Project Complete - October 2007
We finally completed our guest bedroom. It took us much longer than we expected due to delays that were out of our control. We also had very little time to work on the room since we both work in the store full-time. It was a great experience and we enjoyed every moment.
Background
June 25, 2006
We decided to start our home makeover with a guest bedroom. Not only did we not like the blue paint that covered the walls but we noticed that the walls were extremely bumpy. We took a scraper to the wall and uncovered old wallpaper. That is why we love old houses. You never know what you will find. As we work we wonder what the wallpaper looked like (we cannot tell since it is coated in paint), we wonder who slept in this room and we wonder how many changes happened in over eighty years. If the walls could talk would they share the secrets and dreams of the previous occupants?
The walls we uncover are so bad we now need to decide if we need to wallpaper or repair the walls and paint. You could see in the photos layers of wallpaper glue.
After researching the best ways to remove the old glue we decided that steaming the glue off would be the safest. We do not like to use chemicals in our home and steaming is actually working well.
July 10, 2006
After steaming for hours we decided that it was too time consuming and the walls were in really bad shape. We decided to take out the old walls and put in new sheetrock. We discovered that the walls were not insulated which would explain our high heatings costs.
 
We also realized that the stuco ceiling had to go and we tore down the ceiling as well. We did discover that the exposed beams are beautiful and decided to work with the beams and not put up a new ceiling.
  
As you could see a small project that started out as a paint job turned into a large project. We decided that the old wiring should be replaced. Since the walls and ceiling are down we called in our electrician for an upgrade. Our job is on hold now until the electricity is upgraded. We are now working on a plan for the exposed beam ceiling. So far this project has not cost us anything since we did the demolition on our own.
July 19, 2006 - Electrical Upgraded
We have a great electrician. If you are local we would be glad to give you a referral. He upgraded the room completely.
July 20, 2006 - Insulation installed
George and our uncle insulated the entire room this weeked. Sheet rock and wood for the ceiling will be delivered tomorrow.
 
For the ceiling we needed to install snap vents which allows the air to flow. Then we installed insulation. We selected insulation that was energy efficient and thin enough for us to have room for the wood.
  
July 22, 2006
This was the part I love. I selected the bedding for the room. I decided on Bella Notte Linens and put together a beautiful bed. I wanted to complete the cottage look and selected a few different fabrics and soft colors. Now I am counting down the weeks for my bedding delivery.
July 31, 2006
George put up all of the walls. If you call the store you will not find George as he is glued to this project.
 
August 18, 2006
Walls are up, sanding is complete and the walls are being primed this weeked. We had a slight delay due to the extreme heat we had. Our next step is the ceiling which is going to be a challenge. The wood was delivered and will be cut next week.
September 5, 2006
George is almost done with the ceiling. It turned in to a larger job than expected and has been taking time with all of the measuring and cutting involved.
  
September 15,2006
We had a delay since we ran out of wood. The new wood has to sit in the room for about 2 weeks before George could start working on the ceiling again. He will start again next week. It was a good break but now we are ready to finish the job.
October - November 2006
The wood is now completely installed on the ceiling. The corners were the toughest job. Since George is not a carpenter this was a big challenge for him. He had to work in an attic crawl space to complete two corners. The corners were so much work it took two full days to make all of the cuts and install the wood.
 
Since we need to finish this project before the holiday season starts we decided that we would ask our carpenter Jack to strip the mouldings. We also asked Jack to work on the ceiling beams and all of the mouldings in the room. This is a real tough project and since we are getting into our busy season we decided that we needed all the help we could get. We started to expose the original wood floor and decided to wait until the room was completely painted so we would not ruin the floor more than it already is.
November 6, 2006
This week we will prime the ceiling and lightly sand and stain the mouldings. Jack is working on the ceiling beams. He will then work with George on installing the ceiling beams and installing all of the mouldings.
November 30, 2006
We have not been able to work on the house since we moved into our hectic holiday season. Jack did remove the paint from the floor moulding and the moulding will be installed next week. We were so happy to see the mouldings without the layers of paint. You could also see in the photos below the original floor. Once the room is painted we will remove the rug and expose the floor.
George has been working on completing the ceiling with only one corner left! We are almost done. The project did take longer than expected but we also have not been able to devote the time needed these last two months.
 
