More progress to report to you today with the fireplace project! Progress hasn’t been quick by any means, but we’re still moving forward and that’s something to celebrate. 🙂
I have to say I’m really really pleased with how this fireplace project is coming along. We’ve been working at it very slowly, only when the weather is really nice and when it fits conveniently into our schedule. I may jinx us here, but I think I may even be enjoying the process? I’ve always found waiting for projects to wrap up to be really painful because I just get so excited (and therefore so impatient), but these days I’m just really getting a lot of enjoyment out of each and every little step forward. So here’s your fireplace project update!
How Things Looked Last Time
So just as a refresher, here’s how things looked last time we chatted about this project.
The fireplace was closed in, the wiring was started and we had some lower cabinets. It was exciting because we could finally see the project taking shape.
What’s New
We’ve now installed the glass cabinet doors and assembled the basic frames for the bookshelves. As you can see, nothing is trimmed out or painted, but that really hasn’t stopped me from starting to play with the shelves a bit anyway. I can never resist. 🙂
I ordered some navy blue grasscloth wallpaper on a whim the other night to go on the backs of the bookshelves and I’m anxiously awaiting its arrival to see how it will look. I realized that all of the photos of shelves that really made me stop and take notice had some kind of subtle pattern/texture in the back of the shelves. If it doesn’t look good, it’s not a huge loss because we only needed to order one roll for this project, but it could be great! Fingers crossed!
We also ordered a new TV from a local shop and we’ve been able to install that. We waited about six weeks for this local shop’s shipment to come in rather than buying from a big box store and it’s been worth the wait. We got Disney+ right away and the kids have been loving it, even if they’re waiting it over an unfinished fireplace. 🙂
This particular TV is one of the newest Samsung models and I love how thin they’re making the frames now. Here’s a similar model with a thin frame. It looks great to display photos or artwork on this TV and we’ve found some channels that just show a nature scene like we’re showing you here that changes every ten minutes or so, so we end up with the look of “art” over the fireplace that changes every once in awhile. It’s fun. 🙂
This might sound crazy, but the electrical work on this project is one of my favourite parts.
We put everything inside the cabinet, or hidden in the wall, so that we don’t have to have anything ugly sitting up on the shelves. We added outlets in both cabinets so we have room to plug in and hide (sort of) whatever new electronic devices we may want to add in the future and we have little hidden charging stations for our laptops and phones. So tidy!
Once the new wallpaper comes in, we’ll be able to finish the shelves, trim everything out and get painting! We’re actually not that far from being done now that I think about it. Yay for that!
More updates coming soon!
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Courtenay Hartford is the author of creeklinehouse.com, a blog based on her adventures renovating a 120-year-old farmhouse in rural Ontario, Canada. On her blog, Courtenay shares interior design tips based on her own farmhouse and her work as founder and stylist of the interior photography firm Art & Spaces. She also writes about her farmhouse garden, plant-based recipes, family travel, and homekeeping best practices. Courtenay is the author of the book The Cleaning Ninja and has been featured in numerous magazines including Country Sampler Farmhouse Style, Better Homes and Gardens, Parents Magazine, Real Simple, and Our Homes.