724 South House

Neutral Fall Tablescape

noreply@blogger.com (Tricia | 724SouthHouse) — Thu, 29 Oct 2015 16:48:00 +0000

Now that everyone is probably sick of fall decorating posts, I decided it was about time to post about my fall tablescape this year. Great timing. I intended to do this earlier, but oh well- it's better late than never!

One of my most popular posts that I have done was my fall tablescape from two years ago. I still love this and wish I could have just kept it in storage to pull out every year- but unfortunately pumpkins don't last so most of it had to be pitched.

I did not do any fall decorating last year because I was in the throes of going back to work after a new baby and all my spare time at home was spent ogling over Max- I couldn't care less about pumpkins. But this year I decided it was time to pull the box back out and add some fall touches.

I decided to go neutral and green for this one. The only items I bought were the white and green pumpkins. Everything else I pulled from my basement stash or it was leftover from the previous centerpiece.

One of my favorite touches is definitely the sprigs. Gave it some interest, height, and a different kind of texture. Almost all of the sprigs and leaves were cut off a larger piece of fake foliage. One piece of that stuff from Michael's or Hobby Lobby can go a long way when you cut bits and pieces off.

While I prefer to decorate fall with the traditional colors of oranges and yellow, this was a fun take on the season- and the neutral scheme actually goes much better with my whole house. #Shocking

Same box- different take. Which do you prefer?

Check out my other fall decorating post from this year- here.

-Tricia

The South House Files + 10.9.15

noreply@blogger.com (Tricia | 724SouthHouse) — Fri, 09 Oct 2015 20:01:00 +0000

A little late, but was able to squeeze this in. Happy reading!

+ Sarah from Thrifty Decor Chick featured my entry on her latest Before and After post. I've been reading her for YEARS and I couldn't believe it when I saw my picture at the top of her page. I seriously thought my computer screen froze or was faulty or something. Anywho- it was very cool to see!

+ Did you hear Amazon has launched Handmade? It's basically their version of Etsy! I hope I'm wrong but I have a feeling this may be the beginning of the end for Etsy. ("Amazon Etsy Killer" shows up in the google search bar already...). With the way Amazon is taking over the world, I can imagine the convenience of selling/shipping for sellers and buyers is going to be hard to pass up- especially if you're a Prime customer. Time will tell.

Amazon Handmade

+ Amber Interiors has a fun before and after of her office. Can I just say- she always has the perfect rugs. She must be hiding them all in a storage unit so nobody else can find them. Seriously.

Original Source here

+ What does your couch say about you? I did not see a category for frumpy brown sectional, but I could write an excerpt for that if they need me to.... in fact I already did.

+ The Makerista definitely has her own style- I have been enjoying watching her transform her Colonial lately- including how she is working with her wood room. She just makes things work in a unique way. Also- her dining room is so cool.

Original Source here

+ So excited for Calling It Home's Fall 2015 One Room Challenge! This occurs twice a year and it's fun to follow the 6 week makeovers of the participating bloggers- and the bloggers who link up. This would be just the thing to get me going on certain rooms in my house.... I like deadlines. Hmmmmm. Side note- especially excited for Honey We're Home's nursery! I'm also very blog-world excited for her that she's expecting a baby. (Another one that I've been following for years!) Basically- lots of excitement.

Have a great weekend!

-Tricia

The South House Files + 10.2.15

noreply@blogger.com (Tricia | 724SouthHouse) — Fri, 02 Oct 2015 13:44:00 +0000

I was out of town last week so I wasn't able to pull together my Friday South House Files. But have no fear- I'm back with another round-up. Most of these finds are from my blog browsing from over a week ago so you may have already come across them. Either way- Enjoy!

+ Last week, The White Buffalo Styling Company hosted her Fall installment of "Blogger Stylin' Home Tours". It's basically all of my favorite internet people back to back. You should check it out. Lindsay also just moved into her renovated home and I'm excited to watch her decorating magic unfold. She's a good one to follow.

Original Source Here

+Eleven Gables has a tutorial for a beautiful faux flower arrangement. Looks expensive and relatively easy!

Original Source Here

+ I have a love/hate relationship with Anne Hathaway. I'm still not over the dress she wore for her Oscar win, but that doesn't mean I don't want to see her new movie "The Intern". This looks to be an easy movie where I wouldn't have to think "too hard", and also the set design looks amazing. This article has great pics and talks about how the filmmaker actually made Pinterest boards for each set she was envisioning... which made everyone's job much easier. #PinterestForTheWin #SorryHaters

Original Source here

+ The Most Cliche Travel Instagrams of all time. Even I'm guilty of one or two of these. Haha! This one is called "The Moment of Reflection". I'm not going to lie though- I would totally do this pose if I were lucky enough to be where this girl is in the photo. #Reflect

Original Travel Instagrammer

+ Another Step Back to Get Where You Need to Be. Julia Ryan speaks to me every. time. Especially her last post about admitting defeat and how you should go with your GUT in your home. (Reminds me of every house choice I make) Love her honesty and her real life posts. She's one of the first bloggers I ever followed- and there's a reason she's still in my blog feed.

+ I'm a sucker for Trendy Baby Name Lists- whether I actually take them seriously or not (mostly not). Here are 17 French Baby Names prime for an American takeover. Apparently British names are on their way out? Whatever. Still love you Prince George.

Prince George has made the blog...

Have a great weekend!

-Tricia

Happy October: Our Fall Mantel

noreply@blogger.com (Tricia | 724SouthHouse) — Thu, 01 Oct 2015 15:41:00 +0000

In honor of the first day of October, I decided to show you the only corner of my home that is decorated for fall.... and a little update on what I've been up to lately.

In the last few years, I have made a few of these kind of signs for Christmas presents, but have wanted to expand my collection for quite a while now. I decided to take one of my favorite fall quotes (inspired by this print) and smack some paint on this 30" x 33" sign that Nathan constructed and stained. This thing is huge and massive and heavy- but it's the perfect size for a statement piece on your mantel.

I tore into my box of fall foliage to finish off the mantel. (I have an overwhelming assortment- would hate to know how much I have spent on fake berries and leaves over the past few years). I think I would have liked real pumpkins up there, but I'm just using what I have. Not sure if I'm going to spend lots of money on pumpkins this year because I'm usually sick of them by November 1st and I'm on a #Budget.

If you're interested in a sign or canvas for your home- you can email me at 724SouthHouse@gmail.com. Mainly working with Louisville, Lexington, Cincinnati area, but shipping is also an option ($$$). The smaller version of the sign is 20" x 22". If you have a certain quote in mind- or would want something personalized for your home or wedding- I can work with you! I'm already working on a few custom orders that I'm excited about!

Below is another one that I have done- This is the smaller 20" x 22" version.

Thankfully, my friends have been very nice to me and I have not stopped painting since I posted about these last week on Facebook! Thanks Friends! Get ready for Christmas overload!

In the meantime, Happy October!

-Tricia

The Parts of My House That I Do Not Like

noreply@blogger.com (Tricia | 724SouthHouse) — Tue, 22 Sep 2015 13:53:00 +0000

OK. So that title does sound a bit negative, but I promise this post has a positive spin!

I'm here to let you in on the parts of my house that I just do. not. like. I'll venture to say that nobody is completely happy with their home. You may have inherited a college house with college furniture (there is literally a Led Zeppelin bar stool in our kitchen- can I just please GET IT TOGETHER and cover that thing?) or the couch you are sitting on is 30 years old and smells of your great aunt Helen or you're living in what feels like the most #basic apartment ever... For most people there are parts of your home that just make you want to curl up in a ball and cry. And while there are many spaces in my house I do LOVE- below are some of the parts in my home that I would like to chuck to the curb and start completely over.

+ The Astroturf front porch. Yes, I said Astroturf. My 85 year old neighbor has it as well and while we both agree it's comfortable on the feet, I could personally do without. However, the stuff is GLUED down and I don't think it's coming up in the next 20 years. We're just living with it and trying to find anything that complements what I would best describe as a "neon grass green with touches of a Hi-Glo tint".

+ My big bulky beige monster of a couch. Nathan bought this at the beginning of the house renovation because he needed a couch. It was probably a bad sign when the furniture salesman referred to the giant thing as a "Video Gamer Couch". That's all that needed to be said for Nathan and it was out the door with a "SOLD" tag. I don't think it's going anywhere anytime soon. I'm not going to lie... it IS the most comfortable couch in the world, but it's really hard to work with design wise. Exhibit A below.

+ Our guest room. Remember when we painted our guest room navy? (which I do still like) and then I painted the desk coral? Well that coral desk actually smells and is STILL tacky. I don't know if it was a bad batch of paint or we did something wrong. But I'm over the desk and over the trendy color scheme. At this point, I'm just holding out until it becomes Max's big boy room and I'm storing a bunch of junk in there in the meantime.

