Sunday, January 12, 2014

Needs vs Wants - Home Improvement style

        Woke up this morning with a feeling that something in this house needs to be updated or changed. You know, the typical "new to us" home owners on going wish list to make the house feel more like home. This feeling was met with an immediate road block because there is no budget at the moment for any house projects. 

     The list of updates/changes is pretty lengthy - of course - with some obvious front runners that will be taking precedence over even simple projects. One of the important ones that need to be addressed first is the door between the garage and living room. During the polar vortex when the Hubs went outside to plow the snow I could feel a chill and smell the exhaust while I was sitting on the sofa. Also that darn door currently opens into the living room ON THE PILED HIGH FUZZY CARPET which means it's dragging against the carpet and wearing it down every time the door is opened. So we'll have to invest in a steel door that seals out the fumes as best as possible, have some fire safety just in case anything starts in the garage and opens into the garage, not the living room. 

At least the door has nice molding around it..., right?

The matted down carpet - boo

    Another update that is on the top of the list is the lighting issue in the office area. We were very fortunate to be able to take the ceiling fans and lights from our old house when we moved so we don't have to spend money there but the Hubs will have to spend time hooking and wiring them all in. Right now we can only be in the office area until the sun goes down..., sounds like the start to a zombie movie. Once the sun goes down, being in that room is useless. 

    Our front door is going to be a big project. I just cant decide which design to go with and what is going on with the sidelites. They are both boarded up right now and the main door is a beast to open and close. There is no natural light coming in because the previous owners painted over the tiny little window there was in the door. I'm a big fan of natural light so we'll obviously go with something that allows for some to come in with privacy since the living area is directly in from there. 

Now you see one sidelite.....

Now you see two sidelites..., its magic!

    One update that would be awesome to do right now is carpeting in the upstairs but this is filed under the "Can wait" project column. The house is sporting some sweet, beat to hell wooden floors. Speaking of the upstairs, the windows will have to be updated as well. They're okay but are definitely on the older side. And the rooms could all use a fresh coat of paint. (Truth be told, I've only paint one wall since we moved. Yes, ONE wall and that was for T.W's solar system project.)

Landing to the upstairs.., yikes!

This is the step near the dining room.., had railing to keep the eaters contained. 

All those glorious nails on the steps..., nice!

    The list goes on. Sometimes just the mere mention of what should be/would be updated sends the Hubs into a fetal position and all he hears is "Lets spend money on this and that and do this". So I have just been keeping a list of things that are projects worth revisiting once other projects are off the list. I did the same thing in the last house we owned. Luckily, this house is more up-to-date than the previous house but it still can use our personalized touch. 

    For now maybe I'll wait my turn to win the lotto - although I think we have to play to win so that's a crap shot. I could always walk endlessly around Home Depot or Lowes and wait for some DIY host to ask me if I want to star in their next episode and let them do anything they want to a room in the house - I would totally be game there! 

    What house updates do you want to see done in 2014? Do you have projects that take over the list before you can get to some fun ones? 

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