Thursday, November 2, 2017

Before & After

Thanks to all of you who chimed in on the door decision in my last post. It's great to know so many of you have Larson doors and love them - I had never heard of the brand previously, until I started doing my homework on purchasing a new storm door, and I have to say I'm sold!

Before I show you the before and after on the doors, I want to show you the before and after on the fall foliage. Let me just say, what a difference a week makes!


Above is the the view from my deck a week ago....


And this is where we're at now! 


The firepit area a week ago....



And now. What a huge difference!  We had a ton of rain and high winds which just demolished any foliage that was left on the trees. 

My mountain view is back, but I sure do miss all that beautiful fall foliage!

The lack of color in the landscape makes me even more delighted that my doors have gone from this:


To this:


What a huge difference this color makes on the house! 

Thanks to everyone who gave an opinion about the color!  A lot of you loved the red door, as did I, but honestly I think I had to stay away from that color because that's the color I painted the doors in my marital home, the home that unfortunately I had to give up in the divorce. I think a new home that I own all by myself deserves a new color!


I truly loved the orange door, and when I first decided it was time to paint the doors, I was initially leaning towards that color. It really wowed me! 

It would have looked great from outside, without a doubt. The deciding factor was how it would look inside when the door was open, against all the other decor already in place. 

The answer was that it was going to clash terribly with the light fixture above the kitchen sink....which I love to bits. 

So the orange door was out. 


I'm happy with the way the gold color plays off the green walls and white trim. 

What a huge difference from the black that was there before. This color just adds so much sunshine to my days!

The hardest part about this whole painting project was taping off the glass in the kitchen door. Oh my gosh, I think I spent more time on that than actually painting the door!



The door to the garage, which I see from my kitchen window, has gone from this drab and poorly painted black....


...to this sunny and cheerful gold. 

I see I need to touch up the paint on the trim....oops, I didn't notice those chips when I had the painting supplies out! Drat!

I guess I was blinded by the sunshine beaming off the new gold door!


This used to drive me absolutely mad every day when I was entering the garage, leaving for work. Look at all the black paint all over the white trim. I don't know why the previous homeowners never finished the project, I guess life just got in the way. 


Not any longer! I want to find a nice weather resistant wreath for this door....it will add just the right finishing touch. 

I might even hang some lace curtains to hide some of the clutter in the garage. 

Hey....it's a garage, but it can still look cute!  


When I come home from work after a long day, this is the cheerful sight that greets me and welcomes me home now. 

I was trying to take this photo while holding open the ugly old broken screen door....I'm delighted to say the new storm door was officially ordered yesterday, so stay tuned on which one I selected! It will be here in about three weeks, just in time, before we get into the heart of winter. 


I never used to open this other door....I guess it's supposed to be the 'front' door but we always use the kitchen door, as do our guests. We use this door in the summer occasionally, going in and out to the firepit area. 


Now I open it all the time when I'm home! I'm just so thrilled with the transformation!


I'm so glad I went with my gut instinct and chose the gold. The second I saw that color my heart went pitter-patter. 

My blogging friend Lisa over at Life Away From The Office Chair summed up my feelings for this color perfectly when she said she liked the gold because it was 'cozy and country cottage-ish.'

That's exactly how I want my home to be. 

Cozy and country cottage-ish. 

66 comments:

  1. Wow mom I didn't realize how crazy the change was from a week, that's insane! Love these pics.... xoxoxo

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    1. Crazy, right? We went from glorious fall to grey November in what seems like 24 hours!

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  2. I was one of the red door admirers, however... I do love how this color pops! Looks great. today I went out for a walk with the dogs in a t shirt!! Crazy weather around here. Too warm for November.

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    1. It's crazy warm and sticky here today, too, Karen - but tonight it's dipping into the 20's again, so weird!!

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  3. It looks great and I love the new color.