+ My dining room chairs. OK this one started out as a big dislike, but they have actually grown on me and I intend to keep them a little longer... maybe eventually have them recovered? These chairs are AT LEAST 25 years old (from my aunt and uncle). I sat on them when I was like 4 and I still sit on them and I am 29. #Math

+ My kitchen floor. While it's a perfectly good kitchen floor, I wish I would have put more thought into this one. This was one of the FIRST decisions we made and we literally just bought the cheapest tile at Lowes. We didn't have the money for an entire first floor of hardwood (and we didn't know what kind of hardwood we wanted) so we decided to go with tile for the kitchen. There are no plans to do anything with this floor, but sometimes I wish we would have done something different.

+ My entire unfinished basement/laundry room/prison toilet situation. Enough said.

Yeah there isn't going to be a picture of this one.

I'm sure I could come up with more, but those are the main ones that basically make me want to pull my hair out. But here's the positive spin... not only have these things made me realize what I want to avoid in a future home, but it's causing me to work with what I have. Hopefully this encourages you to do the same and to not be so discouraged with your own home. Maybe I'll come back with some posts about how to work with these so called problem areas. #RealLifeHouseProbs

This post is not intended to come off ungrateful. I am blessed to call this my home and to have a roof over my head, but it's here to remind myself that there will always be aspects of my home that aren't all that great- but you just have to embrace them anyway and make the best of things... yes even Astroturf.

Did someone say free Putt-Putt?

-Tricia

The South House Files + 9.18.15

noreply@blogger.com (Tricia | 724SouthHouse) — Fri, 18 Sep 2015 12:52:00 +0000

Here with another round of The South House Files. I'm having fun with this- now if only I could blog a little more about my actual house...

+ I'm sure we are all familiar with Nate Berkus. If you are not, please get acquainted. He's only been around for like 15 years. #ThanksOprah. Architectural Digest is showing off his new Manhattan remodel. Although some aspects are over the top for me (like that shower- woah cross eyed), I think it's generally awesome. But my favorite part of the whole feature is scrutinizing each space for the little details- like the paintings and prints he chooses to hang with minimalistic framing and the touches of greenery in every room... And I can't fail to mention the solarium style windows in that kitchen.

Original Source here

+ Yes Emily Henderson was featured in last week's files, but I thoroughly enjoyed her "fall" living room makeover with Good Housekeeping. She really honed it in with some warmth and texture after removing a lot the blue and turquoise hues that were previously in the space. Basically- my recipe for a dream room. I want those camel leather chairs for my den STAT.

Original Source here

+ I have followed Clare Brody on Instagram for a while, but to my dismay I realized she wasn't in my blog feed. Tragic. I finally added her and checked out her archives. I love her IKEA Billy bookshelf install and styling. She also lives in a RENTAL, but she has really made it her own.

It's becoming clear to me that I need a camel leather chair...

Original Source here

+ I cannot seem to get in the mood for fall. The dip in temps the past week helped a little- which even prompted me to make a Friday night trip to Hobby Lobby. However, I left uninspired with one faux squash and some paint pens. Not sure what I have planned for that squash, but apparently I felt it was a necessary buy. Who knows. Anyway- if you are like me and just not in the mood but do have good intentions to get into the Autumn spirit- check out this post of past fall projects from Thistlewood Farms- it almost inspires me to break out some pumpkins. Almost.

Original Source here

+ If you do not watch The Goldbergs, you should. It is by far my favorite show on television. I don't know if it's because it takes me back to the actual 80s/90s while sitting with my dad eating popcorn watching the Cosby Show, but I think it's just a good ol wholesome and hilarious show that I would like the TV world to have more of. The season premiere is September 23rd. I will be watching it LIVE (no cable here) with my popcorn and La Croix in tow.

Bev- The Original 'Smother'

Here is a great comparison of the real life Goldbergs vs the TV Goldbergs... did you know Bev on the show wears some of the ACTUAL 80s clothes from the real Beverly Goldberg? Mind blown. Also- a post about her TOP 10 fashions from seasons past.

Have a great weekend. I'm going to attempt to be productive on the home-front! Wish me luck!

-Tricia

The Rug That I'm Returning...

noreply@blogger.com (Tricia | 724SouthHouse) — Tue, 15 Sep 2015 19:35:00 +0000

This post was originally going to be titled "We Found THE Rug!" or "Hey Look at Our New Rug!"... or something catchy like "Rug Love in Our Den"- you get what I'm saying. But I come to bare bad news and tell you that this rug just isn't gonna cut it. Please hold back your tears.

Let's backtrack.... I mentioned in last Friday's post (The South House Files) that I took advantage of the 80% off Labor Day event via Rugs USA. The rug buy was a quick decision considering the sale, but going by the picture, I thought I would really like it and it was definitely the style I have been leaning towards. I also couldn't pass up this major sale for such a good quality 8' x 10' rug. I thought it was worth the risk knowing I could still return within 14 days.

So it arrived last Friday- the size was perfect... the quality is excellent... it's SO comfortable... and I really loved the pattern and style... BUT it was green- a very muddy green at that. I knew I couldn't rely on the picture online because they're just never accurate, but I wasn't expecting the green that I saw. I was anticipating more of an ivory center with a green tint.

I feel like the rug is darker in person... the pictures show it to be a little lighter actually.

Before making the decision to ditch, I decided to live with it for a several days. There were moments when I was like "This is it- I DO love it. I can work with the muddy green" but then I would realize what I was saying and think "You're stupid. You just paid a lot of money for a rug and you don't even like it. Don't settle. You are overthinking this. This should not be so difficult. Please just leave the room and shut the door". So after more than a few of those moments, I have decided this rug isn't right for the room. Don't get me wrong- It really is a great rug- the pattern is awesome in my opinion- and while I do love the color green, I do not want this muddy green in my den and it would have dictated ALL of my design decisions. So back to Rugs USA it goes.

I think this was a good lesson on not settling for something just because you clicked "Purchase". I'm not going to stick with this rug for the sake of "progress" or a new blog post ... even if that means this room may not be done until 2017. I'd rather take my time and find what I really want than to go forward feeling all "blah" about it all. And I have learned that muddy green is very blah to me....

Honestly, this is pretty typical of my process... lots of trial and error involved. Hope this post can encourage you to not be discouraged if you make the wrong, expensive purchase. You gotta go with your gut and it will eventually lead you to a space that you love. Let's hope that's the case in this situation anyway.

By the way... if there is one thing I AM certain about... it's that the black and gold around the fireplace has GOT TO GO. Can't handle it.

-Tricia

The South House Files + 9.11.15

noreply@blogger.com (Tricia | 724SouthHouse) — Fri, 11 Sep 2015 12:00:00 +0000

This short week has proven to be rather unproductive on the home-front, but that doesn't mean I didn't have time to check out some good finds on the internets from the past few days. Of course.

+ Traci from Beneath My Heart has a relatively easy way to "fake" a painted wood floor by using plywood. If you like the look of painted wood flooring (it's popping up all over the place), but too afraid to commit to covering up the real deal (that would be me), this could be a great trial project for you. Would be curious to see how it holds up, but it's pretty nonetheless.

Original Source Here

+ I was oddly fascinated with this lengthy post about Emily Henderson and her publishing team choosing a cover for her new design book. I may have been sucked down this rabbit hole because Emily Henderson always proves to be a hilarious writer, or I am just thoroughly entertained by staring at side by side pictures with very subtle styling differences. I don't believe that time was spent in vain.

+ 11 Biggest Design Pet Peeves of Professional Designers. I'm sure I've hit every one of these.

+ This is an example of how I want my Den to feel. If you notice- the designer, Kate Driver, kept the existing couch and chair from before and still turned this RENTAL into a warm but fresh space that is perfectly casual and comfortable to me. (FYI those ottomans are pretty affordable from Overstock) It's also making me rethink my too cool "greige" in the den… always go with your gut... and my gut usually says warm.

Original Source Here

+ Speaking of den, I utilized the 80% off Rugs USA Labor Day deal this past weekend (There are still some rugs that are 70% off last I checked). I pulled the trigger on one (ahhh the pressure of a good deal), but the more I think about it I'm getting nervous it may not be right for the room. We shall see. If it proves to be a good selection, I'll share. If it isn't, I still may share. Fingers Crossed.

+ "The Struggle is Real. But His Grace is Stronger". Amen.

Original Source Here

Here's to hoping next week is more productive than the last. Happy Weekend!

