Remember me mentioning that our plan was to incorporate a sliding  “barn” door into our design?  We figured that would be the best way to close off that 6 foot opening between our bedroom and the nursery, but also allow for great flow when the door was open. Plus it wouldn’t take up any extra floor space as it would easily glide and sit against the wall.

But we had to accomplish a few steps before we could put the door up.  First, hang the flat screen tv INTO the wall vs. onto the wall so the door could pass in front of it.  {See that mess project here and here.}  Second, find and buy budget friendly barn door hardware.  {Did that here and here.}  Third, design door layout and figure out how much wood it would take to build.  No sweat right?

So by this weekend, we were ready to roll. TV was safely hanging in the wall and door hardware had arrived. All that was left to do was beg brother-in-law Justin to help Mr. vB put it all together.

Here’s their progress in photos.

The Blank Canvas

The 10′ Rail that had to be bolted into the beam.

Only had to move it 3 times to get it to the right level.  Gotta love old houses- neither the ceiling nor the floor is square.

Time to make the donuts, oh I mean make the door.

I would love to know what Justin is thinking in this photo.  Maybe- “A barn door- really?” or “I shoulda said I was busy.”

I like the way Mr. vB worked the letter V into the design.  Subtle but personalized!

Ready to hang!

TA-DA! Opened…

And Closed… PERFECT!!

And here’s the view from van’s nursery.

It is definitely a bit more massive than I imagined, but it IS a 5′-8″ wide by 8′ tall slab of wood. I’m not sure what I was thinking- it certainly wasn’t going to be dainty. Now it is my job to prime and paint the door and repaint the wall where the TV is.  Justin had a good idea that since the nursery side of the door is plain, we should incorporate some type of mural or design onto the door.  Interesting. The idea got both our wheels turning.  We are throwing around a few ideas. Will keep you updated with the progress!!

{here is the back story}

The only room in our house that has not been touched since we moved in is our Laundry Room.  It is located down in the basement off of the main living area.  I have always kept it hidden from the camera’s view as it was a bit scary!  We upgraded our washer and dryer to front loading units about 2 years ago, but never upgraded the room surrounding them.  It was inevitable that every time I went to switch the clean clothes from the washing machine to the dryer, something would fall on the dirty concrete floor and have to be rewashed.  It was SO annoying!!  I was constantly begging Mr. vB to add this room to the To-Do list.  I got so desperate that I finally said a finished Laundry Room is ALL I want for my birthday!

Apparently I got my point across because when I got home from work today, there was an odd smell coming from the basement.  When I yelled down to Mr. vB as to what it was, he yelled back,”Dunno?!”  I could tell from his voice that he was clearly lying.  I then went around and opened all the windows on the first floor.  When I got to the window that overlooked the back yard, I knew immediately what he was up too!  All the junk that has been crammed into the laundry room was now in the back yard.

About 30 minutes later Mr. vB emerged from the basement and asked me if I would like to see my {early} birthday present.  He had spent the afternoon clearing out the laundry room, sweeping, spraying for spiders, water proofing the cement floor {the stinky smell}, and installing a new sliding window.

Tomorrow he wants to paint the floor, paint the walls, install more shelving, and put the wood trim around the exterior door and new window!  Did I mention that I love my husband??  {And a great renovation project that happens without me lifting a finger?!?}

Check back for the finished product! Doing laundry will never be the same again!

Can you believe 1 year ago today Boots and Totty.com posted its very 1st blog entry! It was quite a boring entry if I do say so myself, but none the less it has gotten me where I am today!

So here is the breakdown of what B&T.com has accomplished in the past 365 Days.

{in no particular order}

1. We showcased over 18 pairs of shoes in the Shoe of the Month Club.

2. We showed how to build a raised garden, how to install an in ground sprinkler system, and how to attempt to grow grass.

3. Also showed how to collect and recycle rainwater and how to install energy efficient windows.

4. Don’t forget we also renovated our Bathroom, Basement, and Kitchen.

5. And gave face-lifts to our Guest Room, Master Bedroom, Living Room and Dining Room.

6. We also had Mr. Sanders refinish our Hardwood Floors.

7. Let’s not forget all the holidays, birthdays, and anniversaries.

8. Gave Target plenty of free publicity.

9. Gotten some free publicity ourselves.

10. And continue to search for the Best Burger in Richmond!

With a grand total of 151 posts in 35 categories, I’d say it was a pretty busy year!!  BIG THANKS to the the 16,681 visits to the site and the 352 people that published comments.

It’s a nice treat to read them and know that you guys enjoy my silly stories!

]]> http://www.bootsandtotty.com/2010/02/1-year-blog-a-versary/feed/ 2 http://www.bootsandtotty.com/2010/01/changing-our-sunday-up-a-bit/ http://www.bootsandtotty.com/2010/01/changing-our-sunday-up-a-bit/#comments Mon, 25 Jan 2010 02:46:51 +0000 admin http://www.bootsandtotty.com/?p=2750 A normal Sunday for Mr. vB and I includes me waking up first, starting the coffee maker, and feeding the kiddo’s. (Boots, Bailey and Milo)  Once my coffee is ready I sit on the couch and catch up on my favorite blogs until Mr. vB wakes up. {which could be anywhere from 9:30 to 11 o’clock.. sometimes I have to make a little extra noise downstairs to get him moving! Luv You Hon!}

BUT this Sunday morning we shook things up abit!  Mr. vB and I have been trying to change up our workout routine and we have always said we wanted to try a Yoga class.  Well I mentioned this to my friend/neighbor, Karen, who is a Yogi and teaches over at Yoga Source in Carytown. She suggested that we come try out her Sunday morning class.  I mentioned this to Mr. vB and surprisingly he was down for it, even though it meant waking up early on a Sunday! {yes- Sunday at 9am is still early to my husband!}

So off to Yoga Source Mr.vB and I went this morning.  And an hour and a half later we emerged from the studio feeling awesome.  The class we took was called Slow Flow Vinyasa and it kicked our butts!  It was definitely a bit of a challenge since neither me nor Mr. vB had any clue of the poses that Karen was talking about, but she helped us to get each just right!

