the before

we moved into our new house in june 2010. it was a short sale we'd had an eye on for months while we rented in the neighborhood. the house was almost new on the inside and had only been lived in for about a year + a half after a developer had come in + worked her magic. finally, the price was right. we survived the short sale process + moved in about 4 months after making the initial offer. what sold us:

• the amount of space. almost 2,000 square feet in a 3 bed, 2 bath bungalow
• the craftsmanship. even though the original house probably had zero character, the developer did an amazing job adding character--and making it seem original. we have stained glass transoms [three, actually], craftsman details in the mouldings throughout, beautiful beveled glass doors, + hardwood floors in great condition.
• the master suite. the home was originally a 60's ranch until said developer came in, blew the top off of it, and built an amazingly huge master suite upstairs. clawfoot tub, dual shower, double vanity, MASSIVE walk-in closet, and a bedroom that's freakishly huge. hence, part of our current design struggle.
• the open floor plan. the living and kitchen are divided by a wall and joined by a dining nook. the kitchen was top-notch

some of the problem areas, errrr...opportunities for improvement:

• gutters. the drainage issue sucks + the crawl space floods.
• baby blue ceilings. yep, all of the rooms had baby blue ceilings. i suppose it went well with the previous owners baby blue suede sofa set.
• landscaping. we need a fence + some interest in the back yard. once spring arrives, we hope to tackle this monkey.

here's a quick tour:

living room from entry

living room from stairway

kitchen into living

dining into kitchen

master bath

master bedroom looking at closet

master bedroom looking toward bath

master closet

backyard (not our shed)