-Tricia

The South House Files + 9.4.15

noreply@blogger.com (Tricia | 724SouthHouse) — Fri, 04 Sep 2015 12:46:00 +0000

I'm going to start trying (key work being TRY) a weeklyish post about some of my favorite blogs, articles, and inspiration images I've found on the internets. I LOVE when bloggers do a weekly round-up of their own finds as I've gotten loads of inspiration that I never would have otherwise come across. So, hopefully this will do the same- and if not it will at least allow me to file away the discoveries for myself.

I'm calling it ...

Here goes it....

+ My favorite designer, Lauren Liess, just bought a new house. While I'm irrationally sad she had to sell her last one (considering I don't actually know her in real life), the mere thought of being able to follow her new house updates over the next year makes me irrationally happy.

+ In related Lauren Liess news, I just pre-ordered my Christmas present- her new book. Just doing what I can to make the holiday shopping easier on my husband...

+ Another approach to a gallery wall- and a how Martha Stewart is a forever classic. This photo is from a Martha book from the mid 90s!

Original Source here

+ THIS. The #ModernFarmhouseProject by House of Jade Interiors is pretty amazing. The simple styling of the bookshelves and the oversized kitchen pendants are probably my favorite. Check out their website or use the hashtag above on Insta.

Random observation- Has anyone else noticed that Utah designers are really really good?

Original Source here

Original Source here

Recognize that Ballard Designs Hadley pendant? Because I sure do!

Original Source here

+ New Instagram feed to follow! @CortiniDesign. I enjoy pretty pictures of neutral spaces. This one provides.

+ And finally- say goodbye to your money. A Chicago Target may soon be serving cocktails while you shop. That's a #MomsNightOut that I can get behind.

Have a great long weekend!

-Tricia

Den Progress: Paint, Carpet, and a Steal of a Couch

noreply@blogger.com (Tricia | 724SouthHouse) — Wed, 02 Sep 2015 17:55:00 +0000

Stopping in with a little update on our addition. I'm impressed with myself- 2 posts in a week with another planned for Friday. Pick your jaw up off the floor.

If you want to get up to speed, you can see our fabulous Before pictures of our addition here.

Where were we? One of the first items of business for this room was painting those really awful brown walls. It was a very bad color that we inherited and it needed to go. We decided to go with a greige from Sherwin Williams (I forgot the name but it did have "Greige" in it so hope that helps…). The color definitely comes off more gray in the room. I think the "greige" tones prevent it from leaning more cool. I think I like it, but my final opinion will come when I get the rest of the room in order.

I'm not going to pretend this room isn't already full of toys- so I saved myself the time of removing them and "neatly piled" them for your viewing pleasure....

Here's a few Before and Afters...

Please note the Afters are Unedited. I currently don't have time to edit "progress" pictures.

The next step was replacing the badly stained carpet. We went to Home Depot searching for a remnant (we had luck doing that for our guest room), but came up with nothing. So that meant we needed to order. Honestly- I just wanted something durable, light, and neutral- so after hours of comparing samples we went with the more affordable in-stock Home Depot line. Wouldn't you know it- after hours of deciphering we got home and realized it was the SAME EXACT carpet that we put in our guest room. I guess that means that I like it? We'll go with that.

I like carpet- I do. When most of your first floor is either hard wood or tile- I think it's nice to have somewhere soft to sprawl out on. Picture me sprawling.

And the latest update that I'm really excited about is our new couch. We bought it secondhand- but you wouldn't know it. It was hardly sat upon due to it being used for staging purposes in a home. I knew we couldn't splurge on an expensive couch, so when I saw this posted on Facebook I jumped! I also like the color- its light and neutral and warm. As for the comfy factor- husband has approved it. It's not as comfy as our giant monstrosity in our living room, but it's working. Having somewhere to sit already makes a world of difference in the room.

I threw some throw pillows and fabric on it to get an idea of the look- but I'm actually leaning in a different direction in my 'scheme'...

This corner seems promising to me...

Now you may be like- wow you have a single couch floating in the room- that's great but what else? Well, our plan is to get 2 chairs to go opposite the couch and also add an ottoman/coffee table situation in the center. I want this room to be uber Baby proof- no sharp corners- so soft furntiure for everyone!

Once I get the basics, I'll be focusing on adding some color and pattern. I think my biggest challenge will be finding a perfect yet affordable rug (The current was just thrown in there to prevent baby crumbs and spills). I have found tons of rugs that I love, but they are all SO expensive. It's hard to justify an expensive rug purchase, but they can really make the room- especially our currently VERY neutral- but much improved already den.

I'll be back with some follow up posts about plans for our fireplace, lighting, those beams, and where I'm leading as far as colors/textures for the room!

Thanks for stopping by!

-Tricia

Some Added Potential- The Future Den

noreply@blogger.com (Tricia | 724SouthHouse) — Thu, 27 Aug 2015 19:25:00 +0000

This is seriously the house that never ends…. We complete a room, and then there's another that follows. I'm not complaining- it's a good problem to have especially in our neighborhood where the houses aren't necessarily sprawling with square feet. Every time we redo a room, I can see us living here an extra year or two than I could before. I think it's been God's way of telling us to slow down and enjoy this home. I'll be honest, we go back and forth about moving, but this house is still surprising us with how well it fits for our family. It truly was the biggest blessing in disguise when Nathan purchased this place 5 years ago.

Now to the point of this post- our future den! I. Am. So. Excited. Our house has an addition off of the kitchen that was built in the early 90s. It's the main reason we have such a tiny (but now cute) backyard. Nathan used it as his bedroom back in the college days and then it turned into our workroom when we started renovating the rest of the house. Honestly, it's been filled with so much furniture and junk the last 5 years, we completely forgot how big the room really is and missed the hidden potential.

We closed that door when company was over...

It's only appropriate on this blog to show you how we embarrassingly lived for years prior to renovating. If you would like a reminder of past embarrassment please feel free to click the following: Exhibit A, Exhibit B, Exhibit C, Exhibit D... or read basically any post I've done.

With Max's first birthday party planned for mid June- we realized that we should probably clear the room out especially since most of our big house projects are complete. It took only one night of cleaning and we were suddenly left standing there realizing what we have been missing the past few years…

I felt stupid.

It is huge (for our house). And that ceiling! Someone knew what they were doing when they vaulted those bad boys and added those beams. I used to curse this room because it was such a mess and encroaching on our backyard, but it wasn't until we actually CLEANED that we saw the potential.

Other than the extra square footage, one of the best features is the fireplace and a MANTEL. Remember when we created the "BuiltIn" situation in our living room because I wanted a mantel to decorate for Christmas? I guess the addition was so stuffed to the brim at that point, that I never even thought that its mantel would ever be an option for decorating.

Holiday mantels are very important to me if you could not tell.

There is so much potential. We are turning it into our Den/Playroom/Future Guest Room/Craft Area combo. Basically, it's going to be a giant multi-purpose room. Right now it is filled with Max's toys which has been so nice for him to run around and sprawl out. We previously had the toys in the itty bitty Living Room which needless to say made everything cramped and crazy.

We've already replaced the carpet, painted, and bought a couch so we are well on our way- but I'll get to that in another post. It's easier and more fun for me to do small updates than one big post so this may be a long process, but hopefully you can hang in there- or follow @724SouthHouse on Instagram for some "Real Time" Progress.

I'll be back soon with our updates and some ideas I have swirling around in my head! In the meantime here is a little peak into our daily life in this room so far. The den is already working hard!

-Tricia

The Trials and Errors of our Entry

noreply@blogger.com (Tricia | 724SouthHouse) — Wed, 12 Aug 2015 17:13:00 +0000

Our entry has definitely been through the ringer and evolved over the years. It's taken a LONG time for me to be happy with it, but I think I'm finally there....

The entry is basically just a long wall to the right of our front door. There is no alcove or anything structurally that helps define the space, so I was really starting from square one. Feast your eyes on this beautiful picture of the long wall for your reference:

We are usually on a limited budget, so for a while I had to work with what I had- including a gigantic and not so attractive dresser.

A few years ago, I used a skirted DIY approach to lighten up and cover an old dresser that was acting as our entry table. It definitely helped the situation because it finally gave me something to put my keys (and junk) on- but the dresser was too long and I was never in love with the coverup situation. I tried to get on the fabric skirt train, but it was always a source of sore eyes for me.

Since the dresser was too long, I had a hard time finding something on the wall to balance it out. I tried so many different things including this Cozamia print above (which I still love) but it didn't work in the space and I felt like it was dictating all of my design decisions in the surrounding rooms. The print is now in the guest room where it is a much better fit (even though that room has been abandoned for quite a while… ,At this point, I'm just holding out until it needs to become Max's big boy room.)

I tried all different kinds of things before deciding on the direction I wanted to go. I got out some of my old art sketches that I did in college, but I only hung four which just never looked right. It didn't occur to me for some time that it was very off balance- two more prints (a total of 6) would have worked much better. Duh. I also tried some mirrors and some sort of grid lattice DIY situation- but it wasn't working. Keep in mind this was like 2 years of throwing ideas out there.

