Moving Day & The day after that

Thomas our Orange tailless tabby awaits the movers.

The Movers arrive. We hired these guys because they are all young with strong backs. Our furniture is super heavy. They were GREAT by the way! We highly recommend them if you need reliable, careful, good movers.

The movers had a crew of 4 for our move. It took them only 3 hours total. From arrival to pick up to placement in the new house. And they pad & plastic wrapped almost everything! Again- If you need movers- Hire these guys!

It was hell getting 5 of the 6 cats moved. Two had been born at the Townhouse so they never knew another home. They thought they were being taken to slaughter the way they fought when Jeff confined them in the upstairs bathroom.

This is Jack. He is a very handsome Black and White tuxedo cat. But this is all we saw of him for a good 24 hours. He was trying to get the couch to swallow him up. He has finally come around. 

Now we are in the process of getting them used to the sounds and scents of the new place. And they have a big yard to play in too!

Temporary closet. 

These people sure have a lot of black clothes!

Filling the Curio with Skulls!

Progress 

Pio beside a Haunted Mansion curio box.

Look! 1 finished area!

I really needed the big mirror hung up in the dining area so I could progress. Jeff was sweet enough to  hang it even though he was still in his dress clothes.

Thank You Sweetheart!

The Hutch

I have had this Hutch for years. I received it as a Mothers Day gift about 15 years ago. At that time it was probably at least 40 years old. It is very well made and a one of a kind piece, handmade.

 It was a dark brown when I first got it. I then painted it pale green as an under color, then a light colonial blue. It has faded a bit over the years. 

it is a huge piece of furniture  and requires at least 4 strong guys to move it. It measures about 8 feet tall and 10 feet wide, all one piece. I absolutely love it.

Unfortunately, It has had to sit in my garage for the last 5 years because it it too big to get through any door in my townhouse. 

There is a wall exactly big enough for it at the BCR! And the back sliding doors can be removed to allow it to be brought inside!

 So first it needs a little fixin up to bring it into line with our dining table which will be its companion.

We have finally cleared it of excess kitchen ware and it is ready for its new coat of black paint. I am going to paint it right where it stands since I can now get to all sides. This way the paint will be dry by the time it gets moved in a weeks time.

Here it is about halfway done. Just a small roller and a brush.

Here it is completed! I left the blue inside the lower storage cupboards. I like the way it looks and its easier to see whats inside! This will be going up against the bright yellow wall. that you have seen in the front room. It's going to look marvelous! I will add a photo of it in place one it arrives!

Refreshing the Mexican Saltillo tiles

I arrive here at Home Depot for supplies. As you can see it is a beautiful sunny day! Perfect for when drying speed is critical.

Shopping done. Stripper/Cleaner, Wet Look sealer, Mop, Roller, and a Peruvian lily in Orange.

Oh and my Starbucks of course, this is L.A.

Here is the 'Before' floor after I vacuumed it.

The mopping, scrubbing and bucket toting begins. It is also 80 degrees, and I have to leave this stripper on the floor for an hour without allowing it to dry. So basically I kept mopping for an hour.

It took many buckets of clean water to mop up the stripper. Angelina took over mopping up the stripper giving me a much needed break. Here is the floor after it dried. The mopping and scrubbing were a LOT of work.

This stuff looks just like non-fat milk. It is applied with a roller, coat by coat but not more than 4 coats the instructions said.

After coat one.

The 'After' floor with a final fourth coat. Now it dries for the night.

I love this floor and all its imperfections. The yellows, golds, reds and terra cottas are so pretty.

Front Room and Bedroom and Hall- Oh My!

Ford- The Boxer was visiting to help us paint on Friday.

Another trip to Home Depot to buy paint for the other walls in the Front Room. The one wall you remember is Teal and Black stripes. So we had decided on a Saffron yellow. My daughter wanted to go with the third from the top on the Yellow card. I was looking at one just a shade lighter. Jeff was not with us to add his opinion in. So I asked a lady looking around for colors to match a carpet sample that she had. She concurred on the Yellow above so I went with it.

The Purple is for the hallway and the Grey at the top is for the other wall in our Bedroom.

The first coat on the hallway below seems dark at night , but above is how the color looks when finished.

The hall looking into our room

After getting most of the Black stripes completed on this wall, everyone agreed that we would keep this wall Black and White, rather than the Black and Hydrangea Blurple stripes that were originally planned.

So the Blurple was added to the opposite walls. It is such a beautiful color, far different from the Haunted Mansion inspired Purple of the hallway.

Smashing in Stripes!

I have 2 stripy walls to paint. One Black and Teal, and one Black and a sort of Hyacinth purple. First the Black and Teal. This is in the front room.

 

First I taped all the edges

 

 

Then I started with the Teal, so if I screw up up the black will cover. I am leaving white in between for extra contrast. The trim in this room will be white. I am using a 3 inch roller and lots of patience!

 

I am painting over some rough wood paneling that has been white since the beginning of time. The white space between each stripe is indented. My daughter Angelina was helping me so I wouldn't hurt my arm again. We have discovered that painting walls is not her forte. I told her to please not be offended, but not to touch the black paint at all.

 

Teal is done, now for the black. Here it goes!

 

The more I do, the better it looks!

I Love it!

Completed - The Kitchen

Stove back in place and hooked up. We plan to get a new range and had the build set to allow for a bigger unit.

Jeff and I have not moved in yet, but my oldest daughter has. She is using this little flame decor fridge for now. The space is custom made for our fridge.

Everything is ready to use. I will be having a new dishwasher installed in a few weeks. The space is open for it.

Construction- The Storm before the Calm

The Granite begins to go on, and of course quickly is put to use.

There is so much dust, and everything is covered with it.

I LOVE my sink! A big black farmhouse style!

These cabinets look awesome next to the red. The range top is going in here next.

Clutter and Dust abound. Did I mention it was dusty?