Become a FAN, you know you want to!!

Calling all LLRT fans, supporters and Facebook users!

Please come join lefty loosey righty tighty on Facebook! I am currently working to update the site and link it to the blog -- but in the meantime, it would be great if you could become a Fan!!

How to become a Fan 101:

1. Go here:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/pages/lefty-loosey-righty-tighty/111139809315?ref=mf

2. Click "Become a Fan"

3. Bam, you're done!!! And you've made Shanti happy. Nice work!!

Thanks everyone, and viva social networking!
Shanti

Backyard Dreaming.....

Hey there summer lovers,

Now that the weather has cooled to more Seattle-like temps, I am really enjoying the warm evenings and weekends outside rather than looking for the nearest dog-friendly AC'd hangout. Last weekend we had some friends over for an easy-breezy barbecue, and it got me thinking -- while it's not on the docket for this summer, what am I going to do with our backyard NEXT summer???

On one hand, it's an entirely new area for me to style and shape and create and have fun with...on the other hand, there's a budget and an extreme lack of actual green grass to consider.

For now, our little oasis in the city will have to winter as-is; which, considering my interior house to-do list is still pretty long, is actually OK with me. However, this hasn't stopped me from dreaming of what I eventually want to do....................

Here's our backyard currently:

And here are some of the beautiful, comfy backyard ideas I'd like to use next summer:

Can't you just picture sipping a summer Mojito here?
(photo from http://cocokelley.blogspot.com/)

This makes me want to get comfy, catch up on my stack of magazines and then take a little nap in the afternoon summer shade.......

(Photo from http://cocokelley.blogspot.com/)

I would love to hang about five of the smaller lanterns in our plum tree for late-evening barbecues, hammock lounging, and sky gazing.

(photo and lanterns from potterybarn.com)

Or mayby I should hang them on these cool stakes at each corner of our deck.....

(photo, laterns and stakes from potterybarn.com)

I love the fullness of hydrangeas and am really drawn to this soft blue/purple color; would love to line one side of our house with these.

(photo from Google Images)

S'mores anyone?

(photo and fire pit from http://www.firepitsinc.com)

Anyone else have fun photos of backyard spaces they've created? I'd love to see them! E-mail me at shahler@hotmail.com.

Cheers,

Shanti

Q&A

Hiya homeowners/seekers,

I hope you had a FABULOUS weekend! I got in plenty of house puttering-around time, and unpacked our LAST BOXES!! WOO HOO! Such a great feeling. However, we lost our camera last weekend so no pics to share/document the progress yet...but give me a couple days and I'll hunt a new/borrowed one down!

In the meantime, I promised I would share my answers to the questions that were sent to me since I started this blog. Below is a full list of the Q&A, enjoy!

Q: Cute house! Where is it?
A: Kirkland! Makes our commutes easier without paying Seattle real estate prices.

Q: You mentioned something about cheap cleaning products -- what do you use?
A: I love love love the simple mixture of bleach & water -- just look on the back of the bottle to make sure you get the right ratio. You can add a few drops of essential oil to the mix if you don't like the smell. And it's super affordable. Also, Dr. Bronner's soap, which you can find at any health food store includeing Trader Joes, is a great alternative and can be used for almost any clean-up job; plus it too is affordable AND its organic/biodegradable.

Q: How many houses did you look at before you bought one?
A: Oh gosh.... in person, actual walk-throughs? Probably about 30. Including drive-bys where we would assess a house's potential just from the outside without dragging our agent along, probably about 60. But if you include searching redfin.com (great for offering tons of pix inside and out) and windermere.com, that number would probably jump to a couple hudred.

Q: How long did it take you to find your house?
A: We were looking for about a year, however there were a few month-long stints during that time where we were unable to due to life stuff that came up. We did make some offers earlier in the game, but they either fell through becuase someone outbid us or got their first, or we took a second look and decided to pull the plug.

Q: You mentioned that you bought the house in pre-forclosure. Did you look for that kind of sale, and if so, how did you find it?
A: We had heard a lot about buying houses in pre- and forclosure, primarily because there were so many people with homes in that situation. We didn't look specifically for this deal, but we were certainly open to it given you can get a great deal and sometimes even score instant equity. But, I will warn you: buying a house like this is not for the faint of heart. It took us 4 months to close and there were a ton of roadblocks along the way. I'm still amazed our real estate agent and mortgage broker stuck with us.....(Thanks Arron & Ransom!!)

