I didn't take a lot of pictures during the process of fixing up this house. I should have because we put in a lot of time, money, and energy cleaning this place up. I'll try to give a description of everything we did with each picture.
Front Yard:
We put in a sprinkling system, ripped out a bunch out a bunch of trees and bushes that were on the left side of the house, and reseeded and fertilized the lawn. It looks so much better. We also fixed the poor mailbox that is out on the street. It was completely tipping off its stand and looked extremely sad.
Front of the House:
We had the entire exterior of the house repainted and you can see the tan/grey color that we chose in the small area of siding above the front porch. That color is on all of the siding on the house and covers the entire garage.
The front porch was given a face lift by adding new pillars - we beefed them up quite a bit to mimic the current "craftsman" look that is so popular right now. We also added a complete railing around the porch and down the steps. Before there were just two mismatched white railings on each side of the porch steps. We added a new light next to the front door, painted the door and trim, and upgraded the door knob.
The Back Yard:
The back yard was basically unfinished when we purchased the place. The area near the house was just dirt and weeds and then halfway back where the back of the garage is there was a chain link fence that ran across the backyard, dividing it in half. There was also more chain link at the back of the property where it had been left when a new fence was put in. We took out all the fencing and cleared the whole area. A landscaper came in and put in a sprinkling system, tore everything out, flattened it all, and laid sod. There are a number of fruit trees back there and it will make an amazing back yard for some kids. The lot is a quarter acre so the back yard really is quite big.
From this view you can see the back of the garage. It previously was COVERED in graffiti. It looks great with two coats of paint.
The Garage:
The garage was a project by itself. We added electricity by having our renters dig a trench across the backyard from the house. They were happy to do it because it meant they got electricity and could have an extra fridge out there. We put in outlets, interior lights, exterior lights, and a garage door opener. We also painted everything, put on a new knob on the man door, and cleaned it out. The previous owners had left all sorts of junk in there.
The Living Room:
We basically redid every surface in this room. We added can lighting, painted everything, put in new blinds, and had the wood floors refinished in a darker stain.
The Kitchen:
The kitchen bones were just fine so we left the cabinetry and the counter tops alone. We added can lighting though and it made a world of a difference in the feel of the room.
We painted everything, put in new blinds, and got rid of all the old mismatched appliances and replaced them with new, matching stainless steel.
We also put in a new faucet and installed a disposal where there previously was not one. I had the tile professionally cleaned which made it feel brand new.
The Second Bedroom:
This room got a new light fixture, paint everywhere, and the carpeting ripped out. We initially were planning on putting carpet in there but when we pulled it up we found the original hardwoods so we had them refinished and it was amazing how that wood made the room feel so much cleaner.
This room is next to the master and we took a few square feet from it to create a second closet in the master so there could be a his and hers.
This room is small but could easily be used as an office or a nursery very comfortably.
Main Floor Bath:
This room got a fan installed (all bathrooms need fans!) and I had the tile professionally cleaned. We painted everything but left the original cabinets and fixtures because they were all in excellent condition.
Basement Bedroom #2:
We had everything painted (it used to have a green wall), took out the light-blocking blinds, and put in new pad and carpet.
Basement Bedroom #1:
We had everything painted, took out the light-blocking blinds, installed a new light and put in new pad and carpet.
Master Bedroom:
This is not a large master bedroom by any means, but it is sufficient. I measured and it will hold a king bed with nightstands. We added a closet so that it had two. We installed a new light fixture and blinds and we had the floors refinished once we found the hardwood underneath the carpet. In the new closet we had to add wood flooring but the floor guy did a great job and you couldn't even tell it hadn't always been like that once we got the stain down.
Basement Family Room:
This room received paint and carpet. It already had the can lighting. We took down the blinds in here as well. We also added a small spring loaded door where the water main shut-off is. It was a big hole in the wall before. (See that small box in the middle of the wall on the left?)
Basement Bathroom:
This room got new paint, the tile was professionally cleaned, and we replaced a bunch of the trim work that was falling off. We also installed a new towel rack.
Laundry Room:
This room is teeny and didn't need much help. We just painted and cleaned the tile and then left everything else alone. If I had lived there I would have taken out the shelving and put in cabinetry for more closed storage. But I don't live there :).
Another shot of the giant backyard.
The Driveway:
We didn't do anything to the actual drive itself but we did prune all the bushes that run along the right side of it. We also installed a new light above the side door of the house and we painted that door black and added new hardware. We considered putting railing on this porch when we were doing the front porch but decided against it as we thought it would make things difficult when moving furniture into the kitchen and basement.
Not Pictured:
The stairway and halls. In the stairway we painted and added can lighting where there was no lighting before. The upstairs hallway got a coat of paint, the wood flooring redone, a new doorbell, and new hardware on the built in storage. The basement hallway got new paint and new carpet.
Throughout the house we switched out all of the old cheap gold hardware for brushed chrome everything. Every last door hinge and knob was switched for a new one. Just that small change made a dramatic impact in every room. We also installed an air conditioning unit. We had been advised to put in a swamp cooler because the house was so small, but we wanted it to be nicely cooled throughout the summer.
We had parts of the roof fixed on the back of the house and we also had rain gutters installed. Before water was pooling all around the foundation and we wanted to be sure to get that fixed.
