Decorating, DIY, Home Improvement, kitchen remodel, kitchen remodel, Paint

Six months and three faucets later…the true story of a diy kitchen remodel

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This post is sponsored by Inmod

I’m so excited to share our finished kitchen with you guys today! It was a long, long process and it feels BEYOND good to be all finished up! Our kitchen was a diy through and through and has me feeling some major pride. We were newbies to some of the projects (tiling) but also old hats at others (painting the kitchen cabs). But, this story has a happy ending and we are thrilled with how it came out!

Let’s take a look back at where we began, shall we?

Although we kept the original footprint of the kitchen, we changed almost everything else. There wasn’t really anything wrong with the kitchen before, but it wasn’t our style and just kinda fell flat. That feeling of blah.

Our first task was removing the old upper cabinets and the vent hood. I hated how the original cabinets were floating in the middle of the wall. Our ceilings are high at nine feet and that area above the cabinets didn’t seem like a good use of space. Our kitchen is small so wasted space is a no no. This seemed like an opportunity for tile all the way up to the ceiling and some open shelving.

For tile, we chose the 2×6 weathered white zellige from Cle Tile. I have been in love with this tile ever since Emily Henderson used it in her kitchen last year. I have never tiled anything of this scale before and I was actually pretty nervous about tackling this project, but it turned out to be kinda fun! My sister and her husband came for the weekend to help us and we made a party out of it! I definitely recommend drinking cocktails while tiling…as long as you can keep your lines straight. The tile came out beautifully and I LOVE it. It’s my favorite part of the kitchen. And let me tell ya…it’s even better in person.

For the open shelves, we tracked down a local who sells wood slabs of all kinds. All we had to do was decide on a type of wood and he cut it down to size for us. We ended up going with a couple of slabs of maple. I wanted a light colored wood with some grain and the maple fit the bill. It’s a hardwood too so that’s another bonus. After they were hung, I sealed the shelves with wax.

Our countertops are concrete and we poured them ourselves. I’ve actually been getting so many questions about them and the process that I am going to dedicate an entire post just to the countertops. Coming soon! It was a BIG job but they are perfectly imperfect and just what I was envisioning for the kitchen! A big thank you to Jimmy and Dani for coming from Idaho and showing us the ropes.

Deciding on the faucet for the kitchen sink was a tough one for me. I don’t know why exactly, but I ended up ordering three before I settled on this matte black guy. My husband wanted to kill me (not really…but, kinda) but my folks ended up adopting the first one for their kitchen and the second one is living out its days in the box in the garage. I’m confident we will find it a new home though! Maybe Facebook marketplace or craigslist?

For our cabinets, we painted them Hidden Falls by Benjamin Moore and added new brass hardware from Cb2. The new color is a deep green with some blue undertones and I love the moody vibe it gives the kitchen.

And just when we were putting the finishing touches on the kitchen, Inmod approached me and asked if I would be interested in working together. I jumped at the shot. You see, I couldn’t decide on bar stools for the new kitchen and after the whole faucet debacle, I knew I needed to be sure of my decision (i.e. not order online and then hate them in person). Inmod is famous for their crazy big selection of modern, mid-century, industrial, and Scandinavian furniture. They also sell styles from world revered designers such as Eames, Wegner, and Saarinen, just to name a few! So knowing this, I knew I could pick some bar stools that would function well and look beautiful in the new kitchen.

I ended up choosing their Sigfred Barstools in the tobacco color and I’m. In. Love. They have a beautiful leather padded seat with the most lovely stitching detail. The legs are a black metal and I love how it plays so well with my matte black faucet. Aren’t they the perfect pair? Putting them together was a breeze, and I assembled them by myself one evening while my husband gave the baby a bath. I finished before he had his jams on!

And because we eat all of our meals at the bar in these barstools, I can attest to their comfort. We spend a lot of time in this area because we don’t have a dining room (but this is a whole different story, for another time). Also, it is worth mentioning that there may have been a spaghetti supper on their first night in the house and they wipe up beautifully. I’m a big fan, can you tell?

