Window Screen Replacement
Our windows are 20+ years old and so are the screens. Most were in pretty bad shape due to sun exposure and damage from our cats. We had replaced the screen in our slider a few years ago and it seemed pretty straightforward so I figured I could handle this project on...
Tree Paver Border
The benefit of doing home projects ourselves is that we always end up with leftover supplies. This project only cost us $3 since we used the extras from previous projects. We've been meaning to add pavers around our other backyard tree. Here's our first tree paver...
Kitchen Update
Our kitchen was the last room that needed crown moulding installed. We had delayed the installation because we weren't sure how to connect the new crown moulding to the already existing kitchen cabinet crown moulding. The cabinet moulding is half the size...
Back Door Replacement
Replacing our back door has always been on our To Do List. The door had a huge gap at the bottom that made it so mice didn't even need to duck to get in. I'm not sure if the door was original to the house being built in the 1960's but it looked it: We...
Outdoor Trim
We've been meaning to add new trim to our window and slider but it took us a while to agree on a trim style. We eventually want to add new trim to all our windows and doors but for now we just installed it on two windows and two doors. We used PVC casing...
Window Replacement
When we bought our house, we had noticed what looked like dirt on our living room window. One of the first things I did after moving in was try washing the window. That's when we realized it wasn't dirt. We eventually figured out it was mold between the...
Stucco Repair
After removing our deck in 2007, we found exposed wood under the slider door. We assumed the previous owners had replaced the slider and didn't bother fixing the broken stucco underneath the slider since they couldn't access it due to the deck: Except for...
Closet Organizers and Doors
After updating our bedroom windows, we decided to update the closets as well. We first removed the wired closet organizers that we had installed almost 15 years ago. Then, we replaced it with a ClosetMaid wood organizer with drawers. We modified the kit...
In-Ceiling Speakers
Mike has been wanting to install ceiling speakers in our living room for a very long time. Finally, we got around to doing it. We purchased In-Ceiling Yamaha Speakers. Step 1: Mike used a stud finder to locate the beams, designating their location with...
Window Trim & Blinds
When we bought our house, all the windows had old aluminum blinds so we threw them out: We replaced them with expensive silhouette blinds. I thought they looked great at first but over time I began to hate them. For one, our cats were slowly destroying...
Plumbing
Our backyard water line had been leaking for a while. It was a slow leak but we finally got around to fixing it. We thought it would be an easy fix to swap out the old leaking faucet for a new one. It turned out the old faucet pieces were welded together...
Master Bathroom Remodel
Our master bathroom was the one room we didn't remodel when we moved in. I knew I wanted to remodel the entire room so we wanted to wait for the right time so we could take our time and not feel rushed (like with the second bathroom remodel). Fast forward to 2014, I...
Master Bathroom Remodel – Pocket Door
When we bought our house, the master bathroom had a bifold door. That was one of the first things we ripped out. I'd rather have no door than a bifold one - we don't live in an RV: We initially installed a normal door that swung out instead of in since the...
Master Bathroom Remodel – Wall & Floor Prep
The first thing we did before messing with the walls was hire a plumber to update our shower plumbing. We had the plumber raise the height of the shower head (a must for Mike). We also added a shower valve for pressure balance that was needed for our new...
Master Bathroom Remodel – Tile & Shower Door
The most difficult part about tiling is picking your tile, knowing that you'll be stuck with it for decades. For that reason, I wanted to go with something neutral and timeless. At first, we looked at tile shops since they offer a larger selection but we...
Master Bathroom Remodel – Moulding, Vanity, and Toilet
After we finished the bathroom floor tile, we hired a plumber to update our vanity plumbing. We especially needed to get rid of the weird vertical pipe so that the plumbing would fit inside our new vanity: The plumber said the vertical pipe wasn't needed...
Bathroom Exhaust Fans
When we bought our house, both our bathrooms didn't have exhaust fans. They both did have windows but we wanted a fan too. We had an electrician install fans in both bathrooms. They both passed inspection at the time. When we started our master bathroom...
Roof Inspection by Drone
Mike won a drone from a raffle at his holiday work party. One of the first things we thought of doing with it was to check out our roof and gutters. It was much easier than using a ladder! It took some practice to maneuver it around the house to see all...
Cat Litter Box
Our cats' litter box used to be located within our master bathroom but once we completed our bathroom remodel, we no longer wanted it in there. We have a closet area outside the bathroom so that seemed like the best spot to place it. I researched various enclosure...
Halloween: Pirate Display
Halloween is my favorite holiday. Over the years we've created some stuff like: In 2011, we made a skeleton out of PVC: In 2013, we created two bean bag games for our son's school Halloween party. Mike drew the art and I painted them. The games were used...
Drip Irrigation
After finishing our backyard makeover #2 project, I wanted to add some type of automatic watering system for our plants. We've never had any sprinkler lines in our backyard so I've always had to hand water everything. I researched adding sprinkler lines...
Gas Fireplace
Our fireplace was wood burning so we never used it since we don't like the mess it makes. We also have regulations in our area that ban wood burning on certain days - usually the coldest ones. We don't want to contribute to air pollution if we can help it so our...
Backyard Makeover #2
After our previous backyard makeover, we started another one about 8 years later. We wanted to create a drought tolerant landscape with no grass. So we were throwing around ideas of using pavers, rocks, and decomposed granite. We first did a small project...
The Cat Door
We have a hallway that separates our living and bedroom spaces. When we bought our home there wasn't a door at the entrance of the hallway but our neighbor with the same floorplan had one. So it got us thinking that we may want to minimize the noise from...
Garage Remodel
We don't have basements in California so our garage is like a basement. It had exposed wood, concrete flooring, and a ton of spiders. I hated being in there. We mainly used it for storage. We never had room to park a car. The garage space was always on the...
Sandbox
We wanted a larger sandbox so Mike built a 5 ft square one. Our son helped too: Video of building it: We dug out a space for the sandbox and lined it with weed barrier: We also built a cover using 2" x 4" wood and stapled a tarp around it: It worked great...
Backyard Makeover #1
Our backyard has gone through many transformations. This is how it looked in 2005 before we moved in: The deck and pergola: We lived with it as is for a couple of years. I used Photoshop to create some design ideas. This is one of my more preposterous ones...
The Beginning
Our first renovation began the day we closed escrow on our first home. We remodeled the entire house for three months before moving in. Mike did a lot of the demo himself since I had to watch our baby. DEMO DAY!: Mike removed everything in the kitchen, including...