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  4. The door looks fantastic! Love the gold. I always find spots to touch up AFTER everything is cleaned up too. The leaves looked so pretty but i know you will enjoy that mountain view. :)

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    1. I do love having my mountain view back again, Courtney, but I also lose a tiny bit of my privacy since my house can be seen from the road now....if you know where to look!! :)

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  5. Oh I love it. It looks amazing. Perfect color.

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    1. Thanks, Marty, I'm really happy I stepped out of my comfort zone on this one!

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  6. OH! It is so pretty...welcoming...and just perfect! Good choice!

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  7. Love the gold! What a difference a week made!

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    1. Crazy difference!! At least we don't have snow on the ground yet....but I'm sure it's not far away now!

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  8. I think you chose the perfect color, as it looks fantastic! I got out this morning and took foliage photos. Leaves are mostly still on the trees here.

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  9. Love it! It's the perfect color. What a difference it made on your home! :-)

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    1. Huge difference, Melanie, and when the new door comes I'll be sooooo happy to have what feels like a real welcoming entry!

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  10. You did well to choose the gold. I love it. I'll bet the lace and wreath on the garage door are a welcoming sight at the end of the day. GOOD JOB.

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    1. They will be, for sure. I haven't found the right wreath yet, since it will be very exposed to the elements. The other wreath in the photos is actually the kitchen door, which has a large overhang so doesn't get hit with as much rain and snow as the garage does. I'll keep looking until I find just the right thing!!

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  11. Debbie, your doors look AMAZING! I love the color, and it really does brighten things up. It looks classy too. And the wreath on the garage door is really a nice touch.

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    1. Classy, country, cottage-ish, cozy....all good words, I love it, thanks Heidi!!

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  12. The gold color pops against your cedar shake siding and creates a nice warm welcome. Very pretty!

    We still have a few leaves on our trees, but we've already got 6 inches of snow on the ground. It's way too early to say goodbye to autumn! I hope you enjoy a little more warm weather before winter sets in, Debbie.

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    1. We have warm temps today, Vickie, but that's about to change. There's snow in the forecast here, too, but not sure it's going to amount to much just yet.

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  13. your door is gorgeous! yay! and isnt it crazy how quickly the landscape changes after storms. its like that here too! :(

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    1. Yeah, Ellen, the heavy rains and high winds just wiped out all the leaves....and left a TON of sticks on the ground that I need to gather up, also!!!

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  14. Replies
    1. Thanks, Daisy - nice to hear from you, hope all is well in your world!!

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  15. I love the gold, it looks so cheery! You did a great job painting.

    What a difference in how your trees look in such a short period of time. It now looks like winter is coming.

    Happy Autumn and have a great weekend ~ FlowerLady

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    1. Thanks, Lorraine! I really HATE to paint but I do try to do a good job when I finally get around to it!! :)

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  16. We've had awful wind here too, taking a lot of our leaves down as well, but not quite as much as you! Love the gold door!!

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    1. Thanks, Carole! I'm sure you have a lot more foliage left than we do!

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  17. Debbie, All your beautiful foliage ..gone. It sure was pretty before the high winds and rains. I love the new door color, love it. My daughter Angie has been looking for a yellow color for her doors, I'll show her yours. Blessings to all of you, xoxo, Susie

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    1. Hi Susie! There are some great yellow shades out there, I'm sure Angie will find just the right one!

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  18. I LOVE the gold, it is perfect! Happy and like a ray of sunshine:)

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    1. Thanks so much, Pinky - that's exactly how I feel when I look at it!! It will brighten things up for the dreary months until it's spring again...and then it will look amazing with the red geraniums!! :)

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  19. Yay for yellow doors! It just makes the house smile, which is very necessary in the winter months with no greenery or colorful fall leaves on the trees. Love it!

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    1. I love that expression - it makes the house smile! That's awesome!!!

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  20. Oh I love, love the color on the door!! It's so fun and welcoming. :)

    I'm just jealous that you got to see colorful trees at all. We don't get that but on the other hand, I can wear flipflops almost year round.

