wal, that's what i wanted. a place that'd already experienced life. a place with personality. an old place....like me. and this one's a real character.
my criteria was that it had to be livable while i fixed. livable.
right off, that became questionable. over the winters up here, the copper pipes had frozen, and each splice taught us (my son's helpin me) that frozen pipes can, and do, burst in numerous places. ifin those pipes came in different colors they'd resemble dolly parton's coat of many colors. really. it finally got down to, "gosh dang.... they'd tore down the out-house! ok. son, have you ever heard of chamber-pots...." he thought i was kidding.

moving the ancient water heater outta the basement (being replaced with a nice shiney new one), wal.... that did-in the wood stairs that'd rested against dirt for many, many, years. one could almost sand-ski to the basement now. trip into menards/home depot/lowes in fargo should fix that right up. and an instant "how the heck do i do this?!" will show me ifin i'm challenge challenged. oy.....

this particular forum is design related, so i, of course, have some questions along that line.

the folks who previously owned this lil house had decorated back when mediterranean was "in".

yep, that's the style of the cupboards and cabinets. and an Orange counter too. along with an orange-beige-brown-floral kitchen-carpet. right next to the avacodo-print kitchen-carpet in the dining room, which is right next to a blue-and-white textured carpet in the living room. the red-shag in the master-bedroom was history the day i signed the papers. beneath the red-shag was wood parquet....surprise surprise!

the two kitchen carpets are glued down. there's not a spot of underneath texture anywhere in those rooms. that means it's glued Real Good. oy...
the blue and white .... wal, i pulled up a corner and found lotza lil sticky glue spots...everywhere. on varnished wood flooring.

now you know the carpet thingy goin on here.

how do i get these carpets up? and the glue gone? i've heard that mineral spirits and a 4" - 6" scraper is the best bet. is it??? *thinks on future achin back* .......double oy......

ohhhh, for you electrical folk.... yes, she has honest to goodness ceramic thingies with the old old wiring.... 2 black wrapped wires in numerous ceiling connections. and, "screw-in fuses" along with modern wiring. the electrical is a hybrid.

the bathroom. wal, i walked in there and said, "oh my! that Is a blue shower!" functional, but never any further than the roughing-in. the rest of the room needs to be gutted and start fresh. ROFL!!! can fiberglass be stained??? if not, that blue's gotta go. i like blue, but not That blue.

and that L shaped orange rolled-edge counter-top, can i apply a color, then polyurethane the existing counter top????

*smiles at thought of folks takin time to offer advice (no, plowin it down ain't acceptable), while staring at avocado green carpet, then shivers and looks elsewhere*

thank ya kindly....
granni

Hey granni! I just learned that there are a couple of brandinew paints that can be used on "fomica"-type of countertops as well as other previously "verboten" surfaces.

First of all, clean those surfaces so that the angels will sing your praises!

Then, consult a GOOD paint store (no $1 stores, sorry) about the right primer. It is the most important thing after a clean surface. Primer will make that new paint stick to that countertop like a fool's tongue on a lamppost in February!

After that just follow the directions from the paint manufacturer.

I'll bet that even your shower will look brandinew when your done with it!

Oh, about those glued carpets: after pullin' up what you can, power sanders are fun -- right through that old glue down to bare wood. Great for lowerin' the ol' blood pressure -- providing you don't sand clear through to the joists!

Remember candles and kerosene lamps? USE 'EM!!!!

At least until you can get a real 'lectrician in. Them thar "hybrid" systems often fail in a real "blaze" of glory. If it was only the ol' knob and tube style it would possibly be woth keeping since the two wires were usually spaced oh so nicely apart from each other. It's where those ol' systems are patched into the newer stuff that sparking and fires occur most often.

Congratulations on your enthusiasm and love for the old, jus' too bad you don't like '70's Italianite design -- I hear it's becoming popular again under the guise of "retro"!

Good luck and don't burn down the place.

wal, ah'll be! thank-ya, rollinglenn. now, i kin paint....yep, know how to do that for sure.
alrighty, scrub, prime, paint with the good stuff. sounds right easy enough fer this ol gal. *thinks on colours: light, bright, but not Orange.....colours*
btw, retro is great for those who like it. i didn't like it when it was 'in'. LOLOL!!!

ya know, thar ain't a door in this house whats the same size as another door. yep. that's right. seems they customed every opening. so installing new pre-hung doors oughta be a lesson and a half...LOL!!!

then, ohhh my, back then they also decided 'arches' were in. so, the doorway between the kitchen and the dining room got filled in....curved, ya know? ceptin, their idea of curve ain't exactly what you and i'd consider curved. bein that way would be fine in an adobe style home...bein kinda, sorta, a whole lot imperfect looks great in adobe, not in Cottage.
the lacka cracks along the opening says they did do headers. but.....ohhh my, you kin plain as day see the original outline. the Whole doorway outline. ufda!
wait, we're not done with curves yet. yep. they did the deed on the large entry from the dining room to the living room. and attempted another curve. and, yes....omg yes....the original doorway outline is eyesore obvious.
both doorways show exactly where the original door framing existed also. my, it's plumb ugly.
figure they planned to do that to the entry to the master bedroom, cuz all that framing is gone too.

each time i go upstairs, on my way back down....i strip wallpaper. 5 layers of wall paper. down to the original 100 year old plaster. there's wall paper on the wee bedrooms upstairs (2/3's of the attic). thought i'd start strippin those two rooms. dagnabit! ain't wall paper. it's archeologically ancient-type-paneling. the old paper is bonded to channeled cardboard paneling. and it's that paneling on the walls and ceilings. oy vey....

back to the dungeon, er kitchen. yep, it's that dark in there. one lil ol window over the sink (plumbing, ingress and egress hasta go cuz it's at a nasty angle and cain't git a good seal).
the cupboards and cabinets (lotza storage) are dark dark oak. and when the fella proudly installed his new cupboards back in the '70's, wal, he did it over a window. literally. removed the glass and boarded up the window. which is a great conversation piece, instead of a backsplash.
am tryin to come up with ideas (inexpensive ideas) on what to do for a backsplash around that long line of counter that will increase lighing reflection, cover their errors, and look honest to God professional. and, how to get lighting into the kitchen without becoming a stock holder with the elec company. thought about skylights. would have to come through the back porch roof and into the wall above the cupboards (plenty of room there).

decor-wise, i'm traditional with a strong classic influence. "very linear" per my daughter.

you might wonder why in the world would i buy such a place.
wal.........
it was time for the daughter and grandkids to be on their own in the house i'd helped them get. And, beyond time for grandma and critters to get back to having some peace-and-quiet. ohh, lordy...peace and quiet.
the price was reallllll right. the house is basically sound. it's on a 100 X 200 lot. it's steel-sided. and, it's country. rural teeny tiny-town country. i like country. and, i enjoy turnin a pigs-ear into a silk purse and being able to say, "i did that, with a lil help from my friends." help, being advice from folks like you, cuz i AM doin this myself, with ocassional muscle from my son.
this house is like life: full of challenges.
kin rise to meet 'em, or be a quitter. ain't no one on these boards that's a quitter. nope nope nope.

granni

To help you pick your color for the kitchen, find something you love, that makes you feel great. It might be a scarf, a dish towl, your bed spread... Then choose colors to match or compliment it. In my case, I found a bathroom soap dispenser..........a lighthouse. It is mostely blue & burgundy. That was my starting point. I later found a napkin with those colors plus green & gold. That gave me ideas for little touches of secondery colors where needed. Good luck.