SHIFTING ROOTS

home, garden, food, and prairie lifestyle

Next Project: the Kitchen

The next stretch of days to renovate it finally here!!!  (Can you tell I’m excited?!). Today went much smoother than last time, and the Hermit took Dominic out for the morning, so I had the house to myself for three hours.

This week’s mission is to finish as much of the kitchen as possible.  I’m almost done painting the cabinets, and I’ve started on some of the walls.

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Master Bedroom Progress

MASTER-2

A couple of you have been asking how the renovation is going, and I realized that I never actually posted what I got accomplished during the 4 day marathon, and bits and pieces of time since.  It’s far more fun to post the trials and tribulations!  It’s still looking pretty bare as we are not fully moved in yet, and the floors still need to be refinished.

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My Kitchen Renovation Decision Making Process

DECISION MAKING

I really wanted to title this post “Kitchen Tetris,” but I didn’t think it would show up as well in search results.

You have two basic choices when you go into a reno: work with what you got or tear it all out.  In our case, we know we have asbestos as our insulation in our walls, so tear it all out is not really an option unless we’re willing to pay huge $$ to have it removed.  Also, I feel that if you’re buying a character house that is in decent condition, part of why you buy it is to retain the character.  At least, that’s my philosophy.

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Lessons learned from my 4 day renovation marathon



lessons-from-renovation

We bought a small house in our dream neighbourhood in November last year, and ever since we closed the deal I have been itching to renovate it.  However, I don’t live there full time yet.  When I am there it is for serious family time, so my renovation dreams have had to wait until now.  I had 4 days to do all the things and I was going to get them done.

Ha ha ha ha ha!

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Diary of a Reno: day 1

What really happens on that first day of work.

9:00am: Wake up. It feels like Christmas! After weeks of waiting I finally get 5 whole days to beat this house into submission!! Life is great! I’m going to get so much done!!

9:30am: Drop Dominic off at daycare. Discover there is no daycare today. Crap. Oh well, I will make lemonade out of lemons, I can do this!!

10:00am: First trip to Home Depot. Buy all the things.  Try and convince Dominic that wall decals are not toys.

11:00am:  How is it 11 already!?!  Start power sanding.  Feel like a boss because things are finally getting done.

11:15am: Realize that maybe all that dust isn’t good for a toddler.  Get grumpy.  Regroup.

12:00pm: Eat some lunch and try to brainstorm what can be done with a toddler in the house.  Hmm…

1:00pm: Hermit tries to make me feel better by attempting the plumbing problems.  Realize we are in over our heads with this one.  Resolve to call plumber tomorrow when it’s not a stat holiday.

2:00pm: Hermit sends me on an errand to get out of the house and cheer up.  Buy mug that says “think happy to be happy.”  Realize mug is cracked after having inaugural cup of tea from it.

4:00pm:  Do dishes and start supper, because what else are you going to do?

4:30pm: Secretly curse HGTV for making it seem so easy.  Go scrape some more wallpaper in the living room.  Tomorrow is another day!!


Welcome!

Hi, I’m Kristen and I help new gardeners learn to grow their own vegetables and beautify their yards. I also share recipes that use all that delicious garden produce. Grab a coffee (and your gardening gloves) and join me for gardening tips, simple recipes, and the occasional DIY, all from the lovely city of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

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