Our Fifth House

Powder Room Inspiration

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 14 Mar 2016 14:20:00 +0000

I'm not quite finished with our entry foyer yet, but I'm close enough to the finish line that I'm already dreaming up ideas for another space in our home. Call it design ADD, but I can rarely focus on one room for too long. #thestruggleisreal And our powder room is next on my hit list. It wasn't on my house goals list for the year, but I'm tired of walking in here and feeling less than inspired. It's not "ugly" or "outdated".....it's just not my style and is in need of some personality.

Here's how it looked when we toured the house. This is the picture from the MLS listing. It doesn't really look much different now as I haven't done anything in here but bring in a hand towel and a soap dispenser.

So it's time. This is the bathroom guests use when we entertain, and it's high time this little bathroom was given some love. It obviously doesn't need a total gut job. It's got nice bones. The vanity is a little banged up though you can't tell from the photo, but other than that all is in good working order. I'm planning to bring in a little wow factor and heavy dose of personality. This bathroom boasts a small footprint with tall ceilings so I'll be highlighting the verticality with a little something something on the vanity wall. All in all I've come up with a fun, simple-to-execute-not-too-expensive plan, and these three images have provided most of the inspiration.

I love this bathroom makeover Gwen worked on last year. You really need to check out the before to truly appreciate the after. I love how much visual bang for the buck paint provides in this space. And painting the doors and trim all the same color was such a smart way to make the space feel larger.

The Makerista

I'm also in love with this bathroom makeover by my talented friend Courtney. I love mixed metals in a bathroom. The small doses of warm gold are the prefect finishing touch, and I'm completely obsessed with the striped shades on that light fixture!

A Thoughtful Place

Here again in this bathroom Emily created for her boys in their last home I'm really digging the painted vanity. It really brings in a fun custom look without much effort or expense.

Emily A. Clark

I'll share more details soon! I'm excited to finish up the foyer and get to work in here!

More bathroom inspiration can be found here over on my bathrooms Pinterest board.

Happy Monday after springing forward friends! There's something not quite right about waking up when it's dark outside, but a sunset at almost 9 pm........I'll wake up without the sun for that any day!

design dilemma - coordinating kitchen island and breakfast nook lights

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 09 Mar 2016 17:07:00 +0000

After last week's design dilemma discussion on pendant lights in a kitchen many of you asked me to do a post on how to coordinate pendant lights with the chandelier you hang over the table in your breakfast nook. Making design decisions can be tough and it's often hard to visualize how something will look before it's installed. You want the lighting to flow but not be overly matchy-matchy, and with so many options out there finding a winning combination can be kind of intimidating. So today I'm sharing a few thoughts on the subject, some simple ideas to help you make confident lighting selections in your kitchen.

First lets's start by looking at some examples of kitchen lighting done really well. Let's dissect what makes these examples work.

I'm pretty much in love with every detail of this kitchen, but the lighting specifically adds a nice touch of modern glamour to a traditional white kitchen. I think it's a good idea to figure out what will be the main lighting attraction in your kitchen and open dining area. Basically, who is going to be the lead actor and who is going to take on a supporting role? Everyone is important to the play, but not everyone is a star, you know? In this example below, the white shades are supporting actors and the chandy is the Oscar winner. I mean I realize they can both be winners, but you get what I'm saying right? The pendants blend in with the white cabinets, yet the gold marries them to the chandy. The style of the pendants fits in line with the sleek modern glamorous look, but they don't compete with the structural beauty of the chandy hanging over the table. It's almost like they're pointing you over to that gorgeous beacon of gold light. (I know I'm crazy; roll with it.)

via Home Adore - Dunbar-Southlands House by Terris Lightfoot Contracting

Here the pendants and chandy play off of eachother both in the polished chrome finish and the round shape. But here again the chandy is the main attraction, and what keeps things interesting is that the lighting over the table brings in another layer - the white fabric shades which also relate back to the white cabinets.

Chango & Co

Now here's an example where the pendants are the main attraction and the chandy is kind of taking a back seat. The lighting flows in color and style, but what keeps things interesting is the different shapes and bulk. The pendants are much heavier, bulkier than the chandy. If the chandy met the same bulkiness as the pendants there would be too much visual competition. As is the pendants stand out and the lighting flows really nicely.

HGTV - Sarah Richardson

I like this next example because it shows that you don't have to marry styles in order for things to coordinate. The pendants are glass and the chandy is metal, but they work well together because the color of the chain matches. Also notice the flush mount over the sink tieing the black and white color palette together just perfectly.

Designer - Carla Aston - Photographer - Tori Aston

So to sum up here a few tips for coordinating your kitchen lighting:

1. Choose a main player - chandy or pendants - and work from there.

Once your main player is selected:

2. Marry one or two things - whether it's the metal finish, the overall style or shape - find a couple of common elements. You want something about your lighting to match. You just don't want everything to match.

3. Vary the other elements. So if you have the same shape and finish, mix metal with glass, or glass with a fabric shade. Find something that offers a little something different than your main player does.

To give you a few examples, here are few combinations I like.

So notice in the rustic, traditional combo the pendant is square and the chandy is round; but the wood and iron marries them. In the sleek, industrial combo both have a round shape and are dark in color, but the pendant is glass. The cool, modern mix is the most different match up, but the modern style and dark elements tie them together.

rustic traditional (pendant/chandy), sleek industrial (pendant/chandy), cool modern (pendant/chandy)

Here again in the traditional, classic combo the round shape and nickel finish marry them, but the fabric shade with the glass shade of the pendant keep them different enough to make the combination interesting. The modern, glam combo has gold and glass in common, but the different shapes keeps them from being too matchy-matchy. The casual, elegant combo is an interesting mix with two really different styles, but the dark metal shade of the pendant coordinates with the black iron of the chandy allowing it to take center stage but brining in a more casual vibe.

traditonal classic (pendant/chandy), modern glam (pendant/chandy), casual elegant (pendant, chandy)

I'm no expert, but hopefully this helped you to figure things out and gave you some ideas for coordinating lighting in your kitchen. It's not an exact science and really just depends on what you like and the overall style your going for in your home. Below you'll see how one simple glass ball pendant could easily coordinate with two different chandys depending on the overall design style you want to achieve. With the wood bead and and iron option you create a modern farmhouse feel, yet with the rectangular glass and iron option you get a sleek, industrial, casual vibe. Both work, just depends on the overall look you're wanting to create in your home.

pendant, wood bead iron, rectangular glass

What are your thoughts on coordinating lighting in your kitchen and open dining areas? Any favorite combinations?

If you have a design dilemma you'd like to submit - email me here - Carmel@ourfifthhouse.com

how to hang pre-pasted wallpaper

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 07 Mar 2016 18:22:00 +0000

Hanging pre-pasted wallpaper is relatively easy. It's a little time consuming, but it's not a difficult diy at all. With a little patience and a weekend you could knock out a wallpaper project with no problem. I've never hung a traditional wallpaper and have always opted to use pre-pasted paper. From what I gather, it's easier to work with, and since there are so many options available in pre-pasted papers, it just seems like a no-brainer for anyone planning to do the installation themselves.

Since I just finished wallpapering our entry foyer, I thought I'd share a quick play by play. You all know my tutorials are basically a "if-I-can-do-it-anyone-can" kind of pep talk, and this one is no different.

1. Gather your supplies.
Start by measuring your room to determine how much wallpaper you'll need for your project. Keep in mind that papers that have a pattern repeat will mean that a portion of the roll will end up as waste, although there is some waste in every wallpaper project no matter what paper you choose. Also bear is mind that if you're installing it yourself mistakes can and will happen...........so always buy extra! I recommend at least 2 extra rolls for every project. The added expense is worth knowing that you have all your bases covered in case of a mishap. #trustme Plus, if you're using a standard store bought paper you can always return any rolls you don't use.

Those of you who follow me on Snapchat (@ourfifthhouse) know that I didn't follow my own advice with this project and ended up running all over town to get my hands on a few extra rolls of this paper in order to finish up my project! #hellonightmare There's nothing like running out of paper just when you're about to cross the finish line. But it's even worse when the paper you need is no longer available at the store where you purchased it! See, you could learn a lot from a dummy! ;)

This "grasscloth" wallpaper is from Lowe's. It's the same paper I used on the back of the bookcases in our living room. I also used this same paper in my hub's office at our fifth house. I really love this paper! It's not real grasscloth; it's vinyl, but it looks a lot like the real thing for a fraction of the price.

Apparently some Lowe's stores are clearing it out to make way for repositionable wallpaper. Larger stores are still carrying it, and this paper as well as lots of other prepasted options are available to purchase at Lowe's online. The price of this paper as opposed to real grasscloth is kind of insane. I papered our entire entry foyer for a third of what grasscloth would have cost. Apart from the price though, I really love the clean textured look of this paper. And when you have dogs and kids, wipe-ability is kind of nice too.

So anyway, moral of the story is always buy a couple of extra rolls of paper. Always.

Then gather up the rest of your supplies. I like to use moving blankets as dropcloths when wallpapering. They're more absorbent and do a better job of protecting your floors than painter's dropcloths. Also make sure your razor is sharp. There's nothing worse than trying to cut wet wallpaper with a dull blade. #askmehowiknow #saveyourselftheheadache

2. Prep your walls.
Fill any nail holes, and remove switch plates and outlet covers.

3. Measure and cut.
You've got your paper and all your supplies ready to go. You have a weekend and an endless amount of espresso on tap. You're rocking an old pair of jeans, a ratty old hoodie and a messy bun. You're ready to get this wallpaper party started. Figure out where you want to start your first panel. Every room is different so you'll have to figure out based on the width of your paper and your walls where a good place to start with your first panel will be. Once you've decided and have measured the length of your wall from the ceiling to the top of the baseboard, lay out your paper and cut a panel about 1 to 2 inches longer. You want a little wiggle room.

4. Mark a plumb line
Before you activate your glue and start pasting your paper to the wall, use a level and a pencil to lightly mark a plumb line. Basically, don't count on the fact that your walls are square because they probably aren't. So before you begin your wallpapering, make a pencil line where you want to line up your first panel. Once you line up panel number one all other panels will fall in line with that one.

5. Activate the glue
Prepasted paper is basically wallpaper that has a thin layer of glue on the back. The glue becomes active and sticky when wet. Many online tutorials recommend using a water tray for hanging prepasted papers, but I prefer to use a spray bottle of water. Any old spray bottle will work. Just fill her up with water, lay your cut panel down over your dropcloth and spray generously. Wait about 5 minutes for the glue to be activated. When it feels tacky and slightly gummy it's ready.

6. Line up your panel with your plumb line.
Leave a little excess at the top near the ceiling and line up your panel with your plum line as you work your way down the wall. Use your smoothing tool to work out any air bubbles.

7. Use a razor knife to cut excess, and to cut around outlets/switches.

You'll have excess at the top and the bottom. Make sure to use a sharp blade. Go slow, don't rush through cutting. I find that using the smoothing tool to hold the paper in place creates a little tension and makes it easier to cut a smooth line without snagging the paper. But give yourself some grace. Snags probably will happen at some point. And more often than not they won't be noticeable at all if you just smooth them out. No one is going to be staring at your baseboards anyway, so don't fret if you get a couple of snags here and there. Just keep calm, and wallpaper on. ;)

To cut around outlets and switches, use a razor to cut a small hole then use scissors to finish cutting around. Once cut use the smoothing tool to set the paper in place.

8. Use a sponge to wipe away any excess glue.
As you smooth out your paper, the glue/paste will sneak out of the sides. Use a clean damp sponge to wipe away the excess glue.

So that's basically it, in a nutshell. Once your first panel goes up, the rest of the them go up relatively smoothly. You use the line of the panel you just hung as your plumb line and repeat the above steps until you're all done. Granted hanging a paper like this one where there is no pattern to match up is a lot easier, the same basic steps apply regardless.

