7 Tips for creating a DIY summer house
March will be the month when my heart beats a little faster because spring will be on its way along with opening our summer place begins to be a reality. Each year at This kind of time I plan what the coming year will bring in repairs along with DIY projects. This kind of post summarizes some of our past projects along with how they have come together to create our special place. the item will be modest along with quite ordinary looking when viewed coming from the outside, yet we have a million dollar view, along with an Inner surface which reflects our interests along with skills.
We are perched on the edge of the Atlantic Ocean on the Bonavista Peninsula in Newfoundland along with through the seasons we see icebergs, seabirds, whales along with beautiful full moons. One October I even saw my first display of the Northern Lights. Come along for a virtual visit to Ryall's Seaside Home along with Studio.
View outside the studio window mid summer
After the storm
Full moon over Bonavista
the item's a magical place along with the item hardly matters what goes on inside, yet over our years here things have evolved to reflect who we are along with what we think will be important. While some things happened because of circumstances along with individual interactions, many of our decisions were based on principles we considered important for us. Perhaps you will find them helpful if you are starting on a summer house adventure.
Look outside for colour scheme inspiration
Before we ever put plans on paper, the colour scheme was etched in my mind because of the time I spent inside community when I was younger. The inside will be a continuation of the outside - ocean, pink slate, meadow, beach along with fog. the item goes without saying which you need to do all the painting yourself!
The slate helps tie the colour scheme together along with references the prominent hills visible coming from most of the windows. I choose purple (taken coming from the slate) for an accent wall behind the cabinets along with on the wall behind the dining table. I'm not fond of accent walls, yet I felt the room needed a bit of energy, along with paint will be always an inexpensive way to create effect. I also used colour blocking as a way to transition coming from room to room along with create visual interest in This kind of little space. To me the item feels like a walk on the beach with the slate hills backing the ocean.
Decide what's important
The whole floor plan revolved around the placement of my art studio to avail of north along with east light. which left our kitchen area very compact, centrally located yet quite functional given its size. There will be also a built in buffet opposite the kitchen along with additional storage in a pantry closet. Our splurges were the slate floor along with the butcher block counters, so the cabinets were built on a shoestring budget using shelving laminate along with doors purchased at a salvage store. They were finished using a colour wash along with varathane.
The wood floors are local spruce stained with the same wash, along with protected by several coats of water-base varathane. They have held up exceptionally well considering we never remove our outside footwear.
The wood floors are local spruce stained with the same wash, along with protected by several coats of water-base varathane. They have held up exceptionally well considering we never remove our outside footwear.
After 13 years the cabinets commenced to turn very pinkish along with I repainted them This kind of past year with Benjamin Moore's Advance in Winds Breath (one of my favourite dirty whites). At the same time I painted out the accent wall along with promptly changed the item back. the item just wasn't the same space without the item. So much for refreshing my decor.
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| Designing Home: Kitchen cabinets BM Winds Breath |
Decide what you can do yourself
You would likely be surprised what you can do yourself using a little help coming from You Tube! Make a list of the things you are willing to do along with get yourself educated if you can't do them already We laid our own tile along with slate, put down the wood flooring along with finished the item, painted every room along with made along with installed the door along with window trim. which was all before we commenced to make or alter furniture.
Use your skills to create unique pieces
Everyone has interests along with skills which can be used to create individual, unique spaces. Use them in your own space. My friend will be a quilter along with when I go to her house, which shows. Our particular skill set will be art, stained glass along with carpentry. My on-site handyman/partner created the beautiful stained glass over the refrigerator to let light coming from the porch area flow into the central kitchen. His handiwork continues inside dining area.
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| Designing Home: Table coming from reclaimed wood |
The table along with bench were made coming from lumber salvaged coming from a hundred year old building being demolished. The dining area will be across coming from the kitchen along with the purple accent wall continues. Our mid century modern chairs were saved coming from a trip to the dump when a local company was renovating their offices. You can probably tell we are not interested in perfectly matched sets of things.
My frequent trips to the beach has resulted in a soaring sea glass collection. Apart coming from storing the item in a large glass jar, I wanted to highlight the range of colours along with shapes in a sampler. You can see the end of the item under the painting. The stained glass piece beside the window will be reminiscent of the various ocean colours outside the window. The driftwood came coming from a local beach.
