chandelier change-up

i am getting to be pretty satisfied with my living room/dining room area. (a place that has always felt..not very us).

for instance, the chandelier over the kitchen table. when we moved in, it was brass! we slapped a coat of black spray paint on it to make it go from this (take note of that delicious wallpaper border that was throughout the entire house).

 to this

 much better. but recently, i've been wanting a change (who'd have guessed?)

so i tried taking off those little lampshades. it really brightened up the room, 

but i put the shades right back on. 

i always see chandelier shades in ballard design, so i whipped out my magazine and 

spotted these little beauties

and then realized replacing my shades would cost me over 100 beans!!

needless to say, i'm in search of a new light fixture. 

WHAT WE'VE DONE TO MAKE THE DINING AREA MORE US:

paint chandelier

great grandma's 100+ year old table

4 white parsons chairs

floating shelves

new curtains

living room update: new couch

it's crazy how much of a difference a new couch can make. we went from a tiny brown couch to a huge, grey sectional recently, and it has been a-mazing. 

let's recap.

this photo was only taken for craigslist

ugh. alright, that's enough. onto bigger, better things:

enter karl. our mammoth of a sofa. 

sorry for the lighting and angle, there's no way to photograph the whole thing nicely. 

but, man-oh-man, right? he's everything i've ever wanted in a couch. 

deep. enough to spoon. 

big. enough to lay on with jeremy and still, somehow, not touch. (and j's over 6' tall)

i have been on the couch with all 3 dogs at once and no one was touching the other! 

grey. 

kinda swanky.

my living room photographs horribly, because the walls don't look much different. but they went from light taupe to a moody grey. and my mom sewed those ikat pillows for me from leftover curtain material!

(and disregard the lamp behind the couch..i'm searching for a replacement. 

it's nice, but it's never been our style).

photo box

i've been in need of a new photo box for awhile now. i mean, i know what i had was aesthetically pleasing, but it just wasn't functional. 

so, on our weekend trip to dallas, we stopped by an ikea where i grabbed two kassett boxes (two of them for five bucks)! and i knew exactly where they were going..

before

so, i killed two birds with one stone by organizing my photos and cards, and brightening up the dark void of the entertainment center. 

after

________________________________________________

i've had plans for that big brown box since i bought him almost a year ago. he's exactly twelve inches wide (perfect for my future sofa table), and will look great with a bright coat of paint.

shut the front door

seriously, because it's hideous.

i have never been so appalled by a door in all my life.

when we moved in, the door was peeling a bit for lack of a good stain/seal. 

and after three years of thinking, i really need to sand and stain the front door, and even buying the stain, i finally didn't do anything.  

every time i looked at it, it was worse and worse. 

and after power washing it the other day, i actually made it look even more hideous. 

didn't think that was possible. 

i thought what was left of the chipping stain would all come off easily. but it barely came off. 

i'll show you. but, brace yourself.

i think it's going to need some intense sanding and some hardcore paint. 

(i don't think a stain would ever cover it evenly).

also, can you see the botched trim job? 

imagine those lovely mitered corners (ha!) all throughout my house. 

thanks, previous owner. 

EXTERIOR ENTRY TO DO:

paint door

fix/replace doorbell

paint bench

new trim

powerwash patio

i didn't even know our patio was dirty until the powerwasher accidentally got away from me and i saw the color difference. so after hours of spraying, it went from greenish-black to the color of actual concrete. 

before                 &                   after

a little front yard change-up

not too long ago, when my mom and dad were over, we were all doing yard work in the front yard. i don't know what got into me, but i had the idea to rip up some huge, unsightly bushes. 

 and my dad's answer to getting rid of them was to pull them out with a strap and his truck. 

gotta love that guy.

so in a matter of minutes, our front yard went from this:

to this

you can see the mess of shrubs that lined the driveway 

in the second picture--those are all gone now, too.

there was some crazy plant growing around the pear tree in the front yard that is gone now as well.

i couldn't bring myself to get rid of this bright yellow bush. maybe my front door will get a little yellow action to match him.

office organization

another room down!

the office had gotten a bit out of control--kind of a catchall room

remember the good old days when it was spotless?

let's just have this drawer represent the entire room:

and this same drawer represent the room now:

i think i just heard you sighing a sigh of relief.

