2014 Make-over Brainstorm

Confession: I love lists. I'm that person that will write a list just to check things off. If I did something I forgot to add to the list I'll write it at the bottom just so I can cross it off. For some reason looking at a list with lots of things checked off is so satisfying. I know I'm not the only person who does this. Admit it. You love lists too.

Lately I've been making all sorts of mental lists of all the things I want to accomplish in our new condo. I've made boards on my Pinterest page full of DIY projects I want to tackle and decor inspiration for each room of our home. Finally I decided it was time to make a real list. This past weekend I took the time to go through each room of our home and jot down things that needed changing, ideas I have brainstormed over the past few months, and projects waiting to be accomplished. I decided to type up the list so that it will hopefully keep me focused, motivated, and besides, looking at all the things crossed off at the end of the year is going to be oh-so-satisfying. You with me? 

I decided to share my list with you here complete with a couple of inspiration photos. I think sharing it openly will not only hold me accountable to the list, but I hope it will also serve as an extra kick in the butt to get myself motivated to cross things off that list! Since the baby is expected to arrive any minute now, I won't promise anything in particular like completing one item a week since that will most likely be impossible until I get rest and heal and get the little one into somewhat of a routine. But, I will say, I plan to start to use my time more wisely. I think it will be a much needed skill with an infant. This means, nap time is going to be precious. 

I guess I should head to the local craft store and home improvement store to stock up on a few supplies to last me a few projects just so I have the needed items on hand to make the best of any down time I do find between naps, feedings, and general chaos of learning to be a parent. 

So bear with me through the coming weeks and months, but here is our 2014 home improvement bucket list if you will:

1.    Entryway

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·         Hooks for keys

·         phone charging station

·         DIY extra pegboard for entry wall

·         Wall art

·         Shoe rack

·         Large rug

2.    Kitchen

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·         Clock

·         Wooden sign for above doorway to dining room

·         Organize under counter cabinet

·         Organize Evan’s eating supplies

·         Organize recipes

·         Wall art 

·         Spice rack

·         Decorate white canisters

·         Recycling bin solution

3.    Dining room

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·         Indoor herb garden

·         Install open shelving above hutch

·         Wine Rack

·         Rug

·         Re-paint table and chairs

4.    Porch

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·         Window boxes for herb garden

·         String lights on balcony

·         Outdoor rug

·         DIY wind chime

5.    Living Room

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·         New pillows or pillow covers

·         Clock

·         Mantel or shelf above fireplace

·         Small table for between reading chairs

·         Bench by staircase

·         Dress up bookcases

·         Replace blinds with curtains and pull-backs

·         Add wall art behind the couch and on fireplace wall

6.    Half Bathroom

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·         Replace existing towel racks 

·         Ask permission to take down wallpaper and re-paint

·         Shelving for above the toilet

7.    Stairway

·         Map/wall art

8.    Full Bathroom

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·         Repaint pegboard

·         Wall art

·         Install shelf above toilet

9.    Office Area

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·         Scrapbook supply organization system

·         Paint filing cabinet

·         Shelving for craft supplies

·        Inspiration/memo board for above desk

·         Repaint desk and chair

·         Organize desk

·         Organize home binders

10. Baby’s Room

·         Add wall art

·         White shelf 

·         DIY trashcan

11. Bedroom

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·         Wall Art above bed

·         Repaint dresser

·         Repaint night stands

·         Under-the-bed storage solution

·         Mirror for above dresser

·         Makeover headboard

12. Garage

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·         Organize sports gear

·         Create tool area

·         DIY project station

·         Organize gardening supplies

13. Laundry Room

·         Clean and organize

14. Front Door

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·         New door mat

·         Basket/potted flowers

Do you have a list like this for your home projects? What's one home project you have been wanting to do, but have not yet tackled? I dare you to do it!

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In LOVE with Spring

Just stopping by the blog today to say.....

Frank and I are not doing much for the holiday this year. We opted to save the money and energy for prepping for the baby instead. But! I hope you all have a great day with your loved ones however you choose to celebrate. 

