Hello! I hope all of you had a wonderful weekend, and a relaxing holiday yesterday…at least those of you here in the U.S. of A. I actually worked through the weekend, but took yesterday off. Now today, I’m back at it.
It seems like John & Alice’s kitchen and family room are taking forever to finish, but I promise, I’m nearing the finish line!! I had hoped to finish on Sunday, but it looks like I’ll need one more day before I can get my mom over to take the final pictures.
I was getting to the point of being incredibly frustrated with myself for taking so long on these rooms, and then I stood back and took a look at them and realized just WHY they had taken so long! These rooms are packed full of DIY projects!!
The painting alone took what seemed like forever. Their kitchen is pretty big, and has lots of cabinets. The task of painting those cabinets seemed never ending.
Along with that came removing all of the doors and drawers, and switching out the hinges and hardware. That’s a huge job! Other painting projects included all of the trim, two doors, the fireplace, the fireplace screen, and the bookcase next to the fireplace.
Then there was that huge paneled wall that was painted and then upholstered…
That was certainly no easy task, but I love the way it turned out. And the added texture that it gives the room was well worth the effort.
Next came the Craigslist dresser that I transformed into a t.v. stand…
That went from an outdated dresser to a pretty little addition to their family room.
Then I got a wild idea to build a coffee table…
That was probably my favorite thing I’ve ever built!
Then I built a mantel…
And a decorative mirror out of wood shims…
But I’m not just all about building! I also painted and reupholstered not just one, but two occasional chairs…
and four dining chairs…
and my mom and I both tackled reupholstering not one, but two wing back chairs…
I also painted an original piece of artwork for the room…
and made some candlesticks out of staircase spindles…
and a fancy chalkboard, also with spindles…
and a candleholder from outdated lighting…
and a gallery wall…
And let’s not forget the absolute pain that this table was…
After re-making the top, and then having to refinish it after the stain looked horrible, I ended up having to re-make the entire table top again after this one cracked!! The crack started at a knot, and went clear across the table top along the grain of the wood. So frustrating, but the final table looks great in the room, so I’m almost glad it happened. I’ll show you later this week.
Then there are the three end tables that I painted, the chandelier that I painted, all of the pillows and feather pillow forms that my mom and I both worked on, and all of the accessories.
Yeah. I’m exhausted.
The last big task was to do something about the hole left in the kitchen cabinets where the old trash compactor used to be.
I worked on that on Sunday, and I hope to finish it up today. Then after a bit of tweaking on the accessories, I can officially call these rooms finished!!
I can’t wait to show you the final before and after…and then take a reeeeeally long nap (or possibly a really long vacation).
But for now, duty calls. Hope you have a wonderful day!!
Hey there! Thanks so much for visiting! :-)
I'm an interior decorator-turned-blogger, and a DIY fanatic. My blog is where I share 
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I'm glad you did this recap. Apparently there are a few of your projects I missed. I'll have to go take a look!
Great recap! Wowza you've been busy!!
You will SOOOOOOO deserve a nap. All of the projects are AMAZING…… Thanks for sharing each step in the process
Everything you do turns out perfect! I am specially so impressed with the way those wingback chair came out… Fantastic job!
Wow – How? How do you manage to do all this building, painting and upholstering? I am in awe : )
Just discovered your blog and this first post has me – I am a follower. I only have a small space, but I love making a nice home, the best it can be. I am inspired and particularly love the coffee table, so unique and rustic charm.
My sister and I have a small handmade business, making pillows that add a splash of colour and bohemian chic, inspired by our travels – I would love you to come and visit us : )
http://sisterbatik.blogspot.com/
wow…I'm exhausted just reading this
he he
I say finish out the nook and tuck the trash can into it….open up some prime real estate under the sink. You could even glam up the trash can with a little mod podge action to make it match, or buy a little sparkle….I guess it could become a book shelf for cook books, or a verticle storage for cake pans…. personally I think it would make a great time out cupboard
Wow! You have been busy. I can relate to changing the hardware on the cabinets. My favorite item is the Coffee table. You go girl!
Clos-ette Too has a new contest! Take a picture of your closet and upload it to our Facebook Page by 7/8 to win 2 sets of black shirt hangers and 1 set of pant hangers (A $50 value) from Clos-ette Too!http://www.facebook.com/pages/I-love-Clos-ette-Too-Amazing-hangers-and-more/142960522426036
Kristi you are amazing!!! I was so impressed with the kitchen, then I kept reading on to find all the other creations, furniture and new upholstery – wonderfully creative and stylish. You have been one VERY busy girl, love it!
You have a great creative vision and then have the talent to execute it! Amazing! I didn't realize all those projects were for the same home. Looking forward to seeing the final reveal!
I'm now a follower of your blog.
Awesome! Thanks for put on view these pictures. These are
adorable. Thanks again!
Wow. You are a machine (an incredibly talented one at that)!
So inspiring. Amazing stuff. I'm a fairly new reader and follower, but I'm hooked.
Keep up the amazing work.
Rest up and have a great day!
What color did you paint their bottom cabinets? They look great!
It's a Behr color called Elephant Skin, but I had it color matched in Sherwin Williams oil-based interior satin paint.
What a brilliant idea! It was so easy to do. You don’t haveto spend much money by doing this, you just have to recycle thosetoilet paper rolls. Good job!
Great wall art you have in there. I think it will look better if you painted the wall with a bright color.
No idea how I ended up on your site, but I am grateful I did. You are a such a talented young woman; so kind of you to share your talents. You've uplifted my spirits considerably. Thank you, Kristi!
Do you have a picture of the former trash compactor spot since you finished it? Mine needs to go, but I don't know what to do with the empty space it will leave.
Yep, you can see it here: http://blog.addicted2decorating.com/2011/07/john-alices-kitchen-reveal.html
This site really helped me in
providing a solution. Incidentally, I have plans to renovate my living room
next month. And I'm confused to choose tiles that fit perfectly with the floor
of my house. Luckily, your site gives a lot of very important information. And
by the way, I'm looking for some unique furniture for my new apartment. And I really like the DIY KOKESHI
DOLLS. I'll try it. Thanks for sharing.
By: Tom
Yates
My husband does repo remodels and when he had a trash compactor hole he bought a rebuilt cabinet from Lowe’s and a slide in trash can. Turned out pretty neat.