AN EMPTY SLATE
Where to start
I started with the layout! It is very helpful to grab a piece of paper and start mapping out your thoughts. I started by drawing the cabin from a bird’s eye view! By doing so, this helped me grasp how much room I was going to have to play with. You can be very precise in taking measurements of your space and then using standard measurements of appliances to make sure they will fit. I do recommend picking your appliances, accent pieces, and furnishings before getting too far into the project. This will make it easier for electricians to know exactly where to feed wires or place outlets. The more prepared you are, the faster the project will go.
BRINGING IDEAS TO LIFE WITH A SKETCH
I am a very visual person. Rather than trusting the idea in my head and executing it, I like to take the extra step of putting it on paper and see if it translates. The sketches help me solidify my decisions and allow me to get a better picture of what it will look like. Below is a sketch I drew to help us visualize the space. It doesn’t have to be perfect; you get the idea!
As you can see plans had changed a bit during the process but for the most part we stayed true to the sketch!
Deciding On COLOR Story and style
We wanted to make each cabin unique from each other, so we knew we wanted the colors to be different in each one. After a lot of deliberating, we landed on a Blue Cabin, a Cream cabin, and a Brown cabin. A fun color story we chose to follow was making the bathroom walls of each cabin the same color of their kitchen’s cabinetry. Along with that we chose the same light blue tile for all of the showers. This helped to tie everything together and made it a fun little moment. The pictures below show the color stories and how they all meshed together.
Picking CABINETS
Okay. We chose the layout and picked out appliances, now it was time to tackle cabinetry. That was not as easy as we thought it would be, as we already had a deadline to meet. The cabinets were months out, due to covid. After searching every kitchen and bath store and getting the same answer, we settled for unfinished cabinets right off of the Home Depot self and decided to have them painted. Shout out to Dave Miller at Diamond Collision (our local Auto Body Shop) for painting our cabinets the exact colors we asked of him! He totally saved our lives, and I’m still so thankful for it!
Above is a picture of the painted cabinets all set and waiting for their granite countertops.
Picking Fixtures
Next were fixtures, and a lot of them! We were in need of light fixtures, faucets, cabinet hardware, shower heads and the list goes on. This was the fun part! Every decision made was getting us closer and closer to the finish line. I used Pinterest pins big time during this time, and many Instagram posts. I love finding inspiration in pins, not to copy them exactly, but to give me some guidance and a push in the right direction. Being able to see what I liked made me super excited to go out and find different things inspired by that style.
Furnishings
This is where things started to get hairy. The clock was ticking, and we needed to figure out how we wanted our bedroom layout to be. Did we want to do bunk beds? How do we accommodate four people in such a little space? How could we make it aesthetically pleasing but comfortable as well? We decided on trundle beds! I am so glad we did! They are beds with a couch feel, and a twin mattress pulls out from underneath. Once we tackled that problem, it was countless trips to Target for bedding, small appliances, little decor, and toiletries. When I say countless, I mean countless. Who is going to complain about going to Target? I never thought I’d say this, but I actually did, a little.
ENJOYING THE Completed project
We had finally finished the cabins at 3 am the night before guest arrived to stay! We were so excited that we had made our deadline, and we were so proud of the outcome. Even though it was 3 in the morning, we didn’t want to leave. We wanted to sit and enjoy the space and take it all in. It felt like a different place. It WAS an oasis, and that is exactly why we enjoy doing what we do. That feeling is the best. Not only being proud of yourself for what you accomplished but the feeling of comfort and joy a space can give you. Don’t ever feel guilty for spending the time, money and effort into making your space a place you never want to leave. That cozy feeling is one you’ll be chasing forever. Go catch it!
