Sunday, September 06, 2009

Apartment Revnovations

I have decided that home improvement projects are one of the first true tests of a marriage. Actually, they probably test any relationship at anytime, but nontheless, they remain a first test for newly married couples.

Jason and I are going to be living in an apartment for the next 2+ years. The market isn't great here and with the short amount of time we're here, we decided staying in the apartment is a better financial decision for us. Makes me a little sad that we're not in our own first house, but that will come in time.

To lessen the pain, and to brighten an apartment that doesn't get a lot of direct sunlight, we've been painting. Why paint an apartment? And are you allowed to paint? Yes, we're allowed to paint, we'll just have to paint it back to blah-beige or pay the fee to have it done when we leave. We wanted to make it more inviting than the blah-beige was and a smoker lived here before. Despite having the ducts cleaned once and the whole place being painted over with the blah-beige, it still just smelled stale. So, we've been hard at work. The following pictures are the fruits of our labors. The most recent being the kitchen and dining room just this past Friday and Saturday. The shelving in the 3rd bedroom was handbuilt by Jason. IKEA had what we wanted, but wanted $300 in shipping--not going to happen!

What did we learn about each other during this process? Jason has a gift for construction and a great attention to detail. He lives by the motto, "Measure twice, cut once." A man after my Grandpa Waterman's own heart for sure! I am a "big picture" person, who appreaciates details, but doesn't always see them all at once. Jason does. Jason doesn't particularly care for painting, but his detail-oriented nature makes him great for taping everything off--something I loathe to do. I've painted 98% of everything, and I have to say, I'd do it again! :) Enjoy!



3 comments:

The Abramowski Family said...

Very nice!! I love the shelving in the 3rd bedroom!

Kari said...

Thanks!! The shelving is so nice to use! Makes a world of difference!

Nicole said...

What a big difference! I love the before and after shots. Way to go! I love the "learning new things about my spouse" insight. These are precious memories!