So there you have it! The kitchen is done! What do you think? Does anyone have any DIY tales where something went horribly awry?? Did anyone order multiple kitchen faucets? I want all the details. Leave me a comment…I’d love to hear!

 

Decorating, Living Room

Living Room Updates and A Comfort Works Sofa Cover Review

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Hi everyone! We are almost to the end of the school year here and these last few weeks are jammed packed with activities, field trips, and even a spring concert. Counting down the days…almost there!

I am blaming spring cleaning but we have been on an organizing kick over here. With the house feeling all fresh and clean, I realized that the living room needed a little facelift. This room is the most hard working room in the house. It lives directly off of the kitchen and is the hub of all activity. So, when the lovely Felicia contacted me from Comfort Works and asked if I wanted to review their replacement slipcovers, I said, YES!

Let me start by saying that we have been buying IKEA sofas for almost ten years. They are durable, stylish, and affordable. A combination that I believe to be perfect for families with small kids. When we bought our house last year, we bought a big sectional (the Norsborg sectional with a chaise) for our living room and love the amount of seating that it provides. It was a darker gray and that is the general tone that I wanted, but in person, the material felt a bit tired (maybe because the baby uses it as a napkin on the reg? hmmm.).

Comfort Works makes beautiful replacement slipcovers for IKEA sofas and custom slipcovers that will fit whatever style of sofa that you might have. Isn’t that cool? You get the look of a very high-end sofa without spending the money! Yes, please. I picked some fabric samples and they arrived in a week. Right away, I was impressed with my options. I couldn’t have made a wrong choice as they were all so lovely.

I picked the Kino Shadow in their heavy duty material because…well, KIDS. This fabric felt like the perfect choice for us with its darker tone and can even be machine washed. Seriously! Machine Washed! We also decided on their Bailey Wooden Sofa Leg to replace the old, chunky ones that originally came with the sofa.

When our cover and legs arrived, I knew we made the right choice! The cover is beautiful, full of texture and the color is a deep, saturated gray. The quality is GOOD. And the best part? My husband and I both agreed that our replacement cover was easier to put on the frame than the original cover from IKEA. I loved how Comfort Works made it a no hassle process with the help from their little prompts. So smart, right?

All of the pieces fit like a glove and there wasn’t any excess fabric.

Overall, it was a pretty painless process. Even with our big sectional, we had everything taken off and our new cover put back on in less than an hour.

I am so excited about our new replacement slipcover and the new look it gives my IKEA sofa! It really feels like a new piece of furniture. Hope you guys love it as much as I do!

This post is sponsored by Comfort Works. All opinions expressed are 100% my own.

DIY, Home Improvement, Installing wood floors, Renovating

Carpet’s out, wood’s in

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Hi guys! It’s been a million years since I’ve posted on here! Lately, it just seems more convenient to keep everybody updated with all of our house projects on Instagram versus writing out a long blog post. But I’ve been feeling guilty about ignoring my blog because it’s such a great, creative outlet for me and I love documenting our house projects. So I’m going to do a better job. The good news is that we have endless amounts of projects going on around the house which equals tons of content. House projects have been plentiful, blog posts not so much.

It would make sense for me to start with giving you guys a full house tour so you can see where we are at in terms of progress. And I will do that, but for now, we are just gonna skip ahead to the most exciting project ever! Wood floors! If you follow me on Instagram, then you already know that we started installing our new floors. We started upstairs, and the plan is to divide the house into three sections because we are doing the install ourselves and tackling one section at a time feels less daunting. So upstairs goes first, next is the stairs and its two landings, and lastly, the main level.

In our last house, we had our wood floors installed and that was great. But there is something to be said for doing the work yourselves and the most obvious bonus of all is that you don’t have to shell out the extra money to pay for the labor, which we learned was the most expensive part of replacing flooring. If you have been following along since we did our Texas renovation, we loved our wood floors from that house so much that we went ahead and ordered the same ones for this house. I know, I know, we like to live on the edge.