I'm a huge fan of this paper! It's easy to install, inexpensive and adds great texture to a space.

A little something that comes in handy once your project is finished, is a tube of wallpaper seam repair.

Inevitably once you're done wallpapering you'll find one or two little parts of a seam somewhere that for some odd reason just didn't stick to the wall. This seam repair glue is an easy fix.

As simple as a project like this is to complete, I'm definitely glad to be over the finish line. And I can't wait to finish up with the few other projects I have planned for our entry foyer. Just the wallpaper and lighting switch-a-roo (I brought this pendant from our fifth house's kitchen) have already made a huge impact!

This is the view from the hub's office.

The paper is so much prettier in person. It's so hard to capture how it really looks. Can't wait to get the art on the walls!

*** Edited - I wanted to add a little note here about a little/big step I chose to skip for my wallpapering project. Many professionals recommend priming or what they call "sizing" the walls before you wallpaper. Wallpaper primer is different than wall paint primer. It creates a sort of "shield" for your walls that is technically supposed to make any removal easier if/when you decide to take your paper down. It also is supposed to keep any damage from happening to the drywall when you remove the paper. I chose to skip this step. I did not use wallpaper primer. My walls had been primed and painted by the previous owner/builder. And the color of the walls prior was very similar to the color of the wallpaper, which is another reason why I skipped adding a wallpaper primer. But I mainly skipped that stepped because 1. I have absolutely zero plans to ever take this paper down, and in fact even before I papered the walls in here I considered future plans. In the future if I tire of this paper I plan to just paint right over it because I like the texture of this paper and a change in color will be enough of a change for me if I ever tire of this look. 2. In my experience with wallpaper removal whether or not walls have been sized first has made little to no difference in both the ease of removal or in keeping the walls from any damage. Removing wallpaper is always a pain. I'm pretty sure the words easy and wallpaper removal are antonyms. And I haven't noticed any difference whether or not the walls were sized first. I have however noticed that papers that are pre-pasted do seem to be a little easier to remove than those where you have to apply wallpaper paste. And I'm not sure why that is, but I wonder if it has to do with the strength of the glue? Honestly, not sure on that? Anyhow, here's what I recommend. Think long and hard before wallpapering. Choose something that you will love for a long, long time. Consider future plans and then decide if you can opt to skip the wallpaper priming step or not. To me, it seems like an added step that doesn't totally deliver on it's guarantee. But you'll have to decide for yourself if you agree or if you want to add that step in as a just in case safeguard. I do however recommend going ahead with the wallpaper primer first if your wallpaper is a different color than the color that is currently on the walls. You will want the color on the walls to match the paper to help make any seems where the paper isn't perfectly butted up to each other not stick out like a soar thumb. And you can have wallpaper primer tinted to match any color, so if you need to get the walls primed to match your paper might as well do the wallpaper primer. Make sense? - Okay, if I've confused you at all or you have any questions please feel free to ask away in the comment section down below! Happy homemaking!!

*This post was sponsored by Lowe's Home Improvement. Opinions, thoughts and overwhelming love for this wallpaper is 100% genuine, as is my affection for the fabulous sales woman who helped me track down more rolls of paper at another local store.

style files - the floral print

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 03 Mar 2016 17:01:00 +0000

Hey friends! Happy Thursday! Apologies for my absence this week on the blog. I've been hard at work finishing up the wallpaper project in our entry foyer. And as of 12:30 this morning I'm happy to report I checked that box off my to-do list for the space. Yippee! I'll be sharing a full tutorial next week. Stay tuned for that.

While I'm nursing the bags under my sleep deprived eyes, let's talk about something spring-y. Who else is thrilled to welcome Spring back into their lives?! Spring always puts me in such a flower-y mood.

But really, who am I kidding, I love all things related to florals year round. I love fresh flowers, floral paintings and floral prints. Whether in home decor or fashion, a floral print brings in an element of softness, whimsy and femininity.

hi sugarplum

Hunted Interior

A bold floral print can really be the defining element that makes a room design sing, yet a sweet little floral painting can be the cherry on top of a gorgeous floor to ceiling space. Edie's kitchen has been a favorite of mine for years.

Life in Grace

I find in my home I have a hard time selling bold floral prints to my husband. Anyone else? He's not a fan of anything "too girly". #inserteyeroll But floral paintings he's good with, so I've become slightly obsessed. I love, love, love floral paintings! And have recently become enamored with Emma Louise Bell. Her work is just beautiful! You really need to check out her shop.

Emma Louise Bell - Floral Painting

This one is a favorite! I just love tulips! It's a 12x12 size which is so great for styling bookshelves or for mixing in with larger pieces in a gallery wall.

Emma Louise Bell - Tulips

While in interiors I get my floral fix via fresh flowers and paintings, in my wardrobe I have free reign to get my flower power on. I'm usually attracted to large scale floral prints. The smaller scale prints tend to give me high school flashbacks, and that's not necessarily a good thing. ;) I also tend to gravitate towards floral prints on darker backgrounds as I find that they tend to work in my wardrobe year round as opposed to being season specific. This red floral on black dress I wore during our recent trip to San Antonio easily transitions to spring/summer with a quick shoe and accessory change.

I'll be swapping the tights and boots for bare legs and wedges. These beauties are on my spring wish list! Major heart eyes happening over here!

A bunch of you asked for source info on my floral print dress after the San Antonio trip report, but unfortunately it's no longer available. I bought it last fall at Lily Rain. So I rounded up a bunch of floral print pieces that could easily work in your wardrobe year round with the right accessories.

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7

I'm especially in love with this lovely. She's got a retro vibe I really dig and would look great with leopard heels and a vintage straw bag for spring; or pair her with a black cardigan, pearls, black tights and knee high boots and she'd put a happy pep in your winter step. Plus, she also reminds me of The Bachelor. ;) Who's watching this season? It's crazy town right?!

I'm also in mega love with this girl, but she's a little price-y, though I really do love the large scale print, the color combination and the slight bell sleeve!

floral print, bell sleeve

And wearing her year round would make her price a bit easier to swallow. She'd go great with a fur or military style vest and tall cognac boots or give her a spring Derby style look with a pretty sun hat and nude heels.

What about you all, are you ready for spring's flowers to bloom? Do you love floral prints and paintings as much as I do?

design dilemma: pendant lights in the kitchen

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 01 Mar 2016 15:07:00 +0000

Today I'm back with another reader design dilemma (check out the first installment of this series here). This one's from Katie, from the blog Isn't That Grand, who recently bought her first home and is working her way through renovating each room. She's currently working on updating her kitchen and has hit a road block called indecision. When it comes to renovating, design and decorating I'd say we've all been struck by the indecision bug a time or two, right? What's troubling Katie? Kitchen lighting issues. #thestruggleisreal #firstworldproblems

Katie has already started with her kitchen reno by painting most of the cabinets a really pretty dark grey. You'll have to head over to her blog to see the full before in order to truly appreciate the full on awesome power of paint in here. This grey looks fantastic, and Katie has fun plans for her kitchen island. She also plans to remove the decorative wood valance above the sink. But first she wants to nail down her lighting plan because her current kitchen has zero overhead lighting! Crazy right? Did the people who lived here before her cook in the dark? Or maybe they gave new meaning to the ol' early bird special and only ate dinner before sunset? I just can't imagine cooking in a kitchen with no overhead lighting, but I digress.

Katie's main question is about whether or not to add pendant lights over the island. She plans to add recessed can lights throughout the kitchen and is waffling over adding cans or pendants over the island. Her main concern is that pendants will block the kitchen from the attached dining area creating a closed in look when what she's aiming for is an open kitchen and dining space.

I say, go for the pendants! I'd bring in two over this island. I think adding pendants over the island will really bring home that updated look Katie is wanting in her kithcen. Lighting really is everything, and is a relatively simple and inexpensive way to update a space. Plus, I think with the right pendants her concern of closing things off will not be an issue at all. I can understand the concern she has; but going with an all glass or low profile style pendant will create interest, update the overall look and feel of the kitchen, without being a visual barrier to the sightline of the dining area. Here are a few of the options I pulled knowing that Katie likes that industrial farmhouse look.

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6,

Okay so admittedly number 5 probably won't work in Katie's kitchen. I don't have her island measurements, but I'm thinking two of those over her island might be overkill. However, I just had to include them because I think they're so cool, and I'm sure there's a modern industrial farmhouse kitchen out there that needs these stat. If Katie's wanting to go for a bit more of a modern farmhouse feel, I really like option 3.

I think the white enamel paired with a hint of copper is such a great look and will pair nicely with the grey cabinets. Plus the low profile will be understated yet interesting. Options 1, 2, 4, or 6 I don't think you could go wrong with, although I'd say number 2 will make the biggest statement. I know 1 and 6 are really similar, but 6 has a more modern feel being that it doesn't have a chain. All of those options will look great and being that they're all glass that open feeling Katie likes will still be there. Best part is every option I pulled is less than $100!

This is a terrible mock-up, you'll have to forgive my lack of photo editing skills, but this gives you an idea of what option 3 would look like.

They would add just enough interest without taking over the space. And I don't know all of Katie's plans for her kitchen, but these particular pendants would look amazing with a white subway tile backsplash and dark grey grout.

SO what do you all think? Should Katie opt for pendants or can lights over her island? And which pendant style light do you prefer?

If you've got a design dilemma weighing on your mind and would like a fresh set of eyes to help you flush out ideas, submit it here ----> Carmel@ourfifthhouse.com. I would love to help you brainstorm!

Thanks very much to Katie for submitting her design dilemma. Good luck with your new home! Can't wait to see what you decide!

one pot gluten free buffalo chicken pasta

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 25 Feb 2016 15:21:00 +0000

There are three things I LOVE about this buffalo chicken pasta recipe. 1. You can make it in one pot. Bam. No messing up your whole kitchen. Fist pump! 2. It's ready to go in about 30 minutes. and 3. It's super delicious!

This is not a dairy free recipe as it calls for butter (I choose to use grass fed butter), but it doesn't have any cheese in it at all (except for the optional goat cheese crumble garnish). So it's not technically "paleo" but I think the occasional rice pasta is good for you. I personally feel my best when I allow for more carbs in my diet.

Ingredients:

2 tbp coconut oil
2 lbs. chicken tenders (usually 2 pkgs)
1 16 oz. bag/box gluten free rice pasta (I prefer fusilli)
1 1/2 tbsp crushed garlic - or 5 cloves of garlic chopped
6 cups chicken broth (I use a free range chicken broth.)
1 tsp onion powder
1 1/2 tsp sea salt
1 can full fat coconut milk
5 tbsp butter (I use Kerrygold grass fed butter.)
1 cup Frank's Original Red Hot (It's one of the only bottled hot sauces that doesn't have all kinds of ingredients in it that I can't pronounce. It's ingredient list is simply: cayenne pepper, distilled vinegar, water, salt and garlic powder.)
*garnish with chopped green onion and goat cheese crumbles

Directions :

In a large glass lidded stock pot heat your coconut oil over medium high heat. Throw your chicken tenders into the pot. Don't bother chopping the chicken tenders beforehand, you can use your cooking spoon to break up the chicken while it's cooking (this is why I like to use chicken tenders for this recipe....it saves me the trouble of whipping out my meat cutting board). Add in the crushed garlic and cook the chicken through. Finish cutting up the chicken once it cooked. Now add your chicken broth to the pot and add in the onion powder and salt. Mix in the pasta and cover the pot reducing the heat to medium low. Let it boil for about 20 to 25 minutes. This is why you want to use a glass lidded pot, so you can check the progress of the pasta without lifting the lid. When the pasta is cooked, remove the lid and turn off the heat. Add in the coconut milk, butter and hot sauce. Mix together. Serve in bowls with an optional garnish of chopped green onion and goat cheese crumbles.

plate , bowl , similar napkin comes in green, black, & orange

I like to pair this buffalo chicken pasta with a simple green salad. And I think a light, crisp cider is a perfect companion to the spice and heat of the buffalo sauce. If you love buffalo wings, you will love this delicious pasta. I use just one cup of hot sauce for a mild version my kiddos will tolerate, but if you like it spicier add more. Give this easy one-pot-30-minute-meal a try guys, and let me know what you think!

thoughts on the real life application of the life-changing magic of tidying up

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 24 Feb 2016 20:43:00 +0000

My guess is you've read or have at least heard of the book "The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up" written by Marie Kondo. It's a New York Times best seller with over 3 million copies sold, and people have gone bananas for The KonMarie Method, Marie Kondo's category-by-category system of organizing the home.

