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Ahhh, so excited about our new living room furniture! Nothing was wrong with our previous furniture, but I really wanted something different. We bought our furniture 5 years ago right after we got married and purchased our first home. It worked, it was neutral (a must for me) and I loved the nailhead trim. But…over the last year or so, I was no longer crazy about the nailhead trim. We wanted something more durable, tailored, sophisticated- yet super comfortable. I really love the single bench cushion sofas and I like the relaxed look of linen.
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Hello! When we moved into our new custom home in December of 2017, I knew I wanted to have a pretty walk in pantry. Well, we got everything except for the pretty. 🙂 It had the standard wire shelves and they worked fine, but were far from impressive. When we built our home, I chose a french door to the pantry and a pretty chandelier because I knew we would eventually add wooden shelves and not only make it more functional for our family, but also pretty. Well, that time has come!
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Hi! Sorry that I haven’t posted recently, I have no excuse other than being crazy busy. Summer is here and we have a busier schedule of gymnastics, swimming and all the other the fun summer things I’m sure you’re doing as well! However, I want to show you guys our deck makeover and I am so excited about it! We replaced our oversized table and chairs with an outdoor sectional sofa and couldn’t be happier.
Our previous home had a massive deck and so we had outdoor furniture that fit to scale. We moved into our new house in December of 2017 and this home has a smaller deck and the large outdoor table just consumed the space. You seriously had to shimmy past the huge table to just sit down. I loved it, but it just doesn’t work in the allotted space.
We decided that instead of a table, lounge-style seating might be more functional for our family. I wanted to maximize the seating while still having space and prevent crowding. An outdoor sectional was the obvious winner. We have discussed the possibility of screening in our deck (someday) because we want a place to just relax and kick back with a little shade or to enjoy watching a good thunderstorm! We honestly didn’t use the dining table much and none of us really eat outside (I freak out if a fly even lands near my food). #crazy
So I searched online for an outdoor sectional. I found this one at The Home Depot for the best price!! We paid $750 but it’s currently on sale for $660.95!! I debated between the one we ended up buying or this one with the “X” on the ends. My husband wasn’t crazy about the “X’s” but I thought they were cute! Since he generally doesn’t care about home furnishings, I wanted to choose something he actually verbalized liking! LOL The set comes complete with the cushions and the coffee table. Best part? My husband was able to put it together in a little over an hour.
We both felt like a sectional would best maximize the space and also allow us all to lounge on it together comfortably. Our daughter really didn’t like to just sit at the table; she would get uncomfortable and bored. This seating arrangement allows her to lay back and hang out.
I wanted cream colored cushions and my mom didn’t understand why I would choose something light that would be outside. However, dark cushions fade quite a bit from the sun and also show everything – similar to a dark car. I figure I can hose them off or clean them with some outdoor fabric cleaner and store them in the winter months.
I did put teak oil all over the wood furniture before bringing it out on the deck. This will help protect it from the weather elements and fading/cracking/peeling. It was surprisingly easy and took less than 45 minutes to do all of it. I’m not really sure how often you are supposed to do it, but I plan on doing it every season. I also sprayed on an outdoor fabric water repellent that helps protect the cushions. They also have zippers so I can take them off to wash them if necessary.
Overall, we love it! I still need to get my husband to hang some string lights, but for the most part our deck is done! We are currently working on some major plans to the landscaping in the backyard and putting in a paver or flagstone patio that extends off our deck. There will be additional seating, a retaining wall, koi pond and firepit. Stay tuned!
Hi! I am back with another post this week to show you guys our master bathroom. As with most rooms in this house, I created a design board. Building a custom home is awesome but can be scary since there isn’t an actual home to walk through to see what it will look like. So this was the template I used for what I had in mind.
Hi! Before I talk about the new lighting over our kitchen island, I want to say I am so grateful to Wayfair for sponsoring this post, (my first one!). As mentioned in my disclosures, I will only work with brands I trust and with products I love. That being said, we have some new island lighting!
