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ANTIQUE CABINET RESTORATION

In this post, I describe the steps we took during our antique cabinet restoration – taking a beat up old cabinet and making it look new again!

Last winter, I happened to be driving through a nearby town and noticed an antique store I had never been in. I decided to stop and have a look around.

It was packed with all sorts of treasures, which made it a bit hard to see individual items. I get a little claustrophobic when I am surrounded by things. And so, if i’m honest being honest, I was walking through the shop quickly. Just as I was getting ready to head out, I spotted a pair of antique cabinets in the corner.

They were so wedged in that it was hard for me to determine their condition. I asked the store owner to pull them out a bit so that I could take a look. She did the best she could. However, it was impossible to see all sides of the cabinets without rearranging a ton of items.

She told me about the cabinets history, mentioning they had been salvaged from an old house during a recent remodel. The notches on their sides indicate where they had been built into walls. She also informed me that she would only sell the cabinets as a pair. And that the one in back wasn’t in great shape.

THE CABINETS

Undeterred, I texted Craig this photo and asked for his consent to purchase. This is the cabinet that was more visible. I loved the glass door, and the size of the cabinet seemed to be good for a variety of purposes

Though he was skeptical on what we would do with them, he has known me long enough to realize that once I fall for an item, it is pretty hard to shake it from my mind. He agreed that the cabinets could become ours. A couple of weeks later, he went to retrieve them.

Upon arriving home, Craig announced that the second cabinet was basically falling apart, and that it probably wasn’t worth salvaging.

The ‘nice’ cabinet was given a spot in our rental home. The ‘ugly duckling’ cabinet was left in the garage.

the nicer cabinet, in our dining room

THOUGHTS OF RESTORATION

Sitting in the garage, the cabinet was something we saw every day. Perhaps Craig became annoyed seeing an unfinished project, or perhaps he began to see it’s merit. Either way, he eventually decided to take it on as his personal restoration project.

I was all for it! If he was going to do the work, I certainly wasn’t going to get in his way!

Unfortunately, I didn’t take many good pictures before he started the antique cabinet restoration. I can tell you though, it was in really rough shape. The door was barely hanging on by it’s hinges, the glass was broken, and some of the wooden grilles were missing. There was a large crack on the top, and a broken piece on the side.

ANTIQUE CABINET RESTORATION

Craig spent many long hours in the garage sanding, gluing, and sanding some more.

There sure was a lot of sanding and gluing to be done! He mostly used an orbital sander with varying grits of paper. For the finest details, he used a sanding block.

Craig took pieces of the cabinet apart…

… then put them back together

REFINISHING THE ANTIQUE CABINET

After literal months of very hard work, the cabinet was once again standing tall and ready for it’s finishing. Once the sanding was complete, it was much easier to see all of the beautiful wood grain details.

The lighter wood pieces are replacements. Although they are the same wood species, they are not aged in the way that the rest of the cabinet pieces are.

CHOOSING THE STAIN COLOR

It was a difficult decision on what type and color of stain to use. The cabinet is made of 100% red oak – but some of it has a tighter grain, while other parts a more loose and wavy grain.

We had some samples made up at a local Sherwin Williams, then brought them back to the house to look at for a while.

Ultimately, we agreed upon a Minwax stain called ‘Dark Walnut’. We felt that it gave us a nice deep color, which would help to neutralize the grain a bit. The Sherwin Williams associate suggested a Minwax water based urethane in a semi-gloss finish. Popular Woodworking has a great post about how to properly apply stain.

The cabinet absolutely soaked up the stain. The wood looked amazing, but wasn’t quite as dark as I had wanted after the first coating.

Cabinet after one coat of stain (sitting in the garage)

As you can see in the photos above, the newer wood pieces were still pretty obvious after the first coat. We waited a couple of days, and then applied another stain coating. This time we had success with the color. We brought it indoors to dry for another two days, and then added two coats of the clear semi-gloss finish. The spar urethane really made the cabinet shine, and darkened the color a bit more.

Finished cabinet with lower door open

Detail of cubbies. Might be perfect for sorting mail!

Detail of the molding and repaired cabinet top

The original writing on the side of the cabinet – which indicates the part number, and the early 1900’s homeowner.