I read it last year right around the time my family was in the process of moving. And I immediately thought to myself, "This is perfect timing"! What better time to read a book about purging all the stuff you don't really love or need in your home. Basically why box up and move things you really don't care that much about. So while we were in the process of packing I systematically went through every. single. item. in our home and discarded anything that as Kondo puts it "didn't spark joy". So if you're planning a move anytime soon, I'd highly recommend you read this book and then jump in to the joy of letting go of all the crap. ;) You won't regret it. I let go of quite a bit of our holiday decor, oodles of my craft supplies and tons of the junk we had in our garage, in addition to a good thorough clothing purge. We had a big moving sale and then made multiple trips to Goodwill to let go of the rest. It was good. It was liberating. And even though I thought I was pretty good at organizing before reading this book, I did still find that I had hung on to lots of things for no real reason. I had a ridiculous amount of candles, and I came to grips with my wrapping paper hoarding tendencies.

So now that it's been almost a year after reading the book and about 6 months since we've unpacked the things we did bring with us, I wanted to share a few of my thoughts on this business of "life-changing magical tidying up".

First off, I've recommended this book to a number of my close friends. But I always recommend it with a few caveats.

1. You have to get over the number of times the words "tidy" and "spark joy" come up in this book. In fact, I think I even recommended to one friend to read while sipping a glass of wine and then take a sip every time she read those words. Drinking games for adults. ;) Some college habits never die. Haha! But seriously, don't jump ship just because the repetition of those words starts to annoy you. Because while "spark joy" is a catchphrase Kondo has coined, the main idea here is one that's been around for quite some time. William Morris, one of the most important figures of the 19th century, said, " Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful." But what Kondo does in this book goes a bit further as she lays out a roadmap as well as gives you permission to let go of the embroidered pillow cases Aunt Betty gave you for your birthday five years ago. So drink your wine and read the book. :)

2. Keep in mind when Kondo wrote this she didn't have children. Kondo just recently became a mother. Now I'm not saying that a women without children can't offer great advice on tidying or organizing the home, but I am saying that until you become a mom you just can't fully understand what's it's like to have the level of stuff cluttering up your home that comes with children. It's like how I thought I would never in a million years feed my children chicken nuggets before I actually had children to feed.......things change when children become a part of your home......and some of your high ideals go to the wayside.....and for good reason. So when Kondo recommends storing shampoo and soap in a cabinet after every use instead of leaving them in the shower stall like a normal person go ahead moms, roll your eyes, because I know you'll be thinking the same thing I was thinking.....ain't nobody got time for that. To be honest I can't think of any woman with kids or without that would find merit in that advice or that would honestly think that doing that would be something other than an added chore in your already busy day. But at any rate I just think it's helpful to know before reading that this tidying expert is just now joining the motherhood because a few of the things she recommended made me want to give her the side eye as I couldn't see them working too well in my home. And while she covers decluttering categories from clothing, paperwork and keepsakes, she never once makes any mention of toys.

3. Which leads me to her chapter on folding clothes in which she writes, "By neatly folding your clothes you can solve almost every problem related to storage." Now, it's not that I don't agree, I do. In fact, I myself follow Kondo's folding method, not perfectly, but close enough.

But back to the motherhood issue, my kids are 9 and 11 and while their closets are quite neat and tidy (see the girl's closet here and the boy's closet here), their drawers start out looking great and then after a few weeks start to look a little crazy. I wash and fold, and they put away. And they do a great job, but after awhile things start to look..........disheveled. I think because while neatly folding your clothes to where you can see them all at first glance is absolutely great, the key is in being committed to keeping your drawers looking that way. And since my kids aren't old enough to find the joy in organizing as much as I do their commitment to staying on top of keeping their drawers neat looking isn't super high. I guess I could pull a mommy dearest and empty the contents of their drawers when they start looking crazy.......but I'm pretty sure they've already amassed enough crazy here in our home to have plenty to talk to a therapist about later in life, so why add to the list. ;) I just figure if they are putting things in the right drawers and not leaving piles of clothes on their beds than so long as I can't see the mess it's a mess I'm willing to live with. I'd rather choose my tidying battles than attempt to conquer it all.

And fyi, this isn't just the kids' commitment issue. The hubs has had trouble committing to the KonMari method of folding as well. #blesshisheart

At least his closet still looks neat.

4. My favorite part of the book was the chapter on Komono (miscellaneous items). This is where Marie Kondo goes into not feeling guilty about letting go of things you've held on to out of obligation. I wish I could add in the praise hands emoji right here because reading this was really great for me as I've been known to keep things solely because someone gave them to me even if I wasn't crazy about the items. And now, I have zero guilt about that whatsoever. I've also long felt like having a ton of extra bedding stored in a linen closet was pointless, so reading the section on extra bedding was confirming for me. As was the small paragraph she wrote about one of her clients that had 3 months of toilet paper stored in a closet. That definitely gave me a chuckle as I myself have refused to join Sam's Club or Costco for the mere fact that I don't ever want that much of any one thing in my home. ever.

5. Lastly, Kondo talks a lot about purging, discarding and removing any and all items from your home that do not spark joy. Then she delves in with a great roadmap providing instruction for effectively tackling each category of your home, but when I got to the end of the book I thought well, where are the strategies for keeping yourself from once again accumulating all the stuff? I feel like it's all fine and well to thoroughly purge and then store things in a neat and organized fashion, but without talking about curtailing our buying habits than won't we just end up going through the same cycle over again? I don't know, I just felt like a chapter or two on that subject would have been really helpful. Maybe it's just as simple as stay away from the Target dollar spot. ;) I don't know, but I myself have started doing the wardrobe collection thing to keep my closet and drawers from going to crazy town. And that has made a huge difference for me.

All in all, I feel like every homeowner could benefit from reading this book. Even if some of Marie Kondo's language is a bit odd......like when she mentions in the section on folding clothes that when you run your hands over the cloth you pour your energy into it.......yeah, I was like okay lady, that's a little voodoo-ish, don't you think? I also didn't agree with her section on books. I reread books all the time and the library we've collected is one that makes me proud. I love books! Though I don't keep every single one, I didn't agree that you should reduce your collection to just 30 volumes. Just 30! That just sounded crazy to me. I think that's a really personal thing that no one can put the right number on for you. So, while there were some definite moments where I paused and thought to myself, "Really?", all in all the message and the method is really sound advice. You just have to curtail it to make the most sense for you.

Have you read this book? Are you following the KonMari method? What about her new book, Spark Joy, have any of you read it?

entry foyer plans, decisions & art options

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 23 Feb 2016 16:03:00 +0000

I mentioned when I talked about what my plans are for the house and the blog this year that the entry foyer was on the hit list. SO February is half over and it's time to get crack-a-lackin'. It's basically looked like this since move-in day, well, minus the boxes.

Clearly our miniature schnauzer has the ruffest life. #seewhatididthere ;)

I ordered a few wallpaper samples from Serena and Lily........

but I just wasn't feeling any of them. I realized that what I really want to do is add texture to the walls and create a little flow from the entry to the rest of the house. So I'm going with the same grasscloth wallpaper I used on the back of the bookcases in the our living room. Those of you who've been around the blog for a while might remember that I used this same paper in my hubs office at our fifth house. I shared a simple to follow tutorial here, but I'll be sharing another more in depth one very soon.

I've finally started working on wallpapering this past weekend.

But I'm still undecided on what color I want to paint the inside of the front doors. Our dogs are terrible for jumping up on the door when anyone comes to the door so the white doors always look so dirty. What are your thoughts? Pink like the exterior of the doors which would be fun and a bit unexpected, or should I go with a classic look and paint them my trusty Sherwin Williams Urbane Bronze?

Decisions.....decisions.......

In the meantime because my favorite part of any room design is always in the styling, I've been perusing art options at Minted.

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7,

I chose one of the above options to hang over the bench. Can you guess which one I chose? It might surprise you long time readers that I didn't go with a horse print in here. Crazy, right? ;)

I love scrolling for art on Minted because even if you're not planing to have them do the framing you can play around with different options on the site to decide what you like. I'm a visual person so this really helps me to see the big picture in terms of what I want in a space.

I'm just glad to finally be getting started on our entry foyer. It's our home's first impression to visitor's, and I want it to have a healthy dose of personality paired with simplicity and function. I might even be busting out my power tools for this project. #itsabouttime

Book Review - What Alice Forgot

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 22 Feb 2016 03:09:00 +0000

I fell in love with Liane Moriarty when I read Big Little Lies back in 2014. In fact, I loved that book so much that while I wanted to jump in and read everything she'd ever written, I was also afraid to read any of her other books for surely there would be no way any of them could measure up to that one. Does that ever happen to you? Do you read a book by an author that you fall in love with and then get nervous to read their other books? It's like when an author has packaged something up so perfectly that you simultaneously want to devour everything they've written but are also skeptical that anything could be as great as the first one you read.

Okay, enough with my crazy book reading antics. I finally did it. I heard some chatter that What Alice Forgot was in movie production and that Jennifer Aniston would be starring in it which caused my curiosity to outgrow my fear.

And boy did Liane deliver. Yes, we're on a first name basis now. YOU GUYS, this one was soooo good! It took me a while to get going. The first chapter or two didn't totally grab me, but then the story really took off from there.

Brief synopsis - Alice is in a spin class and falls over and bonks her head HARD. (Which by the way is one of my biggest fears, which is exactly why I've only ever taken three spin classes in my entire life. This may be why it took me a chapter or two to dive in........worst fears realized in the first few pages....but I digress.....) She comes to and is carried away to the hospital where it soon becomes very clear that she's basically forgotten the last 10 years of her life. That's one serious concussion! She thinks she's newly married to the love of her life and 29......turns out she's actually 39, has three kids and is getting divorced. How do you forget going through child birth three times?! Anyhow, the whole of the story is Alice figuring out how she got to where she is now in life and whether or not remembering the last decade will be a good thing or a bad thing.

I really loved this story. It was thought provoking, heart warming and witty; a combination that Liane does so well. And it makes you realize how trivial we can be as we live out our daily lives. If you'd forgotten the last 10 years of your life would you be surprised at where you are in life now.......would you be surprised at who you'd become?

I myself am currently in this middle stage of life......and I'm finding that there are so many books, movies, television shows painting images of "this is 40"......... "this is marriage and divorce after 10, 15, 20 years........after 2, 3 kids" and so often they portray life at this stage of the game in a hilarious, yet totally depressing way.........but this book.........while it paints a very real picture; it's interesting and at times a bit gut wrenching, but I didn't find it depressing in the least. I thought it was refreshing.

And I really hope Jennifer Aniston plays Alice. She'd be perfect!