Hi friends! As I have mentioned before, building a house or even doing a renovation can be a stressful situation, especially with so many options. When we began the process of building our current home, I knew I wanted beautiful countertops but also durable for normal, everyday use. So I wanted to show you the options that we chose and why. Let’s get to it!
Today, we are talking about playrooms! I didn’t have a dedicated playroom growing up (did any of us?!) but they have become more common in today’s households and to be honest, we love having one. I need everything to have a “space” to go and her playroom is a space in our house specifically for her toys. Of course, we do have a large wicker basket in our living room for toy storage for her to play if we are downstairs, but this playroom definitely serves its purpose. My aunt Brooke has an adorable playroom for her two girls and I asked her if I could include it in this post to show two different styles. We live just 2 blocks away from each other and our girls are the best of friends.
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Hi, guys! I’m so excited to announce I’ve been accepted to be a Wayfair Home Stylist! This was a huge goal of mine because I love Wayfair and its variety of home decor and convenience of shopping online. Basically, a Wayfair Home Stylist is a community of home decor enthusiasts selected by Wayfair as brand ambassadors. But officially:
“You are now part of a community of select interior designer influencers who inspire and guide people to find design schemes and home decor pieces that are just perfect for both their style and their budget! As one of our official Home Stylists, you serve as a brand ambassador and a tasteful and creative interior designer that we believe shares our vision that everyone should live in a home that they love.” – Wayfair Home Stylists Program
Well, maybe “update” isn’t the right word for a new construction home, but this little powder room was in desperate need of some personality. In recent years, I’ve noticed wallpaper is making a comeback in a big way and I am loving the look! I have a fear of design commitment, and I think a reason wallpaper is often considered outdated is that people tend to keep it forever. As a lover of home design and décor, nothing is forever in our house. 😊 So I began to search for a way to get the look of wallpaper without the commitment. Let’s start with a “before” photo, shall we? Nothing wrong with it other than plain and boring (and a dirty mirror).
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I am super excited to share our daughter’s playset makeover with you guys, but I need to be honest: an hour after I started this project, I regretted it. My feelings eventually changed once I got over a few hurdles, but the first day was a bit rough. OMG. It was 98 degrees outside and I was convinced this would be a quick weekend project. Um…no. However, I did love choosing the paint colors, the exterior “lights” and the decor. My husband had his own plans for landscaping the front of it and I just knew this would be such a cute playset once complete. I do have some tips that will hopefully save you some time should you dare try this project. Lol
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Hi friends! The holidays are approaching and that means you’re more likely to be entertaining guests. I love hosting and it’s nice to make sure your out-of-town guests are most comfortable. A few extra details can really make them feel welcome and relaxed.
Building a custom home is exciting but also incredibly stressful. I’ll be honest, the process is not always fun but is very rewarding and absolutely worth it. I had a pretty clear vision of what I wanted as far as layout, neighborhood, style, and size. If you don’t, that’s ok! These 10 tips should get you there.
Death of the dining room? Say it ain’t so! I’m realizing that more and more homeowners are eliminating the need for a separate dining room. They prefer it as an extension of their kitchen and would rather utilize the additional space for a home office or a larger living room. Our first house was laid out this way. It was one large room that served as the kitchen and dining space. Sure, I liked it. It was very functional and used daily but…I knew when we decided to build our home that I wanted the traditional dining room.
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Fall is officially here! Trick or treaters will soon be at your doorstep while family and friends visit to celebrate the holidays. What is the one space they will all see? The doorstep! The front porch is one of the first things people see when they approach your home. From the door mat to exterior lighting, I’ve got you covered!
As we built our home, I was super involved. The flooring was no exception. You’ll think I’m nuts, but when I ordered wood floor samples I would place them next to our dog that sheds in an attempt to blend with his coat. We don’t allow our dogs on our furniture so they lay on the floors all day. I swear the vacuuming is never ending so if I miss a day or two it won’t be horribly noticeable. These are just a few things I considered when choosing a lighter wood floor.
