On the project to-do list...

"There is not enough time to do all the nothing we want to do."
-Bill Watterson

I've got a big project in the works (hope to share more towards the end of next week...). But in the couple of weeks before that kicks off full force, I'm hoping to scratch a few projects off of my never-ending to-do list.

A couple of projects that I've dreamed about for years, bought the supplies for, dedicated a good amount of brainpower to, but have yet to accomplish...

And, maybe if I post the list for all to see... maybe, just maybe I'll actually get to them.

1. Modern house numbers :: I've bought the numbers and always have some stain stored away. Need to pick up the paint sticks and get to it! [Idea and image from 4 Men 1 Lady]
2. Gallery wall in the foyer :: I've got a stack of frames sitting in the dining room. I just need to get over the fear of putting holes in the wall. I can always figure out what goes in the frames later. [Image from The Design Files Daily]
3. Project Life photo book :: I kept up with my digital Project Life spreads of my 30th year until April. In the last couple of weeks I've been trying to work my way backward to fill in the gaps. I really want to get this done and printed well before my next birthday. [More Project Life posts]
4. Date with the Genius Bar :: With plans to start grad school this fall, I want to make sure that my laptop is in full working order before I begin. Hopefully the Mac geniuses can help me update my software, set up a back-up process, and generally optimize my system. [Make an appointment with the Genius Bar]

Mirror makeover...

"Mirror, mirror, here I stand. Who is the fairest in the land?” 
-Wilhelm Grimm

So... this happened a few weeks ago... I just realized that the blog post about it has been sitting in draft mode. Oops!

After a conversation with my friend Lesa over our Friday lunch, I was determined to get the guest bathroom mirror framed over the weekend. After seeing many a Pinterest pin about this easy peasy makeover, the project had been sitting on my to do list for months. I used these two tutorials as a guide and inspiration: here and here.

Of course as with many a DIY project, it took longer than I expected, but it still wasn't difficult. Just a lot of wait time, waiting for glue to dry or paint to dry. I'm tickled with how it turned out. I'm ready to frame the bigger mirror in our master bathroom as well ... I'm thinking I'll mimic a double mirror like this.

And, just to give you some perspective... here's the other side of the bathroom. Before we moved in we painted the walls and added the vinyl "wooden" flooring.

Bein' green...

"Green is the prime color of the world, and that from which its loveliness arises."
-Pedro Calderon de la Barca

If you've been reading here for awhile, you might remember the awesome kitchen artwork that my mom and I constructed this summer.

If you follow me on Instagram, you might remember last month that said artwork leapt off the wall one morning while Rob and I were getting ready for work.

Apparently it didn't like hanging on the wall anymore. The hooks on the back bent out of shape and down it went. The silverware landed in pieces, the board was dented, and Rob panicked because he doesn't handle crisis very well in the moment.

After a trip to IKEA last weekend with my friend Lesa, we both committed to starting house projects this week. And, this newly blank wall in the kitchen was itching for something new...

Here's the look I'm going for...

1. Valspar City Chartreuse paint
2. 10" Raised Numbers Silver Wall Clock
3. Endless Circle Lattice Stencil
**Still haven't figured out the label/frames

Step one... paint the wall.
This afternoon while Rob was riding, I tackled the wall. Four hours and one quart of paint later... tada!

Now, I just need to commit to the rest!!

Wonderful windows...

“I discovered windows one afternoon and after that, nothing was ever the same.” 
-Anne Spollen

Before we even moved into our new house, I had an idea for the big window in the living room. I was inspired by a couple of things I'd pinned...

1, 2, 3

So I mocked it up in Illustrator to see what it might look like in our new space. I was totally digging it. But, a little bit unsure how to begin.

So luckily when my mom came to visit in June, she was able to help me move from dream to reality. You can see more about that here and here.

But, then the project came to a standstill as I waited for the bamboo blinds to be delivered (the size I needed had to be ordered online) and then waited for my handyman to make time to tackle my project.

Before

I was getting antsy to see the final result, so I sneakily moved the supplies onto the floor in the middle of the living room. After stepping over the curtain rods and blinds for about two weeks, Rob finally got the hint yesterday afternoon.

After a little bit of cursing, sweat, and extra wood screws, we folded up the ladder and stepped back to admire our handiwork. Even though Rob was hesitant when we started, by the end, he agreed that they looked pretty good.