Are you a Liane Moriarty fan? Which of her books should I read next.....The Husband's Secret or The Last Anniversary?

trip report - San Antonio

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 19 Feb 2016 20:04:00 +0000

Last Friday the hubs and I headed out on a little two night getaway to San Antonio. He won a trip through his job whereby he was awarded two free domestic airline tickets and a two night stay at any Hyatt hotel. Valentine's Day weekend seemed like a great time to take advantage of his trip award, and so we chose San Antonio based on two things. 1. We could easily fly there from Charleston, SC without too much time spent in traveling and 2. Neither of us had ever been there. Oh and I also requested a warm destination. I didn't want to risk getting caught in a snow storm somewhere, and I'm just not a huge fan of freezing temperatures.

San Antonio did not disappoint. What a cool city! I really loved it and would love to go back with the kids sometime.

What we did?

We stayed at the Grand Hyatt which has a nice bar area and rooftop pool, plus is right in the middle of everything which makes it easy to get around on foot. We opted not to rent a car and instead used Uber to taxi around when needed. Mostly we just walked. The weather was perfect! Nice and warm during the day and slightly cooler at night. We spent quite a bit of time at the River Walk and did a boat tour.

I love that my hub doesn't even think twice when I stop to take a picture of a staircase. He's like of course she wants to wait until there is no one near so she grab a shot. I mean, that picture would make a great addition to a gallery wall. This is clearly what he's thinking when he stands around waiting ever so patiently. ;)

But really, how beautiful is that staircase?!

We stopped in the historic arts village just off the River Walk and did a little shopping.

I really loved this little area. There are so many cool shops with mostly handmade goods. I especially loved B & C Leather Designs & Unique Finds. Every thing they sell is handmade and most jewelry pieces are made on site. I brought home a really cool leather cuff for my mom as Valentine gift and thank you for taking such great care of the kiddos. The cuff was made from vintage leather and hand painted.

We visited the Alamo. What an experience that was.

We also popped over to the Imax theater and watched the 50 minute Alamo movie. The hubs had never been to an Imax theater, so late that night we went back to see a 10 o'clock showing of Deadpool. Ryan Reynolds on that large of a screen? The answer is yes. every. time. ;)

Where we ate?

Crazy thing is we didn't eat any Mexican food at all! Crazy! I know! We did try. Many of you on Instagram recommended Mi Tierra's, and we had planned to eat there one night; but they don't take reservations and when we arrived it was an hour and 45 minute wait! For Mexican food?! Must be some seriously good food! But we just couldn't wait that long..........Ryan Reynolds was waiting for me. ;) So we walked around the area for a bit then moved on to something else.

The hubs and I both LOVED Biga on the Banks, on the River Walk. The menu changes daily. They had no problem at all catering to gluten free concerns, and everything we ordered was ridiculously good.

We sat outside overlooking the river and enjoyed a nice, quite view with our meal.

I realize this dessert may not look that great in this night time photo, but this here is a mojito souffle; and it was so different from anything I've ever had before and really, really good. The hubs and I shared one, but I kind of wished I had ordered one of my own. ;) It's not too often that a restaurant offers anything gluten free on their dessert menu, so this was really a treat.

I could have drank that mojito sauce. For realz.

We did a little google search for gluten free food in San Antonio and Max's Wine Dive came up as offering gluten free fried chicken. So duh, we had to try it right?! They have a fantastic brunch menu!

And the gluten free fried chicken did not disappoint......and neither did that chipotle honey. My mouth is watering just thinking about it.

We also big time loved Ocho at Hotel Havana which had a Cuban flair. The restaurant itself is just gorgeous and the food was really good!

I'll tried to fit that table and chairs in my suitcase. #hearteyes

We basically loved everything about this place so much that the hubs and I have decided if we make a return trip we want to stay at Hotel Havana. It's gorgeous and designed so, so beautifully! You really need to go check it out online. My photos hardly do this place justice.

All in all we had a great little two night stay in this beautiful city! But really spending one on one time with this guy is always special no matter what city we're in, and I hope I never take our time together for granted.

Happy Weekend friends. I'm excited for a weekend at home. And I foresee an all day pajama day in my near future. Do you have any big plans for the weekend?

pros & cons of selling a home without an agent

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 18 Feb 2016 05:32:00 +0000

Since we sold our home in Kentucky last July I've fielded quite a few questions regarding selling a home without a listing agent. Obviously every situation is unique as is every real estate market, but I thought I'd share a few of the pros and cons from my personal experience. Whether you're in the market to sell soon or not I hope you'll find some information here to be helpful.

This was our second house of the 6 we've called home that we sold without using an agent. In this specific situation we didn't have to move but we wanted to; so selling quickly or even selling at all wasn't something that needed to happen. In other words we didn't have to move for a job or for school district concerns.....we hadn't grown out of our home........we loved our house very much.......it just wasn't in Charleston, SC where we've always dreamed of living. So we went for it, we listed our home just to see what would happen and as it turned out in just three weeks from listing day we had a signed sales contract.

We used a flat fee listing agent which cost $300 and enabled us to list our home for sale on the MLS - multiple listing service - (a database used by real estate agents). Because we had done this before we were pretty familiar with all the forms and disclosures we needed to fill out, but the flat fee listing service we used actually walked us through all the paperwork. In addition to prepping our home to get it ready to sell, we did a bunch of overall market research to arrive at a listing price and to see how our home compared to others in the same price range. While we chose not to use an agent to list our home for sale, we made sure to include that we would pay the buyer's agent in the listing.

We chose not to host any open houses at all. I personally think open houses are a giant waste of time and even if we had hired an agent I would have requested that they not schedule any. Call me crazy but I feel like they attract more Curious Georges than actual buyers. But maybe I feel that way because I myself have been known to spend a random Sunday after church going through open houses just for the fun of it. It's way more fun when you're not the homeowner who has opened up your home in hopes that someone will want to make it their own. ;)

PROS to selling without a listing agent?

- One is the most obvious - The cost-benefit of selling without an agent is kind of hard to beat. Instead of paying 6% on the sale of our home; we paid 3% since we only paid the buyer's agent. The 3% we saved by not paying a listing agent helped to pay for our out of state move (which isn't cheap let me tell you!).

- Second - We were in the driver's seat the whole time. Waiting on feedback kills me. And when you're working with a listing agent, chances are you're not their only client. Being in the driver's seat meant that we didn't have to wait too long for information or feedback before or after showings. When a buyer's agent would call to schedule a showing I would ask a few questions about the buyer to see how serious they were and if they were planning to buy with a contingency to sell a home of their own. Not all listing agents will share those kinds of details about all of the potential buyers that come through your home, but I like knowing all of the details. In addition after each showing I personally made follow up calls to see how everything went during the showing and to clarify any questions they might have had. All in all I liked being in control of the marketing strategy and not dealing with an intermediary.

- Third - You don't have to spend any time interviewing agents. Interviewing realtors can be super tiresome. And even if you feel confident in hiring one it doesn't guarantee that you'll be happy with the service he/she provides. We had a bad experience with the realtor who sold our second home. She had a lot of listings at the time....and our little ol' second house wasn't exactly a priority.

CONS?

- Selling your home on your own is a lot of work! And the truth is getting a signed contract is just the beginning....and it takes a lot of effort to just get it to that point. You're prepping your home, than researching and pulling comparisons to arrive at a sales price, writing up the listing, filling out all the paperwork, taking photographs, creating a marketing flyer, scheduling showings, maintaining a clean house (with kids and dogs!), and then hallelujah you get an offer.....but is it an offer you'll accept? Is there a contingency? Are they open to negotiate? Then you arrive at a mutually accepted agreement.....and then there are appraisals and inspections, meanwhile you're packing because hello! you're moving!..........and then there are often more negotiations and possibly a repair list, and again this all happening while you're simultaneously packing, dealing with moving companies (oh hello nightmare) and trying to buy a house because now you need a place to live...........and goodness gracious by the time you get to closing day you feel like you need at least two bottles of champagne to properly celebrate that it's all finally over and done.........Or at least that has been our experience both times we've sold without an agent. So while saving that 3% is great, if you're not up to dealing with all of that than get an agent who will work hard for your benefit. Because if you let the ball drop during negotiations you could completely negate that 3% savings.

- Some buyer's agents will try to take advantage of the fact that you have no representation, so you really need to be well informed.

- Pricing your home right is so key, and a good agent will be able to do that really well. I think it's hard as a homeowner, especially one who has poured a lot of love and hard work into updating a home, to detach yourself from all of that and just look at the numbers. You really have to take a step back and be totally objective. That can be really tough to do though. Having a listing agent walk and talk you through all of that will probably make it a whole lot easier.

All in all, I'm not sure I'd do it again.......but the control freak, numbers cruncher in me would probably jump in again if the time came and the market was right. ;) It's a lot easier to sell by owner when you're in a desirable area and inventory is low. When those tables are turned a good agent is worth their weight in gold. It's a great deal of work and I have a lot of respect for real estate agents who negotiate these stressful situations every day. Whether you choose to work with a listing agent or not I really believe that the most important thing you can do besides pricing your home right is to add good high quality photographs to your listing. Real estate has become such an internet game and good photos help to generate more interested buyers and showings.

What are your thoughts? Have you ever sold a home without a listing agent and lived to tell about it? ;) Any real estate agents out there I'd love to hear your thoughts as well!

instalove #fifthhousegallery

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 16 Feb 2016 23:29:00 +0000

Hey friends and happy Tuesday! The hubs and I had a wonderful weekend in San Antonio. I can't wait to tell you all about our time there! But since the kids were out of school yesterday for the holiday I'm moving a little slow for a Tuesday......because it feels more like a Monday. Cry me a river right?

Anyhow, today I'm officially kicking off an idea I've had swirling around in my head for a while now. I've been thinking of starting a new instagram account for such a long time......you know, because what I need most in my life is more social media......where's the sarcasm font? Anyhow, I've long thought it would be fun to have an account focused on my love of art and gallery walls.

This floral beauty was painted by mom, and I just got it back from the framer's at Hobby Lobby. Unfortunately for me I didn't inherit her art skills, but I did inherit her love of art. I love discovering and sharing new artists! I also love seeing how others use and display art in their homes......nothing adds more personality to a home than art...........hence the birth of FifthHouseGallery. I'll still be posting to my main instagram account OurFifthHouse where I will continue to share design updates at our new house and a bit of life behind the scenes.......

but over at FifthHouseGallery I'll be featuring artists, showcasing vintage art pieces/finds, and sharing ways to display art in your home.

This is where I'd love for you all to join in the fun! Every week I'll be featuring favorites from whatever that week's theme is. This week is all about gallery walls. So show me your gallery walls using #fifthhousegallery for a chance to be featured.

And be sure to follow along with FifthHouseGallery if you love art as much as I do! I'm so excited for this fun new adventure!

so I married a blogger - interview with the mr.

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 12 Feb 2016 11:00:00 +0000

Hey friends! Happy Friday! Today I'm participating in a fun blog hop style series with an inspiring group of creative women…….and their significant others. In celebration of Valentine's Day a group of us bloggers have decided to ~~gift~~ burden our husbands with an interview featured on our blogs for Valentine's Day. They were all super thrilled with us. ;) Oh hey honey, I know you have a real job and all…..but I need you to answer these 17 questions for my blog. Cool? Okay, thanks, love you!

So without further adieu…….Let me formally introduce you all to Mr. Fifth House. Well, I guess he should now be referred to as Mr. Sixth House, right? His name is Brad……actually it's Bradley, but only his mom and mine call him that. We met in 1998. He's 7 years my senior……a little known fact I hardly ever let him forget…..I'm totally gracious like that. We got engaged in 1999 and married in 2000. Round numbers make it easy for him to remember how many years we've been married. No honey, it just feels like it's been 30 years……this October we'll celebrate 16 years of wedded bliss.

All joking aside, he's my favorite person. I can't imagine doing life without him. He doesn't complete me; Jesus does…..but it's nothing short of an honor to be his wife. He makes life an adventure in all the best ways possible.

Huge thanks to Claire Brody for organizing this fun interview series and for coming up with all the questions!

