Backyard Renovation: Floating Deck (Phase 6)
Phase 6 was supposed to be the final step in our backyard renovation plan. Our garage was supposed to be done in early May and I'd have all summer to…
Bookshelf Revisited
A couple of years ago, I build a new staircase and wall to the basement which included a built-in bookshelf in the wall. At the time, I chose to stain…
New Basement Stairs: Part 5 – Handrail
It's been more than 3 years since we built our new basement stairs and we've been living dangerously without a handrail - on either side! - for the entire time.…
Basement Renovation: Built-In Storage
Like most basements, we've used ours for storing things we don't use everyday. It's also become the "I don't have the energy to deal with this, so throw it in…
Basement Renovation: Tidying and Organizing
The birth of our twins made our house feel very small. All of a sudden, almost twice the number of people were living in our house. Plus, with all of…
New Basement Stairs: Part 4 – Bookshelf
When we rebuilt the basement stairs, we wanted them to be against a new wall that hid the fact that we did not have a straight or flush wall going…
Building a New Deck
When we started out kitchen renovation project, we knew that we'd have to replace our deck at some point but planned to push it off until next summer. Unfortunately the…
New Basement Stairs: Part 3 – The Railing
Once the stairs themselves were finished, I still had to sort out how to build the handrail. I knew that I wanted it to match the style of what I…
New Basement Stairs: Part 2 – Building the Stairs
Once the stair opening was ready, it was time to install the stringers and build the stairs. Substairs Our contractor was originally supposed to only install the stair stringers, but…
New Basement Stairs: Part 1 – Opening the Stairs
When we opened the dining room, we wanted to also widen our basement stairs. But at that point we thought that we would have to reroute our radiator pipes, so…
Second Floor Final Reveal
It's been two years since we bought our house and it's amazing how much has changed. In addition to our downstairs renovation, we have now completed our upstairs renovation. We replaced…
Replacing Baseboards on the Second Floor
One of the final steps in finishing our second floor renovation was installing the baseboards. Our floors were installed and finished, our walls were painted and we were ready to be done with renovations! Luckily…
Stair Upgrade: Part 2
Once the floors were finished, we were ready to finish our stair upgrade. Handrail During our design, we determined that both the handrail and baserail would be exactly 2½" wide.…
Replacing Hardwood Upstairs: Part 4 – Installation and Finishing
We waited until the middle of October to start installing the hardwood on the second floor. Not only is the humidity level great in the Fall (somewhere between the extreme…
Stair Upgrade: Part 1
We originally planned to hire someone to come and rebuild our stairs - both in the basement and the handrail on the second floor. But as our basement work progressed,…
Basement Renovation: Part 2 – Design
We are renovating our basement in two phases. Phase 1 is simply underpinning the basement, replacing all the drains, and building new stairs. The second phase will be finishing the basement…
Basement Renovation: Part 1 – Hiring Professionals
After investigating a kitchen renovation, we decided to renovate our basement first. The most compelling case for the switch in scope was made by our real estate agent who reassured us…
First Floor Reveal
It's been a year since we bought our house and a lot has changed. We've replaced our electrical wiring, fixed our fireplace, replaced our hardwood floor, painted the walls, installed tile in our front entryway and installed…