Easy Electric

Two incredibly inexpensive things that every mid-century homeowner should know about. I'm not sure how I didn't know about them till tonight.

Decorator outlet covers (or paintable outlet covers)
Most people use them so they can paint their outlets the same color as their wall, but they're also great for covering those old-school, yellow outlets that were so popular back in the day (and cheaper/easier than replacing them with a new outlet).
Outlet sealer
Pre-cut to save you time and perfect for stopping drafts around any outlet or switch. The heat/AC bill should take a dip after putting them all around the house.

Done: Hide washer and dryer

A curtain rod installed above them with a nice, white drape hanging off of it and the washer and dryer are tucked away and out of sight. A small change that opened up the master bath a bit.

In progress: Nursery mural

We're going with a travel-themed nursery so we're in the process of painting a world map on one wall. It'll need a second coat, but we're really happy with how it's coming out.

We went with a monotone because 1) it'll give the nursery a nice, soft look and 2) it'll be easy to paint over once the kid grows out of it.

Fixed: Sagging gate

The gate to the to the hot tub hasn't been square since we moved in, so it would drag along the ground and only open half way. One gate kit and a little bit of time and things are square and opening all the way.

Fixed: Underground plumbing

We had our first big project, one that was too big for us to tackle - we had to replace all the underground plumbing. Like most/all of the houses in the area, our house had Orangeburg pipes. And they finally had to be replaced.

Really only the main bathroom had to be replace (the front half of the line), but we figured it was best to do it all at once. And that way we could have the city come out and inspect the whole thing so make sure it was done absolutely right and up to code.

Now we know we won't have to replace any of the underground lines for another 40-50 years.

Don't let a good mid-century light fixture go to waste

We recently replaced the living room light fixture. But that doesn't mean that it wasn't a perfectly fine light fixture. It just had gold accents, which didn't go so well with our dark wood furniture with silver pulls. Plus, we were looking for something a little more modern to fit with the look of the house. (And it doesn't hurt to add a fan to any Austin living room.)

So I moved the old light fixture out to the garage, which was lacking in the light cover area.

Before:

After:

Done: New light fixture in living room

We replaced the living room light fixture, and while we were at it we figured we should add a fan because, well, this is Austin. So here's our new living room ceiling fan:

Here's what the old light fixture looked like, and where it's being used now.