Pinteresting: Cleaning Bathroom Grout

The longer I live in my house, the more I like my bathroom. I love the old tiles and since it's small, that just means less for me to clean! One of the first things I had to do before moving in was a deep cleaning. The bathroom floors and walls were pretty disgusting and I knew it would look so much better if only the grout wasn't so dingy. 

I mean, just look at those hexagon tiles! (What can I say? I'm a fan of this shape.) 

I headed over to Pinterest to see what I could use to give this grout a makeover. 

Attempt #1: Bleach pen

The only bleach pen I could find was the Tilex Tile and Grout pen with Bleach. I bought 2 pens and that was barely enough for half the tub. I let the solution stay for 10-15 minutes before rinsing it off. 

This didn't really do anything. The tiles were clean, but the grout wasn't any whiter. I think it was because the solution just dripped off the wall tiles. This may have worked better on floor tiles where the solution could penetrate the grout and not run off of them. I couldn't test this theory since I didn't have any more grout pens to use. 

Attempt #2: Baking Soda and Hydrogen Peroxide Paste

Hey, if it whitens teeth, it should work on grout, right? Plus, it would stick to the grout, which would solve one of the issues the grout pen had.

I made a paste of baking soda and hydrogen peroxide (3:1 ratio), slathered it on the wall tile, and let it sit  for more than an hour.

Huge mess. No results. Tile was clean, but the grout was still dark. 

Attempt #3: Toilet Cleaner 

Ladies & Gentlemen, we have a winner! 

It whitens toilets, clings, and has bleach. Sounds good so far! Plus it's super easy and fast to apply and doesn't cost too much. It took 2 bottles to cover all the tile on the walls and the floor. 

The excess cleaner pooled on the floor, so I just threw on some rubber gloves and spread it around. 

I did all this in the evening, after a long day of working on the house, so I was not in the mood to stay longer just to clean. So I let it sit overnight. 

The next day, I took a cleaning brush and a little bit of water, scrubbed the tiles, and wiped everything clean with a damp cloth. 

Just look at those gorgeous tiles! It's like a brand new floor! Now I'm not embarrassed to have people use my bathroom.

Hopefully the tiles will never look that gross again, but if they do, I know what to do!

DIY: Closet Shelves

The only downfall of my master bedroom: this tiny closet! Compared to the size of the bedroom & the closets (yes, that's plural) in the smaller bedroom, it's criminal!

Offenses: 

- Barely deep enough to fit a hanger. 

- Long, Unreachable space to the right of the door.

- Only one hanging bar. 

Initially I thought I could just get by with storing all my clothes in one of the spare bedroom closets, but I'll be honest...it's annoying going back and forth between bedrooms! Especially when the full length mirror and my shoes are in the master bedroom. It's just not conducive to the dressing process! (Although, having to decide on what to wear in a different room than I actually change in HAS prevented me from leaving piles of rejected outfits on the bed or floor...)

Master Closet Makeover

Step #1: 

Cut 1x2s to fit the depth of the shelf. 

Drill pilot holes. 

Realize that you don't have countersink drill bits or long enough screws and are too lazy to go to the store. 

McGuyver it and drill over pilot holes with a larger drill bit (but not all the way through) so the short screws can do the trick.

Step #2:

Fit into the narrow closet space and screw 1x2s into wall at the desired shelf heights.

Level and anchors are your friends.

Step #3: 

Measure the size of the shelf. 

Using a circular saw, cut shelves from 1/2" plywood. 

Paint shelves and ledges. 

Forget to take photos of this step.

Step #4:

Place shelves on the ledges. 

Make use of the weird space in the closet! 

Moving On Up

The big Move In Day was Saturday. Thanks to my church small group (THE Group) and Jason, the move went quickly and smoothly. Clearing out my storage unit, driving across town, and unloading the UHaul took less than 2 hours! My friends and family stuck around to put my bed together (God bless them for tackling the Ikea instructions!) and even unpacked some boxes (newspaper inky fingers - woo hoo!). 

Thankfully I had a 3 day Labor Day weekend and had plenty of time to unpack. To date, the living room, dining room, and kitchen are all unpacked. My bedroom is a wreck - I'm living out of suitcases and plastic bins for the time being. No fun, but you do what you gotta do. 

Apologies to my neighbors - there's a huge pile of rubbish and branches in my front yard that will be gone after Big Trash Day. Oh, and the lawn might look like a jungle until after this weekend. Mowing in 90+ degree weather isn't really on the top of my To Do list this week. I promise that once I'm unpacked & settled in, the yard will look good! 

