Not too long ago I found a stack of ‘before’ pictures of our cottage.
These were the pictures that we took before we even purchased
Oak Cottage….when others were still renting it.
Before pictures are wonderful to have….
especially when you feel like you aren’t accomplishing a lot.
You can go back and look at them and see
the drastic changes.
So, I thought that I would share 1-2 rooms each week….
the BEFORE pictures that were taken 16 1/2 years ago,
and then the current pictures of what the room looks like now.
It’s been fun for us to do this! Last night our
children were looking at them…..they had never seen our cottage before
we transformed it….they couldn’t believe it. ha!ha!
We live in an authentic Louisiana Acadian Cottage…and each week
I will try to share a bit of what that means.
Acadians {early French settlers} were exiled from what is now
the Canadian Maritime provinces during the French and Indian War.
They settled in Louisiana….considered a mostly French territory
even though it was owned by Spain.
Acadiana is the area of southwest Louisiana with rolling hills
and bayous. This group of people became
known as Cajun French.
Acadian cottages have very high foundations due to
the fact that they were built along bayous
and sometimes swamps.
{This was a huge blessing to us during Hurricane Floyd when our whole town flooded and many homes were lost and severely damaged…..even in our neighborhood. BUT, ours was completely fine because of the high, brick Acadian foundation.}
OK….that was my little history lesson for today.
Here’s our bathroom.
The original owner and builder of our cottage is a very successful author.
He and his wife added lots of neat character to this great place.
{But we wanted to add a bit more……;)}
The bathroom walls are covered in reclaimed barn wood and the cabinets are solid pine.
Here’s the BEFORE:
We loved the character of the wood….but it was just too dark for us.
We painted the walls….you can still see the barn wood character, though.
We also painted the countertops…you can read the tutorial on that here.
We LOVE the sink….it was there when we bought the cottage.
It is an antique sink from the early 1890′s/1900′s.
Here’s the after:
I don’t have an after picture of the other side of the room because…well….om….
a few weeks ago we needed new towels. And I decided to get these
wonderful, gorgeous white ones. And, well, it has caused me to start
re-doing the bathroom. Towels can do that, you know!
Be careful.
So the other side of the room doesn’t really go with the side I showed you.
Ha!
Here’s our vision for how we’d like to redo this bathroom….
Lots of white, this old ladder….
Cement countertops, oil rubbed bronze…
I think it will be awesome.
Yep, getting new towels is very dangerous.
Consider yourself warned!
Enjoy your day~
Sharing the warnings with: Skip to My Lou, Tip Junkie, Today’s Creative Blog, Not JUST a Housewife, Blue Cricket Design, The Shabby Creek Cottage, Whipperberry, The Idea Room, Between Naps on the Porch, French Country Cottage, The Lettered Cottage, Thrifty Decor Chick, Funky Junk Interiors, At the Picket Fence, My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Common Ground, DIY Showoff, Home Stories A to Z, a.k.a. Design, Someday Crafts, Organize and Decorate Everything, 2805, Making the World Cuter, The Girl Creative, Craftomaniac, Carolyns Homework, Fingerprints on the Fridge, Tatertots & Jello, Serenity Now, No Minimalist Here, Savvy Southern Style, Coastal Charm, My Romantic Home, Redoux, Just A Girl, 504 Main, 733 Blog, We Are That Family, Creating Really Awesome Free Things, The Charm of Home, Delightsome Life
What a transformation!! Love the rug! I hear you on the towels. One thing snowballs into a whole lotta things! Can’t wait to see the other side
Kelly
Isn’t that the truth!
Gorgeous transformation. I love all the white.
Thanks, Danielle…can’t wait to put in all the new ideas!
I love a good before and after, your before kind of reminds me of a much nicer version of the renovation I linked up.The floor tile is beautiful. Words can’t describe the feeling of a newly renovated room.
I’d love for you to check it out.
Thanks, Cristy!
Wow! What a transormation! Sooooo pretty now!
Jill
http://www.jillifyit.com
Thanks, Jill!
Amazing transformation! You did a great job.
Carolyn
{my simple messterpiece}
Thanks, Carolyn!
Gorgeous transformation and I LOVE the rug! Thanks for sharing. I am a new linky follower! Hope you will return the visit. Have a great day~Angie
So glad to have you, Angie!
Stopping over to say hi from MyUncommonSliceofSuburbia. Contemplating making some musical eggs right now but have to check the modge podge supply.
~Bliss~
I hope the supply is ample!
Your bathroom looks great! I’m visiting from FJI, SNS, I’ll be checking back for more bathroom updates, I’m now follower
So glad to have you!
Wonderful transformation and I look forward to seeing the rest of your pretty bath. Thanks for linking to the Open House party. xo, Sherry
Thanks, Sherry!
What a great makeover! Thank you for joining Home Sweet Home!
Sherry
Love the transformation – the rug is wonderful! I agree on the towels. I love white towels, but changing one thing leads to another and so forth. Such fun though! Thank you for sharing with Home and Garden Thursday,
Kathy