DIY Our 1970's House Makeover Part Two: Knocking Down Walls

Hey ya'll! I'm back! I've kinda been a hot mess lately, crammed inwards a chamber alongside 2 cats who think they're mini-buffaloes, living off Papa John's, together with struggling to cast a coherent thought amidst the dust together with noise. So, give cheers you lot for bearing alongside me during this weird-house-limbo-time. Despite the dust, I'm thence excited, together with we're finally making progress. So, I've got some fun things to portion alongside you lot today.
Cats + pepperoni pizza + dust = life.

If you lot watched in conclusion week's video of Jesse smashing his agency through the wall, you lot in all likelihood knew what was coming.

We started yesteryear knocking downward the wall betwixt the kitchen together with dining room, together with and then somehow ended upwards knocking downward some other wall, too.

So, let's start alongside the dining room wall first. You may recall that this wall has had several dissimilar looks.

It started out alongside ugly orangish cut down all over it when nosotros foremost moved in.

I painted that cut down equally fast equally I could. This piddling dining room was the foremost room I always painted inwards this house, together with it was thence exciting to run across the orangish cut down disappear nether white paint.

This room marks the offset of my descent into paint-everything-white-madness.

On the opposite side of that wall, inwards the kitchen, I painted a chalkboard environs together with some thrift shop stools. I also painted the outdated tile on the countertop, which was a huge improvement from the 1970's colors of yesteryear it previously sported.

Later on (seen here), I painted the cut down around the look-through white together with spray painted those same stools silver.

It looked much thence better, but if I'm existence totally honest,

I nonetheless didn't love it.

It was a cute piddling area, but totally non functional for our life.

Whenever nosotros receive got people over, I unremarkably terminate upwards sitting on my kitchen countertops alongside 10 people crammed into this piddling kitchen space, all in all likelihood annoyed alongside me that there's nowhere to sit.

Hostess alongside the mostest. Crowned 5 years together with running.

That's a lie.

Awhile back, a proficient friend was over together with nosotros were sitting at this uncomfortable piddling bar area and she looked at me together with said,

'You know...you should knock downward this wall.'

I looked at her similar she had absolutely lost her mind.

I mean, who practice you lot think I am? Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 Fraggle Rock Doozer?

But, Margaret totally planted a seed inwards my caput that never went away, together with for nearly a twelvemonth right away I've wanted to karate chop this wall direct to the ground. When it came fourth dimension to rip upwards the floors, I knew that if I was going to take away the wall, right away was the time. Especially since nosotros were putting the hardwood flooring through the kitchen.

So, belatedly 1 night, Jesse together with I began to receive got downward the wall. We started yesteryear removing the cut down off of the door together with the look-through.

The cut down was pretty slow to remove, but the countertop removal basically turned into an archaeological dig, together with Jesse had to boom a bunch of tile to larn to the 800 screws somebody fastened this affair with.

The #1 inquiry I got later icon that tile countertop was nearly whether or non it was durable. Well, since the pigment is nonetheless intact later getting sledgehammered, yes, it has proven to live on rattling durable indeed. If you lot receive got some sometime 1970's tile stinking upwards the aesthetics of your trouble solid somewhere, I nonetheless highly recommend that epoxy paint.

Totally works.

So, Jesse removed the countertop alongside some manful force. I generally stood in that location alongside a camera, entertaining Jesse alongside song, dance, together with moral support.

Once the cut down together with countertop were gone, nosotros left the residual of the wall for our contractor to finish.

By the side yesteryear side day, the wall was generally gone. There was a large beam (not structural) together with some wiring to live on dealt with, thence the wall stayed partially cutting out similar this for a piddling while.

Take a quick instant to discovery the 1970's linoleum nosotros institute underneath the tile.

Not that I desire that on my kitchen floor, but it kinda reminded me of backsplash tile.

You've come upwards total circle, piddling linoleum.

So, inwards the below picture, I drew some arrows to demo you lot how much further nosotros took the wall out. In a perfect world, I would gut the ceiling inwards the kitchen together with vault it similar the residual of the house, but that's a projection for somebody who isn't me. So, my side yesteryear side best selection was to take away the electrical materials together with the beams together with brand the wall even alongside the ceiling together with side of the house.

So, eventually in conclusion week, that finally happened.

And I've basically spent my calendar week running dorsum together with forth, leaping together with celebrating.

It completely changed the agency this infinite feels, together with I volition finally live on able to comfortably check a tabular array inwards the dining room.

I've non had a dining room tabular array for over 2 years, thence the solar daytime that finally happens, we're going to celebrate. You together with me...so larn ready.

We nonetheless receive got to cut down it out, together with pigment it, together with all sorts of other stuff, but you lot larn the idea.

The step rails has also been partially removed, leaving a prissy hole inwards the middle of my house. The novel 1 should live on getting started soon, but no updates on that merely yet.

