Loft Redo- A DIY project

The Loft....Before

The loft in my house has been many things. First, it was a room where I taught preschool and housed all of my teaching supplies. I then transitioned back to the classroom and the loft became a playroom/junk collecting room. There were the remnants of a preschool but mostly it was just a mess. In the garage I had a giant bookcase that held enough books for a small library and I was beginning to worry the heat of the Arizona summer was going to ruin the glue in their bindings.  The beginnings of a merge began in my minds eye. I pictured a Domino magazine type room. A room that was chic yet user friendly to my family. I was also on a VERY tight budget because who really has extra cash lying around for DIY projects? Or time for that matter......

The first thing I thought I would do was pick paint. I wanted something that would let light in and make me happy. Eventually, I scrapped all of these colors and went with the same paint color in my kitchen. It is called Dew Not Disturb from Dunn Edwards. It is very happy. 

I patched the holes in the walls something I had not done since the previous homeowners had lived here. It was so nice getting rid of those. I then began to paint and it took me FOREVER. Luckily, I had the help of a good friend. He came to the rescue and painted the rest of my room. Thank goodness for friends! I listened to books and Dr. Laura podcasts. My kids still had two weeks of school left so I got a lot of work done. 

 Must have McDonald's Diet Coke.

As I was heading to my cousins to swim I noticed that I had a smear of paint across my chest. Nice. 

Fitting everything in the Honda was a JOB. Then it was time to look around the house at what I already had. I wondered if there was anything that I could spray paint or re-use to decorate this room. I really wanted to buy this chair at target to add a pop of color. However, after seeing the price tag and realizing that it would cost the same as a month of groceries I decided against it. I searched the name of the print and found out it is a Waverly print. I ordered a yard from Joann's online May 29 and it is STILL NOT here. I am not happy about it at all. Especially since I found it at a competitors store. I have a chair that I really like and am planning to recover the seat and make some accent pillows.

Here is the chair.....just waiting on the fabric..I had a set of these three ceramic accent pieces that have been sitting in my garage for five years. I spray painted them.

Next up......organize this

Nearly there...The curtains were hemmed and I was just waiting on a sectional to arrive. In the meantime I wanted to add art. I wanted something all of us could contribute to and so we did a family abstract painting. 

Artwork almost done...

I have a few spots left on the wall to fill but the majority of these pictures are artwork I have purchased on my travels. Or pictures that I have taken myself along with family pictures. I am going to add a few more drawings that my kids do. Let's just say I am not quite a Type A personality type nor am I a Type B personality type. I'm more like an A- Type personality. What I have found works best for me when doing a gallery wall is to pin a rectangle on the wall and fill it. I don't measure, I don't use a level, I just get to work. 

After the sectional arrived I realized it would never fit the way I had set the room up. So, I had to rearrange everything. It took me a whole day. I moved the desk/bookcase to the other side of the room. I laid one of the bookcases on its side and put all the books back in. 

I just have a few more spots to fill on the gallery wall. I'm not in a rush the right pictures will come at the right time. I am so happy with the way our loft has turned out. We now have space for friends to visit, a room I can work out in, we can watch a movie in, do art projects or homework in. 

The scriptures tell us about having a house of order and that is my goal this summer. I have taken bags upon bags of donations to Goodwill. We have organized our bedrooms. Well, I have helped the kids organize their bedrooms. My room is in the process of being gutted. This was once just a house but now with a little hard work it is a part of us and we call it home. 

8 Behold, mine house is a house of order, saith the Lord God, and not a house of confusion.

XOXO- Summer Projects are satisfying. The Sunny D