Finally, a Bungacello update!

Hello there, faithful fans. I know you've started to wonder whether home renovation has finally driven me mad, or whether I succumbed to paint fumes or got lost in a blizzard. No, I've simply been travelling a bunch for work, and each time I've gotten home, I've been too happy to just flake out around the house to post an update.

So, here's a quick look at what the house looks like these days. Imagine you are coming to visit! If you're lucky, it will have just snowed. Here's the house after the big snow two weeks ago: 

When you come inside, you are in the lovely entrance hall.

I finally got brave a few weeks ago and started drilling holes in the wall for pictures and things. I even got super brave and hung this adorable coat rack, which is a wonderful green color and looks smashing.

 The front hall is wonderfully welcoming. It's full of light.  I just bought a rug (finally!) the other day, which makes it even homier. My mom's wonderful bookcase, which used to hold all of her books about running and gardening, lives in the front hall and holds lots of books about books. See the bit of blue tape on the door frame? There are loads of those around the house--all the places where I need to do some touch up. I'm just not in the mood to open a paint can yet, for some reason. I'll get there eventually.

 When you look into the living room, you can see that the beautiful built-in bookcase is finally done! I still need to paint it. I've got some art up on the walls, and other things in progress. This lovely piece is a present from my dad--it hung in my parents' living room for many years. I need to get it rematted but I keep putting off going to the frame shop. I can't wait for it to hang over the fireplace.

 If you're anything like me, once you're in the house, you will immediately sack out on the couch and admire the vista into the foyer and stairwell as soon as you possibly can. Most exciting in this picture is the light coming down from the stairwell. I FINALLY had the stairwell fixture installed last week.

Speaking of lighting, the same day, Marshall, Robbie and Bobby installed the undercounter lighting in the kitchen, too. WOW!

The kitchen is absolutely fantastic. I love having a dishwasher. See the cute decorative wooden scrolling over the sink? I had John, the carpenter who made the bookcases, add that in. Most people pull those OUT of kitchens when they remodel, but I think they're adorable. If I'm going to have a circa 1960 kitchen, I'm embracing it. 

Next up is the most wonderful thing ever:

Can you believe it? Look at that fantastic combination of things: gas stove with range hood, a beautiful cabinet and open shelving.  There are a few things to work out (like, the missing IKEA shelf and the lack of a permanent countertop) but it's a wonderful workspace. It looks like the cabinet has been there forever. In fact, I have to explain to people who visit that it's brand new--they can't believe it, because it really seems that it should have been there all along. John did a great job building it to fit perfectly. And there's room for all my stuff. Just to remind you, here's how they had it before I bought the house:

Just because it's so pretty, here's a closeup of the stove area. I installed the little hanging rack myself! Drilling into plaster is way easier than I thought. In fact, it's much simpler than mounting stuff on drywall.
 

Here's a fun little thing I asked John to do: he cut a cat sized mouse-hole into the bottom of the door between the kitchen and the pantry so the cats can get to their litterbox but I don't need to look at the litterbox--or the rest of the pantry, for that matter. They took to it immediately. I think it's half hilarious and half adorable. I still haven't gotten around to sanding it down and touching up the paint (not to mention cleaning up that awful door handle). One step at a time.

Just behind the pantry, the guest bathroom has actually started to come together! The washer dryer are finally stacked (as of last week) and the washer works. The dryer is being set up tomorrow. I've been hanging everything to dry for WAY too long.  As you can see, this room is definitely still a work in progress. But it's so civilized I can't quite believe it.

Finally, I'm just going to give you one glimpse upstairs. What I love about this house is having two stories: I can keep the mess upstairs! And mess there is, indeed. I still haven't finished fully setting up the bedrooms. But because it will ALWAYS be messy, I'll give you a quick look at the sewing room, which I've been putting to good use.

It's wonderful! Tons of workspace for all my projects. And, of course, there's plenty of room for a cat assistant or two.

Adios for now, dear friends. Now, please come visit so you can truly enjoy the house in person!