The Gray House on the Left

A Quick Update

2015-01-08T21:29:00.007-06:00

Hello friends! It's been awhile.

I apologize for the ridiculously long break. This move to Texas has been more emotionally and physically tasking than I ever thought possible. I needed to step back and take one thing off my plate for awhile, and unfortunately this was the one thing I could take a break from.

I will write more about our life here soon but for now I'm going to go back to the roots of what this blog was supposed to be about in the first place, us creating a home..

In the last few months our house has gone from a pile of dirt to something that finally resembles a home and we couldn't be more thrilled. Today was our final walk through before the sheet rock goes up, so I snapped a few pictures on my phone for you....and for us.

Here is where we were about two weeks ago....

And here we are now:

So as you can see, things are moving along quickly.

The family room....don't mind the jacuzzi tub that's sitting in the middle of the living room.

The office...

The kitchen island...

Master bedroom...and master bathroom in the back.....

The media room...

I snapped probably 50 pictures of every room in the house, but they all look pretty similar in this stage so I'll spare you all...That is where we are right now...A lot of dust, and a bathtub in the living room.

On another note....

One of the reasons I started this blog was because I wanted to create a time capsule of sorts for myself. A place I could revert back to when I wanted to remember an exciting time in our life. I'm realizing lately that this is a very exciting time in our life, we are creating the home we will one day raise a family in, and that's a big deal. That being said, I hope to be here more often, chronicling this new time in our life while we are building our dream home, so that I can come back years from now and remember this chapter in our lives. What this means for you is hopefully more posts, and more consistency in the next couple months....Hopefully...

See ya soon, and this time I mean it...Peace friends.

Life happenings...

2014-10-08T08:38:00.001-05:00

So again I took a blogging break, but not necessarily by choice. In the last month, we moved to Dallas...that's right folks, we are officially Texans. We moved into the tiniest apartment in the world, and are waiting for our new house to be done...someday. My laptop charger is MIA so I'm actually writing this post from my IPhone (meaning there are no pictures). In the interim, I've spent my days scoping out vintage stores, and checking out the city. Both fun and both could potentially bring out the blogger in me again.....as soon as I get a new charger.
Our small apartment is anything but inspiring so I wouldn't expect a lot from me over the next couple months, but once we get in our new house you can expect to be bombarded with new content. Seriously, prepare yourself. I will be back soon friends, you can follow our new adventure on my Instagram if you would like @thegrayhouseontheleft.
See ya soon.

PNE Prize Home

2014-08-28T10:28:00.001-05:00

As we tread on in the "trying to make the new build still work" phase, we are spending a lot of time packing and organizing these days. Things that we enjoy have taken the back burner...including this blog, unfortunately. Please bare with me readers...and sponsors.

In other news....Have you guys seen the PNE Prize Home yet? It's seriously gorgeous. Designed by former Bachelorette, and star of Love it or Leave It Vancouver, Jillian Harris, the house has a bit of a country style, something I generally don't gravitate towards, but it's more modern kitchen and flooring choices make this house a perfect eclectic mix.

When describing the house she said she wanted something casual and welcoming:

“I wanted to design a house that felt every day like a Sunday morning. And you know what? Every time I’ve walked into the home now that it is finished, that is exactly how I feel. I want to take off my shoes, sit down and enjoy. It’s modern, yet warm and welcoming.”

*I apologize for the lack of order in the pictures below...blogger and me were on the outs today.

I loved the openness of the whole house, but especially the dreamy living room. And those side tables...forget about it.

The kitchen is by far my favorite space in the house. A genius mix of finishings gives this kitchen such a great look, and the large island with beverage cooler gives it practicality and function.

While the dining room definitely brings in a country vibe, the all white mixed with a more contemporary buffet gives it an eclectic look.

The whole house looks so light and airy. This is definitely a look I'm leaning more towards these days.

I love that she gave the porch different functions. There is a separate sitting area, eating area and cooking area.

I can't get over this bathroom. The tile flowing from the floor up the wall is genius and don't even get me started about that bathtub...it's too dreamy.

What do you guys think? A dream house?

The Great Gatsby

2014-08-20T09:54:00.001-05:00

Anyone that knows me, knows that I watch movies for mainly one reason...the sets. Regardless of whether I genuinely enjoyed a flick, if I love a house in a movie (such as Something's Gotta Give or It's Complicated) I will watch it over and over. Luckily, when it came to The Great Gatsby, I loved the movie and the sets.

Another thing many people know about me is I dream of being born in a different era.

The 20s happen to be one of my favorites.

We'll start with Daisy's colonial style brick house.