Dining Room - Before

Dining room, you are so spacious! Look how open you are! Your large wooden window lets in so much light! 

Hello there, sexy grapes & vine.

Do I detect a Tuscan accent? You're so classy! 

How's it going, plaid fabric in the dry bar. 

I sure do love those thumbtacks holding you up. It's so nice seeing the Irish and Italian decor getting along so well. 

Poor toile fabric - Mr. Plaid is hiding all your glory. 

Psst - he told me it was because the trumpet yielding cherubs made him nervous. 

Little does he know that hiding you is doing more harm than good. 

Don't blink.*

*Confused? (It's a Doctor Who reference...)

Living Room Progress

Here's my living room before any work was done: 

- Beige walls (blah)

- Pea green ceiling (eww)

- Dindgy crown moulding and baseboards (ick)

- Curtain rods screwed into the window trim (Really?!)

- Mock fireplace (Space waster that would only be used for hanging Christmas stockings.)

First order of business was to remove the mantle. Thank you Jason - who picked up a crow bar and just went at it! 

I didn't realize until my final walk-through before closing that there was an electrical outlet on the mantle. So this buddy just hung out for a couple weeks until my electrician could cut the power and snip the wires.

Found out the tiles were attached to brick. Thankfully, there was plaster behind the brick, so there wouldn't need to be any major plaster repairs.

Jason brought his big sledgehammer (my dinky rubber one wasn't cutting it) and removed the brick and tile from the wall. My dad came another day and removed the tile from the floor. 

See you later dangling electric cord! 

I spackled the wall and patched the floor with oak plywood. (This photo was taken prior to staining the plywood to match.) I could have hired someone to patch the floor with planks, but that might have required refinishing the rest of the wood floor - a repair that was just not in my budget. Besides, I plan on putting my couch where the fireplace was, so no one will even notice. The plywood is held down by a few screws, so it will be super easy to remove if I want to do a proper patch in the future.

Here's the living room now:

- Black accent wall (You can't even tell there was a fireplace!)

- Light grey walls

- Painted ceiling, window trim, baseboards, and crown moulding a clean, crisp white

Working Like a Mad (Wo)man

In the 5 days since closing, I have been working on the house non-stop.

I naively thought I could have the house cleaned and prepped to start painting by Monday! Ha! Those plans derailed pretty quickly. 

Mom and Dad helped with some cleaning which took a lot longer than expected. The stove alone took most of Friday evening. I was on my hands and knees for a few days cleaning the wood floors and baseboards. After they were cleaned, I taped them off and covered them with paper and drop cloths. Not only will they (hopefully) stay clean, they are prepped for painting. 

At the final walk-through, I discovered a window pane in the living room was broken. 

There were still shards of glass on the window sill, so I think this happened while the previous owner was moving out. We also discovered that there was water damage on the walls near some windows. Upon further inspection, a lot if the windows had gaps in the caulking. The forecast was showing rain in a few days, so window repairs got bumped to the top of my To Do list. Thanks to a This Old House tutorial, I was able to reglaze the window myself on Sunday. Mom, Dad, and I spent Saturday, Sunday, and a little of Monday removing old caulk around all the windows and doors, replacing some rotted trim, and re-caulking. Just in time! The rain started yesterday and there were downpours and flash flood warnings today! All the repairs held up - no new water damage!

Phyllis, Jason, and the kids came over to see the house for the first time on Saturday. While they were here, I mentioned that I wanted to take down the mock fireplace. Jason picked up a crowbar and started taking it down! Hooray! He did it a lot faster than I would have, I'm sure! 

I'm going to remove the rest of it next week after getting an electrician to remove the outlet that had been on the top of the mantle. (Another surprise that I found during my walk-through.)

Jason came by Sunday (I think...the days are all blending together!) and cut down a large crape myrtle that had branches rubbing against the siding and was blocking the AC unit. He also cut down this tree that was blocking the kitchen window and rubbing against the roof. 

I trimmed the Magnolia tree and Japanese Maple so I could get to the front window to do the reglazing. I also pulled down some of the ivy on the side of the house so we could re-caulk the windows. Ivy looks cool, but it is a pain! It has grown underneath the siding (an issue noted in the inspection) and it is just a breeding ground for insects and spiders. Ick! I plan on removing it all over time.

I trimmed up some vegetation in the backyard that was leaning on electrical wires and blocking windows. 

Yesterday and today consisted of painting prep - caulking trim, detaching kitchen cabinet doors, and plastering cracks and holes in the walls. 