FUTURE FOR THE ANTIQUE CABINETS

Now that the antique cabinet restoration is complete, we are dreaming about it’s future. We love that this historic piece will be given a prominent spot in Arrow Hill Cottage – to define our entryway from the living room! You can read more about our first floor layout in THIS POST.

We are also very excited to see how the ‘nicer’ cabinet turns out. And to see BOTH of the cabinets, together once again in the new house, will be such a thrill!

PIN THIS ANTIQUE CABINET RESTORATION

If you enjoyed seeing this old cabinet become new again, be sure to follow this blog to see the other restored!

SATURDAY SKETCHBOOK: LOWER LEVEL

The lower level of the cottage is really starting to take shape! I think it is pretty close to what the final revision will be, and thought it might be a good time to share it with all of you.

I have to say that one of the things we have missed the most while living in our rental farmhouse is a finished basement. We used the basement in our last house as a place for the kids to be rowdy during the day, and a quiet retreat for the grownups at night. I wanted to design in those same functions for the new house – also keeping in mind that our kids will be teenagers in not too many years, and we would love it if they had friends over to our house to hang out.

The layout of the lower level is quite simple, with one very exciting bonus space

lower level plan

The lower level in 3D plan form

To the right of the stairs is a large mechanical room, which will probably have a little space within it for storage of items such as Christmas decorations.

When you first step down the stairs you enter an open family room. I have always envisioned a large, comfy sectional sofa and a couple of overstuffed chairs. On the wall – a giant tv – one of the things that Craig and the boys are most excited for. I imagine this area will be used for family movie night, as well as Playstation tournaments with friends!

Off to the other side of the room is a small space for a table and chairs. This is the table we are currently using in our dining space – and is a hand me down from Craig’s grandparents. It’s an antique piece and will serve as the perfect spot to play games as a family, or set up snacks.

After much debate, we decided to add a walkout door from the family room. This door will provide access to a future outdoor patio / fire pit area. We love that the large windows in this room will let in a lot of natural light and the visual connection to the outdoors will ensure that the space won’t feel like a basement.

From the family room, there is a small hallway space that has access to a 3/4 bathroom on one side and the den on the other. Though the room will have both an egress window and closet, so that it can be considered another legal ‘bedroom’ for the house, the den is technically going to be Craig’s space – or ‘man land’ as he calls it. He has been dreaming of a little room of his own for years! In each of the places we have lived, I have had my own office or craft room/ creative space. It’s about time that he has a chance. I imagine he will spend many hours here working on computer projects and watching sports on tv, maybe reading a book in the recliner with a cup of coffee in hand.

The couch contains a pull out queen size bed that can be used for guests when they visit.

The final space in the lower level is quite possibly going to be the most used room in the entire house. The Rec Room. A 16′ x 25′ open space for large motor activities – running, jumping, kicking, etc – it will serve as a small indoor gym. A portion of the ceiling will be 16′ high, so that we can set up a basketball hoop and shoot free throws.

This room was on the drawing board, then off, then back on again. Once we got word from our contractor that the extra space won’t be terribly expensive (because of how our site slopes and how deep the footings will need to go for other portions of the house), we figured we would not regret adding it. It will be unfinished at the beginning of the build, until we can afford to finish it the way we’d like.

The room is large enough to shoot free throws in!

A pair of windows provide some natural lighting

If you ask the kids which room they are most excited for – I think they would collectively say that the Rec Room is the most anticipated. And, Craig and I might be right there with them on that sentiment! This indoor space will allow us to stay active even in the cold winter months, and will be especially handy now that we have discontinued our local gym membership. We have been talking about getting a treadmill, some free weights, a kicking net, pull up bar, and possibly incorporating a small rock climbing area. It will also, of course, be the perfect spot to play ping pong! All sport equipment will be stored in a large walk in closet located in the back of the room – keeping the rec room as open and uncluttered as possible.

View from rec room into family room space. Closet door is to the right in this image.

Notice the ceiling height change from 8′ to 16′

As we approach the cold winter months here in the Midwest, we are bracing ourselves while at the same time thinking that we should be in our new house next year at this time. When the snow melts in the spring, we want to be ready to break ground as soon as possible! So exciting!