1. How involved are you with Carmel's blog?

I usually have an idea of what she is working on. Not that she asks for my opinion......ever. ;)

*Does this mean he wants me to ask for his opinion about blog stuff?

2. How often do you read the blog? Are you an avid reader or do you see enough at home?

Once a week.......but admittedly once I start I will usually read several posts and all the comments.

*Surprised! I didn't know he read that often!

3. How much time does Carmel spend on her blog? What are her hours like?

She spends A LOT of time on it. She will work most of the day while the kids are at school, then a little after they go to bed.

4. Are you the cheap manual labor or is there hired help for that? In other words, does Carmel use you for your handy work?

I'm HORRIBLE around the house, so it is seldom that she asks me. On those rare occasions, it is almost always captured on film, like a bigfoot sighting.

*Ha! This is absolutely accurate! The tools around here are mine. He helps on occasion, but he'd rather poke his eye out than diy anything. For the big stuff we hire out.

5. Describe Carmel's style.

Chic, but reserved, with a touch of whimsy.

* I. am. speechless. I've never in my life heard him say the word whimsy. I guess he really does read the blog weekly. ;)

6. Describe your style.

A cross between Peter O'Toole, Steve McQueen. Part dapper, part cowboy. As if that were a thing.

*Best description ever! And pretty much spot on.

7. How often does your home change?

It changes daily. Like every. day.

*Didn't realize he noticed.

8. How many different sofas have you had since marrying Carmel?

6?

*Actually, I think the correct answer is 9.

9. How often do you offer decorating advice? Does she consider your opinion?

I offer it.......she considers it.......then does what she planned on doing before I offered it. She thinks I need to leave the 60's.

*Ha! That's not totally true. I just love a good mix of styles. And what is it they say about a happy wife........

10. What's your favorite room in the house? Why?

My office. It's the perfect space for me. Clean lines. Heavy furniture.

*His office in our fifth house was a favorite space of mine as well! All of the same furniture moved into his office in the new house. Though the room is hardly "finished" I'm glad to hear he's already loving his space. His office here won't have those gorgeous floor to ceiling bookcases, so it's going to be a little different design wise but still led by what he loves most - 60's inspired design details.

11. What does it really look like behind the camera?

She is an exquisite homemaker. She keeps a very clean house. Not that it's always clean, but she is usually working to get it back to clean (2 kids, 2 dogs, me).

*Exquisite? Someone's trying to earn brownie points.

12. What is a project you hate but have never voiced (or maybe you have)?

I don't have one. Even the REALLY feminine projects (pink bathroom in house 5) have ended up looking great.

*Again with the brownie points.

13. Do you know Carmel's blogger friends? If so, who's your favorite?

I know of a couple. Freckleschick is my fave. ;)

*Uh, not sure what that winking smile is all about, but she's a favorite of mine as well. :)

14. What's your favorite aspect of Carmel being a blogger? Least favorite?

I like that our house is fun, changing and always looks well designed. My least favorite is reading GOMI and reading derogatory opinions of the sweetest person I know from people that have never met her, but it's kind of hilarious at the same time that they care that much.

*This was the only answer of his I considered editing. For one thing some of y'all may not even know what GOMI is, and second I hate to give any traffic to a site that is primarily dedicated to gossiping and trash talking bloggers. But editing my husband's remarks felt disingenuous. And if that truly is his least favorite part of me being a blogger, than I feel like I should honor his feelings instead of editing them.

GOMI stands for get off my internets. In the forums section of the site people basically post all sorts of less than kind words. I get it, my style isn't for everyone. That being said, not all of the comments about my blog over there are mean and ugly. Some comments, like when a few people complained about not receiving a response to emails, were a wake up call to get some of the behind the scenes office stuff ironed out so that I could do a better job of replying to emails in a more timely fashion. I think it's sweet that my husband takes offense, but I'm a big girl. And I think any business owner or really anyone with a presence on social media for that matter has to be prepared to hear and handle negative feedback.

15. What are your household chores?

Garbage, feeding the dogs, groceries, getting the kids ready in the morning if I'm home

*He's also on Turkey duty every year. Though I'm not sure that counts as a chore.

16. What's something about Carmel that her readers might not know (but she would be ok with you sharing)?

She is the only person I know that has never had a bad thing to say about another person.

* And again with the brownie points.......Will someone please remind him he already bought the cow? ;) Something about me y'all might not know (heck, the hubs might not know this) is that when I was in high school I decorated my bedroom with a Mickey Mouse theme.....complete with vintage Mickey posters, a Mickey quilt on my bed and even a Mickey Mouse phone. DO. NOT. JUDGE. Now you understand why I get so pumped about a Disney trip.

17. What does Carmel REALLY want for Valentine's Day? And what are you getting her?

I'm not sure what she WANTS, she's getting a romantic trip to San Antonio whether she likes it or not.

*Well, someone found his bossy pants. I'll take it! Especially after I gifted him this coffee mug for Valentine's Day last year. ;)

So that concludes the Q & A over here! Big thanks to my hub for taking time out of his busy work week to answer a few silly questions for me. Now head on over to these lovely ladies' blogs to read what their handsome hubbies had to say. Cheers to Valentine's Day weekend friends!

A Blissful Nest

A Thoughtful Place

Addison’s Wonderland

Bliss Ranch

Burlap and Lace

Claire Brody Designs

Cuckoo 4 Design

Design Post Interiors

Dimples & Tangles

Dream Green DIY

Driven by Decor

Emily A. Clark

House of Hipsters

Just a Girl and Her Blog

Life on Virginia Street

Primitive and Proper

Style Your Senses

Swoon Worthy

The DIY Playbook

The Makerista

*Pictures of the office by Sarah Grashel Photography

Guest Bedroom - Change of Design Plan

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 11 Feb 2016 13:57:00 +0000

Sometimes in design you start heading down a path and don't get too far when you realize you're just not feeling it at all. At least that's what happens to me sometimes. I'll come up with a design plan I'm excited to execute and then as things start to come together I jump ship because it's not really working the way I had hoped it would. Case in point, my original plan for the guest bedroom.

I thought I wanted to go with a fun, preppy, happy, classic, bright colors vibe, but just as things were starting to come together I found myself less than thrilled with the way things were looking. The bright and cheery colors felt a little too bright and too cheery. I wanted the room to look fun and interesting……but I also want it to feel restful. And the original direction was a bit too overstimulating…..at least I thought it was after it was starting to come together. So rather than forcing myself to keep working on it, I took a long pause and started working on other things until I finally figured out how to correct course. And I'm glad I stepped away rather than pressing on and spending any money on a design plan I wasn't really feeling.

Does any of that sound familiar to you? Do you ever change course and alter your design direction? If so, you're not alone. I think it's perfectly acceptable to change your mind…..it is after all, your house right? So if you find yourself in a place where you're not feeling all together enthusiastic about how things are shaping up in the decorating department. Take a step back. Move on to something else. And I'll bet in the time you've spent doing or thinking about something else inspiration will once again strike.

For our guest bedroom, I started with a clean slate…….a plain white comforter that's soft and textural. And then I fell in love with these suzani embroidered pillows I found at Pottery Barn. They have become the color inspiration for the whole space. I love the more subdued colors and the mix of warm and cool tones. The leopard sheets and floral pillow I already had and they add some interest to the plain white bed. So now, I'm auditioning wall colors and am debating diy'ing or buying a headboard. I ran across an upholstered one I really liked at a local consignment shop, but it was priced a little high and I think I could possibly make one for far less……..the thing I need to decide is whether or not I want an upholstered piece or something made of wood. Hmmm………. thoughts?

There's a great deal left to do in this space. I'm really just getting started, but this time I'm liking where things are headed. I'm using the boy's desk from his old room in here. I found some really cool pulls at HomeGoods which really dressed this little red desk up quite a bit. The ghost chair I already had, and I like that it keeps this desk area from looking too bulky. It takes up less visual space which is great as this is a walkway on the side of the bed. I found the lamp at the Goodwill, and it just so happened to be the perfect shade of blue to play off the blue in the pillows from the bed. Lampshade was a Target find. The plan here is to bring in a mirror over the desk to create a vanity space for guests as the guest bathroom is a bit on the small side.

There's a tall chest of drawers on the other side of the room next to a window. Not much going on over on that side just yet…..but this is a start.

So that's where things are in the guest bedroom. I'm never in a rush to decorate any of my spaces. I find I'm happier with the results when I take my time and follow my instincts……even if that means taking a step back and redirecting from time to time. This new plan isn't completely different from the original……just a little more soothing in the color department and not so in your face. And I like this new direction much better and am excited to keep working on this room!

kids art gallery hallway

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 09 Feb 2016 14:25:00 +0000

There is nothing that adds more personality to a home than art.

wall color - Sherwin William Shoji White

Kids art is a personal favorite of mine. Honestly, it doesn't even matter if it's my own children's artwork. I just love the pieces that a child creates. There is so much innocence and creativity in their work. I mean, obviously, my own kids' artwork is very special to me which is why I've chosen to create a little hallway art gallery to display my favorite pieces from over the years.

The exciting thing about each piece is that they're totally original and can never be replicated. What their little hands created even just a year ago.....even they themselves couldn't replicate if they tried because every day, week, month, year they grow and develop.....the way they see and interpret the world changes.....and their fine motor skills are fine tuned.........well, you get the point.

That's why these pieces mean so much to me. They're apart of their history. And I not only love and cherish each beautiful piece, but each piece holds a precious memory. Every single piece is totally and completely priceless.

This is just a little hallway in the house that connects the foyer and office to the kitchen, dining and living room. I plan to fill every bit of wall space in here with the kids' art pieces. Just for fun I painted this little ceiling area pink (Sherwin Williams Rachel Pink). It's a fun little pop of color.

Now instead of this hallway being a basic boring pass through, it's a little hallway where people like to linger and smile. And the glimpse I see of these pieces from the kitchen makes me happy every day.

book review - Happily Ever After: A Novel

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 06 Feb 2016 14:11:00 +0000

I'm finally getting back on my book review horse. It's been a while. Moving kind of threw me into a book slump. I found myself so spent most nights that mustering the energy to binge watch Netflix was all I could do. But now that we're unpacked, somewhat organized and half way settled I feel like I've finally gotten my book groove back. Honestly, I think our new sheets have a lot to do with it too. That and I have nothing left to watch on Netflix. ;)

So, I'm getting back to the word on page and first up is Happily Ever After: A Novel.

I've mentioned before that I totally judge a book by the cover. Sue me. The cover is what draws me in every time. This one looked fun and the design lover in me was like, "Oh, that's a pretty fantastic bed!" Then I read the brief summary........Sadie Fuller is a fairly typical forty-six-year-old divorced mom - a little overweight, unlucky in love, and stuck in the suburbs with no shortage of responsibilities. But Sadie is not like the other soccer moms on her block; while her daughter is at school, Sadie writes erotic fiction under the name KT Briggs. And then I was like, wait whaaaaaaaat? Then upon further inspection I realized that this is Elizabeth Maxwell's first novel. Sold. I'm a sucker for a great cover and an author's first book. There's something about the first one. I can't imagine the sweat, blood and tears that goes into writing, but I imagine it's a whole lot of emotions that goes into book numero uno.

I was intrigued by the premise of this book. An erotic fiction author who doesn't tell anyone what she does for a living. I mean you never really know what goes on inside someone's daily life. So while reading erotic fiction isn't really my thing, reading about the life of someone who has such a big secret definitely piqued my curiosity. And the whole time I was reading, I was wondering to myself if anyone I know has a similar alter ego.

