Well, it's day 362849 of the stay home order or at least it feels like it. I think this time in our homes has given us all the opportunity to look at them a bit differently. To find & create spaces that are cozy, comfy and bring us joy when you are having a stressful or anxious day. Over the past year, we've done a lot to the cottage to create that cozy space we've always wanted. And like everyone else that buys an older home, we have a list of things we want to do here but with only one income now (my shoppe is closed due to the pandemic) a lot of that wishlist is being put on hold. However, I knew there were projects in the house I could work on that would cost us little to no new money spent. With that I decided to pick our front porch as the first project. (Before) Originally I had thought about turning the porch into an office. It gets great light plus easy access to UPS and all other deliveries. Unfortunately there is no heat in there in the winter and that didn't make much sense to have my office not be able to be used 4 months or so out of the year. So instead it ended up being a catch all space since we moved in & a place to keep the litter boxes. But I did get the beginnings of a plan for this space rolling last year when I actually decided to at least paint it. I decided to keep the colors light and bright in here just like the rest of the cottage. I used Alabaster on the walls, Snowbound on the trim and ceiling, and a watered down mix of Favorite Jeans on the floor- all from Sherwin Williams. This was a good jumping off point for the space but I was so busy with work projects that this space did take a back seat until now. Now that I had at least my color palette, next was figuring out a design plan & function for this room. What helped figure out what I should make this space into was the furniture. I already had several pieces that I had acquired over time but never had done anything with down in the basement. A vintage glass bookcase that my mom had given me back when we lived in Chicago. A perfectly chippy twin bed I found at a consignment shop in New Bedford. Lastly a comfortable captains chair I found off of Facebook Marketplace from someone in the same town. Knowing I could create a cozy sitting room that looked out at our yard was ideal. I was already envisioning all the plants, pillows & cozy candles for this space. So with some of the key pieces in mind, I turned my attention back to the floor. I wasn't sure if I should keep it blue. Since it's such a small space I wasn't sure if it was too much. I decided to do a little poll on my Instagram page to get some feedback from my followers and they all felt not only should I keep the blue but I should go even bolder and create a checkerboard pattern. So I decided to go for it! I will say this about doing a checkerboard pattern- patience is something you need to have when tackling a project like this. There is a lot of measuring & taping involved to get this look. I did 12" x 12" squares on a diagonal to give the illusion the room was bigger. Once that's done, the paint part is easy! Speaking of paint, since the floor was already painted blue I only had to paint the contrasting squares. I used Sea Smoke Milk Paint from Shackteau Interiors that we happen to sell at my shoppe & I already had a packet open to use. Now would I normally use milk paint on a floor??? NO. But I used it here for two reasons: One- the wood floor was not sealed. I did a light sanding before I started painting to open the wood grain like I would do when using milk paint on a furniture piece. And Two- I was going for a washed effect not a saturated look which milk paint it great for. Once all the squares were painted. I let them cure overnight before sanding the whole floor to create a bit of distressing and then sealing it with a wax. (After) Here you can see where we are at for the porch room. We added a ceiling fan & roller shades that match the others we have in the cottage. Next up we will caulk all the cracks in the beadboard ceiling and give it a fresh coat of paint. Then it will be onto the furniture. Everything is in the works right now so hoping to have a another post to share on our progress here by the end of the month. Hope you all are staying safe & healthy. xo- Jenna SHOP THIS LOOK
Floor paint: Sherwin Williams Favorite Jeans Shackteau Interors Milk Paint in Sea Smoke Wax for Sealing Floor: Minwax Natural Wall Paint: Sherwin Williams Alabaster Ceiling & Trim Paint: Sherwin Williams Snowbound Ceiling Fan: Wayfair Roller Blinds: Home Depot
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When we bought the cottage, we knew the first thing that needed to be done before we moved in was the bathroom. There is only one bathroom for the whole house and it REALLY needed updating. The space felt very small & cramped due to the drop ceiling, oversized fixtures and the way the tub set up was laid out. This was going to be a complete gut job and it needed to be completed within 4 weeks...no pressure at all. Luckily I have really good connections in the design trade and trust me I pulled out every favor imaginable to get this project done on time and on budget. As with any remodel project it is important to have a design plan & a budget. It's why I do recommend working with a designer to help you with this process, even if you plan to do any of the work yourselves. They can make sure you have the correct layout which include plans to give to your contractors, ensure you have the all the materials allocated for the project and help put a vision to your dream with renderings. Now since I am a home stylist I did act as my own designer, as well as project manager for this project even though I did use various tradesmen for areas I knew I could not do. This was a way for me to save some money but I was also packing up our existing home, closing my store and working on client projects all at the same time. So in hind sight, I could have been a lot less exhausted, overwhelmed and stressed if I delegated or hired some things out. Time is money and that is very valuable so it might be easier & faster to hire that tradesmen instead of doing it yourself. My advice is that consider all the factors before starting ANY do-it -yourself project. So let's start with the design! First, I decided to keep the same layout. The bathroom is small and narrow so it wasn't like we could have flipped anything around. FYI: That's also a huge money saver too. When you don't have to move any plumbing or gas lines in construction, it saves you a ton of money. Next, I wanted to pick colors & materials that would be classic & modern with a nod to styles of the past. Our cottage was built in 1928 so I wanted to bring in some elements that would have been used back then. I chose MSI Zoudia Porcelain Tile for the main floor laid on a diagonal to make the room look larger (a little design tip to share). In the shower, we used classic 3x6 subway tiles from Home Depot and the floor was a beautiful hexagon glass penny dot with a floral motif from Jeffrey Court. I chose Alabaster & Light French Grey from Sherwin Williams as the paint colors for the walls & trim. Now that I had the basics of the design, it was demo time! Everything totally got ripped back to the studs. Demo actually took 2 and a half days because of all of the layers plus we had a wee bit of asbestos that needed to be taken care of as well. Once demo was done, construction began. Within 4 weeks, we needed to get everything framed, plumbing installed, electrical wired & updated, tile work completed, painting, fixtures etc all done for our move in date. Were we on budget? Sort of. We did splurge on a few things but saved on others. Were we on time? Yes & no. There was still a few things that needed to be done after we moved in but we had a functioning bathroom which was the most important thing. All in all, we got the most beautiful bathroom for our new home and it was worth it all! Construction on this project completed by DDC Constructors in Coventry, RI
SHOP THIS LOOK Main tile floor: Wayfair Shower tile floor: Best Tile Warwick, RI Shower wall tile: Home Depot Toilet: Home Depot Sink: Home Depot Faucet: Wayfair Shower fixtures: Wayfair , Supply.com Light fixture: Shades of Light Medicine Cabinet: Pottery Barn Stool: Wayfair Towels: Target Hooks: Home Depot Toilet paper stand: Home Depot Towel ring: Home Depot Shelving: vintage find Paint: Sherwin Williams walls- Alabaster, trim- light french grey, ceiling- fleur de sel |
AuthorJenna is a home stylist and co-shop owner of Blanc & Bleu Home in Pawtucket RI. Archives |