“Every space should inspire you to live your best life”
The home was renovated in 1967, that’s all we know. Funny, when you look at homes in Italy on the internet and come across one that says “renovated”….the year will probably be 1967. I think they either don’t know or don’t care…or both. But, 1967 is NOT the year you want renovations. The 70’s was full of wonderful things, like my birth lol… but not design & decor for homes. Not when you know your home is an antique, ancient home full of traditional character and charm. So, you peel back the layers.
Italy is known for its incredible character in these gorgeous homes. Most have stunning wood beams that you would die for! Not so much in our home. The beams are there, but someone at some point decided to paint them 1/2 of them. The color was dark and dreary. Our kitchen felt like a dark cave. Unfortunately there are no windows and no light. When we replaced our front door with a full glass door, it opened up the world outside. But, the beams were just still so heavy and dark. What to do…..what to do?
We got a price from one local contractor. To plaster in between the beams (only) would be 3000 euros. Well, I can think of a bunch of other things I’d rather spend that amount of money on, so that’s was a big no. We decided to simply paint the wood in between the dark beams white. I was very hesitant to do it, but once Mike started there was no going back. We recently looked back at this reno job and laugh… 2 rows each day we would say . We literally looked at it like an overwhelming job, but 2 rows a day was manageable. Up the ladder Smartie went and what a transformation it gave.
Looking back on photos now, I can’t even imagine why we waited. The white was a cheap paint, nothing fancy and nothing expensive. Mike actually had to get the 2nd gallon of regular white interior paint. It provided excellent coverage on these dark, old worn looking beams. It also reflects the glass dome lights we purchased from IKEA. The combination really brightens up this french country kitchen.
Yes, I call it french country in Italy. French country has always been my design style. I gravitate towards the charm, the subtle muted tones with wood and fabric. I feel the Italian style is more vibrant with orange, yellows and greens. Both beautiful, but I prefer the french country vibe. A little cafe curtain can add such charm. It can transform any kitchen and give it a charming and inviting feel. I had brought some curtains over from home with me to Italy and purchased others at IKEA. They are perfect to hide the sink, cabinets and can be placed in any space you need to “pretty it up”.
We decided to turn the awkward space near our bedroom into a small living room space. Last trip we had purchased the loveseat at IKEA and it fit nicely. I had my eye out for some chairs and happen to come across these vintage ones. I found them on facebook marketplace for 100 euros. Well, I reached out and the nice lady sent us back measurements. We knew we wanted them, but would they fit in the rental? We headed into Rome and were thrilled to actually find the location. The lady was from the Ukraine and again….thank God for google translate. She spoke no English and we haven’t mastered Italian, never mind Ukrainian. This was comical.
She showed us the chairs and I fell in love! They were better in person. Clean, comfortable and a gorgeous green. Perfect, now if they’ll fit we are good to go! Nope….She made a quick call to her husband, who kindly offered to deliver the chairs. So we agreed immediately, and also agreed that we would pay 20 for delivery and 80 for the chairs. The next night we sat in the piazza waiting for our delivery. They messaged us they were running late and we sat in the piazza looking at each other like what are we even doing. We are sitting in a piazza in Italy and waiting for chairs to be delivered. It still shocks us that we are living this life. We are in Italy and living like locals….waiting on facebook marketplace delivery lol.
They finally arrived just after 10:00 pm and now….to get the chairs home. Down the narrow, winding cobblestone street with all eyes watching lol. Mike refuses to let me help, so he has both chairs ….one on his head (like a big green chair hat) and the other in front of his body. I suffer from an awful vascular disease, so my arms don’t really work. I have no strength in my hands and I just am left to watch and of course document all of everything with photos and videos lol.
They look amazing! They are actually very comfortable and I think they compliment our living room space perfectly! Facebook marketplace in Italy for the win!! Between the new chairs, the painted kitchen ceiling and our new bathroom vanity, the house is looking beautiful. It’s definitely coming along and has Kerri and Mike all over it.
“Renovating not only restores the house, but restores the story of the home and the neighborhood.”
We did a little repurposing with our old front door. Mike made a kitchen island out of one of the wood panels and placed the other at the front entryway. We finally got a new stove and oven and that is looking very sleek and pretty! The kitchen also got a little pantry we purchased at IKEA. Enough to hold some snacks and all the extra this and thats. I think we only need a new refrigerator and we should be good to go! The existing fridge is old, but functional. It however is tiny. Not bad for 2, but add all of us there and we quickly run out space. So that is on my list!
We thought we were all fancy in getting our new propane cooktop last trip. It looked amazing, however I hated it. I’m not a propane type of girl. It scares me, I could never light it and who wants to deal with the tank. So this trip, we bought an electric one. It looks great and is easy peasy! Right…..nope. Apparently, we can’t use our Italian coffee pot on the induction burner. So, we have to purchase a plate that goes over the induction burner to use the coffee pot. It is always something, but something is always worth it.
No trip to Leroy Merlin is complete without at least two more trips to Leroy Merlin for things you didn’t know you would need.
I miss our home. I miss the mess of all of it. It’s actually immaculate so I don’t mean it is messy, it’s the mess of renovating a place your heart is still at. Mike and I created this home, we dreamed of it, we envisioned it, we sought it, we purchased it, we lost our minds in it, we renovated it and we absolutely love it. We love all of it. We love the plaster falling off when you walk around the corner off the step down room, we love the pink retro tiles that now, my new vanity brings out the beauty of these tiles. We love the fact that Mike discovered ancient bricks in another arch by my arched green window….even though he created a dust storm trying to expose them. We love knowing we bought this home, it is ours and we have forever to enjoy it. It’s full of quirks, uneven walls, squeaky windows and sometimes leaking pipes ~ but it’s our ancient home in Italy. It’s attached to an ancient castle wall with more history than one can imagine. It’s a hot mess and a work in progress – kind of like Mike & I. So, we will do little by little and with every renovation we will make it more of our own. Beautiful, charming and renovated with love. Renovated by our own hands, with a budget the size of a fiat.
The best time for new beginnings is now.
HE wants to be our everything ~ Blessed is she.