another day organized

i realize that these aren't the most entertaining posts, but, small as they are, they make a big difference. 

i am on a mission to organize (and throw out/donate everything i don't need) one space each day. 

here are the many places have been known to accumulate crap in my house:

1. junk drawers in kitchen

2. the kitchen table! (i did that yesterday, too)

3. "tupperware" drawer in kitchen

4."spice cabinet" in kitchen

before                   &                      after

5. mail sorter on fridge (cleaned it out this week)

5. decorative bins/boxes in the tv stand

6. entryway table drawers..all four

7. office table

8. office shelves

9. on top of washer and dryer (usually sheet sets)

10. guest bathroom drawers 

wowza, ten!!

maybe i'll tackle the office today since i have a bunch of homework to do.

junk drawers

i was telling jeremy lasy night--we have two storage ottomans that we recently recovered, and they're completely empty! nobody knows they're empty but me, 

but knowing they're not filled with junk makes me feel really good.

i was reading somewhere that every house should have an empty shelf. i think that's where the satisfaction comes from. just knowing something is clutter free. 

so, in an effort to get more and more organized (baby steps, people!), i ransacked my kitchen junk drawers. 

that's plural.

before                        &                           after

before                      &                          after

key art

when i saw these shadowbox frames on the shelf at tj maxx, i grabbed 'em up quick! two of them! 

i've been searching for a small shadowbox frame for a long time now. the only ones i have found were at hobby lobby (and they were way too big and way too expensive).

these 4x6 babies were only $3.99!

and after cutting some sparkly scrapbook paper and adding a dot of hot glue, i've got a little 

"our first house key" art.

instagram teasers: spring has sprung

according to instagram, the laws house has been busy, busy. 

on monday, my mom and i went to lowes to grab some lumber for a console table project for behind the new couch that came last week! (more on that soon, i promise)

i am aiming toward something à la young house love. 

&

today, we bought a lawnmower! yay! we've burned through two hand-me-down mowers in the past, so this time we traded up for something a little beefier, shinier, and self-propelled-ier.

 ain't she a beaut? 

so we got down and dirty all day long today. weeding, mowing, sweeping, cleaning, heck--we even busted out dad's power washer to get the laws casa ready for a good, old-fashioned paint job!

spring has sprung! 

what are ya'll up to?

update: you can see the finished console table project here!

weird blank wall (office)

i snagged some cute wall hangings at target for five bucks on clearance. i thought they'd be funny in the office.

maybe in the future, i'll add a white frame around all three.

"new" curtains

i have (once again) changed out my cornice board in the living room/kitchen. this particular cornice board once lived in my apartment and was a pretty green/brown fabric. once we moved into the house, it got another update and was a bold, cheerful floral. well, i'm at it again--only this time i used blue ikat shower curtains from clearance at bed bath and beyond!!

i snagged the shower curtain the second i saw it (i had a gift card from my bridal shower) and when i checked out, i asked if they had any others. since it was on clearance, the didn't, but they ordered it online and shipped a second to me for free!

so i had these two beautiful curtains and i knew they would live in my living room. 

i covered my original cornice board and got a second cornice board from my mom's attic. the curtains were from my apartment and i thought i was over them (they were in the donation pile in the garage), but i am so glad i still had them. i think they look awesome!

i also made a window cover for over the kitchen sink to tie it all together (and for privacy from one of the weirdest neighbors i've ever met).

better photos to come--and an entire living room reveal.

house crashing: downtown

prepare ourself for a slew of pictures

thanks to my awesome nanny family, i got to stay in a fabulous house downtown before they moved back to california. the house was right up my alley--very new-meets-old craftsman style.

so without further adieu, the bentonville bungalow:

wouldn't you love coming home to this ever day?

(it's my dream door!)

the living room as you walk in the door (master to the right--but the baby was sleeping in there)

 dining/conference room (this area is known for its business folk who rent out places like this one)

both bedrooms had gorgeously updated bathrooms, too.

it's these little original elements that really got me. but..this kitchen:

 made me want to robin's-egg-blue my cabinets at home!

off the kitchen was a laundry room and a precious two piece bathroom.

beautiful, no? 

sorry for the picture quality. this house is rentable! just click here. 

(plus there are a-mah-zing photos)