Turning a Front Porch Into a Sunroom

One of the more dramatic changes that we made to this cottage was turning the screened porch into a sun room.  The old porch required us to batten down the hatches during the winter, literally. And the heavy brown storm shutters tended to make it look more "fishing lodge" than "beach cottage".

Here are some before photos.

Cottage Paint Color: American Cheese (Yellow)

Painting the bedroom turned out to be more complicated than painting the bathroom!

The bead board in this room is the original tongue and groove type boards as opposed to bead board panels. Not only was it not pre-primered, it was original knotty pine. So, before we could even begin to paint, each of those knots had to be treated with Zinsser Bin and allowed to dry. If you don't do this, the oil from the pine seeps through the coats of paint and in a few years would start to show up as rust-like spots.

Here's a photo of the walls before.

Installing Hardwood Floors Over Linoleum - Before and After Photos

Dan finished laying the hardwood floors, and it's the most dramatic change we've made to the cottage yet. The hardwood floor looks great with the freshly painted white paneling in the living room. 

It even makes the oak wood trim on the '80s style beige melamine cabinets in the kitchen look intentional. (I see a kitchen renovation in our future, but not in the budget for a long, long time.)

We painted the kitchen walls a soft cream with yellow undertones, Benjamin Moore Man in the Moon.  The walls in the living room are Super White. 

Here are more before and afters.

How To Paint Beadboard and Trim

Bathroom with bead board and hardwood floors installed

If you've never bought a house that needed every room painting, you can't imagine how daunting it can be. While we were ecstatic to see the mauve tiles gone and the bead board up, it meant we had a lot of work ahead of us.

Vintage Sinks Versus Vintage-Look Sinks

I am seeing some amazing vintage sinks on craigslist for just $50!

Look at this vintage peg-leg sink - swoon! These old sinks make me weak in the knees - despite the grit and grime. I just love these old porcelain beauties.  Unfortunately, I can't go for them. 

Here's the reasoning.

Bead Board Bathroom Loves Claw Foot Tub

Cottage After - With Bead Board

Our cottage was built in 1925, so it's pretty astounding that it had an indoor bathroom. One of the elders in our home association told me that our cottage was built as a display home and the indoor bath was a selling point.

Here's what it looked like when we bought the place.