Kitchen

This space was a big project. We started the Kitchen Renovation mid July 2011 and were completely finished in October 2011.

PROJECT INFORMATION:

• Kitchen is a "U" shaped kitchen that is approximately 13' x 12' 
• We had a new dishwasher given to us from our Home Purchase Electrical Inspection (Budd Electric) when one of the workers accidently blew out the old dishwasher. They are a company in Corpus Christi of high integrity; thank you Budd Electric- you all are top rate!
• We also had a fairly new refrigerator, so we didn't need to replace that either.
• New double oven/stove with a matching mounted microwave was purchased. The oven/stove is in the "before" photos because the previous home owners took their old oven.
• The room was stripped down to studs so proper R-13 insulation could be installed.
• All outdated electrical and plumbing was updated.
• Wood Laminate Floors~ Lumber Liquidators
• Solid Maple Cabinets~ Kitchenpro.com (dove tailed, anti slam drawer feature, euro hinges, raised panel)
• Granite Counter Tops~ Corpus Christi Solid Surfaces
• Tumbled Travertine Stone Backsplash

Before and After Video

Bedroom on South Side of House

This bedroom is on the opposite side of the house from the others.  It has a large walk in closet that has also completely redone from top to bottom.

Bedroom #4 (11' x 12.5')
(currently used as the Master Bedroom)

Notice the window air conditioner unit? The previous owners used this to help cool this room on top of the regular central air that worked for the entire house. Three of the four walls in this room are hit directly by the south Texas sun most of the day and like the whole house, this room did not have any insulation in the walls, not to mention the single pan windows with poor caulking; it got VERY HOT & STUFFY in the summer.

DEMO

Demo was a fun job for the kids! All drywall in this room had to be removed.

... a place where there at one time used to be a window! We found two other previous window openings that had once existed on the opposite wall. This room once had 5 different windows (three now covered by wall)! I wonder if it used to be a sun room at one time years ago?

R13 insulation in the whole room! ...and the brown door? It's replaced!

AFTER of this particular corner.  All white walls to help it feel crisp and fresh. And notice the new door!

MORE DEMO and repair... from another angle.

AFTER~

After adding insulation, the walls were finished with 1/2" drywall covered in "bead board" panels. To trim off the room, crown moulding was added in addition to 5 1/2" baseboards.

New bedroom carpet (professionally installed) meets up with the laminate wood floor from the hall area outside this bedroom.

Close-up showing the bead board and crown. This room originally did not have any trim around the ceiling, so this crown and corner pieces are a nice added detail. The windows are new energy efficient double paned windows with 2" Bali (faux wood) mini blind.

Bathroom #2

We officially started our Bathroom #2 renovation the first week of September 2010 while the kids were on a break from school. We had this vision that we'd start and finish in a couple weeks. HA HA! Just like ALL the other rooms in this home, we discovered there's much more to the updates than we realized once we started, and the length of time it would take would be much longer than we expected.

Bathroom #2 took 6 weeks of hardcore demo and reconstruction before we could install the toilet and sink to even begin using part of the space again; that means six people coordinating bathroom time and showers in one bathroom (we just got done doing that with the first bathroom renovation). We've learned to persevere because time has not been our friend when it comes to fixing, updating and transforming this home. 10 weeks after we began this Bathroom project- I am able to take good "AFTER" pictures. With the exception of a few painting details, a small piece of molding to install, and several knobs on the built-in cabinet, we are done with Bathroom #2. 

Bathroom "L-shaped"
(9' 4" x 4' 9", measurement does not include "L" and built-in)

BEFORE and AFTER

The kids picked out the "cool" shade of blue on the wall~ "Aqua Ice" by Kilz.   The mirror has a recessed cabinet in the wall.

This is a close up of the corner of the floor by the bathtub that had rotted. What you can't tell by the photo is the corner space is stuffed with steel wool and is about 1" x 2" . When the steel wool is pulled out, you're able to look straight to the ground.
Repaired with 3/4" new plywood sub-floor, then a layer of cement board for the tile to be installed on top of that.
Looking very pretty.
This original built-in cabinet had five layers of different colors of paint from over the many years of it's life (I sanded a small section to investigate). Since the layers of paint most likely contains some lead, we chose to repaint! The piece went from an antique cream color...
...to an "Ultra Pure White" semi gloss, just like the trim. What a difference a fresh coat of paint makes. New hinges and knobs (still needed to be installed), give this original built-in cabinet the face lift it needed.