**Side-note- I have always been the type of exerciser that thought you had to SWEAT BUCKETS to get a true workout, but boy was I wrong.  Mr. vB and I used muscles this morning that we didn’t even know existed.  At one point I even looked over at Mr. vB and he WAS sweating buckets!  We are sure to be so sore in the morning!**

I was so impressed by Karen’s teachings that when I was suppose to be clearing my mind of all thoughts, all I could think about was how I was going to write this post!!  For anyone looking for a great Yoga class/instructor YOU HAVE GOT to try out Karen’s class.  She teaches multiple classes during the week over at Yoga Source, and she also does private sessions.  Karen even has a once a month Yoga session at a cool loft downtown called “Last Friday’s”.  Check out her website for the full scoop! www.yogawabisabi.com.

I know you prefer to be anonymous on this blog, but today you are center stage!

I love you very much. xoxo Mrs. vB

His allergies have been going haywire lately and we thought it might have something to do with him spending so much time down in the unfinished basement. {His office and music studio are down there.}  We originally used carpet tiles to hide the ugly cement floor because we could get them all for FREE!  4 years later, the tiles have accumulated tons of dust and pet hair, but more importantly condensation is starting to collect underneath them. It’s not their fault {the carpet tiles}, it’s ours, as we apparently did not seal the concrete floor properly the first time!  I had a mold and moisture guy stop in a few weeks ago and luckily we had no mold, but he did recommend removing the tiles and resealing the floor with a resin based product.  We also thought this would be a good time to ditch the carpet tiles and see if it helped Mr. vB’s allergies.

So last week our Basement looked a little something like this.. {I’m totally embarrassed showing this to you guys.  Our Basement had turned into a total catastrophe!!}

As of last night it looked like this..

Pretty Amazing Transformation, eh?

I am currently working on a post with the full step by step details on how we accomplished it all.

Our next step down here will be to drywall the ceiling and the remaining cinder-block walls.  But that will be after we finish dealing with the floors upstairs.  Remember me mentioning that little project too?  Our entire first floor is about to get a little face lift of it’s own!!

Our Kitchen Floor is halfway ripped up…

and our Basement is under construction (again)…

But these are good things- I think.

Mr. vB started pulling up the kitchen floor late Monday evening.  The good news is that we discovered hardwood floors hiding under that horrible tile.  They definitely look rough now, but after some sanding and stain, they should be beautiful!

And as far as the basement goes, we finally have a plan to make it a finished space.  The picture above is the framing around the furnace and hot water heater.  We are also enclosing Mr. vB’s office area in a really neat way!  Pictures to follow soon- Stay Tuned!

9 boxes of LED rope lights on the counter and 6 more boxes on the floor.

When I asked what exactly we were going to do with all these lights, Mr. vB let me in on his little plan.

Here is the exterior of our house before..

And After 15 boxes of LED lights…

The inspiration came from houses we saw on Monument Ave with similar rope lights spilling over the balconies.

Kinda funky.. kinda fun!

It’s making me rethink my wreath though! I might need to do something a little less traditional than the ornaments that are on my current wreath.  I saw in a magazine yesterday the idea of spray painting a wreath.  Wouldn’t a bright red wreath be cool, or maybe a lime green wreath??

I did also replace my Confederate Jasmine with the cutest little fir tree ever.

Guess I gotta get some funky decorations for this guy too!

I see a busy weekend in my future! Stay Tuned!!

I luv, luv, luv a good hamburger!  Currently my favorite burger is from Five Guys Burger and Fries. Ever been there?  It’s amazing!  I don’t know which I like better, the juicy burger or the fresh fries.

But after reading the article about the Best Burger in Richmond, I am up to the challenge of testing out the competition.

I have enlisted Mr. vB and our good friends, Amanda and Dave Monger, to help with this challenge.  Our plan is to rate the burgers the same way that Richmond Magazine did.  We will rate the patty, the bun, the vegetable toppings, and other toppings on a scale from 1-5.  {5 being the best.}

Here are the contenders: Cafe Gutenberg, Honey Whyte’s, Racine, Delux, The Hill Cafe, Davis and Main, Dot’s Back Inn, River City Diner, Can Can Brasserie, Tarrant’s Cafe and The Belvidere at Broad.

Once we have tested every last burger we will crown the 1st Annual BBURP.  {Best Burger Upon Richmond Prize)

Will my {5} guys be able to hold that sacred place in my heart?  Stay Tuned to find out…

Well they’re about to get a second chance on life.

I hit up Home Depot today and found a replacement socket to fix the bobble-head look.

And after conning Mr. vB into helping me, we got it fixed in no time! Boots wanted to be involved too.

But besides fixing the socket, I am also thinking of maybe painting the base a new color.  I’ve been itching to use a peacock blue color somewhere in my house and this may be a good fit.  I also picked up a fun golden velvet lampshade at Ikea this weekend that I think will really pop with the blue.

(have no fear-the shade is shiny because I left the plastic cover on it in-case I need to return it!)

Now I just have to talk Mr. vB into showing me how to use the paint gun on the air compressor.  I figure that will be the easiest way to paint the lamp so you won’t see any brushstrokes!  I am hoping to get to that tomorrow night. I will keep you posted!