You know the whole “If you build it, they will come” line? My motto for this post is “If you write it, it will happen.” I’m dreaming REALLY big today, and maybe I’m a tad overly ambitious right now, but that’s okay. That’s what resolutions are for, right? Ha! (Lookin’ at you, New Year’s diet.)
The other weekend leading up to New Year’s, Robert and I went on a little getaway to the mountains in Asheville, NC to collect ourselves after a crazy busy 2017, and while we were there, we couldn’t help but scheme together about all of the exciting projects we’re ready to tackle in the house this year.
He has his wish list and I have mine, and together, it’s going to make a very exhausting (and expensive) but super rewarding adventure ahead of us.
So far, we managed to finish our living room, breakfast nook, powder room, master bedroom, [phase one of the] guest bathroom, and a huge exterior makeover in a matter of 8 months, so it can still be done, right? All the good vibes.
1. The Playroom
When we sold our old house in January last year, we had JUST finished Olivia’s playroom a few months before. We barely got to enjoy it! I’ve been a little salty about that. But those big built-ins did add some resale value to our house, so that was a feather in our cap, for sure.
This time around, we’re planning to still implement built-ins on a smaller scale, but I’ll be diving more into those details later this week with the official plan.
And I think I’ve figured out a few ways to make our smaller playroom even more functional than the old one. Woot!
Here’s what it currently looks like:
Feast your eyes on that Ektorp sofa that now only gets used as a stuffed animal holder. Yeah, that’s outta here, along with a handful of stuffed animals that never get played with, if I can sneak some out while Olivia’s not looking. (To be fair, throw pillows are the stuffed animals of grown women, so I don’t have room to talk here.)
2. The Dining Room
We made great headway in our dining room the last couple of months, but we’re determined to finish it very soon. I’ve been working on an antique mirror gallery wall that is taking forever for me to get just right. The love/hate relationship with gallery walls is so real.
I lurv this one from House Beautiful! Aiming for a smaller scale in our house though.
3. The Back Porch
Since the brick makeover is finally finished (*insert cartwheel and booty dance*), we’ll be tackling our back porch once the weather warms up in the spring.
The wood porch floor really needs some love, so that’s on our to-do list along with figuring out a good seating arrangement and maybe eventually framing out our TV and mini fridge to look like an outdoor fireplace. Just so it doesn’t look like, “Yo, what’s up. I’m just a TV and mini fridge sitting here on the wall.”
How legit would something like this be?
Source: Traditional Home
4. Landscaping
I mentioned already in our exterior makeover post that the landscaping still leaves much to be desired. We probably won’t get to all of the landscaping plans we’ve been thinking up, but the old mulch and pine straw definitely needs replacing, the shrubs in the front yard need beefing up, and we might even be able to do something about our old rickety backyard fence, if we can wriggle it into the budget.
I’m really hoping we can swap out our front door for a wooden one that has a window to allow some natural light into our very dark foyer too. Right now, it’s a solid black door with peeling paint and a glass storm door in front. If not this year, definitely for the next.
5. My Office
This room has been the “dumping ground” since we moved in as we’ve arranged spaces and sorted through items we’ve donated or sold from the old house. But now that we sort of have a handle on the rest of the rooms, the makeshift storage room can finally become my office.
It’s a hottttttt MESS.
I desperately need storage for some of my seasonal stuff. And because this room has an open doorway right beside our front door, we would love to put in a pair of French doors to close off my “work” from the rest of the house. (Maybe even start taking on design clients? Squee!) Sometimes it’s hard to draw that line between work and home when you work from home, so I think this space will help me strike some balance that I’ve been struggling with lately.
We’ll probably build a pair of small closets on either side of that far window, similarly to how our master bedroom is arranged, for storage. The best part is if we add closets and a door to the room to separate it from our foyer, this technically becomes an additional bedroom, which will add value to the house upon resale one day. Win/win.
As for the rest of the office, I absolutely love how Kelley Nan has arranged and decorated hers. Goals!
6. The Master Bathroom
Our master bathroom is at the tip top of my wish list and is begging for a makeover, but it’s going to cost us a pretty penny. We’re talking full gut job. I have no idea if we’ll be able to pull this one off, but a lot can happen in a year, and I’m crossing my fingers and toes on this one.
The tile, the clunky vanity, the dated shower, all of it needs to go. And the new layout I have in mind will maximize all of the wasted space, if it works out the way I hope.
This bathroom layout is giving me lots of ideas already. Except, I’m pretty sure we’ll be holding off on the marble tile to keep a smaller budget in mind.
Source: Decor Pad
So that’s the plan. Or rather the big wish list. I think I need to go find a giant cup of coffee now after all of this. #SaveMe #GimmeAllTheCaffeinne I cannot WAIT to see what our 2018 recap will be. Pretty epic, I bet ya.
Do you have any house makeover dreams on your goals list for this year too? Tell me all about ’em! Any local Charlotte peeps know of a great contractor? I think maybe we’re going to need one.
