We moved in March 1, 2019 so we’ve officially hit two years (and then some) in our new home. Here’s my new house checklist from February 2019 and what progress has been made to date. For a recap of what we’ll be up to this year, see my 2021 House Projects and Goals post.
February 2019 New House Checklist Recap
We had an extensive list of things we knew we wanted to accomplish, ideally in the first year, before we even closed on the house. Ambitious, I know, but I don’t like living in an unfinished space! Below is what we had on the list and by which blog post update it was done by (2 months, 7 months, 2 years/now, or if it was removed).
- Living Room Couches and End Tables (2 months)
- Laundry Room Shelving and Storage (2 months)
- Kitchen Table and Chairs (2 months)
- Deadbolt for Basement and Bedroom Doors (2 months)
- New Office Chair (7 months, also got a permanent office desk)
- Mudroom Bench and Storage (7 months)
- Rest of Living Room Decor (2 months)
- Lay Patio (7 months)
- Put up a Fence (7 months)
- Purchase Patio Furniture (2 years)
- Build Bonfire Pit (15 months)
- Plant Privacy Landscaping in Backyard (2 years)
- Buy Lawnmower and Gardening Equipment (7 months)
- Vanity for Master Bedroom (Removed, update below)
- Fitness Equipment Storage for Loft (2 months)
- Identify garden area (2 years, kind of)
- Entry Hallway Frame Gallery (7 months)
- Garage Tool Bench (little over 7 months)
Projects Completed Since the Last New House Checklist Update
The list above is a lot to look at, so let’s break down the projects completed by this 2-year mark below.
Purchase Patio Furniture
We bought the best lounge chairs on mega clearance from Home Depot late fall 2019. These were originally $450 for the set and we scored them 50% off! Late fall is truly the best time to patio furniture shop. We tried to find a dining set we loved while items were on mega sale but there was nothing we truly loved.
I found these similar white cushion patio lounge chairs and matching dining chairs that are almost identical! If you’re curious about any other patio furniture, I go further into detail in my backyard transformation post.
Shortly into spring 2020, we found our full patio dining set! The pieces were all sold separately, and it’s all linked on this backyard transformation post. We love the table but you can see there’s some spots on it already. Even though we covered it through the winter it somehow had scuffs and chips on it when we uncovered it. That’s still an unsolved mystery, but we do still recommend our black and white striped solar light up umbrella! It’s 9′ wide and the lights are solar powered so no pesky cords.
Build a Bonfire Pit
We knew before moving in that an in ground dire pit would be on our new house checklist, especially with how much outdoor space we have. It wasn’t urgent since we had a temporary above ground pit in the meantime, so we tackled the fire pit project once we had more landscaping in. We ended up installing a 6′ path off our main patio to a 14′ x 14′ fire pit patio.
This area is identical to our main patio but smaller and with a pit in the middle. We’re obsessed! The price was right and it made sense for us to do it this way. Read about the entire DIY fire pit project in this link.
Plant Privacy Landscaping in Backyard
Planting landscaping was on the first year new house checklist but got pushed until May 2020. Simple answer why is that it got de-prioritized. We wanted a fence, a patio and a few indoor upgrades before winter 2019 so we decided to put a pin in large landscaping purchases until spring 2020. This way everything would have a full season to grow and thrive after being planted. This included all of the DIY landscaping I planted around the patio. Last year I shared our DIY patio edging, mulch and landscaping and these were part of that effort.
As far as what we wanted to plant, we weren’t looking to barricade off our neighbors, we are very lucky to have awesome neighbors on every side, so we went with some small arborvitae. The tags said they’d get to be 6′ tall by 4′ wide but we plan on trimming them to be fence level once they’re mature. Just a little landscaping to add some character and a touch of privacy to the space.
Vanity for Master Bedroom
Slight change of plans here. I ended up putting a vanity in my craft room/blog office (not on the blog yet, see it here on my Instagram). So really, it wasn’t removed, just reimagined. I’ll eventually do a full post of my vanity on the blog including my blush pink cosmetic fridge, so stay tuned!
Identify a Garden Area
Last year we bought this raised planter for my veggie garden and I recommend it to everyone. It goes out of stock frequently, but here’s a very similar raised veggie garden box option.
This year we placed it right along the back of the house and it seems to be the perfect spot. My tomatoes, jalapeños and gourds are thriving! Next up, I’ll be looking to build a compost area but have zero knowledge on this topic, so if you’re a composter, please send me all your tips in the comments!
Garage Tool Bench
Kevin was on Santa’s Nice list in 2019 because Bickell and I got him this black tool storage work bench from Home Depot on Black Friday special! It’s completely transformed our garage organization and he finally has a permanent space to work out there. It was overdue and we couldn’t be more thrilled to also have our growing tool collection corralled into an organized, central location.
Previously we were using a portable work table meant for setting up during projects to have somewhere, as Kevin puts it, to “bang your tools around without worrying [about scuffing up the house]”. Glad for my sake he can now use that for projects inside the house again!
I’m so pleased we’ve officially finished our new house checklist! What’s next on your home project to do list? Writing your goals down is a terrific way to stick to them. You don’t have to have a blog to do it either, just have an area where they’re prominently posted so you can regularly remember your end goal.
New House Checklist Series
More Home Improvement and DIY
- Our Farmhouse Kitchen Transformation
- Modern Boho Master Bathroom
- My Blog Office / Craft Room Reveal
- Hanging Farmhouse Shelves
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