...love all the storage space. The bottom cupboard space was originally a wood hamper (which smelled musty and not practical). We converted the old hamper to a storage for toilet paper and cleaner- salvaged the original front of the hamper and added a hinge.
Looking into the bathroom from the hall.
The bath tub had seen better days.
New and fresh.

EXTRAS WE ADDED~
This window adds some nice light to the bathroom while the molding around the ceiling dresses up the space.
The mosaic border is our personal touch to accent and compliment the window.
We saw the mosaic border idea at our Home Depot for $10.00 a 12" section. There was no way we wanted to spend that kind of money since we needed 22 sections, so we made our own 12' section for about $.50 a section using tile "left overs" from Bathroom #1 and this project. We saved over $200. as DIY'ers and got to make it more special with handpicked colors. Making the mosaic sections was a family project with the kids each doing at least one section piece (12" long)- Jessie did 3 or 4 sections.
Soap and razor niche.

No more arguing over where the shampoo belongs.
Jessie and Joe are the first to initiate the new bathtub. Both in swimsuits, they think it's a fun place to play. 

THE PROCESS OF TRANSFORMATION

Joe was excited to help tear down the old tile...
This chunk of wall with tile on it came down in one big piece and scared Joe as it was falling. We were blessed he wasn't hurt.

We knew there would be water damage, just not sure how much. The smell was strong; thank God for face masks.

...the tile backer board that was used (many, many years ago) was 1/2" plywood. After years of leaking around the broken chalking seal, the plywood rotted and crumbled around the bathtub upon touch.
Joe having a grand time lifting the brittle laminate tile pieces off the floor...
When we lifted the old bathtub to get it out, we discovered previous evidence of "critters"-mice or rats?- under the tub.

..and a rat snake in the wall by the tub... FREAK OUT TIME! 
A bathroom down to nothing... The walls in this house are SOLID! 
...time to put the bathroom back together~

6 mil plastic moisture barrier, sealed off with waterproof black tape.
...notice the opening above the shower area? (an opening for a transom window to let light in this room with no other windows.)
... how about the new tub? (we went from a 14" depth to an 18 " soaker tub depth)
...notice the niches near where the shower nozzle goes? (a place for soaps and razors- another is on the opposite side for the kids' shampoos- photo below)
...notice the shelf along the back wall? (perfect for kids to line their toys up, or candles for a nice bubble bath)

...the opposite side- four separate "cubby niches" for the kids to put their shampoos; each child has their own shampoo/conditioner space. 
...the transom window arrives.
(ordered from eBay- an artist in Canada)
Getting it installed was a challenge, but well worth it! The other side of the window faces the laundry room. One of the first things we did upon moving into this house was changed out the laundry room back door from a solid metal door to an exterior door that has a window on the top half to let natural light in the space (which also comes into the stained glass window in addition to the ceiling light from the laundry room). 

Bathroom #1

This bathroom had a number of issues we were aware of at purchase, and some we discovered after purchase.  Nothing time and patience couldn't fix.  This bathroom went from beastly to beautiful.

Bathroom (9' x 6')
View standing in the door way, looking in the bathroom as you enter

 BEFORE

AFTER

 12" porcelain tile floor, 5" floor baseboards, new walls, new toilet... NEW EVERYTHING!

BEFORE~

The double sinks were faux blue marble, with this space not having adequate storage for towels and toiletries.

Fixtures on both sinks are outdated, leaking and corroded. 

AFTER~

For the sake of much needed storage, we chose to eliminate one of the sinks and add a linen closet.

WOW... it's so much nicer to wash up and brush teeth in a sink area that doesn't have "crusty- black stuff" growing around it.

 

Below, Shower stall- BEFORE
Many leaks in this small vinyl stall and the floor tile was no longer adhered to the floor from the many years of use and moisture.

 

Below, Shower Stall- AFTER
Porcelain tile throughout with all updated fixtures.
...several built-in's for soap and shampoo.

When the door got moved over to enlarge the shower stall, a transom window was added above the door to create a special touch in this bathroom.  The window is handcrafted by an artist in Canada (found on Ebay-creationeuropeenne -superb craftsmanship!).