Even though this is a big project and tons of work, the work itself isn’t terribly complicated. So I’m confident saying that, if we can figure this out, anybody can do this! Isn’t that so exciting?

My brother and his family came to help for the weekend along with my mom and dad. We were so grateful for the help and are all set to return the favor and spend a weekend at my brothers house when his wood floors are ready to go down. Thank you Aaron and Audra! Thank you mom and dad! Like I said above, we started upstairs and first thing we did was remove the baseboards and then out came the old, nasty, dirty, shag carpet. YUCK. I got the heebeejeebee’s when we started rolling up the old carpet and I could see just how dirty it was. I won’t go into details but there were some suspect looking stains that I would like to never think about again. K – moving on.

 

We ordered the flooring way back in November and had moved it upstairs in March so we didn’t have to worry about it acclimating but I think the rule is that the boxes of flooring should live in the space prior to installation for three to five days. Next up was rolling out some underlayment, which acts as a vapor barrier and prevents the squeaking of wood flooring against the plywood subfloor under it.

The first row is the most crucial row as it will ensure that you have a straight line going forward. Also, the wood needed to start with a 1/2” gap from the wall since that is the thickness of our wood planks. This gap allows the wood to expand and contract with changes in temperature and humidity. But once those two things were done and right, we picked up the pace and even started to find a rhythm.

This is the biggest room upstairs so I’m so happy to have this beast of a room checked off the list. Moving forward, Nate and I will be doing piece by piece(see what I did there?) as time allows so we are hoping to be done with the upstairs sometime in the year 2021…just kidding…kind of.

Now that the new floors are going down, I started thinking about rug pads for my area rugs. I’m bad about choosing the pretty and forgoing the things that are practical, but aren’t seen. In the past, I tried those cheap waffle-like pads with a chemical smell and my rugs still slide around. So when RugPadUSA asked if I wanted to partner up, I was so excited! If my new floors could thank them, I think they would.

I chose their Contour Lock style because it’s well-suited to flat-woven rugs and my vintage rugs with a low pile. If you love vintage rugs like I do, then you know that they almost always come in an unusual, wonky size. RugPadUSA cuts their pads to fit any rug size, so no size is too weird!

I love how they make our rugs feel so cushy and comfortable now. The pads are thick and feel soft underfoot. As a mom with a baby who just learned how to walk, I appreciate the extra cushion.

RugPadUSA uses recycled felt and a natural rubber to make their pads so there is no toxic smell and that makes me feel good about bringing it into our home with our kids. On the reverse side is a natural rubber bottom that keep your rugs in place and they seriously do not budge, even with rowdy kids and toddling babies. I love these pads and am going to need more in the future! A big thanks to RugPadUSA for introducing me to these. I’m hooked.

This post is sponsored by RugPadUSA Opinions expressed are 100% my own

 

 

 

Decorating, DIY, Home Improvement, Renovating

Our DIY Entryway Bench

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We built a bench in our entryway and it feels so good. Hehe, I just sort of jumped right in without any pleasantries or warning. I’m a tad excited about this project, can you tell? Behold, our refreshed entryway:

It feels like a whole new space. Ah, the power of diy.

As you can see, we weren’t using this space in a functional way. Besides not being functional, it was so boring. Major snooze factor. There wasn’t any storage, no hooks for coats, and no mirror to check your hair when you leave. Doesn’t everyone do that? I knew it needed all these components, but I wasn’t sure how to implement them.

Via

So a couple weeks ago, I was on instagram one evening and came across this image from a favorite blogger of mine. Gorgeous, no? That floating, simple bench would be perfect for my blah entryway! This is why I love a good diy blog – so much good content to be shared for others to use.  She had a link to her blog with a genius set of instructions. I showed them to Nate and he thought we could handle the bench portion of the project – no problem.