Just for perspective, here's that same expanse when nosotros foremost moved in.

And here's the electrical flow condition, alongside a flake of flooring finally installed.

Sidenote: I'm pretty certain I'm going to whitewash the stone fireplace. I'm going to hold off until later the floors are done, thence that I tin john run across how everything looks together, but my gut tells me that that 1970's stone has GOT to go.

I know one-half of you lot are going to freak, together with one-half of you lot are going to celebrate, but I'm pushing forward. I also receive got no thought if it volition fifty-fifty work, but let's gamble, shall we?

I also desire to supervene upon the in conclusion of the outdated forrest light-green calorie-free fixtures inwards the living room.

They each concord unopen to 400 dead bugs at all times. You tin john climb a ladder, construct clean them out, together with in that location volition live on 400 novel põrnikas corpses yesteryear Friday. Sometimes I'm pretty certain somebody is putting them inwards in that location merely to mess alongside me.

Here are a few to a greater extent than pics for perspective.

Here's a sentiment from the opposite way, from when nosotros foremost moved in.

And together with then sometime in conclusion year.

And right away today, alongside a hint of novel flooring. This is actual hardwood, rather than engineered flooring, thence it's merely raw woods correct right away together with doesn't receive got whatever stain on it yet.

I am having quite the province of affairs over picking out a stain color. It's a large commitment, together with frankly, I merely desire to run away together with never return.

I'm staining some samples this calendar week together with volition portion my thoughts inwards my next post. I've decided I don't desire to become super black anymore (thanks to all of your wise suggestions together with stories of lint together with dust), together with portion of me kinda likes the natural wood.

Totally didn't run across that coming.

So, obviously, I'm kinda all over the identify alongside my decision.

To live on continued on that one.

Jesse totally doesn't empathize my mania over choosing a stain color, together with his commons input involves something like

'Yeah, sounds proficient to me. I similar all of the colors.'

The below picture, taken at Señor Taco (home of the best burritos ever), in all likelihood does an accurate chore of depicting how I await at him every fourth dimension he tells me he likes ALL the colors.

Anyways, we'll cross that stain span when nosotros larn there.

For now, let's motion on to the side yesteryear side wall that got knocked down.

See that piddling doorway? There used to live on a rattling old, rattling dysfunctional steal door there, together with it leads into the hallway. It's insanely narrow together with drives us both crazy.

Here's some other sentiment of it later nosotros took the carpet up.

Still narrow together with nonetheless annoying.

Once nosotros took the dining room wall down, the tiny hallway door seemed fifty-fifty to a greater extent than awkward.

So, nosotros decided to take away a large chunk of wall there, too, together with opened upwards up that piddling doorway.

And it's awesome.

It makes the whole infinite experience different.

It also completely opens upwards the hallway together with volition brand my laundry province of affairs a piddling less cramped.

This hallway leads to the invitee bedroom (at the terminate of the hall), the office (to the left of the invitee bedroom), the laundry space, the striped guest bathroom (to my immediate left), and together with then behind me, the master copy bedroom.

Just to laissez passer on you lot some perspective, hither is a crazy moving-picture demo of what this hallway looked similar when nosotros foremost moved in. This below moving-picture demo is taken from the same angle equally the moving-picture demo above.

I apologize if you lot receive got nightmares nearly this hallway of horrors.

I know I did.

So, equally you lot tin john tell, it's actually come upwards a long agency since nosotros moved in. Thank goodness.
Here are a span to a greater extent than views of this expanse today.

Again, nosotros nonetheless receive got to cut down everything out, together with pigment everything, thence squint your eyes.

There's nonetheless thence much to live on done, but I'm thence excited right away that I tin john form of nation what it volition all await similar when it's all done.

It really feels similar a dissimilar house.

And my encephalon is going crazy alongside ideas.

I'm basically starting over alongside most of the rooms because my gustation has totally changed since I decorated our rooms the foremost fourth dimension around. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 few proficient things volition remain, but tons volition change. So it's going to live on actually fun, together with there's going to live on thence much to weblog about.

We'll all await dorsum fondly upon this fourth dimension equally 'The Great Blogging Drought of 2014'.

Before I go, since my in conclusion post, many of you lot receive got sent Tootie your love, wishing her a quick recovery from her truthful cat depression. She cheers you, together with wishes to nation you lot that she is kinda enjoying living inwards the master copy bedroom, napping side yesteryear side to me on the human bed piece I blog.

She occasionally nonetheless gets depressed over her inability to freely roam the house, but she's doing her best to maintain a positive attitude.

I'll live on belongings her tiny mitt until it's all over, don't you lot worry.

Cheese has no comment.

That's all for today, ya'll.

I've nonetheless got some other calendar week or 2 of chaos ahead of me, thence give cheers you lot for existence patient alongside me. I honey ya for it.

'Til side yesteryear side time.

P.S. The other posts inwards the House Makeover serial tin john live on institute here:

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10