Our Florida Beach Condo - Floors, Ceilings, Walls, and More!

Last spring we started thinking about getting our condo painted. That led to a discussion about how much I hate popcorn ceilings, which led to the floor issues we had -- worn-out and dirty-looking carpet, and Pergo in the kitchen and hall bathroom (not ideal). Jim agreed we should get a price for all of the work, plus 2 new vanities in the bathroom. A local contractor gave us a good price for all of the work. He has done a lot of work in our complex so we figured he knows the buildings well. 

Our place was in good condition when we bought it but I felt like these issues - especially the old carpets - might discourage return renters. Those with vacation rental properties know how valuable return renters are! 

So, we got a move on. First up, we selected flooring. We had good luck with the peel and stick luxury vinyl tile in our master bathroom so I was inclined to go that route, but our contractor suggested the floating type that locks. I did a ton of research and saw that it had some advantages and was potentially quieter than peel-and-stick if you use an underlayment (not required though). I had been considering a rustic pine floor, but when I saw this option at Lowe's, I knew that was the winner.

In person, it looks a bit darker than this but it's the perfect beach house floor - the color of sand!

For the walls, I went with an off the shelf bright white from Sherwin Williams. We had white before and I always liked it.

Finally, we chose a 3.5" plain stock baseboard. My dad had already installed this in the master bathroom after we did the floor last year. I want a clean cottage feeling in here.

All of the work took place over the course of a month or so. It was a little nerve-racking to use a contractor we had never met in person and pay him for work we could only see in pictures! Fortunately he came with great reviews from other owners in our complex so we took a shot. It worked out beautifully!

Last week I went down by myself and spent 3 days putting things back together and updating a few of the decor pieces. Our contractor had rehung all of our art but we needed a few more things like a mirror in one bathroom, a new shower curtain rod, and a couple of new lamps.

And here's how it looks now:

You can see the baseboards in this photo...

I had ordered 2 rugs from Overstock during a big summer sale (isn't there always a sale on Overstock?!). This for the living room (LOVE!):

And this for the master bedroom: 

I love the living room rug, but I'm still getting used to the navy rug in the master. It's darker than I'm used to but I don't think it's a bad thing. It will certainly hold up to renters since it looks distressed and it's dark - no stains will ever show! 

Neither rug was an investment piece so if something does happen to them (or I decide I hate them in a year or two), they can either be hosed off or thrown out! You may also notice that we updated all of the ceiling fans last year. 

We also had new vanities installed in both bathrooms. Although they are a big improvement over the old ones - higher, drawers, clean (!) - they still feel a little small and cheap. The cultured marble counters are not likely to last for the long haul but they will certainly get us through a few years.

Hall bath:

Master bath:

I will never understand why the original designers put a tub in the master and a step-in shower in the hall bath!! This is not a luxurious tub - I would much prefer a shower in the master bath. Some day maybe. 

The color in both bathrooms is blogger bathroom favorite - Sherwin Williams Sea Salt. When you read a lot of blogs like I do, you start to see patterns with paint. There are countless blogger bathrooms painted in Sea Salt and now I can see why! It's a gorgeous, classic color that goes with pretty much everything. 

All of the art you see in the pictures came from HomeGoods in Venice, Florida. That place is the gold standard of HomeGoods stores and I have been to a lot!!! For those in the Sarasota area, don't mess around anywhere else. The art pieces there were unbelievable and so perfect for what I was looking for. The mirror in the master bath came from Ross - only $24. Can't beat that. The one in the hall bath came from HomeGoods YEARS ago - it has a big scratch on one side but it was only $12. 

I also bought this new piece of art for over the sofa also at HomeGoods.  

I stared at this piece for at least 20 minutes in the store. Walked away to the register and then went back to buy it after sending Jim a picture. He came back very quickly that he liked it. When I told him it was $40 he said to get it! He loves old cars, I love the beach, and my kids love to surf so this seems like the perfect piece for our beach condo.