We followed the instructions she provided without any problems. Her instructions were thorough and easy to follow. So, because I documented our steps and took photos along the way, I will include our step by step process. This is a great project that could be modified to fit a number of different spaces and homes.

First, we picked up some project boards and had them cut to size right at Lowe’s. We also grabbed some stain, poly, a couple 2×4’s, and two brackets. For staining the boards, I followed the instructions from brepurposed.com and she swears that the perfect stain recipe is two coats of special walnut with one coat of golden oak in between. I don’t have very much experience with staining, so I thought I would give it a whirl. I stained the boards outside with a lint-free rag and let them dry overnight. After they were dry, I applied a couple coats of poly.

To decide how high we wanted the bench to be, we measured our dining table bench from West Elm. It seemed to be a good height and even moved it over in the entryway space to have a visual aid to help.

Next up, attaching the 2×4’s to studs in the wall for the framing of the bench.

Then we attached a piece of the project board to the top of the framing.

To make sure that the bench was sturdy and extra strong, our next step was adding two 2×4’s across the top of the project board.

Finally, the top went on and we attached the brackets that the front piece would be screwed into.

We screwed in the last piece from the back so there aren’t any visible screws from the front. After this step, we got the nail gun out and used finishing nails to secure the piece all the way across. After that, done!

To make the bench even more of a work horse for us, I added three baskets underneath, one for each kiddo. I have room for a fourth basket but for now, I left some space for some taller boots. The baskets have been a life saver to corral coats, backpacks and shoes. The hooks were a cheap amazon find and help to finish off the space. I bought a mirror from Target a while back and hung it up above the hooks.

We love how this project turned out. Maybe love isn’t a strong enough word, maybe obsessed is more accurate. Now, we have the itch to get started on some other diy’s around here, so stay tuned!

Exploring Texas, family vacations, house tours, Moving

summer recap: moving, sightseeing and a lovely house

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With summer just about over for us and because projects are moving super slow at the new house (think painting ALL the beige ceilings white and then painting ALL the beige walls after you’re done with the beige ceilings), I thought I would take this opportunity to recap our summer and provide some house eye candy. Sound good? I thought so. Let’s go!

So if you have been following along, you already know that we sold our Texas house last spring and were busy making plans to move back to the PNW, where we are originally from, to be close to our families again.

In June, my mom and dad flew down to Texas as we were packing the house and were nice enough to drive a car home for us back to Oregon. It was a bit of a whirlwind but we managed to leave the house for good the day after the kids were let out of school for summer break. We had a few Texas tourist attractions to check off our bucket list before we left and then we headed for the Grand Canyon.

After the Grand Canyon, we headed to Arches National Park and although it was crowded, the sights did not disappoint. Whoa, this place is beautiful. The trails within the park are not stroller friendly and I was so smart (NOT) and packed my baby carrier in a box somewhere in the moving truck so we had to stick to easy trails but if we were going again, I would wear the baby (put that cute little guy in his carrier) and try for some of the more advanced trails.

We also stopped off in Flagstaff and Salt Lake City. We kept our schedule flexible because of the kids and baby and would stop whenever a little person needed a break. We had a great time and are already scheming on some road-trip ideas for next summer.

When we arrived back in the Northwest, we knew we wouldn’t be able to close on our new house for almost four weeks. The sellers of our house needed some extra time since it had been their vacation home and wouldn’t be able to move their stuff out right away. But lucky for us, my parents’ were happy to let us invade their house until we closed. After being gone in Texas for three years, spending a few weeks with family sounded like a vacation to us! We had the best time. So many yummy meals (that we didn’t have to make!), and lots of late nights up laughing and talking.

Right around the same time we were moving to Texas, my mom and dad sold their house because they were retiring. They had lived in that house for thirty years and me and my four siblings had all grown up there. Sniffle… Anyways, they needed a smaller place and my mom was craving change, so off they went!

I am completely OBSESSED with their new house. It’s smaller with little maintenance which gives them the freedom to hit the road whenever the mood strikes. Perfect for them!