The book itself really isn't super steamy in the least.....it's actually a little awkward at times in that department. So if steamy scenes aren't your thing then no worries there, but if you blush easily then steer clear. This story is more about Sadie finding herself more so than Sadie finding love. And she's pulled out of a rather pathetic life slump in the most unexpected way when characters she wrote in a paranormal book she never finished writing actually come to life. Yes, you read that right. There is a little genre mashing going on in this here story friends. And at first it had me having sideline imaginary conversations with the author where I was like, "Girl, are you serious with this? Really, you're busting out two witches right here in the middle of this thing?" It caught me off guard in a weird way at first. It was a little like Bridget Jones meets Enchanted......are y'all following me here.......and it was odd at first. But the more I kept reading the more it started to make sense.....weird sense.....but sense none the less. And in the end while this story is a far cry from what I usually enjoy reading, I rather liked it. It was entertaining and a nice change of pace for me.

There was one quote that really stuck out for me, and I'd say it kind of sums up what this whole unorthodox story was really about. "Joy can be elusive. Sometimes to achieve it, you must step out onto the street, even if you know you might be run over by a bus."

I really can't agree more. In life and in love, no matter how many times you've been burned you've got to get back up and keep trying. Never settle. And never resign yourself to a life you don't love living.

You can find more reviews over in the sidebar. What are y'all reading right now?

*Update - I've just discovered that Elizabeth Maxwell is also Beth McMullen, who has written a number of books…….but this is still the first book published under the name Elizabeth Maxwell. ;)

How I Use Instagram

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 05 Feb 2016 16:04:00 +0000

Hey friends and happy Friday! I'm off and away early tomorrow morning for a quick weekend trip to my hometown in Southern California. I'm pretty pumped about getting some good Mexican food and soaking up the 80 degree weather! Oh and I'm excited to see my mom and dad too. ;) I'm actually heading there mainly to see my dad and help him out around the house for a couple of days. He just had a knee replacement, and living alone after that kind of surgery isn't exactly ideal. Anyhow…..feel free to follow along on Instagram……I'm sure I'll post at least one pic of what real tacos are supposed to look like. ;) Seriously, I feel bad for people that have never eaten really good Mexican food……and you can hate me for saying this, but if you haven't eaten Mexican food in Southern California you don't even know what good Mexican food is. Just sayin'. #hatersgonnahate

Speaking of Instagram, my favorite place to hang out other than the ol' blog, I thought I'd share a few of the ways I use this social media outlet in my daily life. I think it's one of the easiest and most interesting platforms to use……and it's even kind of replaced Pinterest for me. Say whaaaaaaat?

Instagram helps me get dressed every day which seems crazy, but it's true. I screenshot favorite outfits from the fashiongrammers as well as the clothing brands I love and follow. And using an app called Screenshotter I organize my screenshots into folders.

You don't have to use an app to do this, but I've just found that the Screenshotter app makes it so easy. In terms of what outfits I screenshot to save, I usually like to save those outfits where I have something similar looking in my closet, so that I can recreate that look without buying something new. Or maybe I'll save an outfit that pairs colors or patterns together that I really like and have never thought to put together. Occasionally I save photos of pieces that I'd like to add to my wardrobe at some point. I'm slightly obsessed with Draper James. I mean what's not to love about Reese Witherspoon?!

Having easy access to these photos on my phone makes outfit planning super easy.

I also screenshot and save inspiring design images. And what I love about a screenshot from Instagram is that I have the source info saved in the comment section, so if I want to go back later to look this image up on my computer I have all the info necessary to find what I'm hunting for…..unlike Pinterest where half the time a pin will send you on a wild goose chase. I've found that even when the big glossy magazines re-gram something they will usually give proper credit to the designer and photographer, so that when I screenshot the image I have all the correct information.

I also love Instagram because it's the one place where I find it easy to keep things organized. I'm really bad at updating the pages and project galleries on the ol' blog…….I'm trying to get better at that. But I find with Instagram it's really easy to organize the photos I share with hashtags.

I have a hashtag for recipes and meal ideas…..some of which I only share over there and never put them on the blog.

The hashtag #fifthhousetravels is one I've used for years…..so you can get caught up on the places we've visited, and we can easily create vacation photo books. The printicular app, which I've mentioned before, is still my favorite way to print Instagram photos.

Just about every new blog post gets grammed and shared using this #ofhblog hashtag, so if you're someone who checks in every now and again that hashtag is a great way to get caught up quickly.

I've been using the hashtag #designingnumber6 to share the design, decorating and behind the scenes decor related photos of the new house.

I even have a hashtag for outfit posts…….where you'll quickly see just how obsessed with leopard, plaid and the color red I actually am.

You can also take house tours using #ourfifthhouse or #oursixthhouse. I really do love Instagram and have found it to not only be a fun place to hang out with you all, but it's also a great resource for so many things……….looking for healthy meal ideas, new hairstyles, artists to follow……..it's all there! Blogging will always be my first love……as I think I'm ultimately too wordy and crave something more than a sentence or two in a comment area……but Instagramming is definitely a close second for me. What about you all? Do you love Instagram as much as I do? What's your favorite form of social media?

trip report - a romantic weekend in savannah

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 03 Feb 2016 19:11:00 +0000

Savannah, Georgia is one of those southern cities I'd always heard was a wonderfully charming place to visit, and after spending the weekend there I can see why. Now that the hubs and I live in Charleston, SC and are only about 2 hours driving distance from Savannah, finally planning a trip to visit this city we've heard so much about was inevitable. And I foresee a return trip in our near future........and next time I plan to bring a U-haul. ;) #vintagefindsgalore

It's rare when something is all that it's been cracked up to be, but after spending a weekend in this city I totally get the hype. It really does ooze southern charm from the architecture and cobble stone streets to the collard greens and cheese grits. It's a great city for a little romantic getaway.....especially if you're a history lover.

Where we stayed?
We couldn't decide on a hotel for the weekend. There are so many great places from which to choose. So rather than forcing ourselves to choose one for the weekend, we opted to stay at a different hotel each night.

Friday night we stayed at The DoubleTree in the Historic District which is a great location, walking distance to City Market shopping and dining. The lobby is gorgeous!

I fell in love with the library room. Blue on blue on blue is a really good look in my book.

The second night we stayed at the Bohemian on the Riverfront. This was my favorite! Everything about this hotel was fantastic from the gorgeous paintings and decor throughout, to the rooms and the rooftop bar. I loved every single thing....every single detail....including the location as you're walking distance to everything.

I really loved all of the exposed brick in the building.

Where we ate?

We ate at The Olde Pink House the first night for dinner. We'd heard so much about it and given that it dates back to 1771, we didn't want to miss this place on our very first trip to Savannah. Like many old southern mansions it's "haunted", but we didn't have any encounters. ;)

We were pleasantly surprised to find out that they had a gluten free menu!

The food was good, probably the best collard greens I've ever had. And we brought our own bottle of wine to enjoy with dinner. *There's no corkage fee for your first bottle.* We only brought one, but I just wanted to let you all know in case you visit with a large group. ;)

The next day, thanks to a lot of your suggestions on Instagram and Facebook, we basically ate our way through the city. My waist line is very appreciative. ;) The hubs and I both loved Zunzi's,
which is a counter service style, casual place to eat. They offer gluten free options too!

The portions are ginormous, so I'd recommend spliting something. It's a great place to eat on a warm sunny day. And don't worry about the line.....it moves really fast.

Hands down though the most memorable food experiences for us were at the rooftop bar at the Bohemian where we ate gluten free duck wings, and they were so good we ordered another round. Um, yeah, they were that good. Plus the atmosphere up there is so great overlooking the river. Even if you're not staying there the rooftop bar would be a fun place to stop in for drinks and apps.

We also loved our dinner at A.Lure. They have lots of gluten free options. My hub went bananas for the gluten free corn bread. And I have three words for you - goat. cheese. grits. Best grits I've ever eaten in my entire life. Seriously! I'd go back there in a heartbeat.

What we did?

Besides eating.........we did a lot of walking around. The weather was absolutely perfect for a weekend in January. We kind of lucked out in that regard. We walked along the riverfront, stopping in The Shrimp Factory to grab a couple of to-go cups of the infamous Chatham Artillery Punch which dates back to colonial times.

History holds that this very punch was served in 1791 at a ball in Savannah to honor George Washington. And apparently President James Monroe called this punch "suave and deceitful". I'd have to concur.........it goes down easy but is very strong. ;)

*The Historic District in Savannah has no open container laws, so you can grab a plastic cup to go walking around..........which is odd but fun. ;)

Again thanks to your helpful suggestions, we popped into a bunch of great shops. I really liked Clutter, a consignment store full of treasures for the home, which was a short drive from the Historic District.

And The Paris Market was absolutely gorgeous inside and out!

This store was filled to the brim with inspiring displays and pretty things for the home.......but I dug the little bakery area the most. Rustic wood floors, bentwood chairs, cognac leather and sweet marble topped tables......what's not to love?!

As inspiring as a weekend trip to a charming southern city can be, what I loved most was time away from the chaos of regular life with my favorite person in the world. Parenting middle school aged kids is.......well, it requires a healthy balance of patience and stamina......and as a married couple it's easy to get distracted with all the daily life stuff and not stop to connect. The best part of this weekend was being able to complete a sentence without being interrupted. And if I'm being totally honest, as much as I love my kids and would throw myself in front of a train to save them, I kind of loved just being me for the weekend. It was nice to hang up my mom hat for a couple of days and just be a girl in love with a boy. That's how this whole thing started in the first place.

If you've been thinking of visiting Savannah, go for it! It would be a great little city for a girl's trip too, and I can't wait to go back again. Next time I'll be ready and prepared to bring home some larger finds. You could easily spend more than a day just checking out all of the great antique shops and consignment stores! And this city is not lacking for great food! Plus, what I personally found to be so great was that so many of the men and women that work in this city's restaurants, hotels and shops are quite knowledgeable on the history of Savannah, so pretty much every place we visited we learned a little something new.

If you're looking for more Savannah recommendations, check out all of the comments on this Instagram post! And if you like getting real time peeks at what's going on behind the scenes, check me out on Snapchat (ourfifthhouse).

valentine's day gifts for him

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 01 Feb 2016 17:44:00 +0000

Hey friends and happy Monday! I hope you all had a great weekend. The hubs and I enjoyed a kid free weekend in Savannah. And thanks to all of your great recommendations on Instagram and Facebook we had a fantastic trip. I literally ate my way through the city…..so thanks for that. ;) It was our very first visit, and I can't wait to share more details with y'all.

Today since I just realized it's February 1st (how'd that happen?!) and I need to get my Valentine's-Day-gift-giving bootie in gear I thought I'd share a few fun, sweet and silly finds in case you're still stumped as to what to give your Valentine this year. Hubs and I don't go nuts with our gift giving. A card and a little something is usually all we do. Our gifts rarely cost more than about $20. To me it's more about the thought that counts, and I tend to give sarcastic cards and gifts………because that's my love language.

Last year I gave my man this coffee mug, and every time he uses it I smile.

Coffee Mug

This year I might be gifting him with another mug……as he's a huge Star Wars lover, so I'm sure this mug would end up being his favorite.

t-shirt, reversible bowtie, collar stays, lobster card, bourbon infused marshmallows, binge watch card, obi wan mug

But how great is that t-shirt? Ha! I love it! I'm also loving that Friends reference - you're my lobster - card. And the bourbon infused marshmallows would definitely be like a gift for both of us. How good would those be?! I've tried making marshmallows before and failed……there's apparently a lot more to making them than you'd think. Anyhow the hand stamped stainless steel collar stays are probably the most useful and something I think he'd use a lot for work. Then again Valentine's Day isn't really about practical gifts is it? So maybe I should just go with the Obi Wan mug……or maybe this Yoda one?

What about you all? Do you exchange Valentine's Day gifts? Any fun plans to celebrate that weekend? Is it true there's going to be a Friends reunion? Let's discuss below!

