I finally feel like I have something to update you all on! We’ve been in that yucky middle part that I dread so much. It’s where things slow way down and it seems like NOTHING IS HAPPENING. Usually, you’re waiting on someone to do something and it’s where I lose all motivation. The good news is, I’m learning this about myself which means I can learn to be prepared for it. This is my fourth house to remodel in two years and it’s happened every single time. The yucky middle is where I lose motivation. So now that we’re coming out of the uneventful middle, I figured it’s time for an update! Continue reading
Category Archives: Home
Home sweet home!
Old House Plans – The Front Porch
One of the main questions I get about the new, old house is if I’m opening the front porch back up. The short answer — no. The porch is currently enclosed with old crank windows all the way around. I’m not sure when the open porch was closed in, but my guess is that it’s been that way for a very long time.
30 Day Update
It’s been right at one month since I closed on this diamond in the rough. It’s amazing how much has changed in such a short time, and I’m pretty jazzed about it. These photos were all taken last night, so I could show you what’s been done lately. Continue reading
Condo Living
One of the main questions I get from people I haven’t seen in a bit is, “How do you like living in the condos?” The short answer — I love it! Here’s what I like about it:
My tip top favorite thing about living here is being on the water and the views. My camera roll is full of photos of that bridge in different lights. The clouds are beautiful and I wake up every morning to the sunrise in my bedroom window. Not being a “morning person,” having that view to see when I first wake up is motivation to go ahead and open my sleepy eyes! Sunny days, cloudy days, and stormy days — they’re all a beauty on the river. Continue reading
Old House: This Week’s Progress
The house looks a lot different this week!
Kitchen cabinet demo is almost done! We were able to remove that fabulous sink and it looks like it is salvageable. I’m excited that there’s wood under the kitchen ceiling too! We uncovered some old wallpaper there which was an interesting find. I’m sure it was really pretty during its time. There’s not wood under that breakfast nook addition and I’ll either add more bead board or sheetrock that area. I’d really like to understand why the bead board is cut into pieces like it is on the one side. Oh, the unanswered questions. Also, there might be wood under the paneling walls. Fingers crossed. Continue reading
Two Weeks of Demo
It’s been a productive few weeks with the old house renovation project. Demo always moves along the quickest and has the biggest impact. Eventually, I’ll share my plans/struggles/ideas for each room. For now, just try to use your imagination the best you can. Things are moving fast over here! If you don’t remember what it looked like before, you can start here. Continue reading
100 Year Old House – Before
There’s this 100 year old house. I saw its pictures online and took a spin to look at it up close, to see if it might be a good investment. I walked in, observing its slanted floors and dated fixtures. Noticing its potential. I envisioned turning that one room into a third bedroom and reconfiguring the kitchen. I imagined people gathering for parties and kids playing in the big yard. Next thing I knew, I envisioned myself there. Continue reading
The North Louisiana Flood – A Year Later
I tried so many times to write about the flood. I spread as much positivity as possible during that terrible time and I wanted to share what the roller coaster of emotions was really like. However, I never had the words. Honestly, I lost my voice entirely for a bit. I tried to write to make sense of things and I just didn’t have the words.
March 1, 2016
I stumbled upon what would have been a blog post for the first week of March 2016. I wrote this post just 8 days before our lives were turned upside down from the flood. I decided to share it today as an example of just how quickly everything can change. I would have never guessed that just a few days later, all my plans and ideas of what the month was going to look like would be entirely different.
Why I Avoided Pinterest During our Remodel
Let’s face the facts. We all love Pinterest. And if you don’t, I basically don’t understand you at all. So. Many. Cool. Ideas.
I’m a firm believer in taking time to get inspired and Pinterest is pretty much the best place to find inspiration, whether it be for your home, wardrobe, hobbies, or work. The ideas are endless and you’re bound to come across something lovely and fascinating. Many projects and ideas of my own have been sparked by something I saw on Pinterest.
That being said, I pretty much stayed off Pinterest entirely during this last remodel. One would think that this would have been the perfect time to be glued to the mesmerizing service, and yet I stayed far, far away from it. Why? Because it was too much.
I am known for becoming overwhelmed by too many options and during a time when I had to make decisions FAST, I simply wouldn’t have been able to process all of the options. I did look through things I’d already pinned to remember ideas I’d had in the past. However, I firmly limited my exposure to new information and options.
Furthermore, I wanted to make decisions considering what was best for our particular home and how we intend to use it. I didn’t want to be persuaded in different directions because of a gorgeous photo I saw online. Instead, I wanted to stand in the remains of our home and determine what felt right. How have we always imagined this place looking? What would make it more usable to us and be conducive to our everyday routines? I knew that if I saturated my mind with all of the ideas and options, I would not only be overwhelmed, I might also make decisions that weren’t best for us here in this home.
I once stumbled upon an article about why someone doesn’t watch Fixxer Upper and my initial thought was – how lame! I thought this person must be a jealous, unimaginative person if they couldn’t separate their reality from that of the show. How could you not still be comfortable with what you had just because you watched a design show?? How could you not use those ideas as little doses of inspiration for your own home? I just didn’t get it. And while our situations are very different, I suddenly felt the need to limit my own exposure to the beautiful homes of the world.
Rather than scrolling endlessly and trying to employ every single cute idea on the internet, I used Pinterest as a tool for accomplish specific tasks. When I decided I wanted blue cabinets, I searched specifically for blue cabinets in hopes that I’d stumble upon a color I loved. (No such luck, by the way.) As I mentioned above, I did look through my previous pins and I had a pretty legit bathroom board going. I pulled my favorites from there and we rolled with it. When I struggling with how to fancy up the fireplace, I searched specifically for flat fireplace walls and pulled only the items that made sense in my home. I used Pinterest for the amazing tool that it is and yet still limited my exposure because I had to.
As a result of my Pinterest strategy, I avoided some of the overwhelm. (Let’s get real. Doing all that we did in the time that we did it was still overwhelming.) However, I know with certainty that I would have blown my own mind if I’d have allowed myself down that rabbit hole. As things come together here, I allow myself back into the wild a little more each day. And I go use Pinterest for its intended purpose – to see pretty things and save ideas for later.
If you’d like to see my inspiration board for the remodel, go right ahead! I just made it public and there’s some pretty awesome stuff in there. Go ahead. Go spend an hour with Pinterest. Just kidding. We all know you’ll be there longer than an hour if you open that app. Happy pinning, friends! Feel free to follow me if you see things you like there.
Photo Source: Sarah Sherman Samuel