A Look Back & A Look Forward
There isn't much to say about 2021 that hasn't already been said. "2020 Part 2", "Pandemic: The Sequel", and so on. This isn't the space or medium or forum to dwell on any of that. What we can review, however, are some of the projects we completed over the course of the year with a mini-recap before jumping into our plans for 2022 (like we did last year, but... better?). For the rewind, we'll make it quick. We've already written up a few pieces on what what we've gotten ourselves into, but there were a few items on that 2021 list that we... didn't quite get around to. Maybe this year? Time will tell.
A 2021 Project Recap
1. We installed faux-beams in our loft bedroom. Check that one off of the 2021 list. This was more difficult than it might seem, we can assure you, cutting a precise angle to secure a 14' piece of hollow faux-wood to the ceiling isn't as easy as the DIY videos on YouTube will tell you. Nevertheless, we're happy with how it turned out and how it added more depth and texture to this expansive room. Do we still have some spackling and touch-ups to do? Yes. Will you ever notice that in photographs? We hope not!
2. We exposed the floorboards and beams in our kitchen ceiling. This was probably our biggest transformation of the year. The before and after is just...*chef's kiss*. And, it wasn't even something we'd really thought about before jumping into before it happened- for better or for worse. With that said, our kitchen has become quite the statement for us personally, and the theme of bringing out more of our home's historic features has since permeated to the rest of our dwelling. But more on that later.
3. And, the one project that was a huge maybe on last year's list that miraculously become a reality... the primary bathroom renovation. You probably guessed it. Again, we've talked about this project in great detail already, so we'll forgo that here. Just enjoy this cute picture of Cheeto on this lil rug in the bathroom.
4. Hugh installed our backyard fencing and improved our garden game. It's winter now, so it's depressing to look outside. But in Spring and Summer, Hugh went off in the yard. Our gardening strategy continues to evolve and (hopefully) progress with each growing season, and this year, we really enjoyed the fruits of our labor- literally.
5. We did other stuff that can't be summarized in just one photo or blurb. These are those things, besides the ones we're forgetting: we completed our gallery wall, we started updating decor in the rest of our house to create a cohesive aesthetic, we installed pendant lighting above our bar, we started wall molding in our hallway (and hope to finish the stairwell ASAP), and more.
Those are the success stories. As for the things we weren't able to execute according to our last-January-listicle, well, stay tuned for our 2022 backlog. One of these mini-projects was updating the lighting on our second floor to escape the dim glow of boobie/nipple lights. Another was salvaging more old doors to repurpose throughout the house. Both of these tasks we hope to check off this year. And with that, we'll segue straight into 2022.
2022 In A Nutshell
Not that anyone will likely argue with us, but here's a disclaimer anyway: this list is by no means definitive. There will likely be additions, subtractions, and alterations to any and all of these projects as the year progresses, just like last year. Gotta keep things spontaneous, right?
1. We want to finish the chair railing/wall molding in our stairwell. Who knows, perhaps by the time this blog goes live, this project will already be done (but no promises). This is one of those small but impactful changes that really gives a home that extra oomf~. As mentioned again and again, historic charm is something we're always striving to expose, maintain, or re-inject back into our home, and this is one of the many ways we plan to achieve our ever-elusive goal.
2. We hope to have our built-in wardrobe closet completed. This is one of the few projects we are not undertaking ourselves- but we aren't carpenters, so we're fine with that. For us, this is one of the most hotly-anticipated of the year. As you may or may not recall, we demoed our old closet to expand our primary bathroom. So, we've been without a closet since September 2021. Our clothes are everywhere. On dressers. On racks. On shelves. It's fine, everything's fine. Some of y'all are masterful with trendy exposed closets in your chic flats, but it ain't for us. And an added bonus, our built-in will flow along an already-indented space in our bedroom, so we won't lose any square footage. And it'll just look plain fancy.
This is the wall space (green dresser will go into the guest room, don't worry).
And this is the picture of a crooked rendering, but I figured this was better than finding an image online that doesn't even remotely like what we're getting.
3. The guest bedroom revamp. This, if we get around to it, will likely be *the* projects of the year, at least for me (me being Zach, I'm sure Hugh has his own *the* project in his head as well). We love our little southwestern-style haven, but as our home continues to evolve into a rustic-but-elegant, Federal-to-Victorian, townhouse-meets-farmhouse mishmash, the vibe has shifted. We'll keep the cacti, the plant friends, the faux-cowhide rug, and a few other elements of decor, but some will change. You've probably already seen some of our art swap out in this room, and that is just the beginning. But to the good part: we want to board and batten the lower half of this room, and of course, expose the beams with some drywall in between (like our bathroom), and swap out paint colors. Depth, dimension, texture, more height, and more character- we'll take a serving of each please. This project will likely get its own post, but here are the brief inspiration images and rundown.
Board and batten the bedroom walls, except for the window side of the room. We're thinking the color will be a light-to-medium grey, like the above.
Next, or maybe first, depending on we tackle this: expose the beams and drywall in between.
I've been obsessed with the color "Cascades" by Sherwin Williams ever since I saw it in Renovation Rowhouse's Instagram feed, and I'm thinking it will be the perfect color above the wall paneling to really send this room over the edge.
4. And lastly (for this list but not in reality, because we all know how these things go)... the guest bathroom project. Look, we're not exactly thrilled at the notion of another bathroom project after dealing with what we did for the past 4-5 months- hence this being "last" on the list. Still though, we're going to slot this here because it IS something we'd like to get to, eventually. As we mentioned with our primary bath, we opted to save the hardwood floors in the bathroom instead of tiling, and it worked out well for us- except for the fact that we were unable to return our floor tile, so now we have a few boxes of it still sitting in our basement. So, that tile needs to get put to good use, right? We hope so. On the bright side, there are no structural changes or major demolition needed for this small full bath- it's mostly cosmetic and just a facelift. And while we painfully watched our primary bath go through it's snail-paced transformation, Hugh took notes. So, he thinks he can handle it himself. All hail Hugh. Anyway, here's Wonderwall- I mean, a mood board.
Repurpose our floral mosaic tile for the guest bathroom floor, since it's already purchased.
Wainscoting or board and batten for the bathroom walls, possibly a black or a dark blue/green color.
Wallpaper above, if we think there's still enough space to for good visibility.
A cute console sink that will save space, at least visually, with it's slender legs instead of a standard cabinet.
A rustic, square tile backsplash for the bath/shower.
And, that is the end of our (known) plans. I'll refrain from saying "end", as I'm sure just about a billion things will arise between now and December 2022- and I don't even want to think about those things. For now, we'll live in our pretty little imagined bubble where we have a list of ideas that strategically and methodically become actualities. We hope this was an enjoyable read for you all. For us, it might be more daunting than comforting, but alas, we're glad to have you on this journey with us!
