Remember what the Underdog’s garage looked like a month ago?  {For all the details on the numbered items, click here.}

Well, a month later, the garage itself doesn’t look any different but its contents have changed.  The stuff that was in the attic is gone along with the original carpet and padding.  Here’s what’s goin’ on in the garage now…

1 – The electric box now has power. Yippee!  Handy Hubby and a family friend upgraded and moved the original screw-in fuse box {from the laundry closet to the garage}.

{original fuse box}

{upgraded and relocated breaker box}

HH also buried the overhead service line and ran a new service line to the location of a future heat pump.  That’s a hint at what #3 is.

{freshly buried overhead service line and new line to future heat pump}

We had my Dad and Grandpa out to see the Underdog recently {they’re house men} and were surprised to learn that our heat pump will one day be living in a bed of rhubarb.  That is, if I can’t successfully transplant it elsewhere.

We’re still working to nail down lighting, switch plate and outlet placements.  Originally, we wanted to light the kitchen/living room area with lots of can lights but the future vaulted ceiling is posing a problem.  We’re having trouble finding can lights that will fit in the narrow space between the new ceiling and roof.  The new plan is to place can lights only along the recessed, flat section at the apex of the vaulted ceiling {the two slanted ceilings won’t meet each other at a sharp point to allow for a structural support, ductwork, and lighting} and have pendants above the island and sink.  We hope to add under/overhead cabinet lights as task lighting.

2 – Handy Hubby has a new-ish nose. Last Wednesday, HH had surgery to correct a severely deviated septum.  He took Thursday and Friday off of work ‘to heal’ but was truly thinking he’d use that time to work on the Underdog.  Well, shame on us.  Septoplasty is nothing to sneeze at.  HH was pretty much in bed until Friday and took pain pills until Sunday.  Thanks to everyone who left him words of encouragement on the blog last week.  I know he felt better hearing from people who had gone through the same thing.  His splints were removed yesterday and he happily started breathing through his nose and tasting food again.  Still, doctor’s orders are to avoid exercise and heavy lifting.  That means projects at the Underdog are on hold until HH is fully recovered.  It’s slow going over here.  Nothing like life getting in the way of a good reno!

3 – Before Handy Hubby went under the knife, he scored this heat pump on Craigslist. The Underdog has no central air and we’ve had a few people come out to give us quotes on adding A/C. The quotes were coming in at right around the $3,000 mark.  After talking to a co-worker {HH is an engineer and works with other engineers who know a lot about house stuff so he likes to bounce ideas off them}, HH decided that a DIY installation of a heat pump would work just as well and cost $1,000’s less than having central air installed by a professional.  He says it doesn’t sound all that difficult.  I’ll believe it when I see it!  I keep telling him he doesn’t have to DIY everything but he insists on cutting costs wherever possible.

The heat pump cost us $500 off Craigslist.  From what I understand {after asking HH a bunch of annoying questions}, the biggest difference between a heat pump versus a central A/C unit is that the heat pump can actually move heat into AND out of the house…essentially acting as A/C and heat in one unit.  We plan on keeping the existing furnace for backup during the winters.  While I’m thinking of it, do any of you heat/cool your home with a heat pump?

4 – This is our IKEA kitchen-in-a-box minus the dishwasher and hood. I can’t believe it all fits into this small pile of boxes.  We haven’t sorted through everything yet.  We have 90 days from the date of purchase to make returns/changes.

{IKEA kitchen in boxes}

{disregard the old microwave and camping grill on the floor to the left of the fridge}

The dishwasher and hood were the two items that weren’t available from the warehouse to ship, so we picked them up at our local IKEA store ourselves and for now they’re living quietly in our current basement.  The few other miscellaneous items {a couple of drawer fronts in various sizes} that weren’t available at the warehouse or our local store finally got restocked last week, so I quickly picked them up before they sold ’em all.  {They are included in the kitchen pile above.} Apparently, the black-brown RAMSJÖ base cabinets with drawers are all the rage!

5 – The boys have their own workshop in the garage to keep them occupied. Thanks to Black & Decker, Layne and Everett have something safe to play with at the Underdog.  Although the real stuff will always be tempting.

So that’s where things stand with the Underdog so far.  Progress is slow and probably will be over the next few weeks while Handy Hubby continues to heal and travels overseas for his real job.  I’ll be sharing some pictures of the entire ceiling in the kitchen/living room removed a little later on.  I can already tell that vaulting the ceiling is going to make such a difference in the small space!