I should also mention that coffee table which everyone should get! I saw it on another blog (Mix and Match Mama maybe?). Then I broke the glass on our old coffee table. I could have replace the glass but the wicker on that table was not in good shape (and I am really trying to de-wicker this place as much as possible). Seriously, for $149 and free shipping, what's not to love!?!

Final update was to change out the bedding in the guest room. I never really liked the striped comforters but they served the purpose for 2 years. I really wanted quilts since they are easier to wash than a comforter and they stay neater. I also like sleeping under a cotton quilt instead of a duvet. I found one of these on clearance at Marshalls and then stalked several Marshalls/TJ Maxx/HomeGoods stores without any luck. Finally found a second on eBay for only a little more than the first. Sold! I love them. the gray-blue pillows are also from the Venice HomeGoods. 

We also put this sweet little desk in there last year. It was from Target (no longer there that I can find), and it's the perfect small size for a lap top set-up. The drawer holds some random desk supplies like a stapler, pens and notepads. Most of our renters are there for a month or more so a desk area is a nice plus for them. That cute lamp was from Ross. The cord is braided and blue. So adorable. 

The chair is a spare dining chair that can be pulled into the kitchen as necessary for guests. I haven't found a rug for this room yet. I am thinking about getting something pretty neutral because the comforters are borderline obnoxious! I saw a shaggy rug at Ross that I might send down with my parents in a few weeks. Another option is a fake sisal rug. The closet in this room holds a lot of beach chairs and gear so the sand gets everywhere eventually. 

If you are interested in renting the condo, we have availability for October 2017 and late June 2018 through October 2018. It's a 2-week minimum rental but the affordable price makes even a 9 or 10 day stay worth that price. A lot more info can be found on our condo web page.

Our Florida Beach Condo - Master Bathroom

Last October, the kids and I headed down to Florida for Columbus Day weekend. The plan was to actually stay in our condo (the kids had never spent the night!), visit my parents (they live in the same community) and relax a little. Unfortunately Hurricane Matthew was also visiting Florida the same weekend. I had major doubts that our late Thursday night flight to Sarasota would leave on time but we only left about 10 minutes late. Who knew?

Now, I do think it's important to stay in your rental property at least once per year so you can get an idea of what is good and not so good. Otherwise, it's hard to know if the showered is lame (ours was!) or the pillows need replacing (ditto). We rent a lot of houses for vacations and we are always happy to give owners feedback on what they should consider updating, getting or replacing. I am happy when our tenants do the same!

Of course, besides relaxing, I had high hopes for replacing the master bathroom floor which my mother had

told me was pealing and generally looking pretty gross. It was 20 year old linoleum and it was permanently yellowed so it certainly had seen its day. I had originally thought we would just tear out the old bathroom but reality set in and other priorities came first so we decided to just replace the floor and keep everything else until a bigger reno down the road.

At our local Home Depot, I had checked out the new peal and stick vinyl floors everyone is excited about. The wood-look was nice but I really wanted tile in the bathroom. I was really attracted to the Travertine look because it's beachy and won't show sand or hair. Bonus. I sent the specs to my dad and he picked some up at the Sarasota store along with some grout.

Friday morning brought cooler temps and light winds so the kids were happy to lounge around. My dad and I got to work on the bathroom floor!!

Here's the up close "before" picture. We pulled out the toilet and baseboard. The toilet was in good condition and fairly new so it stayed but the baseboard was total junk so my dad replaced it.

Here's the master handyman figuring out how we're going to handle the tile near the toilet. Right after this I told my dad that I think we should just try to pull out the whole floor. It came out in a couple of big sheets - it wasn't even really glued down. Amazing. Unfortunately I didn't take a picture of the bare floor.

 Nice '80s wallpaper behind the toilet.

The process from there was very fast. We scraped the minor glue residue and then cleaned the floor with some cleaner my dad had on hand. There were some hairline cracks that we probably would have filled if we were using ceramic or porcelain tile but we decided the floor would flex enough to withstand cracking. Then we laid the tiles down for a dry fit up to the point that you see below. Then we pealed and stuck them down. 

