Two Steps To Shiny Stainless Steel...

After a bit of experimenting, I finally came up with a "fairly" quick way to get stainless steel appliances clean and shiny... Sprayway is my drug of choice (haha, my sis-in-law calls this stuff "crack", seriously you have got to try it, even if you don't have stainless steel appliances, the window cleaner by itself is insane... you will have perfectly clean/streak-free windows after just one use of this fabulous foaming cleaner!!! But I digress... back to stainless steel cleaning, you will need both Sprayway Glass Cleaner and Stainless Steel Polish and two cotton cloths (keep the polish cloth with your polish, it does not need to be washed after each use and will keep oily for small touch-ups.) First you must clean the surface with the Glass Cleaner... it cuts through all the grime/gunk/oils that just rinsing with water doesn't do, and using soap with water leaves too much film behind. Once you have completed the cleaning process you will see many streaks and uneven tones in the steel, this is where the polishing comes in. Now you will use the Stainless Steel polish (I refuse to call it "cleaner... and polish" like the can says... because it DOES NOT CLEAN!) To get the best finish, try to rub the polish in "with the grain" of your appliance (a tip from my other sis-in-law) .

Seriously, if you have had trouble getting your SS to look like new, this works!!! Just try it in an inconspicuous spot first (I wouldn't want to be responsible for ruining someone else's stuff!!!)

btw... I am pretty sure that I have cleaned the exterior of this new fridge more in the past 3 weeks than I cleaned my previous fridge in it's entire existence!!! (and we bought that one when we purchased our first home 9 yrs ago!)

A Couple of My Favorite Details

Love these sconces! I put them in the hallways and in the master bath, where they flank the sides of the vanity mirror.

I found this door hardware on line, and the pricing along with the quality is amazing... Handlesets.com if anyone is looking to replace their current knobs.

A Quick Peek...

We have officially moved in, but life is still in "transition" mode. I have been very (VERY) non committal... furniture placement continues to change and I haven't even hung one thing on the walls yet! But even with all of the continued chaos and confusion we have settled into daily life here, and I can honestly say that it already feels like home... HOME SWEET HOME!

The Living Room... a favorite hang out for the cats, I suppose with the sisal rug and sofa table along the window, they probably think we made it just for them. (Just a little warning for you Dad ; )

The Dining Room... I really need to find something great to hang on that wall...

The Kitchen... already initiated with the the sights and smells of my fabulous culinary... ummm, "performances"... this is my favorite part of the entire house... Best Feature (by a landside) is the hood! It is ultra powerful! Pulling the smoke and stink out of a room in 3 seconds flat... trust me... I have REALLY tested it!

More pics soon, I am just trying to catch up with my own spinning head right now :)

This Is... Chaos!!!

Seriously... someone help! It's like an episode of "Hoarders" over here... This is no way to live! We are supposed to move next weekend and in the meantime... Life is CRAZY!!!

I guess I need to get my butt out of this chair, quit blogging and do some gosh darn LAUNDRY!

Trimming it Up

I have always thought that trim is an incredibly over-looked detail here in AZ. Most homes here have very little trim (usually nothing around the windows, and very rarely do you ever see crown molding.) I love old historic homes (like the Victorians that line Mt. Vernon St. up in Prescott) and the way that the little details are celebrated in the simplest way... making the biggest difference.

We knew that we would do something more dramatic than the standard 3" baseboard you see in most new construction. When we found this fabulous 5.5" stuff we flipped... it was simple (not to fancy, as our house is certainly not fancy) not too big (our ceilings are not soaring volume ceilings, so I didn't think that 10" baseboards that ran halfway up the wall would look too good!) and not too small (yep, I am just like Goldy Locks, I want it "just right" ;) And then we came across these corner blocks... OhMyGoodness... I am in love!!! They are the coolest, little, simple detail... and maybe no one will ever notice them... but I will... and I LOVE IT!

Making Progress in the Master Bath

Just finishing up on all of the tile work... Tons and tons of tile work... Getting ready to order the shower door, I am thinking a frame-less, clear glass door will work best here. Once all of the grouting is finished we will get the toilet and vanity installed.

I laid in the tub (for a little test of it's size and comfort) and ended up taking a 20 minute siesta!!! It is so soothing and relaxing in our new bathroom, that I fell asleep in the midst of all of this chaos and construction!!! Now that says something... either this is the perfect bath or I am exhausted!

The toiletry ledge.

Entry where the swinging glass door will be. For a reminder of what the Master Bath looked like before click here.

http://koningfamilyaz.blogspot.com/2010/03/shedding-some-light-on-black-hole.html

Hall Bath Make-Over Almost Complete

The layout stayed the same, but some cosmetic changes were needed (The cheery art deco style has its charm, and trust me if I were in my early 20's I would probably have kept it as is, but this is supposed to be my "grown-up" house... so the black and white checker boards gotta go.) We just need to hang the mirrors over the vanities and trim out the lone window on the end of the wall and this baby is done!

(hmmmm... maybe I should have kept that toilet... pretty cool)