AROUND HERE: SEPTEMBER 2018

Around here, we have been…

CELEBRATING birthdays for both of the girls! {K} turned 8 and {M} turned 5! Last year we celebrated their birthdays together, but this year we decided to have small family parties for each of them separately.

{K} had a ‘magic pony’ aka unicorn party. We even bought her a a unicorn headband so that she could pretend to be one herself. She received many art supplies and creative tools, which she loved. Her biggest wish, though, was to unwrap her ‘stinky present’ – her purple arm cast. ha ha! That wish was realized about a week after her birthday, and she is now cast free!

{M} had a confetti/ celebration themed party and received gifts that included a magnet learning toy, drawing book, and a wooden pizza party set to use with her play kitchen. She soaked up all the attention, especially at school with her friends – while passing out cookies and listening to them sing the ‘Happy Birthday’ song to her.

We are blessed to have these two little girls as part of our family and pray that the year ahead of them is filled with favor.

GETTING our exercise. Before the very cold weather blows in, and the snow begins to fall, we are trying to pack in as much outdoor time as possible. Both {D} and {L} continue with their football programs.

Being the first year for {L}, he is still very much learning the rules – along with his teammates. It is sometimes funny to watch them out on the field. That being said, we are proud of {L}’s hustle and his ability to follow instruction.

Craig is coaching {D}’s team, and reports that they are a great group of boys. As of the writing of this post, the ‘mean machine’ (team name determined by the kids) is undefeated, and have yet to have any points scored against them! In his free time, he is still living and breathing field goal kicking. Through a series of events, he was able to match up with a former college football kicker – who is willing to give {D} private kicking lessons!

This Fall has found {I} doing a lot of running, and he seems to really love it! His first experience with distance running was the elementary 1 mile fun run, which is an optional event for all 4th and 5th graders in our school district. Though he was hesitant to sign up, Angela took him on a practice run. Once he realized that it was possible for him to go the distance, he was all in! He finished his mile race with a time of 7:47! Since the race, he has run with Angela a few different times – up to the distance of 3 miles! He is always trying to beat his time for the mile, and now has a PR of 7:25. Perhaps he will have a cross country career in his future?

WORKING our jobs. This month, Craig took a work trip to Philadelphia where he was able to take in some of the famous city’s historic landmarks, such as the Liberty Bell and the ‘Rocky steps’. He was also able to eat a classic Philly Cheese steak sandwich.

Angela began her new part-time work venture – as a para/ aide in the Preschool room at our kid’s school. She is now with {M} for half of her school days on M/W/F. She loves the position so far. Because it is part time, she is able to run errands in the afternoons on those days and ‘recharge’ on the days between.

CHANGING some of the design aspects of our future house. While doing a bit of fine tuning and simplifying, Angela somewhat stumbled upon a major planning change for the new house. It adds so much value, including an attached bathroom for the main floor bedroom. We are really excited about that!

We will soon be contacting the bank and getting our preliminary estimate/appraisal done. At that point we will also work with our contractor and excavator to determine the house position, and begin to cut down some of the main trees that will need to be removed. The large trees, we hope, can be milled into boards that we can use for furniture pieces in the house.

This is just a glimpse at what our family has been up to. If you’d like a closer look, be sure to check out our weekly ‘mini vlogs’ on our YouTube channel ARROW HILL FAMILY. Be well everyone!

HOME DESIGN PLOT TWIST!

Just two weeks ago I wrote about how our home design has evolved. I saw it as a bookend to the design – a way to finish off the chapter of floor plan configuration, and usher in the next phase of material selection.

And then, well… life has a funny way of sending you twists and turns when you least expect them! Today I will be writing about some major house changes that have happened – changes we didn’t even see coming!

I have written in previous posts how we have had to make some sacrifices for our house design – based primarily on site constraints and financial limitations. Most of the things that haven’t ‘made the cut’ have been no big deal. I can live without an extra window, or the specific roofing material I was hoping to use.

There are other house elements though, that we have been bummed about not being able to include. One of the most difficult to accept was the idea that our main floor master bedroom would not have an attached bath. An attached bathroom was high on both of our wish lists, but ultimately we decided that we could live without it. After all, we have never had a true master suite in all the years we have been married.