We used some books with paint cans on top to hold them down in spots where we thought they might lift a little or just on some of the corners that would see a lot of traffic. 

We went for an afternoon swim and then I grouted it before dinner. We used a bag of grout although I don't have the color (it's at the condo!). It looked really great when it was done. It goes on just like tile but it's even easier to clean it off the vinyl.

My dad subsequently installed the baseboards behind the toilet and on the other two short walls. (no joke - it's probably 6 feet of baseboard total!!). We actually bought enough vinyl tile to cover the area under the vanity too when the time comes. I'd love to rip that vanity and medicine cabinet out next October. Not sure that will happen or not but it would really finish this bathroom for the next 15 years. The tub tile is actually in great condition.

We have a lot of weeks available this summer in case you are interested! It's Unit 706 in White Sands Village, Sarasota, Florida. Send me an email (houseography / at / gmail.ccom) if you are interested.

So, that's the story of the quick bathroom reno!

Our Florida Beach Condo: TV Stand Picture Wall

I just realized I never wrapped up our Florida beach condo makeover posts from May. Whoops.

The last thing we worked on after I stripped the wallpaper border in the kitchen and spiffed up the balcony was the picture wall in the living room. I have always loved Mrs. Limestone's TV wall at her shore house and have wanted to create something similar in my own home. I don't have a spot for it at our house but this wall in our condo in Florida was definitely calling out for some love!

See? Not cute - and so boring compared to everything else we have done there. I found some clipart online that I modified and play with to recreate an image I had in my head of what this wall should look like. I printed them on regular paper and slapped them in these frames (from Target).  I would really like to get some chairs to use here in lieu of the extra dining room chairs. They are really not very attractive in here. 

On the opposite wall, I further refined my photo wall to include this awesome wood fish Ipurhcaserd at HomeGoods or Marshalls for about $10.  Now if only I could convince Handy Hubby that the leather couch needs to exit.

So those are the updates for now!! Enjoy your last few weeks of summer  (if you have a any left!)

 

Our Florida Beach Condo: Balcony Updates

One of the best features of our Siesta Key condo is the balcony (or lanai as most people there call it). It's fully screened but small - about 5'6" x 11'. That's not a ton of space. Our first priority was to have a table for eating which I purchased in March when we bought the condo. The table that was there was a plastic table like you would buy at a drugstore and not something that was sturdy enough for daily eating. Most of our renters are going to want to take advantage of the warm days and evenings and eat outside. Fortunately the chairs were fine but just need a little cleaning.

Here's where we started on the lanai back in March. 

And a few hours later during the cleanup, I had barely touched the balcony except for removing the table cloth and directors' chairs. At the point, I was going to leave the table but by the end of the day, I realized that the table had to be replaced with a glass top table.

 By the time I left the unit on April 1st, this is what the lanai looked like:

It's certainly a nice place to eat but it's nothing memorable.

When Handy Hubby and I had our Memorial Day escape to Florida, I really wanted to add a light fixture so people can eat out at night. It gets dark early especially in November and December. I also lugged down a little "Life is better when you are at the beach" sign I found at Marshall's for $9 a while back. I picked up some cute new throw pillows at HomeGoods for $18 per pair. The light fixture is from World Market and we were able to wire it in using a plug light (also from World Market) with a switch on the end. Now it looks completely refreshed! It really needs a rug of some sort, and some chairs for relaxing (scored last night at World Market - 75% off all outdoor furniture!). 

I wanted to note the adorable dishware. I was not originally planning to get new dishes but wanted to live with what we had. But, the dishes were not very beach-ish and I didn't really have to do very many kitchen investments other than some glassware, knives and toaster. I decided to go with a cute Corelle pattern that I found at Walmart. I was originally resistant to Corelle but then I saw how cute this pattern was and you really cannot beat its durability when you have renters. The silverware was in the unit - there's tons of it and it's in good condition so we kept it. My mom scored the plastic wine glasses at a yard sale for a buck. Love my mom and her bargain hunting.

