About 15 months ago, when Jose and I were in the throes of getting things ready for Emma’s arrival, I posted my home improvement list of all the things I’d love to do to our house someday. I came across that post again last week, and decided it was time for an update — and it was on my mind again over the weekend as we cleaned up and decorated for Emma’s birthday party on Saturday. There have been several additions since the previous list from May 2012, along with several items that I’ve been able to cross off. (Hooray!) I also rearranged items so that they’re grouped by room or area. Enjoy my home improvement and home decor ponderings:
Family Room/Kitchen/Dining Room
Replace the carpet in the family room with wood or laminate flooring(done!)- Get a rug for the dining room
- Get a rug for the family room
Finish installing the cabinet hardware in our kitchen(done!)Revamp/reorganize the kitchen cabinets and pantry to better fit how we actually use the kitchen (everything is still where it was when we moved in)(done and done!)Decide what to do with the wall o’ windows in the family room (cornices, curtains, etc?)(done!)- Add some sort of light in the pantry
- Extend the teal paint from the breakfast room along the rest of the wall to corner of the kitchen
Touch up the paint in the dining room- Add crown molding to the family room/kitchen
- Get some sort of sideboard for the dining room?
Master Bedroom/Bathroom
- “Frame” the huge wall mirror in the bathroom (a la something like this) — or remove it entirely and replace with 2 smaller mirrors
- Paint
- Make some large DIY art for above the bed
- Add curtains?
- Embellish/get new lampshades for our bedside lamps
- Re-caulk the shower
Emma’s Room
Furnish and decorate the nursery(need to blog)
Study/Office
- MAJOR decluttering
- Clean out the closet and re-fill in a way that makes sense
- Paint?
Guest Room
Turn the 3rd bedroom into a nice, comfy guest room (as opposed to the furniture-less junk room it is now)(done!)- Make and hang the “wall o’ curtains” as I intended to do last year
- Install a ceiling fan
- Clean up/declutter the corner bookshelf and closet
Guest Bathroom
- Frame or replace the mirror (same idea as in master bathroom)
- Paint?
Bonus Room
- Build some sort of craft/fabric cutting table (a la Someday Crafts)
- Get a new light fixture to replace the “boob light” — and increase wattage (it’s dim in there)
- Get a TV or projector?
- Redo the space plan — ideally this room will eventually be some combo of playroom/craft room/movie room/home office
Exterior/Yard/Garage
Clean out one side of the garage so we can park the TBD new car in thereInstall tree spotlights outside (we have them already; they go with the flower bed lighting we did in 2010)- Replace the front porch can light with a pretty pendant of some kind (which I thought of after coming across the Can Converter)
Redo the front flower beds (I plan to hire someone to do this for me)Buy a grill (especially since we have a gift card from my parents specifically for this!)Build a bed around the crape myrtle, oleander, and hibiscus that are planted along the fence in the backyard- Get gutters installed on the back of the house
- Add a big potted plant next to the front door
- Aerate the front yard
- Hire someone to put in a sprinkler system
Miscellaneous
- Repaint all the trim and doors white (which will basically never happen because it’s way too much work!)
- Build an over-the-machines counter in our laundry room (a la Young House Love)
Add a hanging rack for brooms, mops, etc in the laundry room- Hang art or photos in the hallway
- Replace the boob light in the entryway with something cooler/nicer/more our style
- Get the a/c system tuned up
- Replace our thermostats with Nest thermostats
[…] other news, as mentioned at the very bottom of my home improvement list, I am currently coveting a Nest thermostat. Well, “coveting” may be too strong of a […]