Here are some of the ideas that DID. NOT. WORK...

Wut?

We eventually donated the dresser because I was wanting something different and it gave me the perfect excuse for new furniture. I also gifted Nathan a new saw for Christmas, so this was obviously going to be the first project. I sketched up some ideas for an entry table and was also inspired by this Ana White console table; however I ended up taking some design liberty and editing. Removing the four end posts made it more stream-lined and simple. Since the table needed to be fairly narrow, I didn’t want it to be bulky and I thought this was the best solution. I also love the classic X shape (like on our mobile island) so I wanted to repeat that pattern within another piece of furnishing.

We decided on the Minwax Special Walnut stain- it's not too red or dark. Dana from HouseTweaking uses this on a lot of her furniture, and I've been keeping that in my mental folder for a while now. I thought about painting it white, but figured it wouldn't hurt to stain first since you can't really go back after painting. Not surprisingly, I really love the stain and doubt I will end up painting it.

Now that the table was better proportioned and not crazy long like the dresser, I was able to focus on items to hang on the wall. I eventually found some great and FREE prints that I was able to frame. I found the link off of Apartment Therapy and I love the look. They are a bit more modern than standard botanical prints- but still have the classic look. You will notice that I hung six (instead of four like I did with my art prints a year prior). Hanging six really helped balance everything out- it looked sooo bare now that I look back. Sometimes it just takes a while and lots of trial and error for something to click. I think that can be a big design mistake- by either not hanging enough or by hanging too small of frames. I have obviously done both in my day.

In the future, I may switch out the prints for a big mirror but I have yet to find a mirror that has been big or interesting enough- and in my price range. I think a mirror will brighten up the space and be practical as I'm heading out the door, but for now I'm really liking the prints. By going with larger frames and hanging them high, I think it makes the walls look taller than what they actually are- and the white mats are a great compliment to the darker wood.

Here's a cheapo solution: If your artwork is not expensive or you are just framing prints- you can easily cut out mats from posterboard with an x-acto knife. I do it ALL THE TIME because I'm not willing to spend money on expensive mats from the framing store. I will only buy an acid free, custom mat if I have something that is more valuable and I want it to keep for a while. Also, these frames are the very inexpensive kind from Hobby Lobby- the ones I would usually pass up in the aisle because they looked dinky and cheap.

Another note: When in doubt- go larger with your frames. It usually never fails.

I finished styling with a black lamp from World Market and baskets from HomeGoods- and of course a tray, a collection of books, and picture frames.

FYI- This greenery is FAKE. I'm not above it.

This greenery, however, is real- but was clipped out of the brush on the side of my house. Free décor for everyone.

This space was a toughie for me (and I'm not even sure if its done). I would love to flank It with two chairs, but I cant justify spending $$ on that at the moment. This just goes to show that you may have to live with a space for a while- and go through some trial and error- before you can achieve the look you want. I wasn't happy with it for YEARS, but I'm now loving that this is the first thing you see when you walk into our home.

As Barb Boelscher always says- Patience is a virtue!

*Linking up on Thrifty Décor Chick

-Tricia

Brightening Up our Kitchen

noreply@blogger.com (Tricia | 724SouthHouse) — Thu, 30 Jul 2015 02:06:00 +0000

Get ready for a long post.... Can you tell I like to write?
We have recently made some subtle updates to our kitchen which I am very excited about!

Our kitchen install started about 4.5 years ago. Crazy right? (You can see one of my firsts posts here) I didn't have much of a design plan other than the space planning, but we went pretty neutral and generic for resale value. Nathan and I weren't even engaged when the boys started tearing everything out and building the cabinets. I naively had this thought in my head that once we did get engaged and married, we would probably only be in this house for a year before we moved onto something bigger and better (cue God laughing) However, a wedding, 3 years of marriage, and a 1 year old later- we are still here and loving it! With no "For Sale" sign in our front yard who knows how long we will be here!

Recently, I have been wanting to freshen some things up, so I started analyzing our space and realized that the kitchen needed some updates to not only brighten the space but reflect more of my style. I'm really into the farmhouse style (Not surprising since we have an awesome farmhouse table that my husband built 3 years ago). I love the look because it's causual, yet classic. Honestly though, I think I love it most of all because I can embrace the craftsman style and warmth in my home. For so long I have seen nothing but all white everything (which I do LOVE- have you seen my bathroom?), but lately I have seen a lot of designers incorporate natural finishes. It's been eye-opening and refreshing to me since I am drawn to warmer tones- and my kitchen has a lot of it.

Not to say that I wouldn't love to one day paint the upper cabinets white to make things a little brighter, but Nathan spent months building, sanding and staining those bad boys so the option to cover them up really isn't on the table. I've decided to keep them in their natural wood state and embrace the farmhouse style; it's proven to be a fun challenge. The changes are subtle and not perfect, but they really have made a difference and have made me appreciate what I have without throwing paint over it (Which I am so not above doing). The kitchens below have been my inspiration- they make wood cabinets look so so GOOD and I feel like all of these looks are very achievable.

Love the black hardware on those cabinets. Also did you notice the wood trim around the window looks so fresh since everything else is so light and bright?

Original Source here.

Joanna Gaines DUH... She never fails.

Original Source here.

Wood and white- this is so beautiful. Love those cup pulls on the chestnut cabinets.

Original Source here.

The first simple update we made was painting the walls a nice fresh coat of white- the original color was more of a beige (So much beige)! The small punch of white really refreshed the space and helped balance out a lot of the wood finish.

I also moved the chalkboard to the outside encasement of the refrigerator, and added some white framed prints where the chalkboard used to be. After looking at these pictures, I think the prints need to be a bit bigger. Hmmm.

Love this view!

One of the best updates we made was lighting. After a LOT of convincing- we replaced our ceiling fan with this awesome Ballard Design pendant over our mobile island. Nathan loves ceiling fans so it was tough to convince him of this NECESSITY. We made a deal that as long as the living room would keep its fan, we could lose the fan in the kitchen. I had my eye on the Hadley pendant for a long time (we even thought about welding our own!) but then our friends were at the Ballard Design outlet and spotted this on clearance so they snatched it up for us. It is a bit smaller than I intended, but I still think it works and makes a world of difference!!!! I go back and forth about what light bulbs to put in, but I'm digging these right now.

I originally had some simple white shades on our pendants from Lowes. I liked them, but they were ALWAYS crooked (which drove me crazy). I also wanted something a little more industrial. We found these new fixtures from Lowes. Since these fixtures were compatible with the original pendants, it was not a big deal to switch them out. They are now one of my favorite features in the kitchen. They definitely reflect more of the farmhouse vibe I'm going for.

Another update was adding cabinet HARDWARE. How in the world we waited this long, I have no idea. I seriously couldn't even get into some drawers without breaking a nail. It was SO ANNOYING. But in our lazy state, we just let it be. It was one of those things where we were living that way for so long, we didn't realize what we were missing. But guys- cabinet hardware is really helpful. It was created for a reason- to get into your cabinets. Wow. Who knew?

The only good thing about waiting so long for cabinet harware was that I took my time contemplating what kind of to get. I finally opted for a black finish. My husband (and mom) were very apprehensive when I told them what I was doing- but once they were on it really completed the farmhouse look I have been going for. The inspiration images above helped with my decision!

Last but not least was actually one of the first updates we made. We originally had an open cabinet that was intended for a wine rack. It was put on the back burner for a while- possibly out of laziness or the fact that we really don't drink a lot of wine. When we realized we didn't even have enough wine to fill our imaginary rack, I started thinking of other ideas. And then Max was born and we quickly realized we needed a LOT more storage for all of his goods (bottles, pumping parts, baby food, etc) I decided to remove our white dinner dishes from their cabinet and turn it into the baby zone. We then converted the intended wine rack cabinet into some open shelving.

I was pleasantly surprised with this update. Not only are we utilizing all of our storage space, but the white dishes brighten up the otherwise dark, wooden corner. I wasn't sure how I would like the open shelving concept, but we use our dishes so much that nothing really gets dusty. It's also much easier to grab dishes (especially when holding a 20+ pound "baby"). Talk about first world problems- the thought of opening a cabinet door has become too much for me. Sigh. But seriously folks, it really is a nice feature!

There are still some items I would like to check off such as a light above the kitchen sink, a bright runner, and a window treatment. I would also like to get some new barstools, but that's not really in our budget right now. Hopefully I'll run into a good deal down the line or find some thrift items to makeover.

Hope you enjoyed these updates as much as I do. What are your thoughts on embracing wood in your kitchen or other parts of your home?