The style screams old money and is a perfect portrayal of what I imagined her house to be when I first read the book years ago.

This was my favorite part of the movie, when the gorgeous white sheers were wrapped around those gorgeous chandeliers.

The light and airiness of this space are not what you expect from a mansion in the 1920s. The gorgeous reds peek through a mostly neutral palette....and don't even get me started on those gorgeous wood floors.

Here's a peak of the living room set from Architectural Digest.

I was also dearly in love with the charming cottage Nick lived in, in West Egg.

Through a set photo, you can see the amazing woodwork that went into building his little beach cottage.

The tiny and adorable kitchen, had me at hello.

Then there's the gorgeous green rug and green tiled fireplace, that just adds to the charm.

Then of course there's Gatsby's castle, right next door:

What I found amazing about his bedroom is that if I saw it on a movie set that took place today I wouldn't blink an eye. The art deco/modern style surprised me but also reminded me how some styles are classic.

The famous round pool.

And because, it is exactly what I imagine a 1920s New York City apartment, I have to share Tom's secret city pad.

The vibrant colors just scream a 1920s party to me.

How about you guys? Any movies you love purely because of the glamorous sets? Do tell.

Wallpaper, patterns, and paint...oh my

2014-08-11T10:54:00.001-05:00

Hello friends...It's been awhile.

Over the last few weeks, I took a bit of a blogging break. In those few weeks we sold our house #yay, found out our new house was not only behind by a month but also over the original budget...by a lot #boo, packed many boxes of kitchen gadgets (who needs three juicers btw), leased a small apartment so we are not living out of a Uhaul truck during the interim in Texas, and spent a lot of time with friends, since we leave for Dallas in a month...yes a month.

So to get you up to speed quickly, we found out a couple weeks ago that our new house's price was miscalculated by our builder....again, by a lot. We decided to explore other options, but realized quickly there were none. So we are waiting now to find ways to cut the price down. In the meantime we will be living in a small apartment (we never expected our house to be done when we got down there, so we were planning this long ago), and deciding what to do.

With all of the commotion, my saving grace has been Pinteresting and Houzzing design ideas for my new home (where ever it might be). My newest obsession? Wallpaper...that's right ladies and gents, I've gone madd-hatter crazy for wallpaper. A few of my favorites? I thought you'd never ask...

Schumacher chevron home decor
fschumacher.com

Kellys Ikat Wallpaper by Kelly Hoppen - Designer Blue Wall Coverings...
grahambrown.com

Removable Wallpaper // Pinstripe Floral // Adheres to walls and...
etsy.com

Removable selfadhesive modern vinyl Wallpaper by PatPrintbyAmy
etsy.com

Removable Wallpaper // Diamonds are a girls by KateZarembaCompany
etsy.com

Coral, Mint and Navy Ikat Chevron - sparrowsong - Spoonflower
spoonflower.com

The Blue Ikat and Waves pattern will definitely make an appearance in our new home at some point, and possibly the rest of them too. We'll see. How about you? What have you been crushing on lately? Any other wallpaper fans out there?

Fabulous and cheap lighting...

2014-07-17T10:27:00.000-05:00

After sharing with you my latest splurge (which in a huge plot twist I actually cancelled, in an attempt to DIY my own...more to come on that later) I decided to keep a tight string on my lighting budget. Since we decided to go with the freebee lighting package from our builder (more on that here), I have taken it upon myself to pick out new lights for every room in our house to replace those ugly freebees. I'm realizing how quickly lighting adds up, so I put together a little roundup for you guys. Here's a few options all under $100.

How about you? Do you have a favorite lighting source, with great prices? Do tell..

Lights made of driftwood and Coach handbags...

2014-07-11T09:49:00.002-05:00

Happy Friday all. First off, let me apologize for my two week hiatus here at The Gray House, but as I spent the last two weeks nauseous and dizzy, staring at a computer screen was on the bottom of my "want to do list." Sinuses, you are a sick sick son of a.
Now onto the fun stuff.
Race really wants to play up the "nautical" style in our new home. Our house is only a few miles from the Lake Lewisville marina, and our neighborhood and the style of homes in our neighborhood reflect that....a lot actually. I, on the other hand do not like "themey" spaces. I'm trying my best to bring this style in small snippets in our new house when buying new things, without bringing it in at full force.

I planned on waiting to show you guys anything for our new house until it's hanging in our new house (or we're closer to selling our current house) but I'm so excited I can't stand it...
So here it is, the light fixture that I love more than ~~wine~~ Race.....I kid I kid....kind of:

via

Let me introduce you to my newest love...this ladies and gents is the Driftwood Ball Pendant from Shades of Light...and it's on it's sweet little way to me now. I made a vow not to spend a lot on light fixtures, because I just get bored too easily with things like this, so this light was a splurge. It's actually a very early birthday present from Race. He claimed he was going to buy me a new Coach bag for my birthday, but then explained that I am probably the only woman he knows that would rather have a light fixture made of driftwood than a Coach bag.

