Now that the KaZoos have made almost all of the small and affordable repairs and improvements they can at this juncture (except for a few things needing to wait until cooler weather later this fall), Mista Lista will only be sharing seasonal updates on their home improvement progress. These home improvement to do/ta da posts will come at the end of November, February, May, and August. Not to worry, though: Mista Lista will be sharing other to do and ta da posts that focus specifically on certain projects that are receiving some KaZoo love in the interim months. Let’s get this party started!
September Aha’s and Ta Da’s:
Receding Yard Uglies
Our neighborhood HOA has a policy (not always well-enforced) that air conditioning units and trash cans should not be seen from the road, and while some people may not follow this policy, we happen to like hiding the yard uglies. My parents gave us a leftover lattice screen to hide our trashcan, and we bought another lattice screen to hide our AC for $17.13 (on sale at Lowe’s end of summer clearance sale). We also put down 9 red square patio stones ($7.83 also on summer clearance) underneath our trashcan, since the grass underneath it was dying from lack of sunlight anyway. We dug down the area so that the patio stones would be level with the ground for easily rolling the trashcan into place behind the lattice. Now if we could just hide the ugly meter in a way that would still allow it to be read….
Reorganized Garage
Once the KaZoos started some of the more involved projects like installing the range hood, they realized that they needed a location to organize everything for their current and upcoming projects. After putting away some clutter that had accumulated on various shelves in the garage, they designated one shelf as their DIY project shelf. This shelf holds all the smaller items they are/will be using for projects, grouped by project, and sequenced by order of project. Although one shelf may not seem like very much room for all of their DIY needs, this is one way the KaZoos are keeping their to do list manageable for the future. Plus, now Mr. KaZoo can fit his car in the garage where all of those things were taking up valuable car real estate. Mista Lista applauds the KaZoo family’s efforts to minimize clutter and maximize efficiency.
Remixed Office/Living Room
When Mrs. KaZoo first arrived from the big city, her home office was set up in the front bedroom where she would be encouraged to work by the abundant natural light. Mrs. KaZoo knows she works best in natural light in an open, minimalist space free of distractions, and the front bedroom offered a nice picture window on the north side of the house. Plus, this would make the front bedroom seem like less of a space-waster if it could double as an office. Unfortunately, the cramped space in the front bedroom was cramping her thinking. Keeping the draperies open on the picture window allowed plenty of light but also plenty of heat, not to mention the constant distraction of neighbors passing by the window while she was working.
At the same time, the KaZoos were feeling frustrated with their living room arrangement because they could not sit on their favorite couch to watch TV, due to the size limitations of the room rendering it impossible to have the media stand opposite the sofa. Plus, the living room was feeling very crowded with its oversized furniture awaiting a neighborhood garage sale in October.
Mrs. KaZoo had an “aha” moment when she realized that the KaZoos could swap out some furniture with existing pieces in other rooms to solve both the living room and office dilemmas. When Mr. KaZoo came home from work one evening, they shifted the TV to a smaller TV stand, relegating the larger media stand to the front bedroom for media storage. The smaller TV stand fit on a smaller wall in the living room, allowing the sofa to occupy the longest wall opposite the TV.
By putting the TV on the smallest living room wall instead of a bulky loveseat and moving a French chest to a different wall beside the piano, the angled wall was freed up for Mrs. KaZoo’s displaced desk.
Now, both desks are in the living room area (making for a more functional office space), the KaZoos can watch TV from their comfy couch, and the front bedroom still serves a valuable double purpose as book and media storage in addition to a guest room. Having a media stand in that bedroom also provides a flat surface for guests’ suitcases, and we can eventually put a TV in that room if we so choose. Three birds with one stone, fools. That’s what Mista Lista calls efficiency.
Re-Mastered Closet
For under $100, the KaZoos completely redid their master bedroom closet, maximizing storage by reusing existing shelving from the garage. See these posts for other details: Part I, Part II, & Part III.
Here’s the cost breakdown:
- 1 can Sherwin Williams Harmony paint in Sea Salt = $31.79 (on sale)
- 4 packs of Rubbermaid fastset back clamps = $7.24 (on sale)
- 3 Rubbermaid 12 inch support brackets = $7.62 (on sale)
- 1 pack of Rubbermaid c-clamps = $6.20 (on sale)
- 3 Rubbermaid wall end brackets = $3.28 (on sale)
TOTAL PROJECT COST: $56.13
Not too shabby, eh?
You may have noticed that there are only ta da’s here and no to do’s. Say what?! Mista Lista and the KaZoo family have decided to set monthly project goals, so tomorrow Mista Lista will be back sharing the KaZoo To Do list for October.
KaZoo Party of Two 