Making it our house: August 2013

Well, we are officially moved in as of one week ago and slowly recovering from the extreme exhaustion that comes with moving. My husband and I have decided this was quite possibly the most painful experience of our lives. We hate to complain because we LOVE Martha and our new neighborhood but, WOW, moving with two kids is a challenge! We thankfully had help from our wonderful parents and amazing new neighbors!

So... here is the first step in Martha's transformation. We had the painters start the day after we closed and after 5 days of working we were at completion for phase one..."Martha's Base Layer". In addition to the painters work, my husband replaced all the door hardware and hinges and painted the brick on the fireplace.

The brass hardware graveyard.

Here are some pictures of our main room before. We are going to call this the family room.

Martha decorated nicely in her colonial inspired look.

The day we closed, empty.

And... here she is with a new coat of paint. The white is Benjamin Moore, Oxford White and the black is Sherwin Williams, Caviar. It's quite a change! The black trim was a bold move for us but white was going to be difficult considering the existing blue.

Here are some images of the current state of affairs. Our sofa and side tables should arrive mid-September. Window treatments are here but not installed.

This is going to be my work space. I have still not found the perfect work desk yet and I'm going to call this area the "living office".

Quick of picture of the entry with the black.

The dining room was also a complete transformation. We added the boxes under the chair rail for detail. Still searching for a new lighting fixture and the rest of the furniture is on the way!

This is probably my favorite room of the house and my favorite transformation. I like to call it the sun room. It opens up to the deck. Lesson learned on this one... don't spray paint the inside of your fireplace without covering the entire floor! We had a little mishap that left black paint dust all over the floor. Luckily, it came up.

The master bedroom is still a major work in progress. We are getting new furniture and need to add lighting. The black ceiling was a "why not?" moment. We also added the boxes on the ceiling. I knew it was risky but like the way it turned out. It makes the room feel special compared to the other bedrooms. To lighten the dark ceiling we will add a pendant fixture in the middle box and lamps or wall sconces beside the bed (anyone know a good electrician in Northern VA?).

The boy's rooms are the most fun! They are both similar to their previous bedrooms but are looking fresh and new in the house. I still need to finalize the picture placement and hang Max's antlers but they are close to complete. We also hope to add crown molding to finish the rooms.

Max's Room Before

Little Max enjoying his new room. This shot should look better with a swag pendant lamp in the corner and larger, more colorful artwork above the crib.