Cute, right? When they bought the place, the exterior was painted a salmon color. Yikes. The new color is such an improvement. Originally, the house didn’t have a garage so they built one to match the house.

The house was built in 2006 on twenty acres of forested land that has a nice stretch of river frontage. When you are there, it feels like you’re on vacation with all the quiet and peace. During our few weeks there, the kids had so much fun spotting deer and wild turkeys that wander the area.

Ok — are you guys ready for a tour of the inside?

Cozy. Check. Comfortable. Check. With all the windows, there is no shortage of natural light. The house was definitely designed with the views in mind. With the kitchen, living and dining room all in the same space, it really keeps the spacious and airy vibe going strong.

My mom ditched a lot of her old decor and furniture when they bought the place and she started over. I am such a fan of how she introduces a nice mix of objects both old and new. It’s such a talent. Her stuff isn’t too matchy-matchy but it all feels layered and inviting.

Every nook and cranny of the house is cute. Even the little laundry room…just LOOK.

There are two bedrooms in the house; one upstairs and the master on the lower level. How great is the master bedroom with that planked ceiling?

The loft has a second living space, the second bedroom and a bathroom. I’m having a serious moment over that coffee table. My mom found it at a local antique shop that also carried a few pieces of locally made furniture.

Before the house was ever built, the property had a small hunting cabin on it. My parents kept the structure and converted it into a bunk house for grand kids or overflow from the house since we have such a big family. My dad lined the walls with fresh pine planks, built the deck, and my mom got busy furnishing/decorating with a cabin theme in mind.

I don’t think our kids slept in the house for our entire stay. They love it.

So there you have it! Our summer recap and a bonus house tour! I will update the blog soon with some new pics of our house. I have been painting like a maniac. It’s starting to take shape! Happy Back to School!

Moving, Moving In

A BIG House Update

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Hi guys! Oh my, where has the time gone?! I guess time flies when you’re having fun…or packing everything you own and hauling it from Texas to Oregon with two kiddos and an eight month old baby. Anyways, I am finally back and have lots of updates for you. Hooray!

Last time I posted, we listed our house for sale and hoped for the best. We weren’t sure what to expect but, we had multiple offers and it went under contract on the first morning it was on the market. We were even able to negotiate a moving date that coincided with the last of school for the kids. It was a win win.

Leaving Texas was bitter sweet. We made some great friends, the kids loved their school and we had the most amazing neighbors (Hi Chuck and Laura!) that anyone could ask for. We will miss it. On the other hand, we have had so much time with family and friends since we’ve been back! My heart is full and I know we made the right choice. The trip home was loads of fun and we took some time to explore the Grand Canyon, Arches National Park and Moab. If you haven’t been to these three places, then go right now. Seriously. Go.

So let me get on with it already and move on to the pics of the new house! We moved in three weeks ago and the house is still chaos. Hehe. Just don’t examine the pics too closely.

The house came with its own Texas star. We thought it was kismet that we managed to find a house in Oregon with a Texas star since we were moving from there.

Nate and I have only ever lived in old ranchers before this house. Our last place in Texas was built in 1980 and we always joked that it was practically a new house! This house was built in 2006 and had only been used as a vacation home since it was built so it really does feel brand new. But, we are so excited to make this baby ours and you might notice a shift in our projects from old/ugly to less builder basic/beige.

Do you recognize my “hello” sign? I almost forgot it in Austin and threw it in the trunk of our car at the very last moment.

Please excuse the mess. I took pictures while the boxes were being unpacked so yeah, it’s messy. When you walk into the house, you can either head up the stairs or continue through (past the little half-bath) to the kitchen and family room.

There are bamboo, wood floors on the first level and carpet everywhere else. I am already making plans to get rid of the carpet. I’m not a carpet person…some people like the coziness of it, especially in the bedrooms. I can appreciate that but, its still a no for me.