-Tricia

Lighting up the Patio

noreply@blogger.com (Tricia | 724SouthHouse) — Thu, 25 Jun 2015 19:00:00 +0000

Since completing the backyard, we have used it mostly during the evening. Not only is it cooler, but once Max goes down- it's Mom and Dad time with some adult beverages! #CheapDate. The baby monitor reaches to the patio, so I have a feeling we may be here all summer. Friends and Family are welcome!

Check out my previous posts of the backyard (Plans, Progress, and REVEAL!)

Here is a day vs. night comparison...

Cheers! (with Strawberita in hand)

-Tricia

The Backyard Reveal

noreply@blogger.com (Tricia | 724SouthHouse) — Tue, 23 Jun 2015 16:26:00 +0000

Well, I'll spare you the words and just get to the pictures. Our backyard is complete- and it was finished just in time for little guy's 1st birthday!!!! I've compiled lots of Before and Afters because those are everyone's favorite! Right?

I'm thinking there may be a Phase 2 later this summer with some outdoor pillows and maybe a setup for cooking out. We'll see. For now we are enjoying our outdoor getaway- because when you don't have a backyard for YEARS- this is nearly the equivalent of a vacation.

See my previous backyard posts here and here.

I'll be back later this week with some shots of the patio at night!

Here are some side by side Before and Afters!

We contemplated keeping the bushes behind the addition, but I'm glad we tore them out. Much cleaner and prettier.

The tree removal was a game changer...

Oil cans no more!

And here's a sneak of our patio lights at night...

-Tricia

Our Backyard Progress

noreply@blogger.com (Tricia | 724SouthHouse) — Fri, 19 Jun 2015 01:13:00 +0000

My original plan for a big backyard reveal post was squashed when I realized I have about 12,537 pictures documenting the makeover process. So… I'm going to show you the final steps of our fence, patio, and sod- and then I'll post early next week with the final pictures. So annoying right? But this was a lot of work and I don't want to squish it all into one post. Sorry mom! (She hates it broken up)

You can find out backyard plans in this previous post.

Once the ground was tilled and leveled, Nathan and my brother Ben (huge help) started digging the holes for the fence posts. This was not very exciting, but obviously needed for some fence building.

Next step was our patio. After they placed the gravel, they rented some mystery machine to flatten it all out (I don't remember the name!).

We ordered concrete pavers from Home Depot and had them delivered to our backyard. Thank goodness the fence wasn't complete or we would have had to carry them in one by one through the gate!

I originally wanted a red brick patio, but we quickly found out it would not only be more expensive, but more time consuming. But since I still wanted the classic look of red brick and a white house- we found the next best thing. These 16" x 16" red concrete pavers have the brick look I'm going for. They are also pretty inexpensive and much easier to put down due to their large size. Small bricks would have taken forever- and nobody has time for that when you have a deadline. Ha! I was a little apprehensive before we started the process because it was obvious the pavers weren't legit brick, but once they were placed I was very impressed with how they looked! Much better than anticipated. #CheapoForTheWin

After the patio was placed, Nathan and Ben finished up the fence. I didn't have much say in how the fence was built other than which way the gate would swing. I'm glad he took this on because he did a fantastic job. I honestly think this is some of his best work he has done on our house.

You may wonder why our back fence is 6' high and the side is an 8' privacy fence. Well... our new neighbor's back deck sits pretty high and every time they walk out they can see right into our yard- plus they have a ton of tree overgrowth. (Understatement). Privacy was top priority and a necessity. Nathan built a 6' fence all the way around the yard- and then added 2' high trellis with trim to separate us from our neighbor's jungle. That trellis is now my FAVORITE part of our backyard. It not only gives our giant wall of China some beautiful character, but it was actually less expensive to do than a standard 8' fence. The back fence remains at 6' tall which is nice as it keeps it open and not too closed in.

Next step was adding landscaping behind the addition and laying SOD! We thought we were doing well with our To Do list and timeline, but then our original Sod lady stopped returning our calls. We only needed about 70 square yards, so it was obvious we weren't her top customers....Thanks! We were wanting to lay the sod by the next day (Saturday), but Friday afternoon we had nothing. I called about ten sod farms in the area on my lunch hour (I had no idea there were so many!) and finally got a hold of Bramer Sod in East Louisville. The guy was awesome and basically told us to show up the next morning at 9am with a check and he would have the sod ready for us. We picked it up on Saturday morning and by noon (with the help of friends) the sod was down. Crisis averted. Instant Gratification. It's held up great since then with regular watering and plenty of sun!

I'm sure this wasn't a very exciting post, but I like to keep our renovation process for our own records. I'll be back soon with full reveal! Below is a little sneak peak of our patio area!

-Tricia

Backyard Dreaming

noreply@blogger.com (Tricia | 724SouthHouse) — Tue, 02 Jun 2015 02:06:00 +0000

Many of our friends and family have never seen our backyard. I would actually venture to say that some didn't even know it existed. The reason for this outdoor mystery is because it's hidden and tucked away behind the addition on the back of our house. The poor yard has sat there neglected for YEARS- and for good reason. It's pretty tiny and is basically filled with weeds and some half-empty oil cans. For the longest time we just pretended like it didn't exist and assumed due to its size that it wouldn't be worth our time and money to put any effort into it.

But after ONLY a few years of grilling out in our driveway (and eating redneck style on our front porch), we started pondering if a backyard and patio was actually a possibility. Then came the entrance of a certain mobile little boy- and we quickly realized that it was becoming a necessity. There is only so much crawling in circles a 12 month old can do on an Astroturf (yes I said Astroturf) front porch before we ALL go insane... plus he currently has an affinity for stairs and railings so the safety factor came into play as well. Therefore, with summer looming, we decided to tackle the outdoor dungeon and make it our own. We have no plans to move anytime soon so we are going to make the best of it. Max needs a yard and Mommy needs a patio for her Strawberitas. I'm not ashamed. So good.

Here are some lovely pictures from a few months ago.

OK. So not awful, but not awesome. Upon further review during our walk through, we realized we had much more space than we thought. Go us! However, we had a lot of work to do....

First order of business was the removal of the giant tree to gain more yard space. The tree was nice, but it took up too much room and it prevented ANY sun from hitting the yard.

Then down with the fence! The picket fence looks like an easy removal right? Think again- the posts were buried a few feet down into the ground... firmly planted in concrete. I guess that is normal? We ended up getting a Bobcat because nobody has time to dig out fence posts one by one.

After the fence was out, Nathan leveled out the ground. The Bobcat hardly fit.... but it was a big help.

Don't worry- this was just for a photo op. Max Weldy's first time in a Bobcat. Must. Document. Everything.

Not only did we need to level out the ground, but we had to dig some trenches for the drainage. Not very exciting, but very much needed.

We also tore out the overgrown bushes behind the addition- getting it ready for some nicer landscaping.

Once we got everything leveled and cleaned up, the space looked huge! We couldn't believe how much room we had. The hardest (and longest) part was definitely all of the prep work with the ground- but it was important to make sure everything was level since we are laying a patio and sod.

Max was especially excited and loved "helping" as much as he could.

The fence and patio pavers are the next step. I'll be back next week with another post. In the meantime here's a sneak peak. I'm in love!

-Tricia

Max's Itty Bitty Nursery!

noreply@blogger.com (Tricia | 724SouthHouse) — Mon, 13 Oct 2014 03:28:00 +0000

One of my goals while on maternity leave was to get a post up about the (mostly finished) nursery before I went back to work. Well...... It's now 5+ weeks of me being a working mama and I'm just now getting the itch to post about Max's itty bitty room. I clearly didn't realize before making the blogging goal that maternity leave didn't allow me all that free time I expected (Veteran moms laughing everywhere). But truthfully there were just more important things to do like bonding with my brand new, beautiful baby boy, Max Nathaniel! I look back on those 12 weeks and wonder if they even happened- It's so surreal to think about and those days went by so fast. I really do feel like my Max and I got in some major bonding time though and we took advantage of every moment together. He's definitely a mama's boy so far... or maybe he just knows where his food comes from. Regardless, he and his daddy are simply the best things in my life. It's weird to think of it all before him- Cliché cliché cliché- I know. But it's nothing but the truth.

I say 'mostly finished' nursery because there are a few things we didn't have time to get done. We literally just finished hanging some pictures on the wall when it was time to head to the hospital. Our little guy made his dramatic (understatement) entrance pretty quickly after our arrival. Needless to say- the final items on the nursery "To Do" list have been put on the back burner. I'm sure Max doesn't mind the lack of window treatment and the additional bookshelves that I'm wanting to put up... but if he does mind- well sorry son- but you're the one that decided to come early! ;)

Less than 24 hours before Max made his entrance into the world...
Heading out to our last "pre-parent" date. If we would have only known....

