We are nuts

We must be, since we are about to do something totally insane, crazy. Dh and i have decided to do the staining, cutting and sealing ourselves on our floors....which means if we screw up royally, we have to live with it, forever. The thing that decided it was that if we have it done it would be in the 15K range, if we do it ourselves it will be about $ 2500, materials and all.....so yeah, we are doing it.

http://www.diystainedconcrete.com/about/

well, they say what doesnt kill you makes you stronger

DH and I repainted our whole house, and put down all new hardware floors.
Plus we redid a few bathrooms.

Gosh that house was beautiful. I'd give just about anything to have it back.. LOL

OH well, we enjoyed it while we had it.

Go head on Erin and Chelle!

And you know when you need to know how to do something, just google

We gutted and rebuilt the entire inside of our house (on a credit card- we were pretty dumb, lol). Including floors , walls, ceilings,windows, plumbing electrical and stairs, I even built and cut my own stringers (and they said it wasn't possible- HA) My home building days are over, lol. We have never attempted any concrete work. Good luck and be sure to tell us all about it.

Tara, what are stringers?

All of you rock!

They are the boards that the stairs sit on, it almost looks like teeth, lol. Everyone told us we had to buy them it would be impossible to make your own, well someone has to be able to make them or you couldn't buy em right? We almost gave up and bought them 10 times over BUT when someone tells me I can NOT do something...... I wont lie it was rough, but now I know what I am doing, I'll be doing the ones on the back deck this summer too. Steps that have to go three feet up the deck are far cheaper than an actual 15 step staircase but a plain board is cheaper yet, and I am cheap if I am anything, lol.

Demo was the fun and easy part Originally we were going to do sections at a time and then I decided to start while Rob was at work and by the time he got home I had half the house (it's a small house) torn down, lol. It's a great stress reliever, although rebuilding is when the stress relief was needed

Demo is always fun. Our first house was a fixer upper, and we fixed, and fixed. I know how to do drywall, flooring etc, thats easy. Pergo sucked, big time...

We are taking a concrete saw to new concrete however....scary considering what this slab is costing me!

I did a stringer this summer. Decided to do it while BR was asleep, cause he just agervates the shit out of me. and they LOOK easy, till you REALLY look at them. LOL But like you I am TOOO cheap. I even tied down and dealt with trying to turn a truck with a 16 ft 2x4 all through town (narrow streets and it stuck out of my 6 foot truck bed for quite a ways..), cause it was 4.00 cheaper than 2 8ft ones.


And I had the wood measured out to the inch. EACH board was used, and every inch of every board. It was PERFECT. Till I came inside, to feed the baby, then BR decided tomake the stairs 6 inches longer. or at least he tried. HE came in griping cause I hadnt bought enough wood. I explained that I did. He said he was making them longer. When I told him that he couldnt do it, and he got mad cause I hadnt bought extra. LOL Nope, cause I know what will happen to it.

NOTHING. LOL

The worst we did was tile. OH wait, I take that back, we built a chicken coop once. that was the WORST!

BR tries to change things half way through. Drives me freakin batty. I actually dread building this room on the house. For one, I KNOW I could do it so much cheaper, Two, he will add and take away till I hate it, and 3. For some reason he wants nothing but blonde wood. NO color. I want RED walls. and want my floors to be just plain old boards, all beat up and polyurithaned till they glow.

The worst thing when we did our last home was--now mind you my dad own's a roofing company and my brother inlaw is a plumber and the other is a framer and my brother is a finshed carpterner.- My cousin has a window replacement company and Now my Hubby is a electrican -- So I have all bases covered...

The house was from 1790 with that said all the walls where horse hair so for some dumb reason they started with the downs stairs 1st (we where not living there yet) still living in the condo until it was somewhat done-- so the downstairs was done and the staircase which came out so wicked good it was not even funny -it was yellow paint on the kick boards with maple leafs hand painted on them-my brother can paint really well (since the house was on Maple street) the steps and the hand railing was stained black (like and old ship stairwell) the staircase was curved with a curved wall .. to the left of the staircase was a huge walkin closet with Iron hooks in the horsehair plaster--my dad told my brother don't pull out the hooks where going to cut around them and pull them out -so the wall won't fall down -well my brother mike pulled out the hooks the wall collasped and down the staircase all over the wet stain --all I could do was hang my mouth open and stare and I walked out the door.. My dad was swearing and he never eva swears!!!Thank god that house had 2 staircases since my dad had to bring his crew in from his roofing comapny to clean up the mess and they to start all over.. It was a learning experience for all of them that house... By the time that house was done I had counted about 4 zillion swears words from my father... He was screaming to us Never will his kids buy another OLD New England home -my brother said he would never buy a old home --then 8 years he bought a home and guess what it was from 1888 --my hubby has spent almost every weekend this past year redoing the electial work.....swearing his brains out... I love old homes that house on maple street had a fireplace in the kitchen and when my cousin todd and my hubby crawled inside it -the flume i guess you would call it was made from grave stones that were never used since mistakes were made on them --each owner of that house passed on a log with whom lived in that house etc.. whom died in that house and where all the pets were buried in the back yard.. We also had Ella in that house whom never left --she died upstairs at her kithen table at one point in the 40's that house was converted to a 2 family then in 1981 it was made back into a one family ... I miss that house--- I loved that house-- now I get to stare at it from across the street -it sucks big time

Dh and I will argue, we will swear, we will throw things, but we wil; get it done, and I am dreadin it. If I could get my friend to help that would be great, she is willing, but Dh insists.

I love old houses, they have personality. Mine was built in 1880.

That's really cool, Tara!

I would love to have an old house. but alas, my family's log cabin is going to my cousin, and DH's families was torn down last year, Both were build in the early 1860's...

thanks Pearly

Tara that's cool!!! do you know the history of it???