Q: How was it paying your first mortgage? :)
A: Ha, this is a GREAT question! To be honest...kind of anticlimactic, but in a VERY GOOD WAY! My husband and I have been building our savings by paying a "practice mortgage" every month while we househunted; this way, we learned what we REALLY could afford and how our lives would look with that much money going out (versus our pretty cheap Seattle apartment rent). If you can do this, I HIGHLY reccomend it -- I think it saved me from not only passing out when the first mortgage bill came but also from buying more house than I could afford. (Note: As some of you know, we sucked it up and moved into my family's basement apartment for a year in order to save up. If this isn't an option, just count your rent into your "practice mortgage" payments and stash the extra in savings. This way, you pay your rent, but also pad your savings).

Q: Did the colors of the house's interior scare you?
A: I had learned from touring many a home that paint can be changed, while many other former-owner "mistakes" cannot. For instance, you might find a house that has all the latest designer colors that you love, but if you hate the layout of the home or the neighborhood it's in, you're better off moving to the next house on your list.

Thanks, guys, for all the great Q's -- KEEP 'EM COMING! You can post them on this blog or e-mail me at shahler@hotmail.com.

Your Fellow Craigslist "Furniture" Section Addict,
Shanti

Excuses, excuses!

I KNOW my last post included me saying that is was too beautiful outside to work on the house...but if you live in or near Seattle, you won't crucify me for saying that I haven't done much reno'ing, painting, or even raking due to the swealtering weather. In fact, our little neighborhood made the evening news for hitting 114 degrees (at the hottest part of the day)!!!

However, this weekend I've got a pretty big house to-do list, including hanging the new office light (love it!), mowing our dandelions (there's really no grass under there...) and staining our new wood door. I'll take pics and share the adventures on Monday -- should be a good time!

I still haven't finished painting the master bathroom yet after the "shower planter" discovery...but that will come when the weather cools, the days grow shorter and the yard demands a little less attention.

In the meantime, I wanted to share some of the fabulous Web sites and blogs that I've come across in past few weeks:

• http://cocokelley.blogspot.com/ LOVE her design tricks and her "style (e)scapes" posts, especially her ideas for budget backyard/patio entertaining. I'm also in love with the Zebra print rug that keeps popping up in room photos... She's also from Seattle, so you gotta love that!
• http://www.etsy.com/ I knew this site had cute jewelry, but now that my eyes are more drawn to side tables and rugs, I've found a ton of unique pieces that are now on my Wish List. I especially love the vinyl wall decals that are great for apartment dwellers and homeowners alike who either can't attach something permanent to the plaster or are like to change their minds every few months.
• http://www.lampsplus.com/ This is the best, most affordable (usually) lighting shop I've found that has the greatest selection. I've purchased multiple ceiling lights and our front porch light there, and have been happy will each one.
• http://www.bloominghomeco.com/ Ok, it's not a Web site, it's a store, but I had to highlight Blooming Home in Kirkland. It's a home consignment shop, and WOW, do they have some cool things and good prices. Right now I'm coveting the GIANT silver mirror that would look fantastic in our living room, and the green and brown loveseat...Everything is in fantastic shape and is high-quality. Definitely check it out if you're in the neighborhood.
• http://www.realsimple.com If you're like me and you're looking to save cash where you can, check out Real Simple magazine's Web site; they have all the good stuff for free! Need to know how to clean granite? They have an article to show you how. Want to re-decorate your utility room? They have inexpensive, DIY ideas and how-to videos you can download.

Now I'm off to mow, stain and re-wire!

Cheers to cooler weather,

Shanti

Fo Shizzle

Hiya fellow painters and deck builders!

Hopefully everyone has gotten a good dose of vitamin D lately -- if you live in/near Seattle, I'm not sure why you're inside on the Internet because its SOOO BEAUTIFUL OUTSIDE right now!!! But, I do appreciate the blog attention :).

Some of you asked how my "homeowner staycation" went last weekend (see previous post). Well.....I didn't stay home and I didn't relax...but I did have fun! And, I got almost every single box unpacked by accident!!! Here's the story: In hopes of heading to Whistler on Saturday, we noticed that we couldn't find our passports. ANYWHERE. Assuming they were stashed in one of the moving boxes, I started to unpack, one by one, and actually put things away. And, of course, a few hours later we discovered they were hiding in a very un-obvious box stashed in the corner of the garage, where we weren't even lookin..... Still undeterred, we grabbed the Ziploc baggie of government-mandated documents and headed north for some biking and camping by the river -- just what the doctor ordered. And even though I had sworn off doing and house-related labor for two days, when we got home, it was nice to actually be able to walk through the living room and office without fear of being accidentally buried under cardboard boxes.

And speaking of offices...I am almost done putting ours together! We picked out a new ceiling light last night and I'm trolling CraigsList and furniture sites for the perfect loveseat or overstuffed chair to finish it off. I'll share pics soon and will finally deliver the "Adventures in Lighting" blog I promised a few weeks ago.