*affiliate links used

Design Dilemma - decorating above a cabinet

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 29 Jan 2016 18:31:00 +0000

I mentioned when I shared my 2016 plans for the blog that I would be starting a design dilemma series this year. Over the years since I've been blogging I've had the honor of fielding a number of design related questions from sweet readers. It's always such a compliment to me that any of you would seek my advice. Truly, your emails pretty much make my day. As I've mentioned multiple times, I'm not an expert, not a designer, just a design-obsessed girl with a passion for creating stylish, livable spaces, so the fact that you take the time to message me for help feels really special.

I think sometimes we just need a second opinion or a sounding board to help us flush out our ideas and arrive at a conclusion. Today we're discussing the age old question of……….

"How should I decorate the space above a cabinet?"

We're not talking kitchen cabinets; we're talking tv cabinets, armoires and other tall pieces of furniture.

Specifically, a lovely reader, who is working on pulling her family living space together, is having trouble figuring out what to do with the space above her television cabinet.

The ceiling is tall in this room, so there's quite a bit of space above the cabinet. If the ceiling was lower I might recommend not putting anything above the cabinet at all. I'd say a good general rule of thumb is if there's less than 2 ft above the cabinet just leave the space empty. Not every flat surface needs to have something on display. But in this case, there's a lot more than 2 feet above the cabinet and this wall in general seems to be the focal point of the whole room, so having something above the cabinet definitely makes sense. Here are few ideas for dealing with this space…….

#1 - Hang Something Sculptural

You don't necessarily have to set objects on the space above a cabinet. Alternatively, something hung on the wall will finish the space off quite nicely without looking too overdone or cluttered. Less to dust is always a good thing in my book. I'd stick to sculptural types of pieces rather than a painting or picture as they will blend in to make one overall statement rather than stealing the show.

Emily A Clark

Ballard Designs

#2 - Stack Things

Decorative boxes, crates and vintage suitcases are all great things to stack on top of a cabinet adding height and interest. I myself love vintage suitcases as they double as great storage pieces for out of season items like wool blankets, sweaters, holiday table linens, etc.

the living room in our kentucky house

master bedroom in our kentucky house

And in the case of a bedroom armoire, a stack of quilts not only looks great but is a great decorative storage idea freeing up space in your linen closet.

Ballard Designs

#3 - Go with a One - Two Punch

What I refer to as "the one-two punch" is a little design trick you'll see employed by many stylists. Basically it's two of the exact same items (or two pieces similar in size, shape & style) paired with one larger sized piece. As a general rule things looks best when grouped in odd numbers. When collecting items to group and display above your cabinet, think big. Oversized items have more presence above eye level.

Pottery Barn

I'm not usually a fan of greenery above a cabinet, but here a bunch of dried eucalyptus works well in this large basket.

Ballard Designs

#4 - One Large Item

I think simplicity is best in most cases and one large scale item can be the perfect finishing touch.

Emily A Clark

#5 - Look to Catalogs for Styling Inspiration

Last but not least if a decorating or styling issue is causing you to rack your brain, thumb through your favorite home store catalogs for ideas. You may have noticed that a majority of the photos featured above are from Pottery Barn and Ballard Designs, those are two of my personal favorites for styling ideas. Both companies have great stylists working for them, and if you really study their catalogs you'll find tons of decorating inspiration and ideas to use in your home. Don't just look at the things they're trying to sell you, examine what's in the photo that makes the space look like you want to live there.

In regards to this sweet reader's space here's a little decorating mock-up (don't judge my sad photo editing skills) of what I think might work well in her living space.

curtain panels, wooden tray, blue vase, round baskets, rectangular baskets, bird print pillow, damask, moroccan

Her television cabinet is quite large, so instead of just one large statement piece above, which would probably be hard to find, I'd recommend a collection of round similar size baskets. A display of five medium size baskets staggered would create a unified look yet not be too cluttered. And I'd complement the baskets on top by bringing baskets in a similar tone to the the shelves below, which will make the baskets on top look more intentional. Then I'd hang neutral curtain panels in the room to soften the whole space and inject a little pattern. For the windows on either side of the tv cabinet, I'd just hang one panel on each window instead of two. I'd hang the panels just under the ceiling fan height which looks to be about 2 ft above the top of the window molding. The addition of window panels will help to soften all the horizontal lines on the wall with the cabinet and will frame that large piece of furniture. Then because I just couldn't help myself, I played around with some finishing accessory ideas. This space already has a great foundation that I know this reader is happy with, but sometimes what keeps us from "finishing" our spaces entirely is getting hung up on the little stuff…….like what to put up above the tv cabinet.

These are just my thoughts and ideas. I don't really think there are any hard and fast rules. It's really all about playing with things until you find a look you love. What do you all think? Do you have any tips or ideas to share for decorating the space above a cabinet? Let's discuss in the comments section down below!

And if you have a design dilemma you'd like to have tackled here at Our Fifth House, shoot me an email with the subject line - HELP: Design Dilemma!

*affiliate links used

Smashed Potato Soup - Dairy & Gluten Free

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 28 Jan 2016 15:39:00 +0000

I was originally planning to share this loaded smashed potato soup recipe next month, but then I thought y'all might like to have this recipe in time for your Super Bowl gatherings. If you're anything like me the Super Bowl is really about three things - the food, the commercials and the half time show.

This soup is a great one to add to your Super Bowl party menu. It's easy to prepare (takes maybe 20 minutes of prep time), and you can leave it simmering on the stove for guests to serve themselves. Plus I think it's fun to have a soup toppings bar at a party.

Ingredients:
1 pkg of bacon - chopped
5 cloves of garlic - chopped
12 medium size yellow potatoes - skins on - cut into 3/4 inch cubes
32 oz (about 4 cups) of chicken broth (I prefer free range or homemade bone broth if I have it on hand.)
1 -13.5 oz can of full fat coconut milk
1 1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp tsp garlic powder
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp dried thyme
1 1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tbsp sea salt

Directions:
In a large soup pot over medium high heat brown the bacon until crispy. Take half of the bacon out and lay on a paper towel lined plate. And also take about 3 tablespoons of the grease out of the pot. Add in the garlic, let it brown and then pour in the chicken broth. Add in the potatoes and all of the spices. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and cover. Let cook until the potatoes are fork tender, about 20 to 25 minutes. Then remove the lid, and add in the coconut milk. Use a potato masher to mash the potatoes and mix in the coconut milk. Garnish with shredded cheese (we use goat's or sheep's milk cheddar, I'm allergic to cow's milk), chives and bacon. Enjoy!

This soup pairs really well with one of my favorite hard ciders - Woodchuck Gumption. This savory soup with a hint of spice works so well against the sweetness of the cider. Perfect combo for epic commercial watching, if I do say so myself.

Leftovers of this soup taste even better. But maybe that has more to do with the fact that there's zero prep involved in reheating. At any rate, making this soup on a Sunday night and enjoying the leftovers for lunch all week is pretty awesome! I'm actually eating a bowl of leftover soup as I type this post.

For those that are gluten and dairy free, you know how hard it is to find a safe soup at a restaurant. It's basically near impossible. So it's nice to have a few tried and true yummy and easy to make soup recipes up your sleeve. And I promise, your friends will have no idea that this soup is food allergy friendly. If you make this for your Super Bowl gathering, get creative with the toppings - sour cream (for your friends that aren't dairy free), red onions, green onions, soup crackers.......the fun is all in the toppings! And since I have more of a salty than sweet tooth, I think this is better than an ice cream sundae. ;)

they literally are perfect linens

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 26 Jan 2016 16:07:00 +0000

It's hard to accurately convey my love for these sheets. Seriously. They are the best sheets I've ever had. I dream about getting back in them as soon as I wake up in the morning. They make my bed feel like a happy little sleep cocoon. They're just so soft and comfortable that I'm pretty sure if the company who makes them, Perfect Linens, made pajamas out of this material I might never wear real clothes again. No, I am not over exaggerating. Truth. That is what I'm doling out right now.

I received these "second skin" sheets from Perfect Linens back in December and even my husband, who doesn't usually notice things like a new set of sheets, immediately commented on how awesome they felt. "Where did you get these?" "They feel amazing!" Usually that level of enthusiam is reserved for UK basketball………..and one other thing. #tmi? ;)

"I know!", I responded, grinning ear to ear like a kid on Christmas morning. I mean, you know you're a full fledged adult when something like a new set of sheets makes you this happy. But if being in love with a great set of sheets makes you an old lady, well then sign me up for bingo at the seniors center because now that I've found the equivalent of mecca in a set of perfect to the touch - easy to wash - easy to care for sheets - I will never again sleep with anything else.

But seriously guys, and I'm not even kidding or exaggerating one single bit, these are literally the best sheets I've ever owned. I know, I said that already. It's just sooooo true.

Perfect Linens' sheets feel like a return to tradition, like this is how sheets are supposed to be made to feel. Sleeping with them feels like being transported to a time when quality more than quantity mattered, and things were made to last. Ok, now things are getting a little too weird and deep huh?

The Second Skin sheets that I love so much come in three different styles. I liked the pattern of the fern green, but wasn't crazy about the color. I just wanted something that would contrast against the green in our bedding. So I added a very small amount of bleach to the wash cycle when I first received them and that turned the embroidery a really pretty gold color. YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO BLEACH THEM. But I don't usually follow the rules. ;) And I only added bleach just that one time.

If you prefer sheets without any embroidery/embellishment, Perfect Linens offers a number of different collections to choose from in a variety of colors. I'm really excited to try the Toastmaster sheets in the color Frosted Rose.

But the best news for all of us is that Perfect Linens is offering a discount code for Our Fifth House readers! Use code FifthHouse35 to receive $35 off a $100 purchase! In my opinion, you can keep the flowers and chocolates…….These life altering sheets are the perfect Valentine's Day gift for any couple. But hey, breakfast in bed to go with them would not be bad either. Also a great set of sheets makes for a wonderful wedding present. And if you have them monogrammed……even better!

While this post was sponsored, all overly enthusiastic thoughts are 100% genuine. Find out for yourself. Check out customer reviews on the Perfect Linens site and you'll soon discover I'm not the only one who's in love with these sheets! I mean, any company that offers a 45 day 100% money back guarantee knows they're product is like magic! #wecouldallusealittlemagicinbed #keepitclassy

my organized closet

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 25 Jan 2016 13:00:00 +0000

One of the things I love most about our new house (wonder when I'll stop referring to it as "new"?.....maybe after we've been here a year?) is that the hubs and I each have our own walk-in closet. It feels like such a luxury to have a closet all to myself. And while I'm already a big time nerd about all things organization, having a closet space all to myself has sent me into major organization geek mode. Last fall I shared my simple trick for keeping my closet streamlined and organized, and today I'm giving you a little closet tour!

Someday I'd like to replace the wire shelving with a nicer looking closet system, but for now I had laminate shelves (from Lowe's) cut down to size and slid them right on top of the wire shelves. It was easy and inexpensive, and it's working like a charm.

I really love how versatile the laminate shelves are as they can be used for stacks of clothes or shoes.

In another attempt to disguise the wire shelving, I looped ribbon (Hobby Lobby) through the wire edge fronts of each shelf. Totally not necessary, but for a couple of dollars and five minutes of my time I think it was worthwhile. If for no other reason than it makes me smile when I walk in here.

I prefer to use wood hangers. I like that they're a tad bulkier than plastic or velvet hangers, so they force me not to over stuff my closet rods. I've had these hangers for years now, and I collected them slowly only buying them whenever they were on sale.

I'm a big time lover of bins, baskets and labels (#organizationnerdalert) for corralling things. These fabric bins (purchased at Target years ago) easily slide in and out just like drawers.

To maximize every bit of accessible storage, I brought in a couple of shelf risers (Bed, Bath & Beyond) to get a few more shoes into this spot.

I also brought in a decorative ladder, I had once used as a towel rack in our old house, to use for heels. It's been a great little solution as it packs a lot of storage into a very small footprint.