#theguygetsme

It definitely gives off the "nautical" or "natural" look that I'm loving right now, without hitting you in the face with it like Rafiki and his stick to Simba.

#TheLionLingsontvrightnow

When i first saw it, I liked it, but thought it looked more like a rustic light fixture for a man's den...maybe because before I realized it was made from driftwood I thought it was made from a deer's antlers....

but then I saw this:

A.M.A.Z.I.N.G.

I can't wait to see it hanging in our new home (probably in our sunroom).

I'll keep you updated...probably by throwing a ticker tape parade when it arrives...I mean this occasion can not go by unceremonious.

Peace folks. Happy weekend.

Chevron floors and brass accents...

2014-06-26T10:08:00.002-05:00

Textile designer, Caitlin Wilson's (of Caitlin Wilson Textiles) kitchen was named House Beautiful's Kitchen of The Month a couple months back. I finally got around to reading this issue and was so beyond enamored with this kitchen., that I was just dying to share. See for yourself:

via

From the bright white and gray two tone cabinets, gorgeous chevron floors, brass accents, and gorgeous decorative pieces, this kitchen had me at hello there. I can't even describe my feelings for the wallpapered pantry or the fireplace right off the dining space.

What do you guys think? Is it deserving of the House of the Month title?

More choices...

2014-06-24T12:13:00.001-05:00

So last we left off here with the first choices we made for our new home. It was a wordy post, to say the least, and this one, unfortunately for you is just as bad....Grab a cup of coffee and sit back.

Our next choice was in reference to the staircase.

Included in our base price was a half wall (I didn't snap a picture of it, but it wasn't pretty), we upgraded to add rod iron balusters and a stained wood rail. worth. every. penny.

When it came to the interior doors, we knew we wanted simple white hollow core doors, similar to what is in our current home, which was exactly what was included (see picture below). We upgraded the hardware to "Venetian bronze" (also shown in the picture below), which I realize seems silly, because you can spray paint or replace hardware easily, but it also takes a long time and the cost to upgrade these was minimal.

When it came to the exterior door, Race was all over this one (ignore the dark color, ours is actually going to be a stained walnut wood, since that is standard in our neighborhood). He said that the star just made him think of Texas. I didn't argue, I knew this door would flood light into our entryway, as opposed to the other options that only allowed a peep hole and no window at all.

We chose a dark bronze hardware for our exterior doors, the package was called Dakota (also the name of our favorite black lab) so it seemed like fate.

The exterior of our home is brick. Who knew there were so many brick choices in the world. We went with a lighter brick (although it looks 10x darker in this picture for some reason). The bottom taupe color is the color of the back of our home, and the right color (it looks yellow, but I promise it is also a taupe color) is the trim around the house and also the balcony.

I immediately fell in love with these exterior lights. They are a modern twist on a lantern I feel I would see in a Sherlock Holmes movie (one of my favorites).

As well as these lanterns, Race insisted on adding flood lighting to the exterior of our new home. Our garage is rear entry, and there is basically a long driveway connected to an alley behind our house. He was worried about the safety of coming home at night without any extra lighting.

We found out at the showroom that our new house did not include a fireplace.

Something I assumed was included, because the blueprints showed one in the family room.

We went back and forth. Obviously in a warmer climate there is no need for a fireplace, but I wanted one. We decided to do it, because, again it's something that is very difficult to add later. We went with a wood burning one (a dream of mine) in a white "cast stone." They didn't have one on display in the showroom (we just saw pictures) but the style is similar to this one pictured below, except instead of wood it will be stone.

As far as molding throughout the house/windows went, we went with "Polar Mist" which is white. We like the brightness that adds to our current home, so we were fine with this "included feature."

We were determined to have 9' ceilings in our new home. After looking at house after house, I decided I didn't need vaulted ceilings in the family room because I like the cozy feeling in my family room, but 8' ceilings can feel like a cave. It's amazing what that 1 foot will do for a girl. We were pleasantly surprised to find out at the showroom that this is actually an "included feature" in Savannah (our neighborhood of choice), so no upgrade needed.

As I said before we went with the included lighting plan throughout the house, except for the kitchen where we added recessed lighting. In the included package, they block and wire three rooms for ceiling fans (they will not actually put in the fans because that's an upgrade, but this way it's easy for us to add our own later). We chose the family room, master bedroom, and guest room. We also paid a little extra to have them add the wiring to both our balcony and covered patio. Race was adamant about adding a ceiling fan to his dream balcony, so I'm glad I could make that little dream of his come true.

