This post has gone through so many reiterations and promptly forgotten about that … well, it’s more sad than funny. First off, pregger brain is real. Second, newborns are adorable little tyrants and any ‘free time’ new parents may have is devoted to basic living functions like eating, sleeping, and, um, pooping. For all of us.
Example A: this post. It’s about our dining room makeover, which was a first trimester project. It was completed, more or less, long before Anna Bear made her debut.
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| That's a lot of swatches |
Or this:
The wainscotting was done, the walls and trim were primed, and it was time to paint. We selected Olympic’s Admiralty, a gorgeous navy, that had been a candidate in our bedroom but lost to Cozy Corner.
As you can see by the lack of 40-week bump, this was done waaaaay at the beginning of the year. We covered our new wainscoting (which turned out awesome, thanks to Mike’s handiwork) to protect it from drips. Other than that, I didn’t bother taping off to cut in. What can I say? I live dangerous.
Before the navy paint, we were debating whether or not to paint the trim in here. Luckily, the navy really warms it up, so we decided to leave it be. We did, however, paint the crown and then painted the once-navy raised ceiling a soft gray with just a wee hint of blue in it. It’s subtle in the camera, but it turned out perfect. It gives just enough contrast that you see the white crown but it doesn’t close the ceiling in.
Before I show you the after shot, let’s take a trip down memory lane: The listing photo.
Oh baby.
But now, it’s a little more like this!
What still needs to be done?
- Replace the chandelier with something less massive
- Paint and reattached vents
- Add additional decor
- Replace tile with hardwoods
- Enjoy!
Finding the table was an arduous journey that we have detailed in a long draft post. However, I think at this point, the short story will do. Our dining room is 11 x 11.5 feet, so very nearly square and a weird size for most tables these days. We wanted a table that could seat 6-8 people (8 extended) without becoming uncomfortable. Mike dislikes round tables, and an extended rectangle’s ends would be too close to the walls for chairs … and kind of defeat the point of extending it for additional seating.
Way back in early spring, during the local furniture meca’s massive shareholder sale, we set out to find a table. Our pre-sale search revealed a possibility: a squat rectangle that butterflied into a square that could seat 8. Only kicker? It was counter height. We combed the internet for a similar table at standard height within our price range and seemed to be coming up short. So, when the sale came around, we were contemplating chopping the legs down (and hoping/praying we didn’t turn it into a wobble).
Of course, the store had rearranged the tables, so it took some serious hunting before we found the counter height table and then flagged down a sales person. This table was also espresso colored, so we were hoping for some finish choices that wouldn’t be so dark. We had a good saleswoman who listened to our dilemma about table heights; she offered to see if this manufacturer made the table in the standard option. No such luck. But then she disappeared into the special order tomes.
When she came back, she found essentially the same table by a different manufacturer, and it came in a walnut finish. Sale price? Right around $200! We were stoked but a little hesitant, because it’s hard to judge the finish by the picture, and “walnut” seems like a fluid shade, judging by the floor samples of other tables carrying the same label. The chairs that came with the table weren’t oo our liking (seemed heavy for the space), so we decided to forgo getting the matching set at the discounted price and figure out what we wanted down the road.
A month later, our beauty arrived, and we love it! It looks very rich and warm in person and picks up warm tones from the trim.
The day after Anna was due (but not remotely interested in coming out), we spotted some parsons chairs on Craigslist in a neighboring city. We also spotted two windsurfers for sale at a cut-rate price in another city. So, of course, we figured we should get both. Why not? I was only 40 weeks pregnant.
We figure we can buy more chairs in a contrasting fabric for fun, or get matching ones from the original store.
Now to take care of that chandelier!