We started the nursery transformation back in March. I was using it as makeshift closet when we decided that it would be the perfect little nursery for our mystery baby.

It originally had wood paneling and some not so great carpet. We got that carpet cleaned and immediately painted the walls white and the ceiling the color mint. It's subtle- but it's such a small room that I didn't want it to be too busy. I also wanted white to be the main backdrop since we weren't sure if Baby Weldy was a boy or a girl. I figured that is as 'neutral' as we can get (without it being your typical green or yellow)- and it made the room look much larger and much much cleaner!

We 'splurged' and bought the gray and white striped rug from Crate and Barrel. I love the look, but it is a little thin so it bunches up sometimes. That is about my only complaint. I think it would work better if there wasn't so much furniture pulling on its edges.

Next thing were of course our polka dot doors- which I think sets off the room. These were so easy to do- the dots are a vinyl decal that I ordered online. You can check out that post here.

Once our walls and floors were done the next step was setting up the crib. I was having one of my "Oh my gosh we are running out of time" moments so Nathan set it up at like 3am one night in April. Love those pregnancy mood swings but it helped make me feel like were making some progress :)

Next step was bedding! I looked around at some stores and online, but couldn't find exactly what I was wanting. When you can't find what you're looking for- make it! One piece of inspiration for the nursery was this Hygge and West wallpaper below.... however it is crazy expensive and the room is so small that it would be way too busy on any wall.

Enter: Spoonflower! Spoonflower is a great website where you can actually design your own fabric- along with ordering designs others have created as well. After I accepted the fact that the wallpaper wasn't going to happen- I actually came across a fabric that is pretty similar to my inspiration!

I couldn't believe it when I saw it- it was perfect! I did have to contact the designer to change the orientation (she was very responsive and awesome). Once she customized it, I was able to order a few yards of the fabric to make the crib sheet.

I had never made a crib sheet before, but it's pretty simple using tutorials I found online. I still use my late Grandma's old Singer sewing machine and it works perfectly for simple project like this. If you don't have a sewing machine, I'm sure there are no-sew ways to make a crib sheet as well using a sewing tape. I'll spare you the steps- but here she is! And at a much lower cost than that crazy expensive wallpaper!

I also decided to make the crib skirt. It was a bit more time consuming than the crib sheet, but ended being relatively simple to make. The mint chevron is a flannel from JoAnn Fabrics. You could also use a sewing tape for this (or heck even a hot glue gun). As long as you know basic math and how to measure, you can make this stuff!

Next up were the bumpers. I was a little more ambitious with these since I added piping. I had never piped anything before, but it ended up being pretty simple (I sound like a broken record). I bought some foam bumper inserts off Amazon and they actually had the sewing instructions in their packaging so I just followed that and found a separate tutorial online for the piping. They aren't perfect (I became pretty impatient -and tired- near the end) but they did their job. (And their job is to be cute for a few weeks before you have to remove them once the baby is sleeping in the crib) Oh well- they were worth it! Both fabrics are from Spoonflower. The gray was an existing one from their website and the polka dot was one that I created on my own. I just uploaded a JPEG of a mint dot and then just adjusted the scale and repeat until I got what I wanted. Again- I love Spoonflower!

One of the easiest projects for this room was the dresser/changing table. We bought the Tarva dresser from IKEA. It comes unfinished so there are endless possibilities. After we assembled, we chose to paint it white and then tape off the edges of the drawers. Then, we just painted the inner part of each drawer front the same minty color as the ceiling. After we pulled off the tape, we got our result! I love these dressers (we also have them in our master bedroom). They are a great option when you don't have the money to splurge on a bedroom suite!

The changing pad cover was another DIY. It's basically the same process as the crib sheet- just a smaller scale. Polka dot fabric is also from JoAnn's.

The above picture leads me to some of the art we hung on the wall. One of my favorite books as a kid was Shel Silverstein's "Where the Sidewalk Ends". I borrowed the book from my mom and scanned and printed some of my favorite poems that I remember reading when I was young. The book was read so much that it is literally falling apart (and I think it survived a flooded basement). I have it on display (and opened to my favorite poem- The Unicorn!) in the corner of the nursery- hopefully my mom doesn't mind me holding on to it for a bit.

Above the crib is a simple round canvas that I purchased off of Amazon. I painted the gray circle border and then had my two initials ready for either Baby Boy Weldy or Baby Girl Weldy. Welp- Baby Weldy was a boy so Max it was (I should have known considering I called it a HE the whole time- mother's instinct)! After we got home from the hospital my mom glued it on for me and we hung it up.

Another piece of art that I hung was this button balloon shadow box. I originally saw this on Etsy. I decided to make my own. It was one of those projects that you can just zone in on with a movie playing in the background. I love those kinds. Lots of hot glue though! Love the color it brings to the room.

One of the last projects we did was the book ledges. They were done a week before Max was born! Nathan built them all... I was out of commission by that point. We have so many books that I am wanting to add some on the other side of the door (Plus those frames we have hanging are WAY to small and not working) We'll get there at some point!

And FINALLY- Nathan built a window seat bench. We added this for extra storage, but also to cover the weird piece of shag carpet that was still on the floor. Gross! Had to elevate the bench due to an air vent. I think I got the gray bins off Amazon. They hold a lot of his toys that he will play with eventually!

The seat cushion and the pillows were a DIY. Fabric was either from JoAnn's or Spoonflower. You can see in the pic above- the worn out "Where the Sidewalk Ends" book. Like I said- it's falling apart! I also made sure to include Nathan's dog lamp he had as a child. That was his only request for the nursery. I'm glad Max will grow up with it :)

I am ITCHING to get a window treatment up. It looks incomplete to me in these pics- but this room has come so far that I should probably let is slide ;) That may be one of my next projects!

Finally- here are some more Before and Afters. I may do some additional posts regarding the nursery details or I may move on to something else. We will see- Mommyhood and working full time are keeping me pretty busy. For now, I'm just glad to have a post up for the first time in 4 months! Glad I have an excuse. Thanks buddy :)

Thanks for checking it out! Off to have more baby bonding with my almost 4 month old!

-Tricia

The Finished Bathroom!

noreply@blogger.com (Tricia | 724SouthHouse) — Tue, 10 Jun 2014 00:09:00 +0000

The bathroom is finished- it took exactly 4 WEEKS so I think we did pretty good... oh and Nathan started a new job in there at some point- he's a trooper! I finally had time this weekend to take some After photos... or else I would have posted this much sooner! Here she is in all of her clean and fresh glory... aka EXACTLY what I was wanting!

(You can check out the previous bathroom posts here- Demo, New Layout & Drywall, Tub & Tile, Floor Tile, Paint & Storage, Board and Batten, Lighting & Mirror )

And here's a ton of Before and Afters- the best part about makeovers!

Just a reminder of how the layout was before....

And here is the finished layout...

One of the best parts of the bathroom ended up being the storage behind the toilet. We are still planning on installing doors to cover the top two shelves. It looks pretty now, but I'm really needing some closed storage for my random colored towels and odds and ends. The bottom shelf will remain open.

Until we get the doors, I'm enjoying the open shelving and its prettiness.

The board and batten is one of my favorite parts of the bathroom- and one of the easiest to do.

The vanity was a Craigslist buy. We thought it was originally 'white' but when we put the 'very white' vanity top on, we realized it was more of an ivory color and was not working at all! All different kinds of whites and ivories are a bad combo. I took on the vanity project and ended up painting the vanity the same color as the walls- Valspar "Bay Waves". (We had the paint already so again it was an easy decision). I'm really glad we painted it because it breaks up the white, but is still very subtle.

I LOVE the vanity- I was really wanting something that looked more like furniture, so when this came up on Craigslist- we negotiated right away and were on our way to pick it up. There are some doors that need adjusting if you look closely, but it's serving it's function and looking pretty.

We also replaced the knobs- these are a cheapo brand from Lowes!

Speaking of vanity top- ours is from Lowe's. Nathan's parents used this same top for their bathroom renovation and I knew that this is what we would use the first time I saw it. The clean lines are great and it also doesn't have a backsplash that a lot of the vanity tops have. It just sits right up against the wall which helps the vanity have more of that furniture look. (It's the little things!) I love how the modern top contrasts with the classic style faucet. (Aquasource faucet from Lowes).

Yep- I love this faucet.

Enough pics of the sink. Home Depot Martha Stewart sconces above the mirror...

Some $4 coat hooks were added to the board and batten. Great accessories to pull in the polished look.

Basket was a TJ Maxx find.

The tub has proven to be the hardest area to take pictures due to no natural light... but it's also my favorite place in the room since I use it so much :)

Why not a few more Before and Afters? So glad we took out that window! I do not miss it... other than when I need some sunlight to take blog pictures of the bathroom... but I don't foresee myself taking much more of these any time soon.