After

I'm thrilled to see how closely it matches my original vision. I love it!! I can confirm... hanging the curtains up high does indeed make the space look taller! I smile every time I walk by.

The other side of the room... just to complete the picture

I've still got a couple of small projects to finish up... a garland to hang on the map, better storage for our dvd collection, a small gallery wall in the corner by the fireplace, and maybe someday a new rug.

I'll be sure to keep you posted. And, maybe by then, I'll have learned how to take a good interior photo.

Let's Eat, Y'all!

“Pull up a chair. Take a taste. Come join us. Life is so endlessly delicious."
-Ruth Riehl

When my mom was here a couple of weeks ago, we were able to realize several projects that I had been dreaming of but hadn't yet found the inspiration for.

I have a tall blank wall in my kitchen across from the island. It was begging for something big and graphic. I was inspired by this, this, this, and this, as well as the giant utensil art I had in our last house (still available at Hobby Lobby, I think).

We picked up some white beadboard from Home Depot and set out to distress it a little before hand-painting the letters. You can see more specific steps and photos from the process over on my mom's blog.

I think I might be in love.

However, seeing it in photos makes me want to paint the wall behind it a fun accent color. I'm not sure I'm ready to commit to a full-fledged color scheme yet. Any thoughts?

Master Bedroom Reveal...

"Don't fight with the pillow, but lay down your head And kick every worriment out of the bed."
-Edmund Vance Cooke 

Sources: wooden box found among Rob's father's things, clear glass bottle from Victoria's Secret massage oil packaging, glass vase/rocks/faux tulips from Michael's, blue shell seaglass from Salem, Massachusetts, candles from IKEA.

The other night as we were laying in bed trying to fall asleep, Rob leaned over and whispered, "Our bedroom is so comfortable. Not just our bed, but our whole bedroom." I smiled because that's just the way I want it!

Sources: East Village bedroom furniture from American Signature, bookshelf from Target, wooden lamp on left from Walmart, bedspread and pillows designed/made by my mom and I, leather ottoman from Target, custom number canvas by me, lamp on right upcycled from thrift store.

Before we moved our furniture in, we upgraded the ceiling fan and then decided on a whim to paint the walls. Rob threw out the suggestion late one night... and the next morning I picked the shade (Olympic Gray Ghost) from the handful of paint swatches I had gathered for other projects; I had a paintbrush in hand by midday. It felt a little rushed... a little daring.

While Rob worked his "weekend duty" shift on Saturday, I set to work to mask our builder's grade khaki walls with a warm gray that would complement our navy and gold bedspread. Luckily Rob stepped in the moment he got home to roll the top half of the walls, the areas I couldn't reach.

Sources: jewelry tree from Urban Outfitters, earring pottery bowl from the Greater Gift Market, green jewelry box was a gift from my mom.

This is the first room in our new house that feels done. To complete the room, a couple of weekends ago I hung our custom number canvas above the headboard and our canvas wedding photo in the corner nook. (Sidenote: All along, my bedroom vision has been inspired by this photo... yet, this is the first time I ever found a place to hang it on the wall!)

Sources: small table built by my daddy, chair rescued from the garbage from me and reupholstered by my mom, pillows made by my mom (the small one was our ringbearer's pillow), canvas wedding photo, ceramic balls from Michael's.

Down the road, we'll probably want to get new carpet (there are a couple of colorful stains left from the previous owners), but I just couldn't justify the expense before we moved in. We're also in the middle of overhauling the master bathroom... new paint and new flooring, which will totally complete the master suite. I can't wait for that reveal!

Like Rob said, I, too, take comfort in this room. It's our oasis. It feels right. It feels like us. Right down to the treasures that sit atop our nightstands. I mean, my engineer husband has a graphing calculator sitting next to our bed. (I just had to document his nerdiness for posterity's sake!)

Sources: bike chain frame similar to one found at UncommonGoods, MotorTrend and Outside magazines, remote control for our Allen + Roth ceiling fan from Lowe's, lotions and linen spray from Bath and Body Works, multi-year journal made by my mom.

HOME minibook

“Home is the nicest word there is.”
-Laura Ingalls Wilder

This post is almost a year in the making... a year ago we were anticipating our move to South Carolina but dreading saying good-bye to our house in Georgia. [Of course after the headaches of actually selling it, we drove away in February with hardly a tear in our eye.] It was the house that made us homeowners, and we loved it dearly.