For now, here's a quick shot of our front door mat, which, for those of you who know us, is very fitting :).

And here is one that I saw on the blog of a designer, that just plain cracks me up:

If you need this for your stoop, here's the site: http://www.whatonearthcatalog.com/whatonearth/Item_Fo-Shizzle-Doormat_VD1661_ps_dpr.html

WORD.

Shanti

A New-Homeowner Staycation

Hi guys :)

I wasn't going to post today, but, when I first started this blog, I promised to share the good, bad, and the in-betweens of our experience with first time homeownership.

I'm happy to report i have NOTHING BAD to report! But I do have an in-between. I am tired. I need a break. I need some sunshine. I need some balance.

We (fam and friends included) have been going whole-hog on the house since we signed that mountain of paperwork; tree trimming, painting, pressure washing, building, hauling, packing/unpacking, organizing, cleaning, painting some more, cleaning some more, etc. etc. etc.

All work and no play makes for a very grumpy girl...

SO! I am taking the weekend OFF. I'm going to play outside, see some friends (without having to explain why my legs are covered in "Skyline Steel" paint spatters) and chill out with the pooches. And most importantly, perhaps, I'm goint to ENJOY our house, sit on the porch, maybe read a magazine under the plum tree.

I highly reccomend you guys do the same -- take some time off from the never-ending house to do list, the projects, the work. Look around at all the hard work you've put in, then slip on your flip flops and do something fun!

Here's a few pix of what I'm going to be doing this weekend; notice NONE of them involve power tools :) :) :) (photos borrowed from Google images given the weekend hasn't happened yet...)

Remember this guy from the Police Academy movies??? We bought tix, and are ready for some good laughs!

The dogs are desperate for some extended, human-powered games of fetch.

I'm signed up for the TREK sprint triathalon in September, and will so be for the Seattle Half Marathon in Novemer...best lace up my running shoes and get in some good mileage!

Also want to dust of the mountain bikes...

SLEEP!! We all need more.

Cheers to putting all the to-do lists in a drawer for a few days!

SB

Guacamole & Mountain Dew are good for a picnic, NOT for paint colors

Hello fellow househunters/owners/renovating addicts!

I hope you all had a fabulous Fourth of July -- the weather was UNBELIEVABLE here in Seattle! Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how you look at it...), the hot hot hot weather put most of the items on our 'house to-do list' on the back burner. It was just too roasty-toasty to start a new project or do much unpacking/organizing, so instead we decided to check out our new neighborhood via bike. We found some cool bike trails and I discovered that I need to start doing a bit more exercise than lifting moving boxes and yard work...but that's another topic :) .

I did attempt to finish painting the master bathroom, but was quickly deterred by the need for a ShopVac...

Why do I need a ShopVac to paint a bathroom, you ask?

Well, let me fill you in on some of the kooky things the previous owner of our house thought were good ideas...

At first, I was shaking my fist at the person who thought bright lime green (or Mountain Dew, as one of my coworkers called it) was a good color for a bathroom, ceilings included. But I figured a few coats of paint wouldn't kill me. HOWEVER, after climbing on the tub so I could reach the ceiling corner with my paint roller, I discovered that the previous owner (and probably the same person who liked Mountain Dew enough to paint their bathroom a matching color) made a built-in PLANTER on top of the shower. Yep, a planter, with rocks, dirt, even a hokey watering system. In a bathroom? Talk about a quick way to grow mold. YUCK. I figured that with all the ceiling hooks around the house, someone was probably a big fan of foliage, but this was a bit much in my book. Here are some pics:

Awesome Mountain Dew color (and my almost-done ceiling paint job); you can see the outside of the planter on top of the shower (the white strip).

A birds-eye-view of the planter and the watering system.

Anyway, I borrowed a ShopVac and intend to clean it out and patch it enough until we can do a more permanent fix down the road (I have BIG plans for this bathroom!) For now, I'm happy not to be showering under a secret, moldy planter or seeing my greenish reflection in the mirror when I walk in the bathroom!

Here are some other painting pics; you'll notice the guacamole-colored bedroom, which we painted "Skyline Steel." I'm all for color, but I'm not really into the food-related scheme and dark-cave look that painting the ceiling the same color creates:

Taking down the light before painting; this color made me crave chips and enchiladas... :)

Master bedroom mid-paint. The color looks kind of purple in this picture, but it's really more of a blue-gray.

This week I'm hoping to finish painting the master bathroom and setting up the master bedroom. I'll post pics ASAP. Oh! And this weekend I found a new obsession: LIGHTING. Stay tuned for some ideas, inspiration, and pics of our fun finds (my fave, of course, is my walk-in closet light!)

Yours in spackle and caulk,

Shanti