for long days and short nights.  no fun.

bathroom - we're getting a 9" x 9" sample of the layout of the floor tile.  i'm excited because we picked out two of the colors and the third is a color that was a custom color for another customer that he thinks will look good with our choices. crossing our fingers!

baby room - today i am finishing stripping the wall paper from the final wall in the house, in the baby room. why i thought i was finished with the wall paper is beyond me. 

our newest nephew was born this week!  cole matthew.  and he is the most adorable thing ever.

i finally finished organizing my scrabook and card making supplies.  last year i organized them on our gorilla shelves in the breakfast nook.  but in preparation of bottles and other feeding necessities for baby, i'm thinking more storage will be necessary in the kitchen.  so i "stole" an old built-in cabinet chad brought home and took it over for my personal use.  it is now my craft storage in the basement:

i know this is kind-of weird but i work in an old building retail building that has been repurposed as several offices.  anyway, i love features of the bathroom in the lobby so i took pictures:

love the schoolhouse lights!  not sure if they're original or not but i love them either way.

and this old wood door and marble partitions.  so old-timey.  i promise i was NOT using the restroom when i took this picture.  gross.  the restroom did have the original sinks with the original hardware until about a week ago.  so i thought i should take pics of these before they are gone too (but hopefully they will remain).

 i'm off to strip paper....till next time....

a week in review

a week has passed since my last post. my 2010 blog goal is to post twice a week and already i've fallen behind. so here's a post about the comings and goings at irvington bungalow this week, sans pictures (boring, i know):

• last weekend more shifting and sorting occurred as we try to clean up the house and make room for baby in the fall, currently stuff is still sitting in the dining and living rooms waiting to be donated or organized and stored.
• we have decided to not participate in our local CSA this year, instead i have been planning some container gardens and a very small garden in the backyard. i'll supplement with trips to the farmer's market. this weekend i'm going to plant lettuce, carrots, broccoli and maybe garlic.
• we received the tile samples and have decided on one color (post to come this weekend). we're still trying to decide on the floor colors. i should say we're still trying to agree on the floor colors. i'm afraid the bathroom is going to be too "art deco".
• we also received the light from rejuvenation for the baby room. i LOVE it except that i think it may be too large. chad will have to hold it up so i can get a visual.
• chad is busy with work and the neighborhood and a walgreens that wants to tear down a house in the hood. not cool.
• i am busy trying to enjoy my entrance into my second trimester. i'm starting to get a little belly and am driving myself crazy thinking about baby stuff. hence the garden planning now! i need a break.

i'll post again this weekend after we download some pictures! happy friday.