But after working through the design of the upstairs bathroom that our kids will share, I started to think more about the bathroom situation for the rest of the house. That led me to begin feeling sad once again that I had not been able to work in the master bathroom we had been dreaming of.

And so, since our build is on hold until Spring of 2019, I figured I had some time to tinker with the home design & floor plan layout a bit more

Much to Craig’s annoyance. The blessing and the curse of loving home design is that it is probably never fully DONE. Craig is ready for things to be set in stone now. He may not understand that even after the house is built I will be tinkering, with paint colors and accessories! Ha!

During one of these mini design sessions, I realized something about the main level plan that I hadn’t before. It is essentially split into four quadrants: Living room, Kitchen/Dining, Bedroom, Utility. Maybe it is because the plan has evolved for such a long time and my eyes have been looking at it for so long, but I had never noticed that aspect before.

I also hadn’t really given much thought to the fact that the main floor was also divided in half in terms of the public and private spaces. The kitchen/living/dining half (public) and the master bedroom/bathroom/utility spaces (private).

THE BIG IDEA

Then suddenly, I had an idea. I tried to swap the kitchen/dining quadrant with the master bedroom quadrant. Things suddenly started to make sense! By making this one simple swap the front half of the house would then be public, and the back private. But best of all? You guessed it. The master bedroom could finally have that attached bathroom! And just like that, we were headed in a new home design direction. PLOT TWIST!

OTHER HOME DESIGN BONUSES

There were other fun surprises from this room swap.

I had never been super keen on the idea of having the kitchen immediately visible to people who visit. Visitors are likely to come through the front porch entryway. Although I do try to keep my home tidy, the kitchen is ALWAYS the messiest. I think that’s normal. With the new layout, the kitchen is easily accessible – yet in a more visually private location. It will have a very similar cabinet setup as before. The biggest change is the movement of the dining table so that it in it’s own little space.

When entering the front door now, the view will be of the wall of windows to the right and the fireplace directly in front. The beautiful wood french doors that we will bring with us from Craig’s grandparents homestead farmhouse will also be visible. This prominent living room location is the perfect spot for them! Previously they had been designed in as doors to our bedroom closet. The doors will likely be open most of the time. But it is nice to have the option to close off the laundry room/ mudroom space if we want.

Also, we will be able to reuse the antique cabinets we own as room. They will act as dividers between the living and entry spaces. These cabinets have so much character, and Craig has already begun the process of refinishing them!

The improved sight lines are possibly my favorite aspect of this plan change. The openness will allow for more natural daylight to flood the common/ public spaces in the house. From this kitchen corner, we will have views to the west, east and south!

NEW CHALLENGES

Of course, not all things magically fell into place. I did ended up pushing part of the house out two feet, to give the kitchen/dining more space. This added about 50 square feet to the overall plan, but also simplified the exterior shape of the house. We are hoping that the changes offset each other cost-wise.

I wonder what our contractor will think of all this – He will probably be as surprised as we were!

What do you think friends? Do you think this change is for the better like we do?

AROUND HERE: AUGUST 2018

Around here we have been…

HEALING. {K} had her follow up appointment to see how her hand is healing. The doctor was very happy with how things looked, but decided that it could use one more month in a cast. She was a bit bummed at the news, but we trust the doctor’s recommendation. If she were to fall on her wrist or thumb before it was completely healed, it could mean more surgery.

She chose a purple cast this time – for the Vikings.

MAKING memories with family. All three boys, Craig, and both grandpas were able to attend a pre-season Vikings game in Minneapolis. For both {I} and {L}, it was their first time at an NFL game. Sadly, the Vikings lost to the Jaguars and didn’t seem to play their best.

That didn’t seem to matter to the boys. They had fun all the same and came home with huge smiles on their faces.

ENJOYING the last days of summer. It really is hard to believe that summer is nearly over. It is going into the record books as one of the most enjoyable breaks we have ever had as a family. I was trying to figure out the reason it has been so great, and have come to the conclusion that it is likely because we have had no major life events this year. No moving to a new house, no adoptions, no adding of new family members. Just us and the gorgeous weather.