And that is the bathroom! I can't believe it's done. I am still needing some artwork on the walls, but I hate hanging things up for the sake of filling room. I'd rather have a blank wall then something I don't like... so I'm on the search.

Sometimes I walk in and forget that it's not this....

....but it's THIS! And done just in time for baby :) Thank God!!!!

Finishing up the nursery this week- hoping to post one big post soon, but who knows- this baby may come before any post goes up. We shall see!

-Tricia

Boarding It Up!

noreply@blogger.com (Tricia | 724SouthHouse) — Tue, 03 Jun 2014 22:32:00 +0000

Once the baseboards and storage were in, it was time to take on the lower portion of the walls. As I said here, we painted just the top portion of the wall gray because board and batten was planned for the lower half.

We took 4.25" wide boards and nailed them in horizontally. To determine the height of the placement, we just determined what looked right to us… but it also helped to use the light switch location as a guide- we just put it in an inch above it.

After the horizontals were nailed in, we took 3" wide boards and installed them about every 15" inches. Some areas aren't spaced exactly 15" apart because they either needed to be closer or further apart to make it all look visually balanced with its surroundings. A lot of it was "eyed" and it ended up working out great.

After all of the boards were nailed in- I spackled and Nathan caulked. Once the caulk was dry we smacked on a few coats of "Clean White" paint by Valspar and it was done! Board and batten is one of the quickest projects we've done.

The look of the board and batten really made such a big difference in the bathroom. When my friend was visiting last weekend, she said it helped make the room look even taller than what it is and I would have to agree with her.

This was one of those steps that could have easily been skipped, but I think the minimal time and effort was beyond worth it… probably my 2nd favorite thing about the bathroom!

You may have also noticed the mirror in some of the pictures above. We actually used the same mirror that came from the old bathroom. It was probably the ONLY THING we saved. The mirror was in perfectly good shape. Nathan just used a glass cutter to cut it down to the size we needed.

We also ran electrical up the new vanity wall for some new outlets and lighting.

Staying budget friendly, I found these Martha Stewart sconces at Home Depot. I like the look of individual sconces instead of one giant light fixture. Had we had a bit more room, I probably would have put them more on the side of the mirror, but they work well above it.

Nathan then installed some mounting clips for the mirror and hung that bad boy up. Looked good as new- even though it was reused!

We framed out the mirror before the board and batten. I believe the boards were either 4.5" or 5" wide. The below picture shows a happy Nathan seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.

We actually ended up adding a bit more trim to the mirror, but below is the basic frame-out before any spackling, caulking, or painting.

Here's a before and after of the new vanity wall. After picture is pretty dark I know- but I had no time to edit these :)

Hope you're liking the progress. End is in sight!

-Tricia

Taking on the Bathroom Walls

noreply@blogger.com (Tricia | 724SouthHouse) — Wed, 28 May 2014 23:26:00 +0000

Just a few more posts before the big bathroom reveal. I'll be honest, I still haven't actually taken the final pictures… oops! But this bathroom took so many steps that I hate cramming it all in to one post. Sorry mom. And let me tell ya- these posts take up as much as my time as actually doing the projects!

After the tub was tiled and the floor went down, we went forward with priming and painting the walls. I'd like to consider us painting pros by now. While I would have dreaded this step before it actually ended up being hardly any effort and went quickly.... and again I actually did paint- not just take pictures!

PRIMED!

Once it was primed and ready to go, out next step was of course PAINT!

We still had leftover paint- Valspar "Bay Waves"- from our bedroom project and the nursery doors, so I opted to just use what we had. I loved the gray we used upstairs, and I wanted to keep the bathroom light and fresh so it was a no brainer- and a money saver. We painted the gray from the top of the ceiling to about mid-way down. It's funny how the lighting in the bathroom actually makes the paint look more gray/blue compared to the same gray upstairs, but it works for me!

The rest of the way down was painted white. Why you may ask? Because we decided to do board and batten for the lower portion of the wall…. and it was seriously so easy! Not only that, I think it MAKES the bathroom. You'll see soon…

Once painted, we installed the baseboards and trim. We just picked up some pre-primed 1" x 6" boards and then some shoe moulding. Nathan cut it all down and then we simply nailed it in, spackled, caulked, and painted- yes more paint.

Next step was the building the storage behind the toilet. This only took Nathan one evening to build. Once dried, I primed and painted.

It may look weird now- but trust me it all comes together! The top two shelves are actually going to have doors on them- while the bottom will be an open shelf. Now I LOVE the look of the open shelving, but I'm needing practical storage for all of my mismatched towels and the baby bath toys that will be taking over my bathroom... so doors are definitely being added!

Next post is all about the board and batten... my SECOND favorite part of the bathroom!

-Tricia

My New Bathroom Obsession: The Floor Tile

noreply@blogger.com (Tricia | 724SouthHouse) — Mon, 19 May 2014 22:15:00 +0000

The final task Nathan's dad helped with (before he was released from our 2 week hold) was the tiled floor. You can check out the tub tile here if you're interested!

You can see the old floor tile in the picture below. It was probably the least awful thing about the old bathroom- but it still had to go in order for us to renovate the room.

The floor tile came from Lowes (although Home Depot has pretty much the same thing at the same price). The octagon tile came in 12 x 12 sheets, so it went pretty quickly once they got started.

I LOVE this tile and it is one of Lowes' most inexpensive options. It's a classic and definitely is a throwback to the 1920s when this house was built- which was my goal when starting the bathroom redo- I didn't want anything too modern.

Another token shot of Nathan on the blog.

The sheets of tile were priceless. Can't imagine doing any of this one-by-one!

All the tile is down and ready.

And then Nathan grouted.... but I have no pictures to prove it because I think I went to bed. God bless him.

Here is my new obsession- our beautiful floor!

We ended up going with the "Warm Gray" grout and I think it's perfect. The gray contrasting with the white tile really shows off and compliments the design AND I don't have to worry about dirt getting in the grout lines. Win/Win!

We also used a mixed in sealer for this and it seems to be holding up to dust and dirt pretty well. We've had a lot of dirt with housework lately so it's already had a lot of practice.

Both tile jobs were probably the more tedious tasks for the bathroom… but well worth it. Sometimes I just want to lay on the floor and take a nap because it's so glorious… or maybe I'm just that tired. Who knows.

Will be back soon with the next update!

-Tricia

The Tub Gets a Tiling Job

noreply@blogger.com (Tricia | 724SouthHouse) — Fri, 16 May 2014 02:33:00 +0000

Finally back with a bathroom progress post…. (You can check out the previous posts here and here) We've been taking a nice long break this week from anything house related, but I figured getting a post in is the least I can do.

Soooooo secret's out- As of this past Sunday (Mother's Day) the bath is done! OK- we still have one or two finishing touches, but I'm considering it complete and it feels so good! That being said, it was still such a monster of a job that I refuse to just show you the finished product without the steps that it took to get there. (And I've been too lazy/tired/preggo to take any of the final pictures yet so a big reveal post is not really possible at the moment….)

This post is all about the tub tile. Nathan's dad is pretty good when it comes to this stuff. His parents redid their first floor bath last year and it looks awesome so having him here for the tile component was HUGE. The tile was also one of the last things he helped work on before escaping his 2 week imprisonment with us, so we were lucky that we were able to fit it in.

The first tiling job they took on was the tub surround. My goal was to keep the look of the bathroom classic so we went with white subway tile. In my opinion, you can't go wrong with that choice and it can be pretty affordable, so it was a no brainer.

Before any tile was placed, we applied a waterproof barrier... that's the dark teal stuff on the wall in the pic below...

Once dried, it was time to lay the tile.

Now, it wouldn't be one of my projects without making it a bit more difficult. Instead of just slapping the tile on in the typical layout, I wanted to add a little bit of interest. We decided to frame out an inset of the long wall and lay a smaller scaled tile within the tiled frame. (By the way- there really isn't a synonym for tile so I'll be using that word a lot here). I originally wanted the center tile to be even smaller scaled than what we chose, but the price of the smaller tile we looked into was just unreasonable and not worth it… so this was going to have to do.

Here's a lovely iPhone picture showing the framed-in area pre tile.

And here is the tile all set in... but before grout.

Once the tile was in, it was grouting time (which I think happened during Derby weekend- it's all a blur!). I finally was able to get my hands dirty and help Nathan with this portion. We ended up choosing a white grout and mixed in a sealer which Nathan's dad suggested…. it's awesome because you don't have to go back and apply sealer to every grout line. Time saver for sure!

Here's the big guy grouting away. He loves when I put pictures of him up on da blog. I made sure to show three of him for extra measure.

What a difference grout makes...