Here's the view for your breakfast...

 

I think we achieved the goal of sprucing things up on a budget. Total investment here was about $200. I still need to get a rug but I am hoping to find one in the end-of-summer sales which seem to be in full swing even though summer is just beginning. Uh... Target... why is all of the back-to-school stuff out?!!!!  I nearly flipped out. Our kids don't get back to school until after Labor Day in Virginia!! I'm surprised they weren't putting Christmas lights out on the back wall. 

Enjoy your summer no matter what the big box retailers are trying to tell you!

Our Florida Beach Condo - Kitchen Updates

Over Memorial Day weekend, Jim and I snuck down to our new condo in Siesta Key, Florida to do a little work on the condo, get some rest, and eat some amazing meals. I had a "few" work priorities for the condo. Handy Hubby thought it was going to be "rest" weekend - he was wrong (although  not entirely). Some were mundane like rename the WiFi network and change the password, make sure the television remotes were all properly programmed, and organize the linen closet. And of course, I wanted to do a little more decorating. I shipped down one fairly large box and then carried several items in my suitcase and carried on one giant driftwood seahorse (insert limitless jokes here).

When I was there in March for the closing and quick redecorating, I really wanted to get rid of the wallpaper border in the kitchen. I'm sure it was cute in 2000 but it had definitely lost all appeal. Here's the "reveal" shot from April. After we left in April, my parents scored a new microwave at a yard sale for $25. If you look closely below you can see the broken grate. You can't see the permanently grease stained yellowness of the entire thing - yuck. That baby hit the dumpster in late April.

Here's what the wallpaper looked like up close. Purrrrrty. Not only ugly but also falling down.

I woke up at 6:30 a.m. on Saturday morning and went to work while Handy Hubby got some beauty sleep. Fortunately there were several things working in my favor - 1) most of the top layer of the paper peeled off without issue, 2) the paper was only re-glued in a few small areas, 3) the walls had not been repainted around the paper, 4) I had a plastic scraper that did not damage the existing paint.

And two hours later it looked like this. I used the most basic method. Peeled as much dry paper as possible with my hands. Most of the top layer and bout half the bottom layer came off like that. Then started soaking the bottom later with water using a wet rag. I then scraped the rest off. It mostly peeled off with no issue. The rest had to be scraped a bit more, and a few tiny spots were super stubborn so I just sanded them down and touched those up with white paint. I think those were glued with stronger glue that really didn't want to let go. It wasn't worth ruining the drywall.

You can't tell in the picture but Handy Hubby also switched out a few nasty painted over almond outlets and switches for clean white. That's 3 down and about 20 left in the rest of the condo!

The last minor kitchen update was swapping out some hideous almond track lighting for some only slightly less hideous white track lighting. Although we want to get rid of this fixture altogether, I found a brand new fixture in the master bedroom closet during the big clean out in March. I almost chucked in into the yard sale pile but in the end I kept it for some unknown reason (temporary insanity or maybe sanity?). Anyway, I pulled them out again to throw them in the yard sale pile and realized they were 10x better than what we had already up so Handy Hubby did a quick switch out just before we left for the airport on Memorial Day.

We didn't bother replacing the track rail, just the fixtures.  It's hard to tell in this cruddy iphone pic but it was a nice, unexpected and free change.

The kitchen looks so much cleaner and more modern than it did when we bought it. I'm so pleased with the results. Of course, spending time there we started to think about longer term plans. Handy Hubby would like to shrink the kitchen back by perhaps making the cabinet between the stove and fridge half as big, thus gaining a bit more space in the living room. We may also eventually lose the table and install a long island with stools instead - thus gaining seating area and also some storage below perhaps. Of course replacing the cabinets and counters would also be a nice change but that's several years down the road because there are some more urgent projects in line first!

Our Florida Beach Condo - Mini-Makeover Reveal!