My first order of business; painting the ceilings white. For whatever reason, this house has beige walls and beige ceilings. Excuse me for a moment while I gag. In my humble opinion, in this particular house, the ceilings need to be a good ol’fashioned flat, white paint. And this beige paint is so bad. It has pink undertones and my mom says it reminds her of a bad foundation color.

If you’re wondering why there is suddenly snow on the ground and all this furniture that doesn’t belong to me in these two pictures of the master bedroom, they were taken when the house went on the market during the winter. I’m too embarrassed to share the current state of the bedroom with it’s stacks of unpacked boxes and piles of laundry. Can I still use the “I have a newborn” excuse? Even if he is almost nine months? Hope so.

Let’s go upstairs, shall we?

Nate’s office is at the top of the stairs in an open area on your left. Don’t worry, I ordered him a chair that’s on the way. I’m excited to decorate his office. When he wasn’t working at home in Austin, he was always asking to come in to his work to decorate his office and I never got around to it. Now that his office is in our house, I guess I won’t have an excuse not to get in there and make it pretty.

If you keep going past Nate’s office, there is a bathroom straight ahead, a bonus room on your right and the other two bedrooms on your left.

We started calling this big space the bonus room. It feels so spacious! We bought a big IKEA sectional for this space and plan on using it for TV watching, playing, doing homework and reading. I am thinking about creating different zones and adding shelves somewhere for toy storage and books.

On to the upstairs bedrooms. For now, Nolan and Grey are sharing the bigger of the two bedrooms and Urban is in the smallest bedroom. These beds were left by the seller and we have been using them until we decide where everyone is going to be living permanently. Nolan has asked for her own room so maybe she will go solo into the smaller bedroom and our two younger sons will share the bigger bedroom? Before any of this moving around happens though, Momma needs to get her nine month old sleeping through the night. Does that make sense?

And lastly, here is the back of the house and the backyard. Our lot is just over a half acre and it backs up to a little piece of canal frontage off of the Deschutes River. We have been having so much fun on the water. The kids are obsessed. We have been out kayaking, canoeing, and paddle boarding just about every day since we moved in.

And that’s about it! It feels so good to be back and to be finally moved into the new house. What do you guys think? You think I can de-cookie my cookie cutter? Anyone else just move a long ways and live to tell about it?

Moving

Our House Is For Sale!

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Guys, I can’t believe it. Our house is for sale! Can someone pass me a paper bag?

But let’s rewind for a second and I’ll fill you in on all the details that led up to this big decision (don’t worry; I’ll keep it brief). Back in 2014 (that doesn’t sound brief, but I swear it is), Nate was offered a job here in Texas (we’re from Oregon and we were living in Portland at the time) that he accepted. Off we went to Texas and Texas has been good to us. Since we have been here, Nate scored an even better job, we bought our first house, we had a baby, and the kids started school at the best elementary school ever. We have been very happy here. A couple of months ago, Nate’s company gave him the option to start working from home if he chooses. And this “home” could be anywhere. With all of our family back in Oregon (I miss my mom and sister so much that it hurts), we were feeling a strong pull to go back, to our home.

And here we are. The kids get out of school on June 1 and hopefully our house will sell before that. So if you are in the market for the most special home in all of Central Texas, then I have just the spot for you!

This process feels really crazy and stressful but a major perk was that our house was photographed in preparation and I wanted to share the lovely photos they took of our house. This most definitely will make my regular photos on the blog look horrible, but they are too pretty not to share.

All images by Travis Baker via

I can’t wait to dive in and start sharing more about the whole process, so stay tuned! Until then, feel free to reach out to me if you’re interested and I’ll pass along all the info!

Wish us luck!

Decorating, DIY, Home Improvement, Paint, Renovating

Project Porch

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Spring has sprung here in Texas which means the temps are high, the bugs are plentiful and the storms are frequent. We have been enjoying the lovely weather and never get sick of a good thunder storm, but the bugs…not so much. Lucky for us, our house has a screened porch; the perfect solution for being outside without being bothered by pesky mosquitoes.

