Thank you all so much for the incredible love fill Thank you all so much for the incredible love filled comments! The hair is growing skin is glowing and Fall looks are rolling in. This lipstick color is everything @imaylabeauty in 007 Cerise
Dear husband, what God puts together really is goo Dear husband, what God puts together really is good. We make a choice everyday to nourish this gift of love God has given us, and just look at Us! We have created a whole family. I feel blessed to know we are in this together and I look forward to spending this rest of our days growing and loving on each other. Happy 4th wedding anniversary my love. 

 “Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.”
— ‭‭Mark‬ ‭10:9‬‬
Thank you all for the birthday wishes! It was a gr Thank you all for the birthday wishes! It was a great first day in a new year of life. The Lord our God has been so good and faithful to me. I’m blessed beyond measure.
Game Changer: All my life I knew of God and His lo Game Changer: All my life I knew of God and His love, I grew up in church as a Pentecostal Christian. However knowing of Him is NOT the same as knowing God.  Forever changed. #growingupchristian #followerofChrist  #savedbyGrace
Me and one of my little BFFs #momlife is the best Me and one of my little BFFs #momlife is the best life I ever had and I’ve had some good ones (dress is from @tjmaxx and head wrap is from @amazonfashion linked in my highlights)
Length check! Shrinkage equals health so I embrace Length check! Shrinkage equals health so I embrace it. #naturalhair COMMENT 👇 what are some things you had to learn to love about your hair?
I’ve always been a stickler for detail 🥰 it p I’ve always been a stickler for detail 🥰 it paid off! Working with @marrisawilsonny on my wedding dress and @royalbackdrops on the reception decor was a dream and a smart choice! Any brides to be in the room?
My husband made fun of me for loving this t-shirt My husband made fun of me for loving this t-shirt from @target I mean c’mon have you not seen my plants! 😂🤷🏽‍♀️#targetstyle
This error message is only visible to WordPress admins
There has been a problem with your Instagram Feed.
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • About
  • Blog
  • Contact

Life Happens by Lee

beauty and lifestyle blog

Home Decor, Life · March 1, 2021

Renovation Diaries: Our Kitchen/Dining Combo

Whoever thought it was cool to make renovations seems like a walk in the park is not very nice. Perhaps it was my fault for taking on a renovation while pregnant. A little backstory on this house we now call home, I didn’t want to even tour it. Yes you read that correctly, I thought it was just unattractive.

We must’ve toured every single house in our budget (thanks NY for being so expensive!!) they all lacked big time. Some houses actually needed to be gutted completely just so you can safely sleep in it. We started to notice we had to budget for a home reno vs move in ready. We ran out of homes to see and this house that I would skip over for the last five months was having an open house. Still we put it on the back of the list of things to do that day, we made it for the last 30 mins. We only needed five because we were home the moment we walked in.

This is what the kitchen looked like in the photos from the real estate. Imagine It was worst in person. Oh and yes that is an air conditioner right smack in the middle of the wall at eye level.

Now don’t get me wrong, she was ugly but she was definitely ours and we knew we could fix the things done to her. Our home was not loved and that’s all really it needed. Also it needed some other things we will get into with each room reveal.

Before the reno..

I believe this was their “sitting room” and it had the most awkward cut out in the wall. This wall divided the Kitchen and this room making them both too small for anything that involved a big family.
Baby Sofia, she wasn’t one yet! This wall we needed down had the biggest pantry that wasn’t functional. the door only opened on one side. We bought a new one but the cut was not standard on the door opening.

When It came to these two spaces I knew they were wrong for the space. Everything felt cramped and therefor making it hard to put any real furniture pieces in the rooms. The tile on the fireplace was clashing with the rest of the home, and the chair is blocking the sliding door. I mention that because these photos make the room seem larger than they truly were.


House To Home..Our Kitchen/Dining Renovation

During..

This kitchen-dining room renovation was very important because we needed a space to grow into. However, as you saw there was a major thing in the way..the wall. So it had to come down.

Temporary walls had to go up because this happened to be load bearing. That means it was helping to hold the weight of the second floor. We had to put a beam in.

When possible I love a good DIY, but taking down structural walls and installing a beam isn’t a DIY project in this house. There was something I wanted to transform myself, that was to paint to the cabinets. I tried with a spray gun and found I prefer to use a foam roller.

These cabinets were too red and didn’t even match each other.
(I took this photo the night we moved in)
White cabinet has primer and I went with butter cream paint color so the room wouldn’t be too white.

I definitely needed a break from painting, and it was time to tackle tiling the backsplash. We absolutely loved the Jeffrey Court Travertine Mosaic tile in Home depot . Just like that out came the ugly “bathroom tile” and in the beautiful travertine tile!

home depot travertine wall and floor tiles
I finished painting and it wasn’t hard I just recommend that you are not tired and pregnant!

Finally the moment I have been waiting on. Temporary walls came down, beams went up. The kitchen floor tile switched out for hardwood.

My husbands aunt was also doing a kitchen renovation and gifted us her old island. I painted it Van Deusen Blue from BM, styled it with a butcher block counter top and vintage corbels I thrifted.
sanded and stained hardwood floors
Floors were sanded and stained. I went with a low luster finish.
vintage corbels on kitchen island
My thrifted corbels I purchased two for $30!
We added a coffee station where we once had a second opening to the old dining room. I now have my home office on the other side.

The transformation is everything!

kitchen coffee station
Kitchen dining room combination. Home renovation
Taking the wall down brought so much life to the rooms. I love how bright and cozy this space has become.
Kitchen dining room combination
Kitchen renovation. cozy and airy room

I hope you enjoyed this room transformation. There is more to come. I have finished my laundry room and home office. Next is my master bathroom which I will take you with me in this DIY adventure over on YouTube! If you are new here thank you for hanging out and please click HERE to learn more about me and my lovely little family.

Previous Post: « Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies!
Next Post: Renovation Diaries: Laundry Room Makeover »

Primary Sidebar

Meet Lee

I’m Stephanie Lauretta AKA Lee from Beauty By Lee. Life definitely happened and I am taking you all along for the ride.

Read More >>

  • Beauty
  • Home Decor
  • Life
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

never miss a tip or trick that can change the game for you

Archives

Footer

Lifestyle

Beauty

Home

© 2022 Life Happens by Lee · Design By High Note Designs, LLC