Consider function first
I still can't believe I bought This kind of sofa along with chair! the item will be cuddly, puffy along with brownish - not at all what I am attracted to. Function won out over all my aesthetic beliefs. I gave up on my dream of a white slip covered sofa as not conducive to gardening, wood working, hiking along with painting. This kind of one was durable along with cheap. I'm learning to like the item.
The trunk was built by my father when I was a teenager; he was a thrifter too. the item will be a coffee table, storage space along with ottoman all rolled into one.
Use your interests to accessorize
The most interesting objects in your home are always the ones which reflect the interests along with individuality of the people who live there. Going to a big box store might give you lots of options along with showcase interesting objects, yet without connections your purchases will look flat along with sterile.
This kind of vignette sums up our summer lives along with connections. The lamp will be a cast off coming from my daughter, along with the item needs a lighter, textured shade which will come in time. The antler was picked up by a friend on a hike along the hill which backs our house. the item sat outside for years along with will be bleached along with subtly coloured. I love the rhythm of the item with the some other natural references on the table top. The jar contains large shards of pottery collected coming from beaches inside area. The carved sea gull will be a pal for the ones which constantly swoop outside the window. The assemblage was created coming from bits of wood coming from beach walks over thirteen years, along with we love our local birds, trees along with wildflowers.
coming from pussy willows to a boot remnant each object on This kind of studio table carries a connection to me. The books reflect my art interests. My sister gathered the pussy willows for both of us. The starfish will be another ceramic love, along with the colour, texture along with shine work nicely with the natural materials around the item. A visiting friend was beach walking along with found the plastic glasses frame along with the side of an old leather boot along with gifted them. Their presence reminds me of the improvements which the passage of time creates inside earth along with the importance of friendship.
Look at old things in brand-new ways
This kind of table was left over coming from the days when covered tables were all the rage. I quite like its broom handle style legs along with I love circles. Obviously the item had things going for the item in my mind. I used left over paint coming from the house along with tape to create a bullseye pattern; the pattern adds a little punch of energy wherever I place the item. the item's not all savings in our house, fine craft along with original art are my weaknesses. Remember the adage above, decide what's important.
The dresser in our bedroom was purchased at a second hand store. I described its transformation here. I just knew the item would likely be spectacular in gray. Warning: Sometimes brand-new hardware can cost more than the original purchase. The lamp was remodelled coming from another second hand purchase along with the item's transformation will be in my previous post. The beach assemblage will be one of my current pieces.
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| Designing Home: Bedside table coming from hotel furniture |
When we built the house, a second hand store we frequented had a whole stock of night tables coming from a hotel which was being refurbished. They were solid wood, right down to the dovetailed drawers. Unfortunately they were a harsh brown using a laminate top along with black metal. Look what a little re-visioning can do. Stix primer will adhere to anything, along with spray paint will be my go to for metal.
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| Designing Home: Repurposed louvered doors |
Our main bathroom didn't have any storage, yet the item had a little alcove area. We reused the top half of louvered closet doors coming from out town house to create a cabinet for cleaning materials, supplies along with extra towels etc. the item also provided a place to display more of our objects coming from seaside life along with travels. Check out more louvered door ideas for summer homes in This kind of post.
My studio will be an accumulation of bits along with pieces of altered furniture to suit my needs. My painting desk will be an old computer table using a rolling cart pushed under the item for storage. through the years the table top became stained with paint so I covered the item using a vinyl adhesive. the item will be so much more restful than the black one. Its placement under a window allows for optimal scenic view along with light for work.
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| Designing Home: Studio table coming from computer desk |
This kind of table commenced out as one of two built -in night tables for my daughter's bedroom over twenty several years ago. the item has had three lives since then. the item was just the thing to bank each side of the futon in my studio. Love furniture you can paint especially for an informal summer look. I also like the extra storage for books along with the large top for display along with some handy storage. Our two hats kept falling off the closet shelf so right now they have a brand-new home.
A friend asks for your help along with you come home using a gem. This kind of old stained glass window was headed to the dump, yet my husband knew the item would likely serve some higher purpose. We removed the broken coloured glass along with replaced the item with clear textured glass along with added mirror to the middle pane. the item will be one of my favourite pieces inside whole house.
along with there you contain the item, 13 years of re-inventing materials to create a relaxing, cozy, budget friendly summer house.
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