Needless to say, I took of work Monday through Wednesday! Today is the first day I haven't worked on the house for 12 hours. I kept it an easy 9 hour day. :) It's hard work and I'm feeling pain in the weirdest places (the joints of my toes?!), but I'm enjoying it. I love working with my hands and turning this house into my home. I'm so thankful for all my family's help! I can't imagine how long it would have taken to do all this work alone! 

Looking forward to posting some before and after shots on here when the different projects are complete!

Removing Glass Doors From the Tub

Here's what the bathroom looked like at the inspection. 

I am not planning on any large bathroom renovations any time soon. Although there are some changes I would make to the bathroom in the future, it is just fine for the time being. The tiles are in  pretty good condition (Original? Quite possibly.) and I can deal with the non-existent counter space until I have the funds for an overhaul. 

Two things that absolutely needed to be done right away:

- Clean the dingy tiled walls and floor 

- Remove the ugly 80's glass doors.

 

My awesome dad took the shower doors off for me while I was cleaning the disgustingness that was the stove. (No pictures of the science experiment looking food particles...I prefer to keep my dinner in my stomach.)

The removal was fairly simple. He detached the doors first. Then he removed the handful of screws holding the frame in place. After scoring the caulk, the frame lifted off. Scraping the old gross caulking off the tub was the tough part. 

Removing the doors just opens up the space so much. It's a pretty tiny bathroom, so I'll take whatever space I can get! 

Closing Time

Closing went smoothly and I got the keys to my new (old) house!

I spoke with the seller after all the paperwork was signed and he had nothing but good things to say about my new neighbors. I even met one today and she was as nice as he described.  

I'm spending the next few weeks painting almost every paintable surface as well as doing some other projects before I move in all my furniture. This weekend is dedicated to deep cleaning and prep work for the painting. No fun. At all. 

The house still feels like someone else's...but I know once it's painted, it will start feeling like home. 

House Hunting (Part 3) - Finding The One

I received an email from my agent, Ken Hutmacher. There was another agent in his office that had a house going on the market the next week. The house just so happened to be in one of my dream neighborhoods. You know, the dream neighborhood that I thought I'd only be able to afford if the price was within my budget because the house needed tons of work.

The listing price was at the high end of my budget. I didn't want to get my hopes up and then have them crushed by a house that needed to be gutted. So I first told him I'd pass. Over the next couple of days, I kept thinking about that house. So since I couldn't shake it, I decided to schedule a showing.

The day before the home was listed, I was able to view the home. It was adorable.
Historical neighborhood, refinished hardwood floors, perfect size for me, and I got that gut feeling. This was a house that I could see myself turning into a home.

As we were leaving, I told Ken I wanted to make an offer.

Alan contacted me the next morning and we were able to get the offer sent to the seller's agent.

That evening I got a call from Alan. There had been another offer. That shows you what kind of market  central OKC is in right now! I was not happy. I had the night to think about what my best and final offer would be. The next morning, I let Alan know what my best & final was and we updated the offer electronically.

At 12:46PM, I received a text from Alan. "You got your house. Pack your bags!!!"

I couldn't contain my excitement! I did a little chair dance at my desk and couldn't wipe the smile off my face the entire afternoon.

House Hunting (Part 2) - Finding a Realtor and Lender

Now that I had my house list, it was time to search for a realtor.

I wanted someone whose full-time career was real estate. There were a few recommendations made to me, but most did real estate part-time. I didn't want to miss out on a house because my agent couldn't go to a showing due to work conflicts.

I wanted someone who was familiar with central OKC entertainment districts and the historic neighborhoods, someone who could give me insight on different areas of the city.

It just so happened that the week I was asking for agent referrals, one of the OKC twitterers I follow shared a link to blog post about historical homes. Come to find out the blog belonged to Alan and Heather Davis, local real estate agents. After reading a few blog posts about OKC and looking over the website, I emailed and received a quick response from Alan Davis. We did a phone interview and I learned that Alan and Heather were both full-time agents with Churchill Brown and Associates. They have both lived in different areas of historical OKC, so they had first-hand experience with my desired location. After speaking, I felt very comfortable choosing them as my agents.

Something I really liked was they worked as a team. while Alan would help with contracts and negotiations, another agent on their team, Ken Hutmacher, helped in my search. Ken would send me listings that met my qualifications and I would let him know which houses I wanted to see. The best thing was he would hear about homes that hadn't gone on the market yet through other agents he knew. He would text me photos and addresses and I would be able to be one of the first ones to view the home. This was vital in the hunt, as most nice affordable homes were being sold within 2-3 days of being on the market.