Melissa Newell says
January 8, 2018 at 7:03 amWOW Lauren, you have so much fun ahead of you..those blank slates will be filled fast enough..glad you are all taking the time to research and do it the way you really want and not just a quick fix! Can’t wait to see the transformations! Happy New Year!
Melissa says
January 8, 2018 at 10:20 amLove the ideas and inspiration photos! Whatever you start next will be beautiful when you’re done! Our master bath is also on the list this year, and we just might make it happen. It’s a total gut like yours, with lots of wasted space to fix. But it also means a bigger bedroom closet when we get to it, so fingers crossed!
Desiree says
January 8, 2018 at 10:21 amI love what you planned to do for every room! I love your old play room. It has given me so many ideas for mine! thank you!
Gayleen says
January 8, 2018 at 11:00 amI LOVED that you posted about your house goals for the year! I do that too! I stated back in 2014 setting house goals it really helped me feel like I could be purposeful about tackling small chunks of my builder grade home. It was too overwhelming to think about *everything* that I wanted to change so to make 10-ish goals for a year (some big, some small) made me feel like I could eat that elephant, so to speak. I keep my yearly goals as individual boards on my Pinterest page and I frequently go back and remember how far I’ve come. Your goals do seem huge and expensive so I look forward to to seeing how your year goes. I know that I always start so ambitiously and some goals fall back to the back burner as maybe other ones rise to the top of the list. Looking forward to reading all your future posts!
ren says
January 8, 2018 at 11:03 amWhile it’s just inspo and you obvi have a double vs. single vanity. Something to take into account with the sink…. Having an open sink LOOKS beautiful. However, I have one and sometimes I wish the previous owners had put some doors on the front of it because as anyone with an old house can attest, you need all the storage space you can get. Just something to keep in mind š
Debbie says
January 8, 2018 at 12:28 pmI love all of the ideas you have planned. We recently bought some plank looking tiles from a couple who over bought. There were just enough to do our living room. The price was too good to pass up. We got approximately 225 square feet for $200. Hubby wasn’t as excited as I was but when he sees it completed he will be. I’m trying to do my living room first but hubs and I are still arm wrestling over painting one of the walls in there that is completely bricked. Cross your fingers I win this one! Can’t wait to see Olivia’s new room. If I were closer, I come and get the white sofa. Have a blessed day. Happy New Year and new projects.
Deb says
January 8, 2018 at 1:00 pmLauren~
Love all the ideas for your home. With you at the helm, it’s going to be stunning!!! I am excited for you and CANNOT wait to see how it all turns out. Take lots of picturess for us to see. I’ll be sitting by my computer with some coffee and chocolate of some sorts, most likely a giant bag of Reese Cups, and will be enjoying the tour. Big ((hugs)) for a great year ahead!
Deb š
Kim says
January 8, 2018 at 2:06 pmWow! What a tremendous amount of projects! My suggestion is to leave the white couch in the playroom. For now, it makes a great place for the little ones to snuggle up with mom and dad to read. Way too quickly, they grow up and you won’t need to replace the “little kid” furniture.
Have you thought about French doors on your office space/additional bedroom off the foyer? You could mineral glass or mirror glass the panels in the door…..reflects the light, makes it feel bigger???????
Best wishes! Kim
Lauren says
January 8, 2018 at 8:22 pmThanks, Kim! The main reason we don’t use that sofa in this house is because our playroom is right next to our living room here. Those playroom French doors open up to our living room, so we snuggle up and read there every day instead. Plus, with a sofa in that spot, there’s no room for shelving, which she desperately needs more than the seating. She has a little reading nook where she can curl up as she’s learning to read though. š Here’s the link to the nook, if you want to see it: https://www.blesserhouse.com/2017/09/diy-narnia-wardrobe-reading-nook.html And YES! We’re thinking French doors on my office too with frosted glass to still keep the light coming through. Great minds think alike. š
Brenda Johnson says
January 8, 2018 at 2:10 pmSo many great ideas, I think it is so fun to have projects to look forward to, to dream and watch it all come together. My house is not old, but I am updating a few things here and there. Little by little I’m changing the lighting in my home and just ordered some lantern style lights for my foyer…can’t wait. Love your house!
Eileen says
January 8, 2018 at 2:28 pmGood luck with all your house makeover dreams! I would love to have a master bathroom makeover too.
Ivory says
January 8, 2018 at 5:20 pmI found and joined your site mid 2017, and have not disappoint, sooooo I know without a doubt, like the fabulous rooms you have already did an amazing job on, I know the rest of your home, in and outside,will be just as fabulous. I can hardly wait.
Emily Odom says
January 12, 2018 at 4:43 pmHey there! Love these ideas, just put a few on my wishlist for this year as well š My husband and I are residential redevelopers in the area and he is actually in the process of getting his contracting license right now! Whoop whoop!