How does the saying go? It gets worse before it gets better? Or maybe, good things come to those who wait?
I feel like the dining room makeover has been on about the same course as all of my other projects lately (mud room makeover, anyone?). You may recall that I started planning the dining room makeover in January, with updates here, here, here, here, and here, and I’m happy to finally report some more progress in the space! Here’s where I left you last:
Clean but rather blah because the final accessories and window treatments hadn’t been added. But, as of last Friday, I shared a current shot on Instagram. It included the drapes that have been pinned to the window trim for month, all the home decor I have used in months, the prior trim color (which looks gross with the new paint) and holes from the wires that were installed for the new chandelier.
Even crazier? Here was a shot of the room last night when I got home from work.
Notice anything? It seems to be getting worse! In reality, things have actually improved, although sometimes it doesn’t always feel that way.
This past weekend was the first weekend I had been home in six weeks, so it was good to finally jump into a DIY project again. I almost forgot what it felt like! Over the weekend, I got one coat of paint on all the baseboards and two of the windows, and I feel completely revitalized with this project again! I used my favorite Behr Swiss Coffee paint in a semi-gloss finish.
I felt like it was much easier this time around and I didn’t hate it nearly as much as I expected to. I did add a little more Floetrol to the paint that I typically do and it went on so smoothly and the brush strokes melted away (if you don’t use Floetrol on trim, you don’t know what you’re missing out on!) I was quickly reminded how much I love the new trim color versus the old and the work seemed totally worth it! Look closely at the photo below. The new trim color is on the right and the old is on the left. I actually feel like the details of the trim pop even more with the new color.
Here you can see the baseboards (freshly painted) compared to the window trim (old paint color):
One day (hopefully soon) we’ll get back to the pretty, including some accessories a styled space. But until then, I have reality, and this picture to keep me going 😉
Current source list for the space (click on the item below for more information):
Art / Light / Drapes / Rug / Mirror / Bar Cart / Lamps / Wall Color: Behr Silver Drop / Trim Color: Behr Swiss Coffee
Slowly but surely, it’s all starting to come together. And on the even brighter side, I feel like I have my DIY juice back! I hope to wrap up all of the remaining trim paint this weekend and can *hopefully* share a reveal with you next week! Thanks for your patience in following along with this project!
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Do your cats pick at your carpet? I always wanted a jute carpet but yours looks like it is pilling in the pictures. If it can’t handle traffic I need to look elsewhere for a carpet. The rest of the room looks great, I wish I had the room to have 8 seats and a long table. I have to set my table diagonal when we open it to seat more than 6.
It’s more like they continually attack the rug 😉 They actually have no claws at all. This is simply from them seeing something, biting it, and pulling on it. In retrospect, probably not the best rug choice for cat owners!
I am painting doors and trim also, tons of work, but boy is it worth it. You trim is looking fabulous.
Don’t you wish you can just take 1 or 2 or 3 days off from work and concentrate on home related stuff? Weekends often go to home maintenance like laundry, grocery shopping, and cooking and by the time you know it it’s Monday again and the fun projects go on the way side until the next time. Keep on trucking Sara! It’ll look great when it’s all done.
I envy your skills! What a gorgeous looking room!! It’s really coming together!
I just painted the majority of the trim in our house (I hired help for the rest) and totally missed the Floetrol memo!! Unfortunately, because I was painting over oak I had to do 3 coats (ugh) but it is super rewarding and totally worth it after it’s all said and done. I’d love for you to stop by and check out our before and afters!!
http://thedelighteddwelling.blogspot.com/2015/07/painting-oak-trim.html
It’s really coming along nicely. Don’t worry, temporary inconvenience, permanent improvement! XO, Christy