I dreamed of showing my someday children the first place we called "home," but it's not in a location that we'll just happen to drive past. I also didn't want to forget the many details that made it special to us. Inspired by Elise Blaha Cripe's "This is Home" minibook, I set out to document our house in a minibook of my own.

Before we moved, I snapped photos of each nook and cranny and wrote the story of each room. I wanted to record how we changed the house to make it ours as well as the mundane details of where we stored our everyday stuff.

I put the layouts together in InDesign last summer, but at the time couldn't justify spending money on printing photos. Now that I'm working somewhat consistently again, I figured I'd splurge to make my project come to life.

I had a carnation pink 6"x6" American Crafts D-ring album, but I had to order more page protectors to fit all 42 pages. And, of course, pink doesn't really match my decorating style, so I took to the cover with shimmery green paint and woodgrain paper from Hobby Lobby. I topped it off with a painted wood house and chipboard Thickers from Amy Tangerine.

Now I can take comfort knowing that our first house will live not only in my heart but on my bookshelf, too!

Putting up a fence...

"Good fences make good neighbors"
-Mid-17th century proverb

The last three weeks have been absolutely crazy busy. Starting a new job, learning to balance my freelance work, and trying to unpack and organize our house... between all that, there has been little time for anything else. But, I couldn't leave you hanging without an update on our biggest home improvement project yet.

Up to now, our backyard has been wide open to the overgrown slope and ultimately to the woods behind the house, as well as open to our neighbors' yards on both sides... one of which has a habit of parking a truck back there(??). Neighbors' cats have called our grass home, neighbors' children have run through our yard, and once I even found a little girl sitting on our patio picking wildflowers.

But, none of that shall be a problem anymore. This past weekend we built a fence. Mainly Rob, his brother-in-law Dan, and Thomas did, but I unloaded and toted a few boards myself.

We sweated out getting approval from the homeowner's association in time (and, in fact, we actually started before we heard back) and were much relieved when the official signatures came in the mail on Saturday afternoon.

Dan has a lot of fence and general construction experience, and his knowledge was invaluable in purchasing the correct supplies, setting up level posts, and even troubleshooting when things didn't go as planned. While digging their first hole, they hit an irrigation line (hey, we learned that we have an irrigation system!) and while digging the last hole, they found a considerable amount of cement slab buried in the yard, but everything in between was pretty much smooth sailing. Rob might not quite agree with the term "smooth sailing" as this South Carolina clay is a beast to dig through (and, now Dan is out of work for the rest of the week due to pulled muscles).

However, I'm extremely grateful for all of their hard work. The result transformed our backyard. We will still have to stain it, build a gate, and probably replace a few warped boards, but in the mean time, I'll just sit on the patio and enjoy the view.

Digging out...

"If you look at your entire house as one unit of junk,you'll never do anything because the job is too overwhelming. Take it one drawer at a time." -Janet Luhrs

On Friday the movers came, unloaded the truck, and then left, leaving boxes upon boxes in their wake. I (and, Rob, too, when he wasn't distracted by March Madness!) have worked almost all day, every day since then trying to unpack.

There's been a lot of trashing and weeding out as well, but suffice it to say, we've got a lot of stuff. And, especially since we're downsizing a bit... where does all of this stuff go?

And, while it may not look like it (you still have to watch your step... there are boxes, both full and empty, everywhere), I promise we're making a little bit of progress.

More to come soon...

A towel conundrum...

“I only sing in the shower. I would join a choir, but I don’t think my bathtub can hold that many people.
”
-Jarod Kintz

As we're wrapping up the toilet re-install and bathroom stall makeover, we're ready to actually begin using our master shower. However, one thing has us stumped. Where do we hang our towels??? [Granted, I realize that this is totally a first-world problem... and we wouldn't die if our towels lay on the floor, but... a girl can't help but want some pretty in her house.]

So, all-knowing internet, help me out! How and where would you store at least two bath towels in this set-up?

The challenges are that the shower door opens clockwise, so that the 12" of wall to the left of the shower is behind the door, while the 12" of wall to the right of the shower is extremely short. The ledge is narrow... maybe 8". The wall of the shower that faces the tub is glass, so you can't exactly attach a towel bar there. That door to the left of the shower leads to the master closet, which I foresee rarely being closed all the way.

I'm hoping that there's some obvious answer that I've just overlooked... Please share any suggestions you have and/or ideas you've seen. Discussion begins... NOW!

Best seat in the house...

