Board and Batten

Hi friends! 

Well, that was quite the hiatus! Sorry I've been MIA. But, now I'm back with a fun update! 

This is phase two of the basement staircase makeover. 

Phase one was removing the door to the basement. 

Phase two was adding board and batten to the staircase and adding a fresh coat of dark gray paint... and removing the flowers which have a new, more appropriate, home in my niece's sweet bedroom :) 

This project took Corey.... an extended period of time to complete. But, it's finished now, and I'm really loving it! 

Before:

after

There is a third and final phase of this project, but it's not complete... or, even started yet ;) I'll be sure to share it when we're finished! 

Enjoy! 

Layering the Foyer

Hi friends!

I recently made a few changes to the foyer and added layers of items to change things up.


Here's the before:

To start, I took everything out and came up with an idea board.



For the first layer, I made a small sign- "gather" to add above the door.

Next, I found navy blue burlap curtains online and hung them to frame the sidelights on the door.

Finally, I replaced the small rug with a large jute rug.

Ta-da! The finished product.

Skirting the Bed

Hello Friends!

Finally posting a picture on the sewing project I was working on....well, months ago. I'm sure you've all been anxiously waiting to see the final result ;)

Isn't it strange that you can live with something for years and then notice it doesn't look finished? That's what happened with this bed skirt project. I don't think we've had a bed skirt since we've been married. I just never even thought about it. Corey did, and he let me know he thought it was weird. So then I reupholstered our headboard and as I was looking at the final product I thought that it didn't look finished  {and Corey was right. Don't you dare tell him I said that}.

 After looking for one online and not finding what I wanted I decided to make one.  I found some great charcoal linen fabric at Joann Fabric and used a naptime {and Starbucks, which is a very important key to creating beautiful things ;) }. Here's the deal, though- I suck at sewing. I don't sew regularly so I forget how things work and don't even get me started on re-threading a bobbin. Torture. So this project that should have taken me about 30 minutes took me two HOURS. Two very, very long hours. I was about ready to chuck that Starbucks and whip out the margarita maker. Things were tense ha! BUT! It's finished! And I love the final product and Corey doesn't think our bed looks lame anymore ;)

This is before- WAY before. Right after Corey built the panel wall behind the bed.

And, now for the after

Adios Doors

Since removing the door to the laundry room and LOVING it, I've been on the hunt for other doors to get rid of.

The latest door to be kicked to the curb is the one from the main floor to the basement. We rarely use the playroom downstairs and I have a suspicious feeling that it's because downstairs doesn't feel connected to the rest of the house, due in part to the door closing off the space. So then I started thinking that there's no door to the upstairs and there's not a problem as far as noise or anything so I ran to the garage, got my drill and removed the door. I immediately felt like I gained a ton of extra square feet. I haven't made any permanent changes- such as replacing the wood around the door frame to get rid of the hinge marks until I live with it for awhile but I think it's safe to say that door isn't coming back.

Updated Laundry Room

Hi, Friends!
We've (you should know, most of the time "we" = Corey when it comes to the actual work. I just come up with the idea, plans, decor, and occasionally painting) updated the laundry room! Hallelujah!

Here's the before: Cramped, unorganized, and a door that was never used.

The goal was to create a bright, welcoming space that made me love doing laundry ( just kidding, I mean, It's not a magic laundry room).
It is pretty, though :)
The wall color is "Calming Moments" one of my favorites. When we first moved into our house three years ago this was the very first room that was painted and I still love the color. First, we decided to remove the door because it took up too much space, and we have never closed it. Next, Corey removed the old vinyl flooring and tiled with large rectangle gray ceramic. After that, we replaced the wire shelves with cheap cabinets from Lowes that I painted French Linen and Corey made wooden shelves (painted the same color). Then Corey added board and batten to the wall that I painted no fewer than three times since I accidentally painted it first with white ceiling paint. Pain in my butt.
Here is the finished product! If you need me, I'll be doing laundry ;)

Night Life

Hello, friends!

We've started working on curb appeal for our house- a couple new bushes and plants so for Mothers Day this year I knew exactly what I wanted- outdoor lighting for our front yard. It didn't take long to instal and I LOVE the results! Instant curb appeal. 

Sorry that I'm so terrible at photos! 😁

Hilton The Fig Tree

Hello there!

I'm back to share what I picked up in our recent vacation- a fig tree! There's an adorable little garden and antique store on Hilton Head Island (my favorite place on earth) and when I saw this little tree I knew I had to have him. 

Everyone, meet Hiton the fig tree 😉

I'm not very good at keeping things alive so hopefully he'll make it at my house. I don't know anything about fig trees but I really like the symmetry 😁

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!