We have been spending the last couple of weeks at the Fireman Cabins here in our town. A stay there is a perk of the Fire Department. Craig had signed up for our stay before his retirement, so this – our 11th year – will be our last official stay.

We have always loved our time at the cabins. There is something so peaceful and relaxing about the setting.

PREPARING for the start of school. This school year, six of our seven family members will be spending time at school. Angela accepted a position as a part time pre-Kindergarten classroom aide. It just so happens that miss {M} will be in her class, something they are both pretty excited about. Angela has been doing training with her colleagues in preparation.

She has also been sorting through school supplies and divvying them up among the kids. It’s amazing how many pencils we have! Back to school open house was yesterday, when the kids were able to meet their teachers, find their lockers, and see where they will sit in their classrooms. They are probably most excited to spend more time with their friends, and not so much looking forward to the extra work load that is sure to come.

{K} worked very hard this summer to get through the list of sight words her teacher had given her. The goal was that if she was able to learn them all, she would be able to get her very own library card. She did it, and was all smiles!

The kids are also starting their school related activities. {D} is signed up for football again this year. He is excited to have Craig as one of his coaches! They look forward to a fun season of learning together.

It has been one full year since the ‘Around Here’ feature began on the blog – take a look back at August 2017’s happenings. There are a lot of similarities this year!

This is just a glimpse at what our family has been up to. If you’d like a closer look, be sure to check out our weekly ‘mini vlogs’ on our YouTube channel ARROW HILL FAMILY. Be well everyone!

SATURDAY SKETCHBOOK: EVOLUTION OF OUR DESIGN

It’s interesting, now that I have been blogging for over a year, to look back and see some of the things that I have written – particularly as it relates to our house design process.

I am actually really thankful that I started documenting the process when I did. At the time, I had no idea that our floor plans would change as dramatically as they have. I believe it might be encouraging to others reading this blog, who might be considering the design of their future dream home – to see that even someone who is seasoned in design can begin in one place – and end in another.

When we first started out, before our budget was completely realized, our house plans included special features such as a large vaulted living room, a small built in elevator/lift, and an endless pool in the basement.

You can see our original floor plans and my own personal thoughts about our dream home (as we believed it to be at that time) by linking to the following blog posts:

Main Level (original plan)

Upper Level (original plan)

Lower Level (original plan)

Through time, as we began to understand the true costs of what it would take to make these dreams a reality, the restrictions became more clear – and the designs began the process of fine tuning. Essentially, we had to determine which features of the design were most important to us, and which we could live without.

I wrote about how we made the decision to eliminate the large living room, and opted for a combined kitchen & dining space – to save on square footage – in this post.

And later, I documented in this post the fact that we would need to simplify even more – reducing the amount of windows, specifically in the living room, and also rotating the garage so that there would be a shorter driveway.

These changes didn’t come easily. I’ll admit it was hard for us to see some of the features we were most excited about slip away. But here’s the thing…

It’s still our dream house

With each change, the concept of the design was maintained, yet simplified. You could say that, essentially, we ‘cut the fat’.

In fact, as each modification has occurred, Craig and I have both looked back and realized that we prefer the more simple idea over it’s more complicated counterpart.

The fine tuning hasn’t been all elimination either. We have also been able to justify fun surprises, such as the rec room/ home gym in the lower level, and the nicely laid out upstairs bathroom with a large walk in shower. Both features that we know our family will greatly enjoy!

The newer floor plans, and hopefully plans that are VERY close to what will actually be built, are as follows:

Main Level (refined design)

Upper Level (refined design)

Lower Level (refined design)

The exterior has changed quite a bit too – in response to the interior changes.

This is how the exterior design looked last summer, before we began fine tuning.

And this is how it looks now. The most notable changes include the elimination of the living room ‘wing’, the reduction to one gable over the entry door, the change in orientation of the garage, the switch from a metal roof material to asphalt, and the elimination of the transom windows. The refined exterior is more simple and balanced, I think. I especially like that the entry door is centered on the gable and framed by the columns. Also, please note that the large planter box is still there. 😉

I will be taking some time this weekend or early next week to update the slideshow images on the website itself, so that it can reflect these changes.

