My HAPPY Place.....when I'm not...

[kimmar067]

...at Walt Disneyworld, of course! As many of you may know, we recently embarked on the exciting [and mostly tiring] journey of new home-ownership......well, let me rephrase that: we've owned and lived in our former home for more than 22 years [and, truth be known, a previous home for 8 more years prior to that]. We had been itching to move for quite some time now, due to plummeting home values. Of course, there's that <<other>> reason, but I digress.....

Our current home, located on a lovely tree-lined street, with (as we are slowly learning) many wonderful neighbors was built in 1954 and, needless to say, has not been updated much since its original occupants. Gosh, it even SMELLED like old people! Anyhoo, back-in-the-day, it was considered a 'model'-type home, since it was custom-built by the original owners of The Fiesta, a popular banquet hall that is located right here on Route 17. Due to some unfortunate circumstances, the former owner relocated to Delaware, nary leaving a forwarding address to her, um, 'troubled' daughter, but that's another story entirely. This is what it looks like on the exterior. Pretty nice curb appeal, if I do say so myself:

 

[kimmar067]

....so, our expedition begins:

Upon entering the dismal vestibule, to find yourself in the living room:

.....yes, it's that dank, and yes, it's that dismal. If you spin 180 degrees clockwise, you get to experience the 'Medieval Times' dungeon-like cauldron-holding fireplace. complete with dreary almost-black hideous wall:

....not very appealing, I must say, although I can look past the horrid colors, overcrowded living room, old-lady odor and visualize what is to come.....

 

[kimmar067]

....I suppose that I should just continue the 'Cook's tour' of our home with the living room:

....we began by removing that 'random' railing (really - outdoor, dated railing on the interior of a home....WHAT?) and the dreaded black wall, which turned out to be a dark (I mean really, really, REALLY dark) stained wood, or more appropriately, wood 'like'....

....the 1980's-style tile that accompanied the railing was removed also, but I can assuredly tell you, that it put up quite a fight:

.....the previous owners were obviously enamored with the color pink [or shades thereof] because it was EVERYWHERE...

 

[kimmar067]

....turns out that there were just wayyyyy too many cracks in the plaster - too many to fix, so my DH made the [quite expensive] decision to just sheetrock the entire Phase I portion of construction. Looking back, it was a sage decision, because now all the rooms were more square and the eventual crown molding would be much easier to install:

....what the newly-installed sheetrock glaringly pointed out was, how ugly [and DIRTY! ]that fireplace really is!

 

[donac]

I just opened this and started reading and was surprised. I went to school in WoodRidge (lived in Moonachie, my mother and sister still live there) and I went to school with someone associated the Fiesta. That is where we had our last night before we graduated party. I know the look of those houses. I can't wait to see what you do with the house.

 

[robinb]

Very nice!

 

[kimmar067]

Out with the old and in with the new, I always say (okay, well, not all the time), so the archways would soon be a thing of the past:

...besides, it's MUCH easier to install any sort of molding and detailing when it's in a straight line, rather than curved. Armed with the spray gun, my DS was soon covering the walls with a fresh coat of paint. He made it his personal mission to cover EVERY INCH OF PINK he found glaring at him...BTW, the door leading to the kitchen from that hallway was eventually removed, since Phase II entails the reconstruction of the kitchen/dining room. Here is proof, vis-a-vis my DH removing the heavy steel door frame:

...and yes, MORE PINK.

....as you can plainly see, the oak flooring was soon to follow.

 

[kimmar067]

I just opened this and started reading and was surprised. I went to school in WoodRidge (lived in Moonachie, my mother and sister still live there) and I went to school with someone associated the Fiesta. That is where we had our last night before we graduated party. I know the look of those houses. I can't wait to see what you do with the house.

...wow.............it's a small world....after all.....

 

[kimmar067]

Very nice!

...thanks!

 

[threeboysmom]

Awesome! The house on the outside is BEAUTIFUL! Looks like you're on track with the living room!

I'll soon be embarking on my own fixer-upper in the fall. It's in FAR FAR worse condition than yours - absolutely not even liveable at the moment!! I'm itching to start!

Our first room to tackle with be one of the bathrooms because I can't live there without a working toilet, shower & sink!! Next will be the kitchen as soon as possible right after the bathroom. The rest of the rooms we can slowly work on throughout the year/s until finished or we run out of money, lol.

 

[kimmar067]

....The rest of the rooms we can slowly work on throughout the year/s until finished or we run out of money, lol.

....I'm guessing the 2nd choice....

 

[Ziggie]

Sent you a private message

 

[kimmar067]

Sent you a private message

....back at you...

 

[Mickey'sMainMami]

We are doing a bit of a remodel ourselves, and I am already sick of it lol. I can't wait to see the finished product!!

 

[kimmar067]

We are doing a bit of a remodel ourselves, and I am already sick of it lol. I can't wait to see the finished product!!

...I hear ya!

 

[Ziggie]

We're actively working on updating our house so I know what you're going through! Fortunately, we're not doing any renno projects... just paint, moldings, fixtures.. things like that. I'm hoping we'll be done early next year because I want to put our house on the market (fingers crossed!!)

 

[kimmar067]

As you can see, my DH and DS were going at virtually 'warp speed' [they were putting in 12-hour days!] and now, the light was clearly visible at the end of the proverbial tunnel:

....installing the crown molding, bench window seat, and final touches on the fireplace area:

...and don't forget the sanding, staining and varnish coats (all THREE of them! ) on the floors....

 

[kimmar067]

....finally, with a well-deserved face-lift to our fireplace, I present to you, our new living room:

 

[usnuzuloose]

Very nice Kimmar! Congrats on the new home!!

 

[kimmar067]

....thanks, snuz....