Category Archives: before and after

my man is making a yardscape

  By Karah | April 16, 2013 - 7:08 am | ,
12 Comments

I want to start with a note to express my deepest concern for everyone affected by the events yesterday at the Boston Marathon.  Many of you know I am originally a New Englander and part of my heart will always reside there.  I had a dear friend run in the marathon who, thankfully, finished before the explosions happened. And I’m incredibly grateful that two of my cousins who were at the event are safe and sound … and proud to say one was able to stay and provide help to the injured.  That sports medicine degree is already coming in handy, Taylor. Seriously, my first post title thought was ‘my yard is manscaped’.  As in, my yard was put in order by my man … but we all know that’s not really what that collection of words says, now don’t we.  :) But, to refocus here, I really need to brag on my man for just a minute.  Usually I’m more about mocking him, that’s no secret.  But for anyone who knows us in real life there are a few things that are for sure.

how to get rid of mold {for $2 or less} no scrubbing required

  By Karah | April 5, 2013 - 7:08 am | , , , ,
29 Comments

Now, that title doesn’t really leave much to the imagination.  I was trying to come up with something fun and came up with squat.  :/ Because seriously, when I think of mold it’s hard to be all fun and jokey and hahaha.  That stuff sucks!  There’s really no two ways about it. But lucky for us (I’m not sure in what world this situation constitutes lucky exactly) we’ve actually had to deal with mold on more than one occasion.  So I’m going to give you a little play-by-play of what has worked really well for us in the how to get rid of mold category of DIY. I’ll start by saying that we’ve never had to deal with mold inside.  So, in that arena we are lucky.  And that means that everything you are about to see is specific to how to get rid of mold on the exterior. A not really interesting point of reference is that I have pretty severe asthma.  As in have been hospitalized a few times … once I was in the hospital at the same time as my 96-year-old great-grandmother and my situation was so bad she was the one who had to come visit my room.  So I’m pretty sensitive to breathing concerns, and you might know I’m a huge fan of upcycling ideas, so I’m always looking for ways to stay green.  With all that said, sometimes you just have to go with what works.  

our first do it yourself kitchen

  By Karah | February 28, 2013 - 7:08 am | , , , , , , ,
33 Comments

We’re going to be gearing up to make some major changes in the kitchen of our new house, what they will be I can’t even get my mind around yet, but I’m back in Maryland now trying to wrap up some things with our rental houses.  Seems like a good time to me to take a look back at our first do it yourself kitchen we tackled in the house we call “The Tank”.

painting door knobs {without removing them}

  By Karah | February 21, 2013 - 7:08 am | , , , , , ,
41 Comments

That’s right!  I found the lazy easy way to do something new.  Shocking, I know. Tuesday we talked all about front door paint color choices and empty pots, dead trees and lights without light bulbs. And today we’re talking about painting door knobs … without even removing them. That’s right!

open cabinets {with $32 wood slat backs}

  By Karah | February 4, 2013 - 7:08 am | , , , , , , , ,
38 Comments

Back in December, when I was on my little DIY trip to get some work done on rental properties we have in MD, it was freezing! Well, it actually wasn’t freezing outside but it was down right frigid in the house.  (You can see more of my lovely cold weather DIY outfit here.) That’s where I’ll start to explain that I really did think I had taken some better pictures.  I guess the foggy mess I saw on the camera wasn’t just my breath … but a not-totally-focused or properly exposed picture as well.  Sorry about that! But that doesn’t put a damper on my excitement of the transformation I was able to make in this worn little kitchen in about a week. We started with the counter transformation, then we updated the cabinets … and left most of the cabinet doors off, and then updated the hardware on the cabinets we kept AND then we backed the newly open cabinets to give it a wood slat look on a $32 budget. Let’s remember what the cabinets looked like before …

oh cabinetry, oh cabinetry {rustoleum cabinet transformation}

  By Karah | January 28, 2013 - 7:08 am | , , , , , ,
37 Comments

Thou cabinetree most fair and lovely. But, let me tell you, the cabinetry was not always that way. Yowza! Thanks to one of our tenants we found ourselves with light pink cabinets in the kitchen at one of our rental properties.  No really, thank you previous tenants.

my application for dirtiest jobs {rustoleum transformation}

  By Karah | January 17, 2013 - 7:08 am | , , , , , , , ,
47 Comments

Note: The girls and I have arrived safely in Key West and I’ve already started the house hunt!  If you want to see some of my first impressions and pics out and about check us out on Facebook, Twitter and our brand spankin’ new Instagram account.  As Annie would say … “I think I’m gonna like it here”.  :) So, they say the rooms that make the biggest impression on a person are kitchens and bathrooms. Do you agree?  I think I do. I mean, there are so many ways to make a statement in a kitchen or a bath.  Appliances, a fancy motion activated toilet, a rain shower.  You know, the big ticket items. But what do you do when you’re trying to get the most bang for your buck and aren’t really in the market for over the top amenities?  Heck, what if you’re starting with this?