Front Porch Improvements- Phase 1

Toward the end of July, I started getting a few estimates on replacing the metal railing in the front of the house (It was the very last item on my 2012 List). We have a 500 sq ft area in the front of my house I lovingly refer to as "the basketball court". Its awkward! There is half a cement wall topped with metal fencing, columns topped with excessive lighting and a broken gate. Here is a glimpse back before we moved in: 

The area to the left in the photo above.

I decided I wanted to replace the metal fencing with something vinyl and less ornate to blend in more with the house and our style. I got two estimates: One from the company that replaced our fence and the other a local company recommended by my mother. Both estimators were sure to remind me to take the existing fencing to the scrapyard as they believed I would get a decent amount for it.  The estimates came in within $100 of each other but wanted permits and surveys. I didn't really understand why since we were not adding anything or going anywhere near the perimeter of my property. I decided it was more than I was ready to take on at that time.

We have been saving money, hoping to tackle this project before the end of the year. About three weeks ago, I passed a fencing company while driving to the office and they had a different style of vinyl pickets that I LOVED. I called and scheduled an estimate for the following week. The estimator was a former mental health professional so immediately we hit it off. He came in with the best price AND stated no permit was needed! After reviewing everything with Tim, we decided to move forward and are scheduled for new fence installation on 11/29.

So last Wednesday, I decided we should take down the existing metal fence, load it in the truck and take it to the scrap yard. This is what it looked like when we started:

Taken from the front door, looking left. 

Taken from the front door, facing the street. 

And this is what it currently looks like:

It definitely feels a lot more open! We took the metal fence to the scrap yard on Friday and got a grand total of $16.20 which was definitely a disappointment! This project will be ongoing and likely occur in phases as the budget permits. I finally have a vision of how to utilize this space but there is still a lot to be decided. This weekend we will be patching and painting the stucco in preparation for the new fencing installation. We still haven't decided which lights we want to keep nor have we picked out new fixtures. We haven't decided on the flooring either: tile, stamped concrete, or pavers. The goal is to build a fire pit, add a rug and a conversational piece. No idea when this will all get done but it is nice to finally have a direction for the "basketball court".

Aspect Backsplash Reveal

Over two months later, I finally got around to taking pictures of the finished backsplash. Honestly, my kitchen is rarely clean during the work week so that is one huge reason behind the delay.

So here we go... This is what our kitchen looked like when we moved in. This is actually before the new microwave was installed above the stove. We have a small galley kitchen so there is not a ton of wall space which kept the cost of the backsplash fairly low for us.

Not too much has changed since then, aside from switching out the faucet. We started with the stove side of the kitchen and began in the center of the wall and worked our way out.

We did not trust the peel and stick adhesive alone. I cook daily and wasn't sure if the adhesive would hold up to the heat in the kitchen. So, we applied the tiles using Loctite adhesive. Despite this is was a relatively easy installation process. The worst part? The cuts! The Aspect website offers various cutting method but you WILL need a chop saw. We also used a table saw for certain cuts.

We quickly reached the other side of the room...

However, things became much more difficult at this point. See my kitchen wall used to be an exterior wall and therefore has a "window" cut out that looks into the addition that was added in 1997. Add walls that run off and we have a cutting nightmare. I really wanted to tile all the way to the ceiling around the "window". This is the area I am referencing:

At this point, we decided it was not all going to get done in a day. We were tired and frustrated with all the odd cuts. We tackled it again the following weekend and this is what it looks like now.

The only other change is that we switched out the white switch plates for stainless steel. We are really pleased with they way it turned out. It has been up over two months and we have had ZERO issues or complaints. It is super easy to clean since there is no grout. We just wipe it with stainless steel cleaner when we clean our appliances.

Cost of tiles, adhesive and new switch plates was slightly over $300. So while Aspect tiles may not necessarily be cheaper than a traditional tile backsplash, it is great, easy DIY solution to changing the look of a kitchen.

While I love the look of the subway tile with the Santa Cecilia granite... Apect just came out with a new matte stainless Honeycomb design. Sadly, I am a little to late on that one :)

Welcome November

We had a fun yet productive weekend. Saturday was a neighborhood yard sale. We didn't do much prep for it but ended up making around $200 which isn't bad for 4 hours of sitting outside in the gorgeous Fall weather.

Speaking of Fall, this weekend the Halloween decorations went away. Out came the more traditional Fall decorations...

 Saturday night we went to the 11th annual Safety Harbor Food and Wine Festival. It's a fun event that supports local charities. We met up with some friends, walked the festival and ate dinner at Nantucket Bucket.

Today we went to church, dropped off left over garage sale stuff at Goodwill, and did a little shopping at Nature's Food Patch. We squeezed in a trip to the gym, washed both cars and prepped for the week ahead.

GREAT weekend!

Midweek Confessions

+ I woke up this morning with a sore throat. Not that there is ever a good time to get sick but this week is really not a good time.

+ You can tell that the time change is quickly approaching. The daylight hours are definitely becoming shorter. Because it is so dark in the mornings, we have all been sleeping in till 7:30 which makes the morning a little too rushed.