Once the grout was dry, we wiped it clean and then caulked the corners and edges.... and to top it all off we added the shower head, faucet, and hardware. It definitely finished the look.

I think I'm in LOVE....

We actually cheated on Lowes and purchased the tub tile from Home Depot. The reason? The tile we found at Lowes wasn't as white as the floor tile we already had picked out. The Home Depot option ended up being a better color match so we went with that. Blasphemy I know.

It ended up turning out great and is definitely the look that I was going for. The detail is subtle, but I think it gives it a nice effect and makes it look like we spent a little more time and thought into how our tub was going to look (which we did- to Nathan's dismay).

And that's the tub tile for ya- turned out pretty great and I've been happily enjoying my bubble baths in a nice, fresh, clean bathtub. It's a far cry from showering in this thing for the past 2 years....

Next up is floor tile- probably my favorite part of the entire bathroom!

I'm going to take a bath now. Later.

-Tricia

Baby's Gettin Polka Dots

noreply@blogger.com (Tricia | 724SouthHouse) — Wed, 07 May 2014 21:55:00 +0000

So while Nathan has been busting away at the bathroom, I've been scheming up some polka dots for the baby!

While polka dots are a classic and can pretty much be found everywhere (including my wardrobe), I've been a little apprehensive about using it in home décor. I've seen plenty of blogs that have filled the rooms in their homes with polka dot fabric, decals, etc. and it looks GREAT… but it always looked a little juvenile to me and I couldn't really see myself doing that in my own home…. that is until I started planning the NURSERY!

I'll be honest- I was never into any nursery decorating before I got preggo. Anytime I would see one on Pinterest or in a magazine I would just scroll on by. But when you have a bun in the oven and you start thinking of every detail for the arrival it kind of becomes an obsession and a very exciting room to plan.

Wanting to have fun in the nursery, it didn’t take me long to determine that the polka dots would be happening for my baby! As I mentioned here, our room is itty bitty so I didn't want to overwhelm the space with a maze of circles. I opted to just 'polka dot' the closet doors for a subtle but cute touch.

Here are the doors prior to the transformation:

First things first- we needed to paint the wooden doors. I did a coat of primer and then applied the same light gray we used in our bedroom- Valspar "Bay Waves". Again- the doors would already be 'popping' with the addition of the polka dots, so I wanted to use some light and soft colors to make the doors look like they actually belonged in the space… plus I had the paint already available and wanted to avoid a Lowes run… true story.

I used to think painting was such a long and painful task (sometimes still painful), but it literally took me no time to finish these fellas.

I purchased 4 sheets of 4" white polka dot decals from this company. They come in all colors and sizes and you can get samples of the colors for 1 cent. They arrived pretty quickly too!

Once the sliding doors were dry, we hung them up and I started applying the decals. I thought about applying the dots before hanging the doors but it was smart to do it once they were up and hanging since the door frame overlaps some of the surface area.

While I tend to just eye things, I was careful to measure this time… at least at the beginning. Once I got into a zone, I was able to estimate the placement of the decals, but always went back to make sure my measurements were somewhat on. The dots are all 6" apart horizontally- and 3" apart vertically.

I just folded the dots over the edge of the door instead of cutting.

Good news- if I messed up on the placement, the decals would peel back up pretty easily and not be ruined. I wouldn't recommend repeeling more than 3 times, but they're pretty resilient so don't be scared if you mess up the first round.

It took me less than an hour for each door. It was a really simple project and EXACTLY what I had in mind- love when that happens! Nothing worse than having grand plans and it turning into an ultimate FAIL.

Check them out. I think Baby W will love them!

One bummer was that the decal company only sent me 3 of the 4 sheets that I ordered, so I ran out of dots and couldn't finish- one door currently is only dotted about 3/4 of the way- but they're sending me a replacement of my order- all 4 sheets which is the least they could do.

I spy a CRIB! Nathan set it up last week... it made things feel SO REAL!

And just because I love Before and Afters....

And while we're at it... a major BEFORE...

So there ya have it- baby got some polka dots! Nursery is moving right along but I'm feeling the pressure to move along a little bit faster. If only this thing they call a job didn't take up most of my day!

-Tricia

The Bathroom Gets a New Layout

noreply@blogger.com (Tricia | 724SouthHouse) — Mon, 05 May 2014 00:35:00 +0000

I'm so excited to say that the bathroom is coming right along- relatively speaking it's probably one of our quickest projects to date. I'm especially thankful for such a hard working husband and helpful father in law who have kept this project moving. I think Nathan's speed and dedication is due to the fact that he probably doesn't want to witness his preggo wife have another emotional Jessie Spano "There's No Time... There's Never Any Time" breakdown. I've only had 2 during the bath reno so far but hoping I'm in the clear.

Before I get to the good stuff like tile and grout and paint (Yes that is the GOOD stuff), I've got to get down to the bread and butter of the project. To truly appreciate it, you have to know all that has been involved. The bathroom isn't just a facelift- it's a full tear out and switcheroo of everything. The old layout did not utilize the space well at all. The bathroom is actually quite large- especially for a house this old- so we are lucky to be able to work with a lot of real estate.

Below is a simple plan of what the bathroom was like before.

BEFORE

As you can see, half of the bathroom wasn't even utilized. Granted- we did take out the claw foot tub which took up a lot of the room, but we were left with a toilet practically sitting on top of the sink (You could seriously wash your hands while on the toilet. I swear I never did that though... not to say others haven't....), a vanity that wasn't able to be fully utilized or accessed due to the placement of the toilet, and a small shower stall in the corner. If I had to guess what the original layout was back in the day, I would assume that the toilet was where the shower stall is and the vanity and claw foot tub were where they are shown above. At some point the previous owners wanted a shower stall in addition to their tub, and just moved the toilet to the only place available- right smack in front of the vanity.

My vision for the new plan was pretty straight forward from the beginning. The main goal was to get rid of the nasty shower stall and install a tub/shower combo for kiddos, resell value, and practicality. We thought about simpler options like keeping the vanity where it was and going back to the original 1920s layout, but it just made sense (although maybe a little more work) to put the new tub where the old vanity was, move the toilet to the old shower stall area, and place a new vanity where the claw foot tub used to be. Had we put a new tub where the old claw foot used to sit, we would have probably had to build out a wall to enclose it and it would have made the bathroom feel very closed in. You also would have entered the room and be straight smack in front of a new wall... and I didn't like the thought of that. So, extending the original wall on the opposite side just made sense. Now is the point that you are probably confused. If so, just look at the new layout below.

AFTER

Hope the new layout above is clearer than my rambling. We feel like it's a much better use of the space and it just feels right when you walk into the bath. It's a little tight between the tub and the vanity, but it's actually not out of the ordinary of a normal bathroom- I think we are just used to such an open room that it's a bit of a shock for us to have a normal layout. One thing that we are adding which I'm really excited about is the closed storage- aka linen closet- behind the toilet. We currently don't have a linen closet- just the hall closet that is already filled to the brim with random things- so it was really necessary for us to add in some storage.

Another thing we did was board up the window. I know I know! I would never normally take a window out of a room BUT we had good reason. The window would have cut directly into the new tub area and made everything look completely unbalanced. It could have worked, but we would have had a ghetto shower rod up against a window (that could never open) and then we would have half of a window in our shower. MOST OF ALL, the window is literally 4 feet away from our neighbor's house- which means it's 4 feet away from our neighbor's window. Needless to say, our blinds were never open when the window was there- in fact sometimes I forgot we even had a window in our bathroom. It was never used and even if it was the natural light was minimal since the house next door pretty much blocked any semblance of sunlight. Operation 'board up that window' was a no brainer and neither of us are regretting the choice at all.

Below's pic shows the window before demo. I guess I was really bad about taking "During the Reno" pics since this is the only one I could find before it was drywalled over.

After our Demo (which you can read here), the guys reworked all of the plumbing- which is pretty impressive if you ask me (Sorry no pics of that...) The basement ceiling is now a maze of new white piping- it's pretty awesome. Nathan also ran electrical to the wall that will be housing the new vanity.

We also extended the wall out so we could enclose the new tub (where the vanity used to sit)... which then led us to laying concrete board on the floor...

And installing the new tub! It's in- it's really in! (and yes these are the worst iPhone pics ever)

Drywall was then installed.... Josh was a huge help with this part- he can do it with his eyes closed!

This is where the toilet and closed storage are going.

Future vanity wall

And then concrete board was installed around the tub....

And that's where I will leave you- Plumbing, electrical, tub install, drywall, concrete board... This post sums up about a week and a half of very hard work. I guess I could have spread it out, but just getting a blog post up is work enough. The fun stuff (for me anyway) will be coming up in the next bathroom post- stay tuned!

-Tricia