Last week I finally introduced you to our ‘Pied-à-terre’. Our House in the City. She would be a Plastic Surgeon’s dream (Just in house form). She has great bones and is well-kept. She just needed a serious refresh. As I write this, most of her walls have already been torn down and she now gleams with brand new sheetrock and a layout that suits her much better.
And just as a Plastic Surgeon would do, we took tons of before photos. But because our life as home renovators allows us to have a bit more fun with our ‘patients’ than actual surgeons are probably allowed (HIPPA hasn’t reached the construction business yet), we also threw a party to show her off! Before and After photos are so important, but getting to celebrate your work and let your friends and family actually see the process is so fun for us.
Since the ‘pied-à-terre’ (home in the city) has a pool, we knew how we needed to kick off the renovation:
Pool Party!
Seriously though, if you are doing updates or renovations to a home, I want to encourage you to throw a little shindig for friends and family. As I’ve mentioned, ‘before’ photos just don’t do a project justice (although I’m going to flood you with plenty of ‘before’ pics anyway. See a few here). It’s more fun to let people into the space. Here is how we kept it simple and stress-free (because the party shouldn’t stress you out. Home Renovation that gets to take the ‘stress’ glory)!
Impromptu ‘BEFORE’ Pool Party came timeline:
Thursday morning: Having just returned home from Thailand, we rushed to get papers signed on this home and line up our crew. We realized demo wouldn’t start until the following Monday – we literally looked at each other this morning and both had the same idea. “Let’s throw a party on Saturday“. It was 110º daily so we coined it the ‘Dog Days of Demo Preview Party‘. I quickly created an online invitation. I typically use Paperless Post, but this time I tried MINTED’s online invitations.
Friday mid-day (more importantly still nearing 110 freaking degrees outside): We decided it was seriously too hot to cook and way to hot to offer a cook-out. Heck, the heat made it barely possible to breathe. With Heath devoting his time to his renovating spreadsheets and my brainstorming the details that truly make for a good party, we decided we didn’t have time to home cook for this little shindig. We would need to ‘cater’ the dinner. We fell back on an old favorite that is always a hit. First, let me give you a quick back story – Prior to meeting Heath, I had been ordering fried chicken from a hamburger joint. He has blessed my life tremendously by introducing me to the best fried chicken on God’s green earth. Even if you aren’t a fan of that type of food, this joint has a recipe that will leave your mouth watering. And preggo mammas…just get ready to give them all your money….
Saturday afternoon: We call CHICKEN EXPRESS. Oh ya baby! Locals know this joint as Chicken E and their corn nuggets are the crown jewel to the combo of fried chicken and mac ‘n cheese. We also stocked up on various frozen desserts. As I type this and salivate, I may never allow Heath to cater with boring Ahi Tuna and those silly charcuterie boards again. (I jest. My mouth is salivating again). Regardless, fried food is always a win. And are you like me? Do you somehow put on a bikini and all of a sudden crave fried, buttery foods? What is up with that?
Saturday 4:30pm: With 30 minutes before the party started we quickly set up. We didn’t have to do the silly pre-party cleaning. Nope. Didn’t need bother dusting a darn thing. No need….who was going to judge? The only thing we did to truly prepare the home was use spray paint to outline as many of the changes as we could. We wanted to give a good visual to anyone really interested in which walls would move, where the coveted kitchen island would go and how large the master bath would be.
PARTY TIME: The adults had a great time walking the space and we loved describing the future of this home. The kids were allowed to paint, glue and color ANYWHERE they wanted (Although Tide stain remover for their clothing would have been a nice parting gift. Next time!). We had fully functioning bathrooms so the drinks could flow easily and no one even had to dry off from swimming to relieve themselves. I accidentally put the ice cream in the refrigerator instead of the freezer, but not one single parent stressed about their kids spilling the soupy dessert. It was just good ‘ole laid back summertime fun!
Saturday 9pm: Clean up lasted all of THREE minutes. The Demo crew would be there to enhance the party mess on Monday so no need to even sweep up crumbs. We did throw the remains of the food and plates in the trash (because we aren’t total savages).
While this party really had nothing to do with the actual renovation, it was so fun to share our project with others. Our desire was that we would complete the full renovation project in enough time to throw a reveal pool party as well. Unfortunately, the cold rain is now pouring down in Texas so pool season is over and I regret my complaints about the heat (it wasn’t that miserable, was it?). But this home boasts an amazing backyard, so maybe an evening of s’mores and decor is in our near future! We can’t wait to show you the final product!
If you remodel, what are ways you make the process feel special? If you don’t personally like to renovate, what makes seeing others progress so exciting?