A few of you have asked about our reno timeline.  I’m sorry to disappoint, but we really don’t have that much of a timeline in mind.  Ideally, I’d like for our current home to sell and for the Underdog to be livable by September so Layne can start the school year at his new school.  However, realistically, I can totally see that not happening.  Even though we’ve had a lot of traffic through our home, many potential buyers who are interested in our home are in a situation where they need their current homes to sell first before they can make an offer on our home.  For their sake and ours, I’m hoping things start to pick up.  It’s definitely not easy living in a ready-to-show house with two kids day in and day out.  Luckily, the weather is nice enough that we’re able to spend a lot of time outside.  And I do wake up nearly every morning wondering, “Will today be the day?”  It’s not healthy, so I’m trying very hard to focus my attention elsewhere.  Like on Pinterest.  Now, that’s healthy stuff right there.

images:  all Dana Miller for House*Tweaking

Once a month, I like to share an inspiring paint color with you.  Well, really, I’d like to repaint my walls once a month just because there are so many great paint colors out there to try…but that’s not realistic now, is it?  So, instead, I’ll stick with sanity and simply talk about the colors of my painted rainbow here.  This month I’m all about Benjamin Moore’s Newburg Green HC-158.

I’m normally drawn to light and airy backdrops, so this color is definitely off the beaten path for me. But I still think it’s great.  Newburg Green is a rich, deep teal that works well in different color schemes.  It’s moody but can be used like a neutral.  Without sufficient lighting and light furnishings, fabrics and/or accessories, it can steer towards dark and cave-like real quick.  Be warned!  Done right, it can take a plain Jane room to va-va-va-voom.

Take these guest house living quarters for example.  Paired with lots of white and cream, textured seagrass, rustic reclaimed wood, black gloss accents and a pop of orange, the feeling is cozy and fresh.  Notice all the natural light.

This L.A. guest room takes Newburg Green on a whole different spin.  With even more natural light {thanks to the region’s warm and sunny climate}, the hue comes across as blue-er and teal-er and doesn’t require as much white to brighten it up.  Instead, warm woods, hot pinks, deep plums, fresh chartreuse and shiny accents make for an inviting little jewel box of a room.  Take note of all the textures used to soften the feel of the colorful room.   There’s velvet, chenille and shaggy wool fabrics dressing the bed.  The tufting on the curvy side chair helps to soften things up too.

I’m not the first in blog land to take a liking to Newburg Green.  Apartment Therapy named this bedroom one of its Room for Color winners last November.  The owner used white bedding, woven ottomans, industrial lighting and burgundy accents in the masculine space.

Tamara over at Get It Girl Style used Newburg Green in her open living space to envelope the dining area.  Again, there are many lighter elements {tile flooring, dining chairs, trim, place settings} to counteract the rich walls.  A few pops of green and a woven veneer pendant work well against the moody backdrop.

I think Newburg Green would look splendid paired with denim, white and pops of orange in a modern nursery for a boy or even in an older boy’s room.  Throw in a few dark pieces like an espresso changing table or nightstand along with a rubbed bronze floor lamp to add sophistication.

Switch up the orange accents for pea green ones and the combo becomes a little beachy.  Still use it in a boy’s room or wander out to a young family room with it.  Fun!

Get all Nate Berkus like with a masculine color scheme of deep teal, warm white, gloss black and a camel tone.  Tone.  Not toe.  I could see this palette going over well in an office, study or den. Classic and timeless.  Just don’t forget good lighting!

How about throwing Newburg Green in with white, linen and doses of raspberry?  Bring in the raspberry with fresh flowers, artwork, pillows and printed fabrics.  This color combo could take a girl from crib to dorm just by mixing up the accessories.  Very fresh.

And no pictures of this one except in my head.  What if in an all white kitchen you painted an island in a glossy Newburg Green finish?  It’d be a happy surprise for sure.  Can you imagine white walls and cabinetry, mocha floors, stainless steel appliances and a shiny teal island in the center of it all? Possibly topped with a chunky wood top?  Mmmmm.  I’d also like to note that Newburg Green is a good option for builder, cookie cutter homes.  With the light cream carpet and white trim and white doors that seem to come standard in most of these homes, a rich teal could really cozy up an otherwise blah room.  Do you have any ideas for using a deep, moody teal somewhere in the home?

images:  1) Benjamin Moore 2 & 3) Atlanta Homes & Lifestyles Christmas House 2009 4) Reed Davis for House Beautiful 5 & 6) Apartment Therapy 7) Get It Girl Style 8-11) Benjamin Moore paint collages by Dana Miller for House*Tweaking