December 28, 2006
The ceiling is almost complete now and the walls and ceiling are primed. We are almost ready to paint the entire room. The details have been the biggest challenge for George since each detail is very time consuming. The last big project left in this room will be to install the ceiling beams. I just cannot wait to finally see all of my new beautiful bedding and curtains all set up. Everyone keeps asking us if we will be taking over the guest room when we are done. It is very tempting but we have a nice master bedroom that we will be working on next.
January 24, 2007
This is is! We are down to the final few projects and the room is almost ready. The room is completely primed and painted. I am saving the photos now until we are all done. The last few projects we have are:
- Clean and restore wood floors - I love the shabby look of the floors and decided not to refinish them. We are just cleaning the old paint off of the floor and then applying Tung oil.
We have a window seat in the room that I would like turned into storage. Jack will complete this project for us. Then I will have a window seat cushion made of old Bella Notte fabric remants to match the bedding and curtains.
Select and install chandelier. This should be easy!
Have a roman shade made for the small window. This window is a challenge since the ceiling is on a slant. I am having a shade made to go with my aqua and champagne Bella Notte curtains.
Set up furniture and finally fix the bed with all of my new bedding and pillows.
We will eventually install beams again on the ceiling. But this may take awhile since we decided we want to use old beams.
February 24, 2007
The construction of the room is complete! Over the last few weeks we painted the room and restored the floor with Tung Oil. We finally moved the furniture back into the room and fixed the bed with all of our favorite Bella Notte Linens. We installed window hardware and ordered additional curtains. We are now waiting for our carpenter to come and work on the window seat. We are also having a roman shade and window cushion made for the room. We have a beautiful antique lamp which we are now having a shade custom made for it. The last details have been the most fun. I now get to decorate the room and fill it with treasures. I love the paint we selected - Benjamin Moore Cloud White for the ceiling and Snowfall White for the walls.
March 1, 2007
The final details are holding up the decorating. We are just waiting for our carpenter to finish our window seat. We are working on selecting a chandelier and rug. We are also waiting on two curtain panels from Bella Notte. This room took longer than expected but it was definitely worth the wait.
March 13, 2007
Our carpenter came to discuss our plans for the window seat. We are set to start the job early next week. In the photo below you can see the window that we will be having a shade made for and the window seat before it is remodeled.
June 2007
The window seat is finally done. We ordered fabric from Bella Notte for our window seat cushion and for a london shade. We found the perfect vintage chandelier for the room and had our electrican install it for us.
June 2007
The window seat is finally done. We ordered fabric from Bella Notte for our window seat cushion and for a london shade. We found the perfect vintage chandelier for the room and had our electrican install it for us.
Take the tour......
All of the bedding is Bella Notte Linens. The furniture is my parents original bedroom set. The painting is from Susan Brown. The chandelier is vintage. The lamp is vintage with a custom shade with Bella Notte "Melissa" fabric.
Betty managed to sneak into a few photos.
Here is a close-up of the wonderful Bella Notte linens shams and decorative pillows. Euro shams in "Melissa" in petal and aqua. "Cloud Cord" standard shams in apple. Decorative pillow "Melissa" in aqua, "Sara" in apple and aqua and "Embroidered Linen" in petal.
We asked Susan Brown for suggestions on a painting for this room and we found the perfect fit. The painting just completed the room and
was one of the last elements that we added. Her paintings are all done on wood and are amazing. You can order any of her paintings from Lavender Fields.
In this photo you can see the completed window seat and the details of the room. The dollhouse was a gift from my father when my sister and I were very young.
I will be restoring the dollhouse this winter and I will have the before and after photos as I work. You can also see all the of details of the ceiling that George installed by himself.
The curtains are Bella Notte linens "Embroidered Linen" in aqua and "Linen" in champagne. The curtain hardware is custom and available at our store. You can call us for details. The stained glass window is vintage and was a gift from my sister.
Here is a closer view of the beautiful curtains and hardware.
A few favorites. A Christie Repasy painting, our pottery collection, Jennifer Lanne print and of course a bundle of lavender.
This chair was a flea market find and the perfect shade of apple green to coordinate with our bedding.
The window seat cushion and London shade delayed our project. We first had to wait for the Bella Notte Linens fabric and then the upholstery person took longer than we expected. We are happy with the results and look forward to sitting here and reading a great book. The shade is Bella Notte Linens "Sara" in champagne. The cushion is "Cloud Cord" in champagne. The decorative pillows are "Cloud Cord" in apple, "Melissa" in petal, "Cloud Cord" in champagne, "Melissa" in aqua. The painting is of my parents on their honeymoon.
Here you can see the rug we selected. We selected the Dash and Albert "Meadow Stripe". We love every Dash and Albert
rug but felt this rug was perfect.
We just had beveled glass made for this nightstand. It had mesh wire and plastic behind the wire. The glass allows me to display my collection
of vintage perfume bottles. The lamp was from our first store - a vintage store on the New Jersey shore. The shade is a custom shade with
Bella Notte Linens "Melissa" in champagne. Contact us to order a shade in any of our fabrics.
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