But until last week, our porch looked like this.

Whoa. That’s a lot of flesh-colored paint. I love updating spaces like this because it really shows what a difference some paint makes. And that’s all we did, with the exception of rearranging some furniture and adding some plants. Paint!

Last summer, when we painted the exterior of our house, we skipped the porch. Why you ask? I’m not exactly sure but I am going to blame the hot temps. It was summer in Central Texas and I was almost five months pregnant with Urban. First on the to-do list was painting the siding to match the rest of the exterior. If you’ve been following along, you might already know we chose a charcoal color with some metallic undertones. It sounds crazy but the metallic undertones are bronze and they are lovely. Kind of like the way that oil and water swirl around and in just the right light you can make out little rainbows. Only the paint on our house isn’t an environmental hazard. We LOVE the color. We love it more and more all the time and have even had neighbors knock on our door and ask us what color we used. I will never get sick of that!

The rest of the walls were painted a bright white, and on the floor we used a stormy gray color. We started out painting the walls with a brush and roller until we were ready to lose our minds and rented a paint sprayer to apply the second coat. If we were doing this project all over again, we would definitely rent the paint sprayer from the start. To paint the floors, I went around the edges with a paint brush and then Nate rolled the rest. I always do the cutting in and he always does the rolling. It’s become a thing. I know, I know, we’re crazy.

The rest of the project was fun. I used things we already owned to decorate the room (I say “room,” but I mean porch) except a new outdoor rug, an outdoor light, and a plant stand. Remember my chandelier that got bumped from the dining room inside? She found herself a new home on the porch and I think it’s a perfect fit.

The table and chairs were put back on the opposite side of the porch because originally, I placed them on the same side as the bump-out with the windows on the house. The more I thought about it though, it makes waaaaay more sense to have it on the other side with more space. Duh. Now that side has a seating area with a rug. Also, plants. And more plants. My plants love Texas. Plants that I used to kill in Oregon thrive here. Must be all the sunshine and humidity in the air. Like living in a greenhouse.

Isn’t it looking so much better? And the best part is that we are now using this space. Nolan and Grey have been using the space for playing and we’ve even had dinner together at the table. Yay us!

Finally, I know I always do this but it’s just too much fun, so let’s look back at where we started:

And now:

Dear paint, I love you so.

 

Decorating, DIY, Home Improvement, Paint, Renovating

The Bathroom is Done Done

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A few weeks ago, I shared our finished bathroom with the promise that I would be back with some pictures of the space with all the accessories and art. So today, I will honor my promise (even though technically, I think I’m a bit late on my delivery) and show all the fun details that make the bathroom feel complete. Drum roll please:

We are very pleased with the finished product. And I use the word finished loosely because it seems like I am never quite done tweaking things. Nate hates that, but I loooove it. Tomato tomahto. I have to say, this was my favorite part of revamping a space…all the little details.

When the mirror was hung, I was nervous it was all wrong. And it would have been an annoying error to make because I had already painted the frame a flat black so there was no turning back and returning to the store. To remedy this, I brought in as many black elements as I could. All of the other pops of black help make the mirror feel less chunky. Now, it feels much more balanced to me and less like “look at this mirror with a giant black frame.” The basket on top of the toilet, the towel hooks, toilet paper holder, and hand towel ring are all black.

I thought that hooks for towels might be a fun change of pace from the old towel bar. And now that they’re up; our kids can actually hang their towel up on their chosen hook. When the old towel bar lived there, the kids would haphazardly throw their damp towels up on the bar. The messy towels drove me nuts because it looked sloppy and the towels couldn’t easily dry. Nobody likes a damp towel.

We installed a shelf above the toilet which is a nice spot for a few decorative pieces and a tray to wrangle bobby pins and Nolan’s hair barrettes. I had a lot of fun completing my first “paint by numbers” picture and framed it in an inexpensive wood frame from Target. Also, notice the black brackets on the shelf? I thought they complimented the mirror nicely.

