Monday, July 14, 2008

Life at the Lake ~ Renovations Series #1...




We are finally nearing completion of the Lake House Renovations.


You've heard me talk about it since the summer began.


Soon the remodeling will be complete, and I can retire my paint brush....for a very long while! "smiles"


The Lake House consists of two duplexes, a bottom unit and a top unit with a loft. My FIL resided in the bottom until he passed away a couple of years ago, and we lived full~time in the upstairs unit until we bought our current home 3 years ago. Combine age and hurricane damage from years ago, we were long overdue for a remodel. We decided to tackle the bottom unit first, and hopefully will do the upper unit this winter. The upper unit mostly requires only cosmetic updates.


Over the next few days, I would like to invite you to join my tour....


Hope you enjoy your visit!


I have done a lot of refurbishing with pieces we had, and others that I found thrifting and junkin'! Now that is where my heart is! "smiles"Some people rescue animals, I rescue things! LOL!...probably no real comparison, but this is my passion!


We will begin our "Tour" on the porch. We had these chairs, weather~beaten and ravaged by years left exposed to the elements. Kevin tightened arms and replaced missing screws, and I painted them black....





I found the blue cushions at Wal~mart on clearance for $4 and here the chairs now adorn the back porch, facing the lake.




Now on into the living room area...


I wish I had taken more "before" pics, but a lot of things were moved out before I was able to get some shots. You can see the appliances and furniture out on the porch. The entire duplex was originally sprayed "builder's white." This was my first experience with the chalky, paint~thirsty mess! It was quite a job to cover the walls with new paint!


The doors were replaced after the hurricane damage, (from rain), years ago, but the sheet rock hadn't been finished. The wood floors also had to come up. They were warped from the rain/water damage and replaced with tile. ...much better for a lake, anyway!


And here are the sneak peek pics from my last post...

I made the arrangement, based on one similar I saw in another blog online. Sorry I can't give due credit, it was one that I stumbled across and can't remember where!





The sofa and chairs are new, found at a local wholesale Italian Leather Distributor, that was selling discontinued floor samples! The tables were free...can't get any cheaper than that! "smiles"

I just loved these old, vintage prints, which were actually out of a local beach magazine.
I cut them out and framed them! The colors complimented really well!

I wanted everything in this unit to be serene and peaceful, ...retreat~like!

But last week as I looked around, it screamed ....BORING!

I found this lamp at the Goodwill, and was able to incorporate just a bit more color and give the space a little more visual interest.



Remember the gold lamps of the 80's???...The white one in the picture below began it's life as such..


It was a freebie, also and is now dressed in a fresh coat of white!

The contractor walked by as I was spray painting it, and said, "You must love painting! You paint everything!" I laughed and replied, "Not really, but I do love the outcome. There is nothing that paint can't fix!"

We had a contractor add mouldings throughout the house, around the doors and windows! They did an outstanding job! You can't really tell in this picture below, but the ceiling is painted green, about three shades lighter than the wall.

I am still washing paint out of my hair....LOL!



This concludes Day One of my Lake House Series.

(I apologize for the spacing between paragraphs, pics, and sentences, blogger is giving me a fit today! )

Come back tomorrow, and we will go on into the kitchen area and Hallway.

I also have some awards I would like to pass on to some special bloggers!

Hope you are having a great day! ~Rhonda

25 comments:

Amelia said...

I agree abut painting objects to give them life in a new location. When I find a "treasure" at the local Goodwill and the color is wrong - I know Wal-Mart has a can of spray paint that will solve the problem.

I so liked the first tour of the lake house. Will enjoy the rest too, I am sure.

Amelia

Vanessa Greenway said...

I really love the rockers painted in black! Very nice!! xo, Vanessa

onlymehere said...

Oh Rhonda, your goal has been achieved...this IS serene and very peaceful! I love the rockers and what you did with the paint on them and the lamp. You have such an eye for beauty and what can be done to restore beauty. That my friend is a real talent and I wish I had it. I can hardly wait until tomorrow for the next installment!

Vintage Whimsy said...

Wow! The house looks great. I especially love that lamp from Goodwill! I wish I could find a couple that looked exactly like it. And the pictures you cut out of the magazine and framed- those are fabulous! Do you remember which magazine that was? I might have to steal that idea. Can't wait to see your post tomorrow!!

Pearl said...

Hi Rhonda... I am very happy for you that the LakeHouse is almost done! Everything looks stunning! I love the LAKE sign and the Goodwill lamp. Beautiful! Your leather furniture reminds me of my Dad. I wish I had a rocker like one of yours. ~sigh~ Maybe I'll just come on down and rock on your back porch for the rest of the Summer... LOL

I'm looking forward to your post for tomorrow! I'm sure it will be as lovely as this was! Off to take my nap... God bless...