Hopefully this post, and the overall blog – which will eventually capture our cottage from design, through building, and into interior decorating – will be a useful reference for people who are considering a new build of their own. It isn’t necessary to have it all perfect on paper starting out. The design will evolve and allow you to love it more along the way!

SATURDAY SKETCHBOOK: KITCHEN CEILING FINISH

We talked with our contractor this week, and he is 95% sure that our project will not break ground until Spring of 2019. It’s a little sad to have to wait through another winter, but we are looking on the bright side and realizing that this extra time will allow us to make sure everything is just as we want it.

There are various bits and pieces that Craig and I just can’t seem to agree on, or that he claims to not have an opinion on. And since I had such a great response when I asked for upstairs bathroom layout ideas, I figured I could come to you all again for a little input.

There have been a few exterior revisions, but mostly they are interior

I have been slowly fine tuning the design of our kitchen in collaboration with Cliq Studios, as well as determining the dimensions and design of our future harvest table – which I will share about in a future post.

We changed the window sizes and style to fit more naturally with the farmhouse sink we will be restoring. The larger center window will be a fixed picture unit, and the smaller side windows will be operable casements.

We also revised the cabinets to the right of the fridge. Initially I had them going all the way down to the counter. We eventually realized that we would like to have the extra counter space for small appliances, such as the microwave and toaster.

The cabinets to the left of the fridge are going to be shallow depth (12″ instead of the standard 24″). We see this area more as a built in buffet/ hutch space – to promote a sort of dining room within the larger kitchen space – since we do not have a separate room. The shallow depth allows more space for the dining table and chairs.

These are all changes that we think will add to the functionality and feel of the space. There is one more cosmetic option that we are having a difficult time deciding on. The ceiling.

When you enter into the house, there is a straight view from the entry into the living room, and beyond to the kitchen/dining space.

The small entry/ piano area is somewhat divided from the living room with built in cabinets and columns.

I want to also have some sort of definition between the living room and kitchen, while at the same time keeping the floor space open. I started by adding a dropped soffit between the two rooms.

It helps to separate the spaces, but I still felt that there needed to be something else to define of space or the other. Since the living room already has a feature fireplace and built in book-cases, I turned my attention to the kitchen. Here is where we are having trouble deciding – the ceiling.

Part of my family prefers the smooth drywall ceiling in both the living room and kitchen, as shown here:

Others of the family, myself included, feel that some simple 2×8 or 2×10 beams (non structural) could be that last finishing detail the kitchen needs for definition. Potentially, tongue and groove boards could be used instead of drywall (layered under the beams) as a way to add more texture. I didn’t bother drawing each and every line, but you can get an idea of what that might look like from this inspiration picture (image 3).

I prefer having the entire ceiling painted one color instead of keeping it natural/stained – mostly because we have wood shelves nearby, wood floors, and also a wood table. However, I saw this picture on Pinterest, and thought that a soft color on the entire ceiling might look great while adding a bit of color to the all white kitchen. Perhaps a light aqua or a pale grey. I’m not sure I’m brave enough to go for it though!

So, tell me. Which do you think looks best? Please comment on this post or vote via Facebook or Instagram. I’m really curious what the majority of you favors! Thanks friends!

One last look at all of the options, side by side, as seen from the front door.

AROUND HERE: JULY 2018

Around here, we have been….

CELEBRATING with family. The fourth of July holiday has always been a special one for my family. Growing up, it was tradition to visit my grandparents and take in all of the small town festivities – parades with lots of candy, sparklers, and of course a ton of barbecued food. Now, going home, it’s fun to watch our kids doing some of the same things. It was wonderful to see both of my sisters and their families. I cherish these moments.

This year, my hometown was having an all school reunion the same weekend as the 4th of July festivities, and so I was able to catch up with two of my best high school friends, and meet their kids. It was a blast to wander around our old high school and bring up all of the memories (both good and bad) that were had there.

RECOVERING from surgery. As part of her arthrogryposis, some of {K}’s joints formed in unusual ways. The hand specialist she sees in the Twin Cities evaluated her left wrist and thumb and let us know that there is potential for both of them to be more functional, which could help her gain more independence. However, he also mentioned that the window of opportunity to improve these joints is limited, and that if not done in the next year or so they may be permanently stuck in the stiff and awkward position.