My little vintage rug that we found at Round Top last fall fits perfectly in our little bathroom and I think it makes the room feel special. It’s perfect for a bathroom because it adds some color and pattern. I also like that it’s low profile so the door can open and close over it but it’s heavy enough to not slide around.

The light above the vanity is a galvanized steel finish and I like its casual feel. It is our preferred light for the bathroom as it casts a soft light directly onto the vanity.

That’s about it for our main bathroom. We can check this off our list and call this one done. One last time, let’s look back at where we started:

And now we look like this:

And speaking of making good progress, our master bathroom is looking a lot like our main bathroom these days. We have two bathrooms in our house and they are located right around the corner from one another. When we started planning to update them, we decided early on that they should have the same look and feel since they are so close. It seemed odd to give them each a completely different design. They aren’t quite twins but maybe they could be sisters?

We used all the same materials that were used in our main bathroom. Same tiles on the floor, same countertop, same sink, you get the idea. Here’s an old shot I dug up of this same spot right after our move.

So what do you guys think? Is there anyone out there who recently took on a similar DIY bathroom project? Any first-time tilers who are contemplating getting started? Were you as nervous as we were? Really, once you dive in it’s not that scary. I’d love to hear from you so feel free to leave me a comment below:-)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Decorating, DIY, Home Improvement

updating our light fixtures

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I was thiiiis close to entitling this post, “The Great Light Switch-Out” or “Switching Up our Lights,” but I decided to spare you of my clever puns. This past weekend was President’s Day and with the extra day off we were able to start work on the second bathroom and update some lighting around the house. So let’s start today with a photo of my new favorite view:

Since we moved in and got busy scraping our popcorn ceilings, we took down all of the existing overhead lighting (boob lights galore). Nearly every room was left with the remnants of this problem that I have been conveniently cropping out of all house photos.

I felt a little stumped about what to pick since we would essentially be choosing lighting for the entire house. If I made the wrong choice, it would be on such a large scale that I was scared to pull the proverbial trigger. I liked this light and when it finally went on sale, Nate convinced me to order them up. So order we did, and when they arrived, we were impressed with the quality and the size. The only worry that we had about these guys was that they wouldn’t be big enough and look skimpy or cheap. However, they look lovely and really compliment the black door hardware.

Since we were on a lighting roll, I decided that I was going to play a sort of musical chairs with some lighting choices that we previously made. When we moved in, the dining room looked like this:

Then, I found a cool fixture on sale and the space was transformed to this:

I like this fixture very much but after a while I started feeling like it wasn’t really “us.” Maybe it was too small for the dining room? Maybe it felt a little “fancy” for our house? Still not sure but when I saw this light, I knew we had to make another change. Nate was not exactly thrilled to be changing our dining room light again but I have assured him that this new light is here to stay.


It feels just the right size for the dining room and with the natural bamboo, it feels warm and adds some texture. I don’t have a rug in our dining room because my OCD doesn’t afford me such a luxury with our kids eating there on a daily basis. The number of gold fish crackers, crumbs and spaghetti noodles that I sweep/clean off our wood floors is crazy.

But I didn’t stop there. The entry lighting situation went from this (sorry about the dark photo):

To this:

I can officially put a fork in it and call the entryway finished. It’s one of the smallest spaces in the house but I am still calling this a victory. It’s funny how many revisions a space has before it starts to feel right and I can move on to something else. Sometimes it’s hard to put your finger on what’s working and what isn’t.

The pendant that lived in the entryway has now found a new home in the master bedroom. Told ya this was musical chairs for lights.

So that’s the jist of what we have been working on around the house. I am down to just a few final touches in the bathroom and we are just waiting on a sconce to arrive (I know, I know. More lighting?). I will update the blog accordingly as soon as that comes. As a little bonus, I have some photos to share of Urban. He is already three months and has been busy terrorizing me all night and looking adorable all the time. Look at that bald head…it smells as good as it looks.