Last week I detailed how we bought and cleaned out our beach condo. Now I'll tell you how we put it back together in 30 hours with not a minute to spare! Literally - I was dragging boxes to the dumpster at 3:05 having just locked the door behind me! Fortunately my parents were there every step of the way and I am so thankful for them because this would NOT have happened without them.

So, here's where things were when we left off at the end of "Day 1" - BLEAK!

Throughout the 30 hours I kept thinking about all of the HGTV and DIY network design shows and how they always seem to do so much in a 2-day makeover. Of course, having an extra 10 hands and a decent budget really helps out. I had 5 pairs of hands (my parents', my kids and me) but 2 sets were pint-sized and only one of those was remotely helpful. To add to the fun HGTV was filming an episode of Beachfront Bargain Hunt - NO JOKE!!! I definitely lost 10 minutes of work time staring at them filming by the pool (our unit has a nice pool view fortunately!!). Of course I forgot to take a picture of them filming. 

My mom and I did an early morning trip to Comcast (argh!) and Lowes. When we got back, my dad swung into action very early with setting up the TV and changing out 2 light fixtures (the entry and dining room - both HORRIBLE as you can see in the photos above) and some other odd jobs around the house. I spent 45 minutes dealing with Comcast hook-ups (argh!) and then putting things away that we had bought on our shopping spree the night before (cookie sheets, frying pans, utensil organizers, etc.). My mom and Elizabeth started making beds and unloading the dishwasher with all of the dishes, glasses and bakeware we were keeping (but which definitely needed a trip through the dishwasher!). As I was finishing a bunch of little things including a final clean-out of the kitchen drawers and cabinets, my mom scrubbed the bathrooms and vacuumed everything. Ideally we would have scrubbed down all of the baseboards behind all of the furniture but we did what we could in the time we had. I'll do some more cleaning when Handy Hubby and I go down in May. He will finally get to see what we bought! Then we started hauling all of the trash out. A. LOT. OF. TRASH.

The very last thing I did was take pictures for our rental website. Here are the "after" pictures after 30 hours of hard labor! I should note that we did not even lift a paintbrush during that time so everything here was done with accessories and cleaning out! I wish I had taken before and after pictures of the cleaned out closets but I'll try to do those in a future post. 

Living Room

Here's where we started.

I flipped the room layout so the couches are on the left and the TV on the right side. You may recognize some of these pillows from our own family room. I recently scaled back on green so these pillows weren't working here but they are perfectly tropical for Florida! The pictures over the sofa are my own. They were taken of some birds at the famous New Pass Grill & Bait Shop (a really fun place if you are ever on your way to or from Mote Marine!).

The lamps were an AWESOME score at Ross Dress for Less. If you hit that store on the right day, you can get amazing lamps for even less than Marshalls and HomeGoods. Normally this happens when I'm not looking for lamps but this time it worked out perfectly! The floor lamp behind the sofa was a curbside find painted with chalk paint with a shade that I had from another lamp. Totally free -love that!

 

My parents did some heavy negotiating for the TV stand in a yard sale (one of their favorite pastimes).  I might make some changes to it at some point to make it even more functional, such as removing the VCR tape holders in the side cabinets. It is incredibly heavy so we were fortunate to have some help from my parents' neighbors. I also have some ideas for decorating the wall behind the TV which is almost completely bare right now.

Short term I'll get rid of one of the sofas and we'll try to move two club chairs we already own from Arlington to Florida (like in my dad's boat this fall!). I also need two smaller chairs next to the TV - perhaps slipper chairs or some other chairs. I'm not sure yet. I definitely want to get rid of those dining chairs in there for sure. 

Kitchen and Dining Area

Here's the before.

Not many obvious changes to the kitchen. 

The wallpaper border/backsplash is coming down ASAP. I hate it and it dates the already dated kitchen twofold. I was hoping to have time last week but that was not in the stars. I'll get rid of it in May and take new pictures. I added the big yellow bowl in the corner that guests can use for serving pasta or just keeping fruit, snacks, or baked goods on the counter. I also bought a stainless steel utensil holder, a knife block (there were almost no knives at all!), and a new toaster.