One thing I enjoy about this time of year is that Valentine's Day means we're half way through February...which means we're about a month away from Spring!! Don't get me wrong, I love snow. I grew up in New England and have a huge appreciation for the white stuff, but this year it's been a bit excessive and I'm ready to begin decorating and preparing for that glorious first day you can just smell Spring air and all the windows can be opened. I love that day. 

So, in the spirit of pretending there isn't 18 inches of snow outside my door and in the spirit of being half way through February...I thought I'd share a few inspirational photos with you. I've been collecting ideas for some Spring projects and decorating ideas and I'm getting so antsy to get started! 

To view the source, just click on the links below each photo. Enjoy! And have a wonderful long weekend...full of dreams of Spring and hopefully no more snow. 

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Wednesday Wish List: Entryway Dreaming

Happy hump day everyone! I feel like this week is going by extra slow, but I think that's because the last two weeks I only worked a total of 2 1/2 days! It was such a wonderful break, but now that I'm in the midst of an actual normal 5 day work week the transition is proving to be a bit brutal.

This week I've been finding myself day dreaming about all the projects swimming around in my head for our new condo. Decorating and creating a cozy home is definitely a process and requires layers of work and time. Sometimes I wish it didn't take time and I could just imagine the perfect space and poof! it would appear. But then I'd have nothing to do with my time...so there's that.

Today I want to share some ideas that I have for our entryway. We have a very small entry way that opens immediately into our kitchen. There is not room for a table or hutch of any sort and unfortunately the coat rack that we love (a wedding gift from my cousin) couldn't go where I wanted it. Our fuse box is right on the wall next to where I wanted it and the screws kept on hitting the box making it impossible to hang properly. We ended up having to put the coat rack behind the door which leaves us an empty wall that people see when they open the door.

We also started to create a drop station on what was once a breakfast bar. We opted out of the breakfast bar in order to utilize the under-the-cabinet space for extra storage. But, the area of the cabinet closest to the door is a perfect place for a tiny drop station. We hung the bulletin board I made by the door to display invitations, reminders and important mail (and of course pictures of Baby D), but we have a long way to go with the space to make it more inviting and more functional.

Here are some ideas I've been brainstorming:

1. First of all, we need a better place to store wet, snowy, or muddy shoes when we first enter. Right now we have them on a door mat, but it doesn't prevent the floor from getting dirty since we don't have the door mat where it should be when you take your first step inside.

Here's what I'm thinking.

A better doormat--something like this simple, but inviting rug from Ikea.

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Then, we need a place for us and our guests to store shoes. Either a shoe rack, or this genius DIY drip dry tray by Dollar Store Crafts.

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2. In order to keep things organized by our drop station, I'm thinking some hooks underneath our bulletin board for keys would be both functional and prevent those mornings when I'm late and searching for my keys. It's also super cute!

I'm thinking a piece of reclaimed wood (or faux reclaimed wood) or even a piece of driftwood with pretty hooks like this one made with hooks from Hobby Lobby. 

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Or even just a row of simple hooks like these:

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3. The entryway need some character. I'm brainstorming some quick decorations and DIY projects that might help to make that small space feel a bit like a separate area but also welcoming to our guests. 

I love baskets. They can totally work for any season. I also would love a bench, but I'm not sure if one would fit in our entryway unless it was very, very narrow. 

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I also need to find a way to make that big blank wall less blank. I'd love to fill it with a black and white gallery wall full of family photos mixed with some geometric art. Or a nice big rustic welcome sign with a few frames with photos underneath it or even a few wood boards to hang photos or artwork casually.

 Check out these great inspirational examples. All of these things could be hung with 3M strips solving our fuse box issue. 

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I know I have plenty of work to do, but with a few DIY projects and some creativity I think I can totally make our entryway work. I'm excited to get started one project at a time. I'll definitely keep you updated along the way. 

I'd love to know how you've made your entryway a  functional and welcoming space at your home! Please share in the comments--I'd love to hear from you!