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    1. I think I'd miss my boots and cozy sweaters, Stacey! I've always live in NY so I can't imagine a place without the change of seasons!

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  21. It makes me a bit sad to see the all the leaves gone, but what makes me happy is your newly painted doors! Gosh, so pretty, and so is that wreath on the garage door! Enjoy your weekend, and stay cozy!

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    1. It's still lovely here, even with all the leaves gone, Rita - but yes, it's the start of a long, long winter season! It will be a long time until the leaves are back on the trees and I get my complete privacy back!

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  22. Your doors look so cheery now. I think you made the right choice! Nancy

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    1. Thanks so much, Nancy!! They make me smile so much now and brighten up my day!

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    1. Awww, thanks Laurie!! I don't know about perfect, but definitely a huge improvement!:)

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    1. Huge difference, AnnMarie! I cannot wait until the new storm door arrives - hopefully in another week or so! Figures the weather turned super cold now....it would have been nice if it waited until I had the new door installed!

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  25. while I read your previous post showing so many options I did not comment since they all looked so nice :) Glad to see that you chose the one that was right for you :)

    What a difference in the foliage there. HERE a few trees have turned, many not-as-yet / a very late fall / climate change

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    1. It's amazing when I drive down to the valley where my parents live, Deb - what a huge difference! It's still full on fall down there, just gorgeous - and it's only 20 minutes away!

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  26. It's so bright and cherry, just like you my friend!

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  27. Ah ha...the gold is beautiful! Funny how, while painting, one thing leads to another. When I was touching up our old home before we sold, I started just with the door and window molding. But, then, the great room and kitchen walls looked dingy, so I painted them. But since they flowed into the formal dining / living room, those walls needed to be painted also! Soon...all the walls in my home had been repainted. But, alas, the ceilings looked horrible. You can guess what I painted next. ;) My shoulder got so sore from all that painting that I actually had to go to the doctor to get a cortisone shot! Anyway, I must say, you did a beautiful job painting the door! And your trees - holy cow, what a difference! Our trees have been slowly changing color, but we don't get as much of a vibrant color in our trees as you do. Have a great weekend!

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    1. So true, Vickie - one thing most definitely leads to another! Now I need to paint the insides of the doors and the edges....and replace the trim on the kitchen door....and install the new storm door when it gets here....and who knows what after that!!

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  28. Replies
    1. Your comment on the previous post inspired my final decision, Lisa - thanks so much!

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  29. The color is perfect! I love that wreath, too! Also, I have to tell you we just finished dinner. What was it? It was pasta and sauce made with your baked tomato sauce recipe!! It was super easy and unbelievably delicious. Just as you said it would be. Thank you so much!! xo

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    1. Oh my gosh, Kim, I'm so glad you loved it!!!! :) Easy peasy, just like I promised!

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  30. Love the new door color, it's perfect! you chose well! Wow, I can't believe how all your trees are bare and it seemed to happen so quickly! Just makes your pretty home seem all the more safe, warm and cozy!

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    1. I completely agree! The gold makes the house look extra cozy now!

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  31. Hi Mountain Sister! You are so far ahead of us. We were at peak this weekend, which is about 2 weeks later than usual. We had a lot more color than I expected. I love the door color!!! Looks great!

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    1. We had our first snow yesterday, Mountain Sister! Winter is just around the corner without a doubt - time to get those studded tires on my car!

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  32. O depois ficou mais colorido e alegre. Adorei as coroas que colocou nas portas são lindíssimas. Feliz semana.Abraço.

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  33. Deb, I've been meaning to comment on the color of your door. I'm loving it a lot! It has a wow factor and looks awesome with your house. I totally get about the color going with the interior. We had that issue with our previous house. At one time, I had thought a purple or turquoise but neither would have looked good if we had the door opened. Good choice, my friend!

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    1. That's another reason I stayed away from the red, Carol - I have so much red inside the kitchen including that bold bread box and I just think it would have been too much! Plus the gold just made me HAPPY!!! :)

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