Wednesday, January 11, 2012

Home Goals 2012

The Nester is hosting a linky party on our Home Goals for the coming year. Honestly, when I started to think about my list, I couldn't get past my living room. It's all I can think about lately, so I decided to do a detailed list of the things I need to do in there and then a more general list of the rest of the house.

The living room list will also serve as a bank of before photos because I fully intend to have before and afters of that space! This is my living room.


Thanks to Ashley at The Handmade Home, I have a whole list of ideas to do in this room. Click on over to see her creative take on improving this room. I think she pretty much nailed it!

Changing wall color.
Paint a floor canvas to replace the rug.
Art on the walls.
Adding a gallery wall to the empty space you can't see to the entry way.
Possibly hanging some curtainy things from the ceilings on either side of the columns.
Slipcovering the Craig's list couches I got to replace the leather ones.
Something for above the fireplace mantle.
Panel the ceiling in wood planks.
Update/replace ceiling fan.
Add/Update lamps.

Turn this old thing into a coffee table on casters.


Paint and slipcover this chair and table combo.


Paint this bad boy a lighter color and remove the arch thing from the top to update the piece.


Now, on to the rest of the house:

Dining room - paint, wainscoting or board and batten, turn the thrift store table I got into a farmhouse table, some kind of window treatments, paint the bookcase.

Laundry room - clean out completely, install some kind of lockers or benches with storage for kid's stuff, install a counter top and plugs as a work surface for ironing, crafts, etc.

John's room - paint, new bed, gun rack, shelving.

Girl's room - paint, chair rail and wainscoting, artwork for the walls, closet organization, paint dresser, update fan/light fixture.

Outside - landscaping, bordering driveway with a concrete curb, planting hydrangeas, hollyhocks, garlic, redo garden with raised beds, update chicken coop, flower beds around trees.

I think that should keep me busy for a while. I might be able to do a project every few months, maybe more if I'm good with my time. We'll see. Regardless, it feels good to get it all down in writing.

P.S. This list doesn't even include all the areas I want to purge and clean. That actually needs to happen before I do any decorating/improvements. I have Jules @ Pancakes and French Fries for encouraging me in that area with her William Morris posts. You can read more about it here and join in here.

What are your house plans for this year?




I'm linking up to the following blogs:

The Nester

Jules @ Pancakes and French Fries

15 comments:

Anonymous said...

You're starting to sound like me with the loooooong home improvement list. :)
With that said...do you REALLY wanna know my list? haha
-Leilani

p.s.
In an unrelated story, I've set a goal to drink at least one cup of green tea a day.

Karah @ thespacebetweenblog said...

Wow, these are some great goals, it will be so fun to see them all come together! A few blog friends and I introduced a new challenge idea Monday and it would be so fun if you want to join. If you have a second, check in at http://thespacebetweenblog.wordpress.com/2012/01/09/imagine-the-impossibilities-challenge/ to learn more, and feel free to email me if you have any questions!
Karah @ thespacebetweenblog

pamelotta said...

Leilani - Yes, I want to see your list! I love lists. Not just mine but everyone else's, too! I guess you could say I'm a lover of minutiae!

Karah - What a fun project you've got going! I'll have to take a couple of small projects from my big living room project and work on them. Then, once I've got that ball rolled out of the way, the rest should be easy!

Thanks for inviting me. I can't wait to see how you pull off your one screw gallery wall!

C.G. Koens said...

Thanks for stopping by the blog - lovely to "meet" you! Sounds like you have a long list to tackle, but better to have something to work towards, right?! I was just noticing that you're also working on the 52 Bites book (my book review today) - it's good, isn't it?! :-) Have a good week and thanks again for stopping by (and how super funny about the pasta machine!). :-)

Jules said...

I have that 52 Bites book. It gave me a list of things to do, too. I need to find that list! (God, I'm a mess.)

Great job on your list. You have a lot of DIY on yours...brave girl. I'm not so great at that stuff.

Mary Ann Pickett said...

you have great ideas! So much potential. Happy New Year.

Anonymous said...

Can't wait to see some of your DIY projects! They sound great.

pamelotta said...

@Jules - I only know about the 52 Bites from seeing it on your life list, thank you! We'll see how I do on all the DIY's. I have lots of ideas and not so much time.

@classic-casual-home - Thanks! The only thing that motivates me is all that potential!

@jenniferdouglas - I'm hoping to do one this weekend. We shall see...

Lais said...

Love the idea of updating the large cabinet, that will be great! Came over from Jule's link, so glad to get to meet you. I love crafty ideas, I'll have to check out your link to your friend's site, thanks!

Monica said...

Hi Pam and thanks for stopping by my blog during your WMP tour. :) You have come up with quite a list with lots to do. Will make a huge impact and I am looking forward to following along.

Kelly said...

Hi there, linking over from "WMP." I just love your angled ceiling and tall fireplace in the top picture! Look forward to seeing you check some (all?!) items off the list.

Lisa @ Lisa Moves said...

that family room has great bones, and the coffee table looks like a great project. Can't wait to see how it comes out!

pamelotta said...

@Lais - Thanks! I'm excited about doing it, but a little nervous, too. You should totally check out Ashley's blog. She's the one who came up with all the ideas for that room. Thanks for stopping by!

@Monica - Yes, my list is a little ambitious! I'm hoping to start with some small, easy projects to build up some momentum and then maybe the bigger project won't seem so daunting! ;) Thanks for stopping by!

@Kelly - Me, too! It's been a long time coming. I turned 40 last year and something inside of me just snapped. Probably would've been a lot easier on me if I had done a little at a time over the years, but I just didn't know where to start. Thanks for stopping by!

@Lisa - I think I've decided to work on the coffee table this weekend. I'll take lots of pictures. Wish me luck and warm weather and thanks for stopping by! ;)

May said...

Oh, my gosh you jogged my memory. I painted a floor cloth on preprimed canvas 10 yrs ago. Loved the process and the finish product. Why have I not done another?! Maybe now I will!

pamelotta said...

I have never done it, but I'm dying to! I know rugs are an investment, but I just can't see spending hundreds of dollars when I can use that money for something else and just put some paint on a canvas. Glad you were inspired. I'll try to move that one closer up to the top of the list. Seems like I could easily do that in a weekend.