When we started house hunting, I was really drawn to the idea of a fixer-upper. I'm not afraid of getting my hands dirty and I have a lot of experience with random things like putting up drywall, using various saws, and laying tile.
Our house was listed as "move-in ready," which from a real estate perspective is true. That's not to say though that there isn't a long list of projects that need to be done. Some are bigger than others and some are unexpected projects that have come up since we moved in but here's a full list of everything we're hoping to tackle in the house! A few weeks in, I have to say, I'm so happy we didn't get a fixer-upper! There's enough to tackle in our house that I'm happy to not have to install new doors throughout the entire house!
1. A full kitchen renovation - I really hope we can make this happen this year but I know what kitchens cost. I've hated every kitchen I've ever had so it's super important for me to have a kitchen that I love. Right now, I definitely don't love our kitchen. I'm not a fan of butcher block countertops and honestly, I could take or leave the farmhouse sink. Even aside from that, the cabinets were repainted with flat paint as opposed to semi-gloss paint, so while they photograph well they don't look very good in person. Luckily, the appliances are all new and the layout is perfect so we aren't looking at a total kitchen overhaul. Inspiration.
2. A new pantry - Our pantry has an organizing system but it's rotting and needs at least one other row of shelves. Plus, the walls inside are really scuffed up and need a lot of spackle so I want to take down the whole system and put in one that's a little more functional. Inspiration.
3. Remodeling the bathrooms - All three bathrooms are in rough shape. They have horrible linoleum floors, bad lighting, vanities that are falling apart, and one of them is missing a vanity mirror. I also want to pull these fixtures down ASAP! Inspiration.
4. Built-in Bookshelves - This is literally my dream. The first time I saw the house, I said that this back wall in the living room needed serious help. I can't wait to tackle built-ins and be one step closer to my dream of having a Beauty & the Beast style library in my home. Inspiration.
5. Installing a fireplace mantle and giving the fireplace a facelift I think adding the mirror helps but this little wall has so much potential! The DIY Playbook recently featured a story on Instagram in which they gave their fireplace (which looks a lot like mine!) a makeover. It definitely gave me the confidence I need to do the same to ours without worrying about melting anything! Inspiration.
6. Exposed brick in the office. - Most Baltimore (and DC) row houses have exposed brick and I'm a little disappointed that ours doesn't. Luckily, I can easily change that! How great would this space look with the back wall done in brick?! Inspiration.
7. Remodeling the laundry room - For better or for worse, we've already started this project. When we moved in, our washing machine was full of black mold and nothing would get it clean. We tried having the gasket replaced but the machine was too old, so less than a week after moving in, we had to replace the machine. Luckily, we were able to get a good deal since it was the end of the year! The laundry room had the same linoleum as the bathrooms so, once we got the machines out, we tore that up and laid new flooring (it was NOT as easy as that sounds). While I love the new flooring, I realized that the paint color doesn't look right with it so we're going to repaint the laundry room and install a chandelier that drops down to replace the fluorescent lighting and remedy the horrible lighting in the room! When I come home from work, this is usually the room I come in through so I really want this room to feel homey! Inspiration.
8. Fixing the doors - The weatherstripping on our front and back doors was completely painted over, ruining it. Unfortunately, new weatherstripping hasn't helped keep the temperature on the first floor at a reasonable level. Not only is this horrible for our heating bill but we can't even stand to be there. I have to wear my winter coat just to do laundry! I think we need to start with storm doors to hopefully keep some of the cold air out!
9. Painting and staining the stair rails - I am not a fan of oak. I don't know if I want to stain the banister and paint the rails or if I want to stain the whole thing. I'm leaning toward the former. What do you think? Inspiration.
11. Replacing all light switches and faceplates - This is a super annoying project. When we moved, almost all of the outlets and faceplates had been painted over. The ones that hadn't, are just really grimy. This was one of the first things I wanted to take on but I haven't managed to do it yet.
12. Seal the hole above the television - There's a giant hole behind this faceplate that was supposed to be sealed before we moved in, but we ended up with this faceplate instead. I bought some wire mesh that I'm going to patch it up with and then spackle and paint it. Then, I'm going to hang some frames around the TV to give the wall some color!
I consider us really lucky that aside from the washing machine and the doors, these are all cosmetic projects that will just help make the house feel more like our home! It's a long list but I think we can manage all of these this year! As we're making progress, I'll share before and afters and projects on my blog! I think the first things we're going to tackle from this list are the outlet covers, the fireplace, and the office!
If you own a home, what were some of the first projects you did in your house?
