Door paint and knobs

Keeping busy during the pandemic has been no problem. I am finding ways to stay sane and pass the time for sure! For example, I decided that all the upstairs doors needed new paint because the old paint was splotchy, chipped (darn dog!) and I didn't like the old door handles. Builder grade brushed nickel just wasn't my thing.  I wanted the doors to look old and vintage. 

AFTER

BEFORE

I decided on this cool paint by Behr called Ultra Scrub Defense in a Matte finish because apparently it looks like Chalk Paint with a flat finish but you can still clean it (unlike regular flat paints.)  I thought it might be bit risky but so far so good. It seems really durable because I have tried to personally scratch it off and I can't.  I chose this color called Silver Celadon because that was one of the Chalk paint colors that looked really nice.  I had the guy at Home Depot color match it. 

I painted every single door inside and out (except the kids interior doors)  All in all, 17 doors!  They all got new door handles, all by Nostalgic Warehouse.  For most of the doors I chose a Classic Rosette Waldorf knob in the Timeless Bronze Finish. Some are passage knobs and others are privacy knobs. 

In the bathroom for the closet doors, I used two Classic Rosette knobs with a white porcelain finish. 

This is the view of the toilet room and the door leading out into the Master Bedroom.

This is the linen closet and my clothing closet in the bathroom.

There are 5 total doors in the master bath! Because all these doors have bits of molding at the floor I decided to paint this trim as well to make the transition between doors look more smooth. 

This is a close up of the Waldorf knob. It is so pretty in real life.

Just FYI, I used the 2-3/8″ backset which is standard size. There is a large size if your door have bigger holes. Here is our hallway which looks so much better with this door color and white walls.

Looking at this photo makes me really want to change those DIY light fixtures I did 5 years ago. I took the old "boob" lights and spray painted them and added crystals where the glass was.

My children all got specialty colored doorknobs for their closets. I thought it was a fun touch of whimsy to their rooms. They also lock because this gives them a tiny private space of their own to dress and not worry about their siblings coming in. Luckily their closets are big enough and act like a little "kid cave."  Here is a link to the blue Waldorf knob.

Pink knob for the girl. I just realized the pink and green door knobs are slightly different than the blue and clear. They have a unique cut for the glass.

Emerald Crystal Doorknob in a brass finish for the middle child. 

Now that's you've seen the upstairs, here are some of the downstairs knobs.  I have replaced all of them with Nostalgic Warehouses Classic Rosette but in an antique bronze finish. I'm debating painting these doors in the same color as upstairs. They have also become scratched and there are some touch ups that I've done that don't look so great. 

The downstairs bath has an old vintage door with the original crystal knob. Probably my inspiration for the rest of the house!

The panty door is heavy and solid wood with glass so this doorknob looks especially nice. 

The downstairs linen closet. You can kind of see some splotches here. 

One last photo of knobs that aren't Nostalgic Warehouse. These I picked up a long time ago at Home Goods. They are double dummy knobs which just need to be held to push the door open and don't turn. I may change them at some point but not sure yet.

Well I can say that it was quite fun learning to dismantle door knobs and become a pro at installing door knobs. One thing that did become a little tricky was not having the door latch that attaches to the frame line up exactly. Joe came to my rescue and chiseled away at the hole and then filled the old areas with wood chips and glue. Thank goodness. I would have given up or hired a professional at that point. I must say door knobs can become a little investment, but it's like adding jewelry to your house that you can admire everyday and you don't need to change them if you invest in nice ones.


Happy Almost Spring!!

xo

Cathleen

Pretty in Pink Foyer

I painstakingly finished hanging the pink Anthropologie "Thin Air" wallpaper in the Foyer this past weekend.  Not sure why I thought going around three arches with wallpaper was a good idea. But luckily Joe came to the rescue with brand new razor blades.  As you recall I did one wall late last year and Santa brought me two more rolls for Christmas so I could appease my anal retentiveness and my need for continuity.   So it went okay, but I highly recommend a pattern that doesn't necessarily need to line up, unless you don't mind spending gobs of money on wallpaper and don't mind a lot of waste. I am pretty frugal by nature at least when it comes to throwing things in the garbage so I was happy I could use every last inch of this wallpaper. 