~hugs 'n love~

Pearl

Unknown said...

Rhonda,
Your pictures are great...you have a definate eye for design!

I am seriouly considering painting our porch rockers black...we have black shutters....maybe one day I'll do a post on it and get opinions!

Either way, I'm going to wait til it cools off!
Everything looks great...looking forward to part 2.
Diane

Heather said...

I Loved this tour!!! But it ended too quickly as all of the good ones tend to!!!
The rocking chairs are incredible! Love the black and love the cushions that go on them. They look great with the exterior colors! I would love to sit there for hours and just stare at the lake. Actually I would love to sit anywhere for a few hours........or even a few minutes..... but in one of those rockers would be ideal!! LOL!!!
Can't wait until tomorrow!!!
Have a great evening!!
-Heather :)

Scooterblu's Whimsy~Rhonda said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

Great job, Rhoda. What an incredible difference. I know it must feel good to be finishing this section of the duplex.

Pearl said...

~ howling with laughter ~

Ohh My! Lookie there at that deleted comment! I wonder what happened?! ~ just grinning ~

You crack me up, Rhonda! As you may guess, my "nap" did not last long... and, now my sides hurt from laughing... ahhhh, I think I can handle a "good" pain!!

~hugs 'n love~
Pearl

Kim's Treasures said...

Rhonda~
Everything looks so nice! You guys worked so hard! It looks so relaxing in the living room!
Have a great day!
Kim

Anonymous said...

I definitely think you have achieved your serene look. It is very pretty. Sometimes we think we need more and we really don't. Trust me, I am the queen of that. I edit my things and really like it, then start looking at other peoples rooms via blogs or magazines and go shopping and fill it back up again. I am really praying for contentment with what I have.

Hugs,
LeAnn:)

Cathy said...

Hi, Rhonda.....first of all your make over is BEAUTIFUL....I love the feel of a beach house! I am just pssing through blog land....and found your little space, so I hope you can come to my neck of the woods sometime!I'm Catnabarn from RMS.

Anonymous said...

Good evening, Rhonda! Oh, yur lake house is just beautiful. I know you're so proud of it. I love the redone porch chairs - and what a lovely porch! Everything you've done just looks awesome. I'm patting you on the back now. Love the green walls and ceilings. I could chill out here for a while. Thank you for popping in to see my Grandma bedroom. I'm so glad you like the little baby head box! The first time I saw it - I laughed out loud!
Be a sweetie,
Shelia ;)

Susan said...

You really have the vision and the magic touch!!! Looks great.
Susan

Edie Marie's Attic said...

Hi Rhonda!
You have done an incredible job! It's so relaxing and calming! I want to sit in one of those rockers and just stare at the lake! I LOVE your "floral" arrangement!
I'm sure you are so happy this big job is done. Now you can relax and enjoy it a little. Well deserved!
Will stop by to see the continued tour!
Hugs, Sherry

Kathi said...

Rhonda, Your lake house is beautiful. You have such an eye for color. Those rockers are perfect. Your pictures are the exact hues of color. This is so tastefully done. Now you can relax and enjoy in peace. Thank you for your comments to me. You encourage and brighten my day. Kathi

Kimba said...

I love the porch and the family room! Can't wait to see the rest of your remodel!

You know how I love spray paint! Great job on the rocking chairs. They look beautiful with the blue cushions.

Terrie's Lil' Piece of Serenity said...

Rhonda, I love everything about your lakehouse. You've done a beautiful job. I have an awrd for you. Please, stop by when you get a chance. Hugs, Terrie

tincanlily said...

I love the green color and all the white trim. So fresh! The rocking chairs are perfect. I love the fish plates from Homegoods and I am not that fond of fish!
denise

Blogger said...

I love what you did with the rockers and that 80's brass light! I would never have thought to paint the lamp...thanks for the inspiration...now when I see some funky 80's thing at a garage sale, it will get a 2nd look from me :)

Your beach home is fantastic!!!

Thanks for visiting my humble blog;)

Have a great day!

Dawn said...

Your lake house is just beautiful. I really love the color you painted it. I wish I like to paint (or that I was good at it!!!) Every thing you did looks remarkable! It certainly has that relaxed feeling.

take care,
Dawn

Unknown said...

The house looks BEAUTIFUL!!

Trixi said...

Your house is coming together beautifully. I'm with you the outcome of a can of spray paint makes it all worth it and now you have me wanting to go after my rockers with it, also.
Blessings~~

sweetfunkyvintage said...

I love what you have done... serene, it is!!
missy