Well, the girls have been having storage issues in their room. As teenagers sharing a room, it was easy for them to get a little out of control. The cheap piece of carpet remenent that I had gotten 2 and half years ago when we moved in the Moby was just not holding up well to teens, pets and all that. Imagine that. A $10 piece of carpet not lasting long! (haha)

So we plotted and planned and discussed our remodel. I knew that they needed real flooring and better storage. They also needed to be brutal and clean up and clear out the stuff they weren’t using or didn’t really need day to day. We have a lovely storage unit and visit it often, I was sure that some of their clutter and treasure could find a home there. And I knew for SURE that some of the stuff could join the Army… the Salvation Army that is. But I learned well from my childhood that it was up to THEM to make those decisions. After several emotional situations where my Mom made those decisions for me when I was not home and I came home to a perfectly tidy room and all my treasures gone and in the trash, I vowed NEVER to do that to my daughters. Their room is their room. I have rules for the common area of our home but when it comes to their space, I stay out. I might make recommendations, but I never take action in there without their consent. It’s different when they were 3 or 4, but they are nearly adults and that’s not right.

Jessy’s desk was just not suiting her. Just a little too small. And so as a result, it was being used more as a stuff depository. And just a mess. And they were loading a little tooooo much on their beautiful big closet shelve system that Tim made for them.

Maggie had her own little corner that was just filling up with all her boxes and treasures and such. Just basically out of control.

So the first step was to pretty much take EVERYTHING out of the room. I was so pleased, they each filled up a huge garbage bag of trash and another of old clothes and toys, etc, for the thrift store. And they managed to make a huge box of seasonal things to take to the storage unit. That REALLY helped a lot.

I let them take as long as they needed to shift through things and make considerations. It was a fun day and a half, really, we ordered a pizza and we just basically went through everything. They staged their collections in the living room and made piles so that we could see WHAT sorts of collections they had. This was really important as I had planned to get them a few Ikea boxes for storage and we needed a good idea of WHAT we were going to be storing.

Jessy has a lot of writing and journals from her younger days and they were scattered all through the room. It was going to be one neat thing to get them all gathered and accessible for her to enjoy and read through. She’s an excellent writer and I would love for her to have some time to peruse that and enjoy the process a bit easier.

Maggie is my Lego fan for sure. She has several beautiful large kits that she’s put together as well as a train and tracks and MANY boxes of individual bricks and such. Problem was, they were all over the place and just sort of in the way and getting bumped and busted. I knew that we were going to get a big display shelf for the room and we knew that her beauties would get center stage!

Yes, the stripes in their room are a little crazy and circusy, but they love them and I think that’s fine. Eventually, they might outgrow them, but for now, it’s fine with me. I was so pleased, however, when they decided on the really nice dark hardwood floor style vinyl, like we have in the living room/kitchen area. Out there is a lighter color wood, but this darker style is new and I really like the look. It’s beautiful. It’s a no glue fiberglass type, that will mold and flex with uneven or non-perfect floors! Perfect! And it’s cushioned, so it will lay nice underfoot. Was’t exactly cheap, almost $160 for the room, but it’s beautiful and I expect it to last a good long time.

I was very proud of my girls. They did most of the work with just a little mom supervision. Two years ago, they had NO idea on how to do hardly anything in the area of home remodeling, now? They are pros. They swept out the room like crazy, and even got a paint scraper to take down any rough spots on the old floor. They measured twice, and got their plans ready. Once we get the material, they toted it in and they went to work with the cutting and trimming. Even had one area to splice and they did a beautiful job! What pros!

Their room is pretty large, 13 foot by 14 foot and since the material only comes 12 foot wide, they spliced a piece in the back where they knew the shelf would sit on. And it would be very light traffic. This material is wonderfully easy to work with and just a strip of duct tape on the back seals it perfectly. I can’t wait to do my room next!!! I love the stuff.

Once the flooring was down, they brought back their beds for the night and we would head off to Ikea in the morning for the new shelf and for some storage help!

And yes, if you are wondering… three years ago we made each of the girls bed frames out of shipping boxes! We glued all the boxes together with simple white glue and then ran a strip of duct tape around the perimeter. And then we covered the boxes with a nice fabric. EASY! They have lasted so far without a single dent or crushed area and trust me, they are not easy on their beds. Teens have a way of breaking anything! But not these beds. It’s the tight structure of the cardboard in so many cells that makes for a very strong building base. We talked about building real bed platforms and all, with storage underneath, but they love these beds. We’ll probably consider it at some point, but for now… shipping box bed frames work for us!

We so love our big shelves out in the living room that the girls wanted one for their room. And I must say, it’s beautiful in there. They got 8 storage boxes for the bottoms of the shelves and all their collections go in there, each labeled and separate. And the rest of the shelves are for special treasures and books, Lego models and a few favorite old stuffed animals.

Their Dad came and helped them take some old dated wall lamps and converted them into plugs for all their electronics. Now they have charging stations for their Ipods and phones and computers.

Their other shelf unit has been unburdened and looks SO MUCH nicer now. We also got a nice throw rug for the middle of the room, fun and teenagery! It warms up the floor a bit and is much easier to clean and take care of. They absolutely love their new room!

It’s certainly colorful and fun, but hey, that’s what teenagers love. They are searching out their identity and mark on the world and why not have a little fun with their space. The transformation is amazing and I just love walking back there to visit and just am amazed at how the flooring really just makes ALL the difference!

We replaced their curtain with thermal panels and that has REALLY made a difference in the air flow and coolness in their room. And they cut the sunlight in the morning, which is important to vampire teenagers that can sleep till 2 pm if allowed! (haha) The Ikea boxes work splendidly! Not very expensive at all, but fit the shelf cube space perfect and give them a PLACE FOR EVERYTHING…. which is really the key to organization. I know I’d like a few more for my shelves, as they make it look a little cleaner and sleeker. Not so much eye candy going around with all the colors and textures and such. Some is good, but too much can get a little distracting. Just saying.

We did a good job on the budget, spending under $400 for the whole redo. $160 was the flooring and $130 was the shelf, those were our big ticket items. The rest was for the boxes, plugs and the rug. I think it turned out very nice and the best part is that they LOVE IT. Jessy told me that it was the way she had always dreamed her room would look! Maggie was reluctant at first but now adores the space and spends a great deal of time in there now. (Maggie is not happy with change, but she needs it now and then to keep her from being tooooo set in her ways! And the best part is that she’s learning that change can be really nice… great experience for her!)

Now that we’ve been in the Moby for 2 and half years (is it really that long!!!???) we don’t have as many big remodels planned. One of these days I’m going to have the cash to tear out the whole kitchen and do it up a lot nicer and more efficient for us, but that’s going to have to wait a bit. Of course, we’ll do a lot of it ourselves and with the help of Tim but still, gotta save up a bit for the cabinets and counters etc. However, I am going to be watching Craig’s List and keeping an eye out for what would do the job nicely and at half the price for sure!

That wraps up the big remodel… can’t wait to do my room flooring!!! Probably after the new year and all the holiday stuff calms down!!! We’re so crazy busy right now!!!