“The flush toilet, more than any single invention, has 'civilized' us in a way that religion and law could never accomplish.”
-Thomas Lynch

Rob's big project for the week was remodeling the toilet stall in our master bathroom. What started out as "let's check and make sure this stain on the floor doesn't mean a leak" turned into  "while we're at it, let's install new flooring, paint the walls, and rebuild the toilet itself."

The process via my Instagram feed: 1. It's fun watching them do all of the work; 2. A hair dryer works wonders; 3. The trash pile is growing; 4. Our toilet's in the middle of the bathroom; 5. Painting white trim white # ohtheexcitement; 6. No wonder I feel like im going crazy... I've been staring at a blue wall and sniffing paint fumes for two days straight.

It helps to see where we started. Just a nothing-too-special little room, with khaki walls, a stained linoleum floor, and a broken foam toilet seat.

And, here's what it looks like now. Amazing, huh? Hardwood-like vinyl floors, fresh new trim paint, blue walls (paint color: Olympic Smoke Blue), fixtures spray painted oil-rubbed bronze, and a brand-new toilet seat.

Not only does it have an updated look, but it looks pretty fancy inside the tank, too.. Rob installed a dual-flush mechanism to save water... press the flush handle up for liquid waste and down for solid waste. Hooray for a high-tech toilet!

Laundry room love...

“We should all do what, in the long run, gives us joy, even if it is only picking grapes or sorting the laundry.”
-E. B. White

As mentioned in the last post, the laundry room was my area to decorate (with no complaints from Rob!). It was all mine.

When I pinned this herringbone laundry room (pictured below) from Design Build Love, I knew I needed this funky pattern in mine, too. And, it was also a perfect excuse to participate in the Winter edition of the Pinterest Challenge.

I mocked up the pattern in Illustrator before I started... didn't want to find myself stuck in the middle of the project not knowing what to paint next. My wall is 6ft by 8ft, and I divided it into four columns and 8 rows. I gathered a bunch of paint swatches and compared them to the khaki walls already there. I bought a quart of semi-gloss paint in each of the following colors: Valspar Tequila, Valspar Colony Sand, and Olympic Summer Breeze. (A quart was more than enough, but the smaller sample cans were not available in semi-gloss. Boo.)

On Friday afternoon, this is what my laundry room looked like. Boring, sad khaki walls... don't worry, I'll rescue you.

I used 1" Scotch brand Edge-Lock tape to create my paint boundaries. I used the string/weight technique that I've seen Young House Love use to get perfectly straight vertical lines. I'm a believer... it worked!

I used a small roller to roll each color into its designated area. I let it dry overnight, and then the next morning, did one more quick swipe over areas that needed a second coat.

On Sunday afternoon I peeled back the tape, oohing and aahing as the pattern emerged.

We hung the shelf back up, and now I'm just waiting for the washer and dryer (it's delivered with the rest of our furniture next Friday). In the next couple of weeks, be on the lookout for a couple more "pinspired" projects to finish it up!

If you want to check out some other projects in the Winter edition of the Pinterest challenge, click on over to Katie’s, Ana’s, Erin’s, and Sherry's.

Heard 'round the house...

"I am thankful for a lawn that needs mowing, windows that need cleaning and gutters that need fixing because it means I have a home.... I am thankful for the piles of laundry and ironing because it means my loved ones are nearby."
-Nancie J. Carmody

We have many projects currently in progress or on our to-do list. But, this is the blank slate which we're working from. As we make progress and dream about the future, we are gaining a new sense of appreciation for home maintenance as well as a new sense of humor as the DIY projects take on a life of their own.

Here is a sneak peek of our new home (most photos are from our first tour of the house), as well as some snippets of recent conversations around here...

J: (while washing windows) I'm not sure I ever washed the windows in our old house. In fact, I'm not sure I've ever washed windows this thoroughly in my entire life.

R: (randomly while walking downstairs to get a screwdriver) I really love this floorplan.

J: You can decorate the garage however you wish, but the laundry room is all mine!

 

R: You know what the good thing about having a window in the closet is... when you wake up and don't know how to dress for the weather, you can just look outside.

R: I like to leave all switches in the "off" position.

J: [After noticing that Rob installed the deadbolt on the garage door backwards] So, we need to have a key to get outside, eh?

 

R: I love having a utility sink in the garage... that's why we bought this house, you know.

J: I know.

R's coworker: I saw you at Lowe's on Saturday.
R: What time was it? I was there at 8 in the morning, 3 in the afternoon, and 6 at night.