Before last week I probably would have told you that we are going to rip out the kitchen in 5 years but after spending some time there, I really liked it and the cabinets were all in good shape except for the doors. If we could get new doors, that might be the best solution. I might also add some crown molding to dress-up or hide the soffit. All of the appliances are decent and the fridge is quite new. We might be able to get away with a less-expensive makeover with new doors, counter and backsplash.

Here's the dining area before.

The main change here was a new drum light that we bought at Lowes for $90. It is the perfect natural color to compliment the flooring and shades on the living room lights. That old fixture was a rusty 1980s relic that was hanging right in your  main view when you walked through the front door. I wish I took a picture with the new light off so you can see the color, but I was in a bit of a rush at this point! I also put up the new art on the walls. These are notecards purchased from a gallery in Nevis on vacation in 2003. I picked up the frames on clearance at Walmart that morning!

I'm going to think some more about what to do with the table and chairs. They are not horrible and will be fine in the short term. I took the leaf out and stored it in the closet so there is more room to move around in the kitchen. When we redo the floor, I'll decide whether to replace them with a high top table or an island with stools. That would make this kitchen a really great cooking and entertaining space, especially given the size of the condo.

Master Bedroom and Bathroom

The main theme in these rooms was cleaning! There was dust on every service, old shelf paper in the drawers, and the closets were a mess. I replaced the bed linens with a Tommy Bahama quilt and shams (found at Ross of course!). I bought all new sheets and my mom got the bedskirt from another Florida friend who was redecorating. The lamps on the bedside tables used to reside in our basement family room. The pictures on the wall over the bed were purchased on our honeymoon in Bermuda and used to be in our own master bedroom. Everything else was in the condo already. 

I love how this room turned out considering the changes were not monumental. It needs a new ceiling fan and maybe a different dresser on the right wall (not shown in these pictures) or perhaps a desk or console instead. The furniture is good quality though so I'm not going to be quick to get rid of it.

The master bathroom was already painted a pretty blue that perfectly matched the shower curtain that I had brought with me! The art on the wall was another mom yard sale find. It might need a new frame but it's getting the job done for now. This room is probably most in need of a makeover in the next few years. The vanity and medicine cabinet are a little rough and the floor is not at all salvageable. The tub could also be replaced with a step in shower making it easier to get in and out safely.

Guest Bedroom 

The guest bedroom was one of the more dramatic makeovers in the condo. 

It was functional before but had no character. Now it looks really cheerful and nautical. My kids cannot wait to sleep here - no idea when they will! I purchased the Tommy Hilfiger comforters at Ross (of course!) and the ocean art was also a Ross find. My dad (!) salvaged those yellow lamps on the curb from a condo neighbor on the day we were moving in. He came in at one point on Tuesday and said, "Hey Meliss, there are some yellow lamps on the sidewalk that are being donated to the yard sale unless you want them." I bolted outside in a flash and did a little jig because they were so perfect. New crisp white drum shades from Lowes for $12 each were the finishing touch. I think they make the room.

One of the reasons we jumped on this unit so quickly was that it has a washer and dryer. It's small but fully functional. We also replaced the horrible little globe fixture that was here before. It was completely dated and only had one lightbulb.  This one provides great additional light in the entry and it was on clearance at Lowes at 7:30 a.m. that morning. It was not at all in the original plan and Handy Hubby would have disagreed but he wasn't there. But, since we replaced the pendant right next to it, the originally ugly globe looked much worse!

Finally our little screened lanai is a great place for morning coffee and dinner at home. There was an old plastic table here so we bought a new basic glass table. The chairs were already here. 

That's the end of the tour! We are looking for renters. If you or someone you know is looking for a place to vacation this summer or fall, please call 1-800-944-5629 and request unit 706. There's a two-week minimum but prices are very affordable in the summer and fall!