We really have two foyers, since I'm standing in the first one with gray stripes by the front door looking into my pink one.  Joe says this is my Winchester Mystery House. If you don't know the story of Mrs. Winchester, she was constantly changing her house without the help of any professional so things were haphazard. It was meant as a compliment that I can continue experimenting at my leisure in what things make me happy.  I don't follow rules, just having fun and learning as I go. 

I still have a cute little pink poinsettia in the foyer. The last of the Christmas Decor. 

My boys aren't really keen on the color pink and floral designs.  But hopefully if they stare at this house long enough they will come to appreciate it. Insert evil laugh *here.*

I need dining room Chair advice!  I am tiring of these ruffles on the Parson chairs. I can either try to find Parson chair covers that are more modern and tailored. Or I can try to find some pretty vintage arm chairs.  I will keep you posted. 

I am so happy to have this finished. Wallpaper is quite frankly a pain in the @ss.  I guess that's why they recommend professionals tackle this.  

I'm off to frame some new art.  Happy Monday!

xo

Cathleen

 

Persian Rugs

Happy New Year!! Spent the whole day on the 1st of the year putting away Christmas decorations, cleaning, and displaying some new items for the new Year!  A few rugs from Turkey came, a beautiful runner in pinks and blues for the upstairs hallway and a "prayer" rug for entry way into the kitchen. 

I absolutely love the quality of vintage rugs. You can't even compare them with new rugs. They were built to last. This runner is from the 1950's and has minimal wear.  I purchased a thick rug pad to go underneath to both protect the floor and the rug from more wear. 

This rug is 11' long by about 3' wide.  It really brightens up the hallway.

And downstairs I got this 4' by 3' prayer rug in teal.  I love the color so much and it brings life to this little space. 

I'm waiting on one additional rug for the kitchen and in the meantime, I will be adding more wallpaper to these curved walls. Wish me luck!

xo

Cathleen
 

A Lofty Loft

The upstairs is feeling more light and airy after pulling up all of the carpet in the loft and in the hallways and installing new 12mm laminate flooring by Dream Home St. James in Flint Creek Oak. We also painted all of the walls in Paper White by Benjamin Moore in a Satin finish. The boob lights even got a DIY transformation! Here a couple Before Pics. 

So much Beige!

Some progress photos for you! 

All of the light fixtures in the loft and hallways were taken down, the glass removed, crystals strung in it's place by tiny holes that we made in the base and the base was painted with oil rubbed bronze spray paint.  We added a black curtain rod with white semi-sheer cotton rouged drapes.

The vintage walnut campaign style desk was a Restore find. Pretty awesome huh? It was in excellent shape. We added an Ikea floating bookshelf above it and mostly white accessories.

The bookcase and big cozy Thomasville chair and a half was a Restore find too. The bookcase was stained a light gray and I added a cute bird cotton throw and two comfy pillows to the chair to encourage some reading. The kids love this spot (they also like to hide behind that big chair.)

The vintage white desk lamp looks great on the desk and the clock give this whole room a vintage school house feel.

I hung this gallery wall early on so the kids could start feeling like this was their home right away. We  had all of these frames in our old house, just in a slightly different layout. A skinny table in this spot with a lamp is on my list of to-do's.

This is the entrance to the Master Bedroom on the left and the game room with the double doors.

This little cove is just outside our Master Bedroom.  We could probably add a table in here too.

A close-up shot of the transformed "boob" lights. I found the crystals on Amazon and the spray paint from Lowes.

The loft is not fully finished. I would like to find a colorful rug for the area in front of the big comfy chair and some more art for the Hallways. Eventually we'll add crown molding as well.

Hope everyone has a great week!

xo
Cathleen