We did a lot of talking with {K} about what she wanted, and ultimately, though she was scared of having the surgery, she wanted to have it done so that she could have the best possible function. She also wanted the surgery for aesthetic reasons. Our little girl was very brave and although after her surgery she was in quite a bit of pain and discomfort, she is now is back to her happy self with her bright pink cast, which will be removed in August.

TRYING new things, and trying old things again. We gifted {D} a flight lesson coupon for his 11th birthday last November. He saved it, waiting until the weather was perfect to take to the sky. He had a wonderful experience and is excited to continue on his training.

Craig finally got his hands on a box of King Vitaman. It was his absolute favorite cereal when he was a kid, and he wanted to try it again to see if it was everything that he remembered. The cereal is still in production, but in very limited quantities. Buying it online is an option, but an expensive one that we were too cheap to invest in. His sister and her husband bought him a box as a birthday present, and he was pumped! See the video of his reaction to the first bite HERE.

STARTING to cross things off of the never-ending project list. Being renters for nearly 4 years, we haven’t had much to do in the home improvement realm. It’s been a nice little break, but as we are preparing to build Arrow Hill Cottage in the not too distant future, our thoughts are once again turning to DIY. I organized a list of projects that I want to tackle for our new home.

I have to admit it feels pretty good to be getting my hands dirty again, and the kids have even gotten into the action. We will see if we can finish all of these tasks before we break ground!

This is just a glimpse at what our family has been up to. If you’d like a closer look, be sure to check out our weekly ‘mini vlogs’ on our YouTube channel ARROW HILL FAMILY. Be well everyone!

WORKING WITH CLIQ STUDIOS: PART 1

We have been working through the design of our custom home build for about a year now; And even as someone who is well versed in home design and construction, I am finding the amount of little decisions that need to be made a bit overwhelming – and up to now all of our decisions have been made on paper! I imagine that as soon as ground is broken, the decision making process will increase – probably both in frequency and in the speed at which the decisions need to be made.

I’m trying to stay on top of the game as best I can, and so have been looking ahead at some of the bigger choices that will fall on our shoulders. Specifically, I am focusing on the decisions that will affect the bottom line – the total amount this house will cost to build. With our chosen contractor’s bids in hand, we have been looking through them with a fine toothed comb in an effort to make the best financial choices we can.

Last week my focus was on cabinet design and price, specifically for the kitchen. It is well known that a kitchen is one of the most expensive rooms in a house, perhaps THE most expensive. A large portion of the cost is determined by the cabinets that are selected. The average bid that we received for custom kitchen cabinets was around $25,000. That’s not including the counter-tops, appliances, flooring, or wall treatments! Ouch!

After the sticker shock set in, I went into research mode to see if the same/similar kitchen design could be made for less. That’s when I found Cliq Studios.

I have seen ads for Cliq Studios both on Houzz and This Old House, which are both websites that I respect and trust. I figured that if these websites were standing behind Cliq Studios, they were worth looking into further. The company is based out of Nebraska, with a warehouse in Minneapolis – only about a two hour drive from where we live. Their cabinet line is constructed of solid plywood, includes ‘soft close’ drawers and doors, and has options for several specialty accessories – such as pull out garbage cans, drawer dividers and pull out trays.

Their website boasts a whole lot of FREE – Free samples! Free design help! Free estimates! Free Shipping! I decided to put them to the test.

First, I looked through their catalog of available cabinet door styles. Unlike custom cabinet services which give you seemingly endless options on color, glaze, size, and detailing – Cliq Studios offers a limited variety of semi- custom, stock size cabinets and styles. Lucky for me, their ‘Rockford’ style is perfect for what I had been envisioning for our kitchen. I ordered this style sample, in two different colors. They arrived a couple of days later, in perfect condition.

standard white on the left, cloud white on the right

It’s hard to tell from this picture, but he Standard White has a bit of a cream tint to it, which I wasn’t a huge fan of. The Cloud White, though, was just perfect!

door construction detail

Feeling pretty confident with the quality of the sample and a style and finish that I loved, I went ahead and entered some more information on the website so that I could get a bit of design help. I’ll admit that this step made me a little nervous. I spent so much time working on fine tuning the kitchen design and was worried it would be scrapped and re-designed by their personnel.

