So, as we are anxiously waiting for the house to close, I am immersing myself in home decorating and DIY blogs and loving it! I feel
so empowered and am looking forward to getting my "craft" on. As I look through pictures of other people's houses and projects, I am coming up with my own "to-do" list. At the top of mine--you guessed it! Getting rid of those grey carpets and walls in the front room (see the
previous post if you missed it) and hopefully even widening that door way into the kitchen to get some more natural light in from that great picture window--which we hear you can get a mason to help you do for around $100!
Thoughts? Feedback? We were pricing hardwood floors at Lowe's and think we can get the materials fairly cheap, and were mulling over the idea of trying to install them ourselves. Has anyone ever done that? We have no clue what is under those grey carpets--for all we know, we could just be looking at re-finishing wood floors that are already there! Have you widened a doorway in your house? Did you like the effect?
Let's hear it, peanut gallery! Any words of wisdom? Am I being too ambitious or can we tackle this ourselves?
Lots of love,
The soon-to-be-breaking-a-sweat-VanderdelaCuadraHamms
You know I grew up in a DIY environment... or was it more "build it from the inside-out?"
ReplyDeleteCheck to make sure you're not moving any load-bearing walls or supports... you kind of need a roof. From what I've heard, and research I've done, hardwood floors are not that tough to install. Just make sure they're done right!
And, YAY, to the natural lighting.
Those thoughts are my two cents!
Often times when you buy an old home (1940's or 50's) they originally installed hardwood floors and subsequent owners covered them with carpet. That would be one thing worth checking before you buy hardwood. You may just be able to pull out the carpet and refinish the floors. If you install the hardwood floors yourselves, I would seriously look into doing them at a 45 degree angle. The problem you can have if you run the slats perpendicular to the walls is that if one area of the install is not quite parallel it can throw the rest of the room off.
ReplyDeleteOne thing you should always remember about construction or renovations is that they will ALWAYS get screwed up somehow. I've done quite a few construction projects and I can't recall one that didn't have a problem of one form or another. People who do projects successfully understand that there are going to be problems and they do their best to mitigate them.
Thanks for the advice and warning, Siv. Especially since we are newbies, that is an important thing to remember.
ReplyDeleteI have to agree with Siv. No matter how hard you try or plan, you will end up with an issue or two per project. Assume you will have them and you won't be frustrated when they happen...and remember the end-goal will be so worth it! Love you guys
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