And I've already showed you this pegboard jewelry organizer I made to hang on the wall behind door.

I brought the chair in to use as a step stool of sorts since this closet is tall, and I'm kind of short. I also like to set out my workout clothes on that chair, so I have no excuses when I wake up in the morning.

I like to outfit plan the night before, so I added a hook here to hang tomorrow's outfit. I'm not a morning person at all, so planning the night before is the key to making my morning routine run smoothly.

Last but not least I brought in a few "pretties", all of which I already had.

find the printable here

I really do believe that when you take the time to make a space pretty, even something as utilitarian as a closet, you will be 100 times more likely to keep it looking nice, clean and clutter free. At least that's how it seems to work in my house. And the big plus is that a closet is such a fun do-whatever-you-want space to play with your decorating as it's a space that is for your eyes only. I had fun girling this space up with accessories I already had. And since my hub has his own closet he doesn't mind. ;)

Are you still in organization mode? Or has the January organization inspiration already left the building for you?

Trip Report - Caribbean Cruise

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 22 Jan 2016 16:47:00 +0000

As you may remember last Friday my family set out on a little 3 night Caribbean cruising adventure.

It was our very first cruise, and we all had a great time! Although I think 90% of the fun had to with the fact that we went on this cruise with 10 other families from our new neighborhood. One of my sweet new friends organized a group rate, and the timing was just perfect. Since this cruise would be happening just a few short weeks after the holidays, the hubs and I decided to gift the cruise to our kids for Christmas! I put together a gift bag for each of our kids filled with a couple of disposable cameras, a scrapbook, some stickers, a new bathing suit, sunglasses and flip flops. Then my friend and "cruise director" put together the cutest flyer with all the cruise information as well as a list of all the families that would be attending, and I added the flyer to each of their gift bags.

Jelly Sandals, Bathing Suit - Nordstom Rack, Trunks - Target, Scrapbook & Sticker - Michael's

Admittedly 6 a.m. is not my best hour of the day, so on Christmas morning I didn't get any video of them jumping up and down screaming with delight. But I hope the memory of their shocked, surprised, excited faces stays locked away in my brain forever.

We cruised with Royal Caribbean on the Enchantment of the Seas. Now that we're home, bags are unpacked and I've had a chance to sit down and think, I'm sharing my first time cruiser's thoughts on our experience.

Kid's Coral Jelly Sandals, Women's Gold Jelly Sandals

I wasn't crazy about the food.

So as y'all know my family is gluten free. I'm happy to report that Royal Caribbean does have quite a few gluten free options in the buffet areas, dining room and on the room service menu. They had gluten free rolls at dinner, gluten free pancakes at breakfast and gluten free hamburger buns as well as gluten free pizza. My kids were pretty happy about all of that. However, the food in general just wasn't all that great. The service was wonderful. The food, as my husband so aptly described, was like banquet food. It wasn't bad at all, it just wasn't fantastic……just nothing to really write home about.

Weather and routing caused some issues.

We boarded Friday afternoon at Port Canaveral, Florida, which was a 6 hour drive for us from Charleston, so we drove in the night before and shuttled over from our hotel. Our original cruise itinerary called for CocoCay, Royal Caribbean's private island, on Saturday, and then we were supposed to stop in Nassau on Sunday. But a couple days before we boarded they changed the schedule and flopped those days which would have been fine except for the fact that the weather turned ugly, and we ended up not making it to CocoCay at all. This was a major bummer as we were all really excited about having a day on the beach in CocoCay. In addition the boat was pretty rocky as they were navigating around the storm. Thankfully no one in our party got sick, but they did put out the barf bags on all the stairwells just in case. The kids didn't seem to be bothered at all.

Was January a good time to cruise?

I think so, even despite our little blip with the weather. I don't think storms like that are very common in January, and the benefit of traveling after the holidays but during the winter months is that kids are back in school and the usual "vacation traffic" isn't an issue.

I wish we had taken full advantage of our Nassau Day.

Nassau is bright and colorful, and I enjoyed walking around just looking at all the buildings.

However I think we made a mistake not scheduling any excursions for that day. My girl enjoyed getting a little hair wrap in the marketplace……….

but I think we should've taken advantage of the good weather we had that day and gone to the water park at Atlantis. But hindsight is always 20/20.

Irons aren't allowed on board.

I packed wrinkle resistant pieces and rolled them instead of folding them into my duffle bag.

Then as soon as we got to our room I hung all of my dresses and used my flat iron to smooth out the very few wrinkles that needed smoothing. On a side note - Y'all that striped swing tank was a Walmart find for ……..$4.97!

I'm glad we had a window, but next time I'd like a balcony.

It was really nice to have daylight streaming in through the window in our room. A friend of ours had a balcony and after seeing it I definitely want one next time we cruise. Waking up to that view and the ocean air with a hot cup of coffee in your hand just sounds dreamy doesn't it?

Things for kids to do on the ship?

Well, I was a little disappointed with the kids activities or rather lack there of on the Enchantment of the Seas, especially because the Enchantment is touted as family friendly. That being said my opinion is probably largely based on the fact that we never made it to CocoCay so we were on the ship for a lot of uninterrupted hours……..hours that we should have been spending on a white sand beach in the hot, hot sun. ;) The arcade area was kind of on the small side. There is a kids club (11 and under) and a teen club, and our kids did enjoy themselves very much. But I think that had a lot to do with the fact that they were with their friends. The Enchantment has a really cool bungee trampoline and rock climbing wall, though those activities are outside and were closed during the bad weather.

Adult entertainment?

The numerous shows and dance parties were all great fun. And our group most definitely enjoyed the karaoke as well as the piano bar. There are videos……….but you'd have to kill me first if you want to see them. ;)

I believe this was Wanted Dead or Alive……who doesn't love a little Bon Jovi? #chucktownrepresenting

Overall…….

We really did have an absolute blast! I'm not sure I'm a "cruiser" though, and I'm not sure if I could handle anything longer than 3 nights. Then again the bad weather we experienced has probably tainted my opinion. I'd love to try a Disney cruise someday…….because y'all know I'm a Disney fanatic. And after getting an up close look at the Disney Dream ship while we were in Nassau, it definitely looks like a good time! And I'd most definitely do another group cruise, without question, in a heartbeat. If you've never been on a big group vacation with friends I highly recommend it!

protecting the innocent ;)

And a cruise really is awesome for a big group as everyone can just kind of do their own thing and meet up at designated times (*walkie talkies make communicating really easy as there's no cell coverage), and a cruise offers something for every different kind of person. The guys congregated in the sports bar quite a bit, while the ladies did spa treatments or just laid by the pool. It really was a great vacation for a large party.

All in all I thought the Enchantment of the Seas was good. The service was fantastic throughout. The rooms were good, very clean. The kids really loved the towel animals house keeping left on the bed everyday. It was a good ship for a group and for a family. I just wish the food had been a little better, and that we would have made it to CocoCay. There were no consolations made in regards to us having to skip our stop there though I realize that the weather is completely out of their control. That being said, it would have been nice if they had offered a little something for that disappointing news ………but I guess weather could ruin a beach vacation anywhere.

Regardless we made the best of our vacation time, and we're so grateful for this amazing group of people that have welcomed our family in to their circle and made life in our new city so much fun! I know the kids thoroughly enjoyed vacationing with their new friends, and that's what made this trip all the more special for us.

Thank you, thank you, thank you to "Julie" our "Cruise Director" for planning, organizing and inviting us to join in on the fun! I'm so grateful to be your neighbor and friend! xxoo - C

Life in general would be no fun at all without my shipmate ( #seewhatididthere #couldnthelpmyself ) who has a way of making everything ridiculously hilarious.

Have you been on any cruises? Tell me about your experiences. What did you love? What did you not like? What's the best cruise you've ever been on? I've literally had that song Cruisin' stuck in my brain for weeks now, and I'm so surprised no one sang that during karaoke. #iloveitwhenwerecruisintogether

Looking for more vacation reports?

Disney World at Christmas

Napa Valley

Kid's Idea - Vacation Scrapbooks

a simple formula for dressing the bed

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 20 Jan 2016 19:13:00 +0000

In design I really don't think there are rights and wrongs; there is only what you like that truly matters. Your space. Your rules. The only opinion that matters is your own. Period. The end. You don't need approval from your best friend, your mom, or social media. What matters is whether or not you like it. Honestly, I think that's not only true in design but in life. Today, however, we're talking about monumental things……..like how to dress the bed. ;)

I think sometimes we struggle trying to figure ourselves out. And as silly as it may sound something as simple as how to dress the bed can be a bit challenging. #firstworldproblems Over the course of the time that I've been blogging I've received numerous emails from readers asking for help and advice with dressing their beds. I think sometimes we just need a sounding board or a second opinion in order to really figure out what we actually like and want in our spaces. If you've ever wandered around the bedding department and felt overwhelmed by the choices or got home and felt jipped because your bed doesn't look as full or fluffy as the beautiful one on display in the store, well then hopefully this post will be of some help. I'm hardly an expert, but my little formula works for me…..so maybe it'll work for you too. And if nothing else hopefully you'll find some little tip or tidbit here to be helpful!

In a bedroom design, I always start by choosing the bedding. The mix of fabrics and textures used to dress the bed usually inspires the rest of the design, and it's a good jumping off point for the rest of the space. Since the bed is the main attraction in a bedroom, the bedding is kind of the star of the show. I prefer bedding basics that give you options for different looks, so you're not tied into anything and can make seasonal changes with little effort or money if you wish. My formula is pretty simple; it's basically a 1, 2, 3 combination - 1. create a color palette - 2. add layers and 3. mix patterns & textures. I've found this combination to be pretty fool proof…..for me and what I like anyway.

1. Create a Color Palette

First of all you don't have to start with an all white bedspread/comforter/quilt if you don't want to. A solid shade of any color can work as a neutral just as well as white does.

In addition, a classic pattern, like a stripe or leopard, that you won't tire of too soon can also be a great choice. I usually start by selecting the bedspread first then I create a color palette around that to coordinate.

*Design tip - If you choose to use a duvet, stuff it with not one but two comforters to make it look extra full and fluffy. That's what they do in the department stores. A little something I learned from years of working retail. ;)

2. Add Layers

I almost always dress a bed with a folded blanket or throw at the foot of the bed and a mix of pillows. My best advice is to dress your bed the way you'd dress your body. Just like any great outfit, dressing the bed is all about layering. You really don't have to have a ton of pillows on the bed either, just a couple throw pillows can be simple, to the point and just enough.

3. Mix Patterns and Textures

Last but not least, a great mix of patterns and textures adds to the appeal and overall look of the whole space. Don't be afraid to mix and match, so long as the colors coordinate and the scale of the patterns flow it will look great. A good rule of thumb for pattern mixing is - small, medium, large - or - stripe, floral, plaid/check…..but there are always exceptions to the rule so trust your instincts. Stores like HomeGoods and Marshalls make it fairly easing to "audition" items until you find the exact right fit for the role. ;)

Velvet, cotton, silk, fur, wool, linen………mix up the textures to add interest and make the bed look even more inviting.

*Design tip - Etsy is a great place to shop for affordable throw pillows. Working with small business owners makes it easier to make special requests. Most Etsy shop owners that sell pillows are happy to quote a custom order price so you can do things like - add a monogram, piping to the edge or have your pillow front and back done in different fabrics, which will add to the custom look of your bedding and give you more pattern options.

*If you're having trouble finding an oversized king sized quilt - check out Macy's and Overstock……also Target sells a lot more options online than they carry in stores.

So that's my simple little bedding formula. Hopefully that got your creative juices flowing if you've been struggling with pulling your own look together. Sleep is so essential to a healthy life….it really should be done in style. ;)

Here are a few favorites………

plaid, white floral , gray stripe, medallion , damask