Both Alan and Ken suggested I work with a local lender. From their experience, the local lenders were more reliable at closing and easier to work with. I had already been pre-approved by a national mortgage company, but I took their advice and contacted Yukon National Bank. Best. Advice. Ever. My loan officer, Jessica Dean, was the best. She was always quick to respond to emails and answered every question I had. She ran who knows how many different calculations for me so I could figure out what my budget should be and which type of loan I wanted. I feel like I learned more about mortgages from conversations with Jessica than I did when I owned my last home! I have already recommended YNB to a handful of people and that is 100% due to the outstanding customer service I have received from Jessica.

House Hunting (Part 1) - The List

Before I started my search, I needed to figure out what I wanted. This was not my first time to own a home and I wanted to go into this purchase more prepared than my last. I made a rushed decision with my last home - I was nearing the end of my lease and had viewed a ton of horrid homes, so when I found one that was cute, I made an offer. I didn't really research location and after moving in, realized I would have liked other areas better. I was young and the home worked for me for that time in my life. 

My list of requirements this time around wasn't very long, but I went into the whole process knowing more of what I wanted than last time.

Location: Central OKC - the area boxed in by I-44 to the west, I-235 to the east, NW 10th Street to the South, and NW 50th Street to the North. 

There are neighborhoods that are walkable and super safe and nice (ie. Edgemere Park, Crown Heights, Mesta Park, Heritage Hills), but finding a home in one of those neighborhoods within my budget would be close to impossible. If, by some miracle, a home was within my budget, it would most likely need tons of renovations (that I couldn't afford).

Central OKC has other areas that are walkable to restaurants, parks, and entertainment (ie. The Plaza and The Paseo Districts). The downfall is this: There are "pockets". What I mean is you can have a street lined with nice homes and 1 block over find homes with boarded up windows and overgrown yards. The crime statistics reflect this as well. The nice "pockets" have low crime rates while the bad "pockets" have higher crime rates.

I started my search online months before physically going inside a house. More often than not, I would find a home within my budget that looked nice on the online listing and then do a drive-by to discover it was in a bad "pocket". So the search continued.

Age/Style: I love older homes with character - no cookie cutter traditional homes for me. There is also a quality of workmanship and materials in older homes that is hard to find in newer homes. 

Dream home style: Craftsman. But I wasn't nailed down to that. A good thing about Central OKC is most of the homes were built before 1960. So finding an older home wouldn't be an issue! 

Must Haves: 

- Hardwood floors 

(I love the look and functionality. Olive is a shedder. It's so much easier to Swiffer dog hair than vacuum it up from carpet.)

- Washer and dryer hookups inside (Sometimes hard to find in older homes - I found a lot of hookups in garages instead of inside.)

- Garage 

(Also hard to find in older homes. If there is a garage, it is often 1-car and detached. I just wanted space for a workshop and protection from Oklahoma hail storms. Nothing fancy or big needed.)

- Updated plumbing and electric

(I knew that if I purchased an older home, there would be potential repair issues due to wear & tear. I wanted mitigate those issues as much as possible by having 2 major things updated.)

Everything else about the house is left up to my gut. Do I like the layout? Can I see myself hosting parties here? Would my furniture fit? Is this a house I would like 5 years from now? 10 years? Does this house scream "Abby"? 

Where I Am.

It's been one year since I've moved from Austin back to Oklahoma. 

Part of me feels like I've been at a stand still, or worse, reverting back to a teenager. I suppose this happens when you are 30 and live with your parents. It's easy to feel like a kid when you are living rent free and have someone cleaning and cooking for you. Hello awkwardness when a guy picks you up for a date and is greeted by your entire family. High fives to throwing parties when your parents go out of town. 

Living with the 'rents has it's benefits though, such as saving money to buy a house and having the time to search for the perfect house without the constraints of a lease expiring.

Although I've felt like a teenager in my living situation, I've had a year of growth in other aspects of my life. I found a church I can call home and a community group I adore. It's been way too long since I've been able to say that.

I made a resolution to travel more - and actually stuck to it. In the past year I have travelled to Portland, Kansas City, San Francisco, and road tripped with my sister, Phyllis, hitting up Albuquerque, the Grand Canyon, Glen Canyon, and the Great Sand Dunes in Colorado. 

I've grown closer to my family - one of my main reasons for moving back. My niece Emily used to cry around me due to unfamiliarity. Now I'm greeted with a big smile and shouts of "YaYa!" (Emily and Brayden's nickname for me.) 

I miss my Texas friends and the great city of Austin,but overall, I'm happy that my feet are on red dirt again.