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Nursery Inspiration and Progress

So after months of brainstorming ideas for our little boy's nursery it has finally come time to make it happen. Since the beginning I was determined to pick a theme that was neutral so that I don't have to go out and purchase completely new things if we have a girl down the road. But, I wanted to be able to add a few little boy touches along the way.

Here are some photos that served as my inspiration. We chose to go with a tan, grey and mint green color scheme with elephants as the theme which worked out perfectly, because apparently elephants are everywhere in nursery decor world. Win.

Color Scheme: Neutral palette with pops of mint green. Mixes of white and wooden furniture.

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Accents & Decor: Rustic boyish accents and lots of DIY projects. Simple clean lines and a mixture of fabrics and textures. 

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So as far as our progress goes we have painted the room a greyish/seafoam color that appears minty on the walls next to white furniture and grey accents. Not quite a bright mint which is great because I didn't want anything too bright. We also finished putting together the crib...well FRANK put together the crib and I watched with excitement.

Next on the list:

• DIY mobile
• DIY yarn wrapped letters
• put together dresser/changing table
• get rocking chair and seat cushion
• loads of organizing
• DIY wall art

I am hoping to finish the first item on the list, the baby's mobile, this week! Hopefully that means a tutorial soon. Here's a sneak peek. 

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Crisp Air

There's just something about the first crisp day. I know, I know...Autumn doesn't actually begin until September 22nd. But I think that's just silly. To me, Autumn starts with the first crisp day. As soon as that happens, in my home the pumpkin candles come out, I start baking things with pumpkin ingredients, and I start brainstorming the many ways I could start decorating with cozy accents for the season.

Can't you just smell the pumpkin through this post!? mmmm. September and October are truly my favorite months of the year. I love digging out the cozy sweaters, cuddling in blankets on the couch, picking apples and pumpkins and baking delicious fall treats. So all you Autumn haters out there: I'm sorry but this is my season!

It also helps that I have finally been feeling a bit more like myself. I was hoping to only have to take a very short break from the blog, but that "break" turned into a 6 week hiatus. To tell you pregnancy is exhausting would be an under statement. To all of you out there who have had children: I have SO much more respect for you now! ...and I have somehow ended up one of the rare lucky ones that didn't get sick. (don't hurt me). But, I'm pretty sure that I payed for that with super extra exhaustion. I feel like August just didn't happen because I was either busy working at my new job, forcing pizza, pasta, and toast down my throat hoping not to gag and sleeping...but "sleeping" means falling asleep only to wake up the next hour to use the bathroom anddddd repeat for the next 7 hours. Not pleasant.

Anyway, we are now at week 14 and I am starting to feel my energy creeping back slowly along with my appetite. I still cannot even look at chicken unless it's fried and slathered with buffalo sauce. Vegetables are only good if they are hidden in some way like in a wrap or panini or in spaghetti sauce. And black beans are still out of question along with hummus, both of which used to be staples of my diet. Apparently Baby D is picky. Eating has become somewhat of a chore lately due to both my neurotic appetite and lack of energy, but I'm determined to learn to use a crockpot--hopefully that will at least help the energy part. Recipes welcome.

Anyway, one of the things I am so excited about is to finally have the energy to pull our apartment back together and decorate for the season! First I plan to update our door with a new wreath. Pinterest has had some great ideas and I thought I'd include my top picks. Hopefully I'll have time to work on it this week so stop back for details!

Burlap: I love this, but it looks a bit complicated. I think you need a special type of wreath base to make the burlap all loopy.

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This wreath is from Etsy, but I could easily make this using a wreath base, a glue gun and some berries from a craft store.

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Same deal here...but I love the burlap bow. I'm a sucker for burlap. 

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I bet I could collect some twigs and make this just by glue gunning (verb?) them together and making a few felt rosettes.

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Colored burlap!!? Again, I'm a sucker for burlap. period. 

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This wreath is gorgeous, but I would definitely make this without the pumpkins. The monogram is a nice touch, though. 

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  Tell me: What do you think? Which wreath would you choose to make?

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