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Finishing Touches | Dining Room + Wallpaper

I've had so many people ask to see photos of our newest renovation, so up for today...Finishing Touches | Dining Room + Wallpaper. Yay!


In our years renovating our homes, Brad and I have probably scraped miles of wallpaper. Some has been removed relatively easy. Some has been downright STUBBORN. But one thing we've never done is install wallpaper in one of our homes.

That changed with our latest renovation.

We--and by we, I mean my Mama and I--recently hung wallpaper on our dining room walls! I've been eyeing this wallpaper for at least three years. I was actually trying to find a place for it in our old home. But then we moved. And with the design style we're using in our current place, the wallpaper seemed a natural selection.

But, to appreciate the changes, we obviously have to backtrack. Really, who doesn't like before and afters?

This was a few days before we moved in. This walk-through was when reality really set in. We were moving from a house I LOVED to this. I cried.




This room was one of the first to get the wallpaper stripped. Then the room sat as-is for a year. (Though we did paint the door when we had the sprayer out. Turns out, that was a mistake once the room was renovated. I want it to be stained instead, like our front and back doors rather than black like the interior doors.)


Finally, over Christmas Break 2018, we started ripping stuff out and putting stuff back together. Popcorn ceilings first. Ripping out carpet next.



 Guys, I worked a whole morning to get all the carpet staples and tack strip out. The dust piles were disgusting. The carpet had been there for well over 20 years. My allergies were angry.


But then, we got to start putting things back together. The hutch was painted Flannel Gray by Behr with a special paint for cabinets. It was the first time we had tried it, and I LOVE the product. We'll definitely use it for our kitchen cabinets when the time comes. And it WILL come.

This was life during the reno.



And then, the floors were installed. We're making these floors ourselves, which means we cut and sand every board before they are laid. We've streamlined our system. Only two more rooms. Only two more rooms. Only two more rooms.



{ Brad and I gave each other the Sputnik fixture for Christmas, but we let the kids open it :) }

We put five clear coats on the finished floor. The first several layers get lightly sanded and then vacuumed between sealer coats. Have I mentioned only two more rooms?!

Then it was wallpaper time! I had helped my Mom wallpaper her living room and dining room when I was in college, so I knew she needed to be my partner. She took the lead and we got the two walls covered in about six hours. Not bad!






I thought we'd just do the bottom white (board and batten) to keep it simple, but once the wallpaper was in place, I hated it. Back to the drawing board!


I went around and around with a few options: black, the Flannel Gray, a darker gray from the Flannel Gray sister colors, and a color-match with the dark leaves of the wallpaper.

The last option was the winner.


 Which brings us (FINALLY) to the end product.
But first, a quick reminder:



Brad made us all-new board and batten, baseboards, window and door trim. We painted it all the dark gray. It's gorgeous! 


The wood a black piece is our new stair railing I designed and Brad built (I helped!).






Here's a small taste of what's beyond these walls...more projects. We had to leave room for the next floor runs, so we have a mix of underlayment, old linoleum, disgusting carpet, and tile. Sweet, huh?


The wall between the kitchen and dining room will eventually come out...hence why it did not receive a prettifying treatment.


Stay tuned!
What's your current home project?


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