What happened was the exact opposite! Within 24 hours of submitting the design application, I was assigned a designer. She contacted me via email a couple of days later, and we scheduled a time to talk on the phone. She asked about my vision for the space, and which aspects were most important to me.

My designer stayed on the phone with me for well over an hour, working through each and every cabinet decision – her with her cabinet design program open, and me with my AutoCad drawing and Sketchup file. Together we tweaked a few items and made the kitchen the absolute best it could be, from stock cabinetry!

She worked on the estimate for a few more days, and came back with a price quote that was less than half of what we had been told by the custom cabinet manufacturers!

I am titling this post ‘Part 1’ – because my gut at the moment tells me that we aren’t yet finished with Cliq Studios. I want to do a bit more research, but am feeling pretty comfortable that we may be getting our kitchen cabinets through them! Stay tuned!

*This post is NOT Sponsored by or affiliated with Cliq Studios – these words are my own review and critique of the services that were provided to us, free of charge.

SATURDAY SKETCHBOOK: GIRL’S SHARED BEDROOM

The upstairs of the cottage is very simply laid out. It will contain two bedrooms (one for the boys, and one for the girls), plus a bathroom accessed from a small hallway.

I previously introduced the boy’s shared bedroom, and the hall bathroom. Today I would like to share the details of the final upstairs space – the girl’s room.

The room is 140 square feet total, with basic overall dimensions of 10′-4″ deep x 14′-4″ wide. A small portion of the rectangular area is used by the bathroom shower – giving the girl’s bedroom a bit of an irregular shape.

Though it is not a large room, the feature that will make it seem more spacious is the tall vaulted ceilings. At the very top, the ceiling is 11′-5″ high. It will be finished in the same way that we will finish the boy’s room ceiling – with pine tongue and groove boards, painted white. I am looking forward to this simple yet elegant look.

I mentioned the amazing cast iron metal beds that I got for FREE in this post. They still need some TLC, but they will be showstoppers once they are finished! As of right now I am planning on painting them black, to balance out the amount of white used on the walls and ceiling. The bedding will be simple, with aqua and pink accents – similar to what they have in their current shared bedroom.

In fact, besides the beds, the rest of the furniture and finishing accents that I plan to add to the space will come from their current set up. The pieces work perfectly and have sentimental value.

Their dresser will sit on the short wall behind the door. It was a gift to me as a little girl, from my grandparents. It will provide two drawers for each girl and house their shirts and pants.

On the wall behind the dresser will be a small accent mirror. I imagine the girls might at some point fight over bathroom space getting ready – so this will make for a convenient ‘overflow’ spot.

In the smaller ‘nook’ space of the room will sit a glider rocker, which used to belong to Craig’s grandpa. We had it reupholstered before our oldest child was born, and used it in the nursery for each of them. It’s a very special piece.

Couple the chair with a few floating shelves filled with books, and the girls will have a perfect little spot to cozy up and read.

The birdcages above are also from the girl’s current space. Each of the paper cranes, which symbolize peace and longevity in Asian culture, were hand folded by me – during the months we waited to complete the girl’s adoptions from China.

Their closet will be accessed through two sliding barn doors, which were found in a small barn/shed on the property of the very first home that Craig and I purchased as a married couple. They are rough right now; But as part of my Summer Project Bucket List, they should be whipped into shape soon.

Inside the closet, the ceiling slopes quite dramatically, from 6′-6″ at the doors, all the way down to the floor. There is just enough head space though for each girl to have her own hanging rack (one on each side) , plus a shared cabinet with baskets to hold socks and undergarments. The extra space in the closet has a pretty low ceiling height, but will be useful for shallow bins holding rarely used items, such as Christmas decorations.

So that’s it! Now the entire second level of the cottage has been designed and drawn up in 3D! Designing with the third dimension has really been key for me throughout this entire process.

I love the way it all flows, and the simplicity of the layout. I went into the design process with the hope that it would create very little ‘wasted space’ – and I succeeded! I think all five of the kids will enjoy hanging out here.