It's already February and I'm only just getting around to putting together a to-do list for the year, that bodes well!
So, it's a new year, there's a bit more money coming in, and we have an energy-sucking, time-consuming little bundle of hard work arriving in July so our time to get shit done is limited! With that in mind, these are the jobs I would love to get done before that happens....
1) Finish en-suite
This has been dragging on forever, it needs to be finished, like yesterday. The only actual job left to do is to make the cupboard I want (you listening Gavin?) and then it's just a matter of putting up some shelves, lighting and a few finishing touches. I anticipate this being done in the next week or two.
2) Flooring in kitchen/living room
The paint on the kitchen floor is on its last legs, and we can finally afford to replace the tiles. This is happening, hopefully in the next few weeks, we're just waiting on quotes for the labour.
The paint on the kitchen floor is on its last legs, and we can finally afford to replace the tiles. This is happening, hopefully in the next few weeks, we're just waiting on quotes for the labour.
3) Utility room makeover
It's ugly, it's a waste of space, it needs to be sorted out so I don't want to stab myself in the eyeballs every time I have to walk past it. There are several possibilities, but we essentially have to choose between putting up a wall to make a little room out of it, or trying to install some cabinets. The wall idea is more appealing cos it would mean everything would be totally hidden, plus I'd have loads of room to basically make a kind of pantry/indoor shed in there, but I'm not sure how easy that would be. The cabinet idea would be easier but we wouldn't get the same storage and a lot of stuff would still be on show. I think whatever ends up being the easiest and cheapest will win out. I need storage dammit!
It's ugly, it's a waste of space, it needs to be sorted out so I don't want to stab myself in the eyeballs every time I have to walk past it. There are several possibilities, but we essentially have to choose between putting up a wall to make a little room out of it, or trying to install some cabinets. The wall idea is more appealing cos it would mean everything would be totally hidden, plus I'd have loads of room to basically make a kind of pantry/indoor shed in there, but I'm not sure how easy that would be. The cabinet idea would be easier but we wouldn't get the same storage and a lot of stuff would still be on show. I think whatever ends up being the easiest and cheapest will win out. I need storage dammit!
4) Flooring on stairs/upstairs?
You know how there are things you never notice, but then when you do you can't un-notice them? The carpet on our stairs is like that. It's worn out, dirty and disgusting, and I only recently noticed it. I'd love painted wooden stairs but.....my children are not careful and their skulls are pretty breakable so that won't be happening! New carpet is not very expensive and it's a quick job so this will be happening soon.
You know how there are things you never notice, but then when you do you can't un-notice them? The carpet on our stairs is like that. It's worn out, dirty and disgusting, and I only recently noticed it. I'd love painted wooden stairs but.....my children are not careful and their skulls are pretty breakable so that won't be happening! New carpet is not very expensive and it's a quick job so this will be happening soon.
5) Storage in spare room and get rid of bed in favour of sofa bed so the space is more usable
Pretty self explanatory. The spare room is rarely used as a guest room so a sofa-bed would be more than adequate in here, freeing up lots more space for extra storage. I'd love to add built in wardrobes in the eves but I think that's a bit ambitious for this year! I already have my mood board for in there ready to go, and I could really see it being a great office/craft room/dressing room. Currently it's a dumping ground, which is such a total waste.
Pretty self explanatory. The spare room is rarely used as a guest room so a sofa-bed would be more than adequate in here, freeing up lots more space for extra storage. I'd love to add built in wardrobes in the eves but I think that's a bit ambitious for this year! I already have my mood board for in there ready to go, and I could really see it being a great office/craft room/dressing room. Currently it's a dumping ground, which is such a total waste.
6) Freshen up kitchen cabinets
The paint on the kitchen cabinets is peeling in some of the corners (I suspect I didn't do a thorough enough cleaning before applying the paint) so they need to be re-done. It's not super urgent, but I'm hoping to get the backsplash re-tiled when I'm getting the floor done (it seems silly to have a tiler in the house and not get him to do this small job too, the materials will cost less than €80 for this small area) and this would seem like a great time to give the whole thing a refresh. I'm going for a light tile on the floor and white subway tile on the backsplash....so I'm very tempted to go black or very dark grey on the bottom cabinets this time, keeping the white on top. What do you think?
7) Paint hall
It's brown. it needs to go. But it's a big area with lots of cutting in and some really awkward to reach places so I don't know. I'd love to hire someone to do it but paying someone to do something I'm perfectly capable of just goes against my basic nature! This one might not get done, it's definitely low on the list.
8) Paint all skirting and doors
Ugh, so boring. Painting woodwork has to be one of my least favourite things to do. I'm not patient enough or precise enough to make a great job of it, but unfortunately it needs to be done. Nothing matches at the moment, and we have a hodge-podge of white, black, cream and wood tones on the skirting and doors in this house. Again, not something I'm looking forward to. This will definitely get pushed to the bottom of the list.
So there you have it. If I get even the main things off this list done then I'll be happy. The way I feel at the moment the only thing I'll be working on is the butt shaped groove in the couch and a mild case of parental neglect, but I did have a day last week where I voluntarily cleaned the whole house, without feeling like I was going to be sick or pass out at any point, so maybe that mythical "second trimester energy" is about to kick in?! It's a real thing right? Right?!!
Ugh, so boring. Painting woodwork has to be one of my least favourite things to do. I'm not patient enough or precise enough to make a great job of it, but unfortunately it needs to be done. Nothing matches at the moment, and we have a hodge-podge of white, black, cream and wood tones on the skirting and doors in this house. Again, not something I'm looking forward to. This will definitely get pushed to the bottom of the list.
So there you have it. If I get even the main things off this list done then I'll be happy. The way I feel at the moment the only thing I'll be working on is the butt shaped groove in the couch and a mild case of parental neglect, but I did have a day last week where I voluntarily cleaned the whole house, without feeling like I was going to be sick or pass out at any point, so maybe that mythical "second trimester energy" is about to kick in?! It's a real thing right? Right?!!