+ I am SO glad to put September behind us! It was a rough month for the Harrigan's. One of the cars was in the shop the majority of the month footing a $1600 repair bill. Between the added cost and being a one car couple, it was a stressful month. On top of that we had a bunch of other unexpected expenses including broken phones, weed wackers and a hefty school bill. Hello, October you are a welcome sight :)

+ While I have still been running, I am becoming increasingly aware of how quickly December is approaching. I am not feeling so prepared for the Color Run.

+ I have been OBSESSED with Iced Cinnamon Coffee from Dunkin. Like hitting up the drive-thru everyday obsessed. Sadly, I am also realizing how quickly this adds up and need to calm it down.

+ We had friend's over on Sunday and they brought their 5 month old doxie pup. This is the result of their play date:

+ Speaking of Lily, the food and tummy issues continue. I am feeling very frustrated with the whole situation. The vet has found nothing wrong with her yet she has unexplained stomach issues and is super picky. We have eliminated duck from her food, tried a medication, switched to a simple diet with limited ingredients...nothing works! Today, I made another trip to my favorite store, Dog Lovers, and the employees were super helpful and understanding. I am keeping her on her regular food she loves and adding a pro biotic...fingers crossed that this is a solution!
+ This morning, it was pouring right around the time I needed to leave for work.  I didn't pull the car into the garage last night for some reason. I run a group at 9:00 am and knowing that I had a room full of people waiting on me, my sweet husband ran out in the rain and pulled my car into the garage so I wouldn't show up drenched. Little things like this make me remember how blessed I am.

October Instagram Challenge

Tim and I both got new phones. The new iPhone 5 to be exact. I previously had the 3GS so for me this was a HUGE upgrade. I am constantly amazed by the clarity of the pictures compared to my old phone. Enter my current obsession with Instagram.

A couple of friends posted the October photo a day challenge and I am going to give it a go. Here are the specifics:

My instagram name is megmatuza, if you want to follow me in the challenge!

1980's Kitchen Makeover

Way back here, I mentioned that my parents finally got around to updating their kitchen. Over the years, they had gotten new counters, appliances ( as they broke), and added a backsplash but everything else is original to the house when the built it back in 1987.

Since they already had granite counters they liked,they were able to salvage them and simple buy a matching Santa Cecilia slab for the new additions. They also upgraded to all new stainless steel Samsung appliances, ripped out the drop lighting and got rid of the peninsula. They salvaged the backsplash as they still liked it and it is pretty neutral. The flooring was replaced with "wood" tile planks that I LOVE! And the best part... the new cabinets!

This is my dad's docking station for ipad, phones etc. 

The photos make everything appear more orange than in real life! The kitchen looks double the size with the removal of the peninsula. The added a build in table instead along with a docking station. They also added a granite sink which I think looks great and breaks up the steel.

Luckily, my dad was able to do a lot of the work himself which saved them a TON! All the cabinets were ordered from Lowe's and my dad did the install. He also did all the electrical work and installed the crown. I painted. They hired someone to rip out the old tile and granite and install the new.

While it may not be 100% my style, I think it looks fantastic and is such a huge improvement over the "before". What do you think?

Speaking of kitchens... I still owe a backspash update on my own kitchen!

Mailbox Makeover

Part of what we worked on during the Labor Day weekend was fixing up our mailbox. It was looking rather rusted and weathered.

The plan was to detach the mailbox and give it a coat of primer and paint. Lowe's is no longer selling Krylon spray paint so it was on clearance for $1.25/ can.... I bought the remaining three cans of primer + paint in white.

While I was at the store, Tim attempted to remove the mailbox from the post and ledge. The screws were melted into the mailbox which made this a rather difficult task. We started to wonder if we would have to replace the post as well since we could not remove the mailbox from the ledge. Luckily, we were able to saw the mailbox off the ledge, saving the ledge but ruining the mailbox. The mailbox was almost rusted through on the inside so back to the store I went to purchase a new mailbox. While I was there, I also picked up this mailbox sign:

Tim set to work on washing the post and ledge. I taped up my new mailbox sign and gave it two coats of oil rubbed bronze paint. Luckily, they give you a great template for laying the numbers so there is no guesswork in placement.

 While that was drying,  we coated the existing post and ledge with two coats of white spray paint. After everything was dry. We attached the mailbox.

I originally wanted the mailbox sign to hang off the ledge, below the mailbox. But since we had to add a bracket to support the weight of the mailbox a few months' back, this was not an option. Second choice was to hang the mailbox vertically, along the post.

Not too bad for an hour of work?

Oh and while we were adding curb appeal, I decided to address the dying flowers around the tree. I pulled them all out and purchased four large ceramic pots at Lowe's. I don't think I ever realized how expensive these pots can be! Luckily, these were on clearance, saving me $5/ pot. I also picked up 4 plants at $2.50 each.

Total cost for our labor day project= $115 (One can of spray paint- $1.25, New Mailbox- $18.98,  Mailbox Sign- $19.98,  4 ceramic pots- $60 and 4 plants- $10).