First Day of School

It's the first day of school and I'm not in the classroom. In fact, I'm still lounging this morning contemplating the fact that I'm not in school or anywhere, really! I can't say I'm sad. I made the decision to end my full-time teaching career (2nd career) at the end of the 2024 school year. It was always to be short-lived, thanks to the state of Texas forfeiting teachers Social Security in early vesting. No choice, but to leave before. Subbing or tutoring may be on the horizon?

This summer has been full of house renovations, aspiring minimalist purging, with a dash of couple❤-Covid. It was certainly enough to interrupt the joy of posting blog tales and pics of the house. But as the first day of school is upon us, so Covid is behind us and everyone is on to better times.

Jumpstarting the blog with finished pics of the laundry room in all its whimsical glory. Laundry room. Utility room. Take your pick. It makes me happy just walking into the room, and somehow, inspires the job of washing and drying. It was totally worth the added effort on the wallpaper and flare in the lighting and flooring. We love it!

Laundry Room Deets:

1. White Wainscoting - 8 ft. sheets cut in two for 4 ft. height. Contractor purchased.

2. Spoonflower Wallpaper, Luna Moth

LM is an "art nouveau" design that I loved. Peel & stick, thick paper. I ordered several design samples before I settled on LM. Although I ordered some other designs from Amazon that were cheaper, they were cheaper and more like contact paper and less like wallpaper. Since this was the only room I was papering, I splurged. Buttttttt, I ultimately ordered from Spoonflower Store on Etsy as it was somewhat less expensive. Both links are provided in red. (I did end up having to order more knowing that each Spoonflower order is custom printed. I was assured that there might only be a slight color change. I found no difference between my dye lots.)

Peel & stick wallpaper is (to me) a newish trend. I have papered rooms and walls in "wet & hang", so "peel & stick" seemed less messy and something I wanted to try. It was super, super easy to deal with. I dare you to stand and find my seams👓. I rehung until I got the perfect match and the adhesive is there to stay! The paper is heavy, durable and is NOT coming down. Looking into the laundry room from the kitchen makes me smile. Color and style in one little room. I'm looking for another wall (at least) to paper.

3. White Crown Molding on top of wainscoting and ceiling. Because, duh. Contractor purchased.

4. Checkerboard Tile Flooring - Build.com I will refer to this flooring more on the entryway. But for this post, it's about using the same tile in the laundry room and pantry. I literally searched high and low, all over EVERYWHERE for 12" square porcelain veined tile that wouldn't kill the budget. The three areas I needed it would not aesthetically accommodate larger tile and I didn't want smaller. I stumbled upon a blog on Instagram that hooked me on to 12" porcelain tiles Daltile Perpetuo, INFINITE BLACK and Daltile Perpetuo, BRILLIANT WHITE. Then, where to get them. The search led me to Build With Ferguson who had a competitive price on them. Of course, the cost has increased some months later. They ship out from all over. (I was able to order 12 x 24 for my entryway from Lowes, but not the 12". Go figure.) Love, love, LOVE our tile. PS. You do have to differentiate between checkerboard game vs diagonal position to tile layers.😂 Lesson learned early, thank goodness.

A great resource blog for deciding what type of tile flooring is right for you.

Chrissy Marie Blog

There is also a really neat program on just about all flooring sites where you take pics of your rooms or areas and choose different flooring options to see what that particular style/color would look like in your house. We absolutely did this for tile and wood flooring. Here's the link off of Lowes flooring visualizer to do this.

5. Tile Grout - (Darkest) Charcoal. Contractor purchased.

We wanted zero grout lines, so going with the charcoal or gray/black would give us that effect.

6. Crystal Semi-Flush Mount Small Chandelier -Amazon link To my husband and workers: Yes! I'm really putting this in the laundry room. I believe I chose right 😎 It's like the perfect little hat on a stylish, unique lady.

7. White Shaker Cabinets - Double cabinets, 3 inside each adjustable shelves. Contractor purchased.

8. Ravinte Matte Black Pull Knobs - Amazon link. Same knobs as in kitchen.

9. White with Black Hooks Wall Coat Rack - Amazon link. Surprisingly sturdy.

10. White Framed Changeable Calendar - Amazon link. Must for Blackwells.

11. Whimsical Animal Prints - All Etsy purchased with links. Other renaissance animal options.

King Cavalier King Charles Spaniel

Queen Cavalier King Charles Spaniel

Queen Basset Hound

Kitty Don't Care

12. Pantry Shelf Stick-On Tiles - Amazon link. Be sure of the total number you order - usually 20/pack. Use a razor blade to make any cuts you need, bend and tear. That easy! Don't take the paper off the back until you are ready to lay; it's hard to get up. I use these instead of shelf liner paper or rubber products.

I saw this idea years ago on Pinterest and thought it brilliant. I tried it out on my daughter's pantry (pic) and then, mine. I like her black and white tiles better than the beige I STILL have in mine. (They last forever!) Given that I now have black and white checkerboard floor tiles.......Oh well. Every pantry should have wipeable shelves!

Let me know if I've forgotten to mention something or you are still curious about a choice we made. It's nice to be able to say that the Blackwells are very happy and wouldn't change a thing! (Except...still waiting for the washer/dryer to die for matching ones! ha)

All the contractor love ❤ to Ron Pope, Fix It Now Residential Construction.