Let's start out front, shall we?

Let's start the posting at Mossy Oaks Place with the low-down on how we got here.  My husband and I moved to this area (Northwest Arkansas) 5 years ago due to a job transfer.  We came down on your typical corporate relo, whirlwind house-hunting trip and bought a house.  We didn't know the area, didn't know the builder, didn't know the neighborhood, blah, blah, blah.  But that's how it goes.  The more time you take, the more time you spend living apart and we're not big on that.  We when we have to relo; we make it happen fast.  So...  after four years of living in *that* house, we did know the area, neighborhoods, etc.  We also decided that we like it here and we'd like to stay (cross your fingers, toes, and any other parts your flexible enough to cross, please).  We sold the other house and started the craziest house-hunt in human history.  After falling in love with houses that had structural issues, contaminated well-water, and incomplete titles we were living in a rental, had no new house on the horizon, and had no idea where to turn.  

We ended up deciding to build.  We interviewed builders, chose a plan (from Southern Living - I still long for that house) and shopped around for a lot.  For some reason, we just couldn't seem to pull the trigger.  There always seemed to be more delays.  That's not good - it gives me more time to keep looking (i.e. shop).  That's how I found this house.  It's in the same neighborhood where we had a lot on hold.  It's only two blocks away and actually has a better/bigger lot.  BUT...  this house is 10 years old and had been on the market TWICE.  Each time for months and months without a contract.  Hmm...  You have to ask yourself, what's wrong with it?  Well, lots of things to be honest.  It smelled of dog pee - EW!!!  It was really dark (most of the rooms were painted chocolate brown or mustard yellow).  And the design choices didn't get much better from there.  Cabinet knobs in the kitchen were mis-matched.  Clamshell sinks in the bathrooms!  You get my drift.  The place was a bit weird in both look and odor.  

But the *bones* were good!

I really like the layout of the house - it's a bit different without being wack-a-doo.  The floor plan has some of the separateness of old-school design, but it still has a great room and good flow.  It also has a movie room for the boys and a hearth room for me.  Man Cave?  Check.  Mom Cave?  Check.  Actually, it has two Mom Caves... but you didn't hear that from me.  Somehow the guys still haven't caught on.  I'll tell you about it in future posts.  Just don't rat me out.  Needless to say... I dig it.  Big time.  

With a little vision and some work we thought we could turn this place around.  So we bought it.  We went into this with a "Property Brothers" mentality.  Since it had been on the market so long, we felt that it was a good deal and that meant we could spend some money making it our own without pricing it out of the neighborhood.  We closed in April 2013.  We thought we could finish before school started in the fall.  It's now 2014 and we ARE NOT FINISHED.  ha ha ha.  Yeah it's real hilarious - at least for those of you on the outside looking in!  I'm kidding - I think naiveté is funny, too.

So, that's enough history for now...

Let's get to some *before and after*, shall we?  One of the simplest projects that we did was the exterior of the house.  I loved the porch on this house.  I think it feels farmhouse-y and southern at the same time - a good thing in my book.  I liked the shutters, too.  But... both of these things seemed to disappear on the facade.  Paint is all that it took to make them shine.  That, and a bit of hardware.  

Before...

After...

We painted the porch posts the same color as the trim on the windows - I think it really brightens up the front of the house.  We painted the cedar shutters steely gray blue.  The color is something that I mixed up from various paint samples that I had in the garage.  Once I had a color that I liked, I tested it by painting out one shutter and stepping back to have a look.  Then I painted a swatch onto a paper plate, took it in for a color match, and had a whole gallon mixed up.  After I finished the painting we got out the screw gun and put on the strap hinges.  Yay!  

We'll tackle the landscaping this spring.  I'm also thinking about taking down the porch light and garage lighting fixtures and spraying them black. Right now they match the hardware on the front door.  I also need to finalize the furniture selections.  I built a daybed (and it's awesome), but I'm not sure it's working as a front porch piece.  There is a ton of space out there - two rockers may feel a little lost.  I'll do another post and we'll work it out...  when the weather turns.  At the moment, I'm hibernating.  Feel free to leave a comment if you want to weigh in!

Next post coming...  kids bedrooms!

Thanks for stopping by.