Upstairs, there is a game/media room. It's actually quite large (bigger than our current family room). We plan to use this space for a place to watch movies and play games. We payed a little extra to have them add a "Home Pro" wiring for a future surround sound system. Maybe we will feel less home sick if we feel as if we are actually in Arrowhead stadium, when we are cheering on our Chiefs.

We went on to choose a sprinkler system, grass, landscaping, HVAC system, water heater, insulation, shelving systems for each closet, window casing styles, arches for the main floor, rounded corners, a door bell, and every other last detail you don't even think about in building a new home.

In the end, it was a fun experience, but I'm so glad it's over. I feel more at ease with this large task checked off the list and knowing, I got everything I want in our home. Also knowing, that all of these upgrades only ended up costing us about $3,000 after our $10,000 in upgrades that we were given by the builder in negotiations.

How about you guys? Anyone else ever built their own house? Were you surprised at what was vs what wasn't included...because we were. Do tell...

Choices, choices...

2014-06-19T09:40:00.000-05:00

We got to the History Maker showroom at 9:00 a.m. We were done by 11:30 a.m., causing both of our sales people to claim that this was the fastest they had ever gone through the showroom.

I guess we both knew what we wanted, and we were on the same page....for once.

Now onto a million terrible Iphone pictures...let me apologize now for the quality/angles/blurriness of these photos.

The Showroom is in the first floor of a ridiculously large building, and can be overwhelming.

You walk in and they hand you a binder with over 100 pages of choices for each small detail of your house (don't worry, I have no intention of going over each of these choices with you, just maybe an eighth of them).

You have to make several choices on each of these pages.

It shows you what each choice costs and what is included in the base price.

We were lucky enough to be doted on by two of the sales people, the entire time we were there, but I know that is not always the case (if it's too busy, they expect you to walk yourself through the showroom).

Our first choices were flooring and the kitchen.

Please ignore the hideous carpet in the background of these pictures, it was lying on the ground, and I didn't think about moving our choices to a prettier backdrop.

When we went under contract on our house, our rockstar Realtor negotiated $10,000 in upgrades....yes $10,000.

I knew I wanted hardwood floors throughout the entire first floor, and was told at that time, that would probably be all of our upgrades. We both agreed though, that it was worth it.

After doing a lot of research, I found that hardwoods are actually the worst possible flooring choice in this climate, because the humidity causes bubbling and warping. After, talking to a few people, we decided to go with laminate wood floors (the dark ones on the left were our final choice) and it saved us over $6,000. The top light gray tile is what will be in all the wet areas; the kitchen, bathrooms, utility room, and also our sun room (not a wet area, but definitely a hot one).

The bottom gray carpet sample will be the carpet throughout the second floor. I know this goes against every designers vow, but I prefer carpet on the second floor. I think it's practical and cheaper, and softer on future Baby G's knees.

The top right is the cabinets that will be throughout our kitchen, butler's pantry, and bathrooms. They were an upgrade (as was everything in this picture except the tile) but they are beautiful and exactly what we wanted. We went with the picture frame doors in an espresso. Raised panel doors cost almost $1,000 more, and honestly I appreciate the simplicity of the ones we chose.

We did however upgrade to crown moulding above the cabinets and 42" tall cabinets, adding a ridiculous amount of storage to our kitchen....apparently we feel the need to fit everybody in the entire neighborhood's pots and pans in our kitchen.

We also added a set of deep drawers for storage (we have a set now where we keep our cookie sheets and baking pans, and we love it).

We went with granite in the kitchen.

It was more expensive than some choices, but much cheaper than others.

We chose this gray tone called "pebble beach", which we were told no one else had ever used, to which I explained; "what the hell? it's gorgeous."

We knew instantly it was the one we wanted.

We upgraded both the kitchen faucet and the sink. We went with an under mount sink, similar to the one above, except instead of a 50/50 sink, we went with a 70/30 sink (meaning that it is divided less evenly).

I forgot to snap a picture of the ridiculously large wall of faucets to choose from, but this is the Moen pull down,we actually went with:

We also upgraded the appliances. We wanted stainless steel and we wanted a higher end product than what we have now. We chose the middle of the road Whirlpool package, and also added a super capacity dishwasher, since we are not fans of the tiny one we have now.

The pantry in our new house is ridiculously large (can we say Costco membership), it gives a whole new meaning to the term "walk in pantry," it should be "dance in pantry" or "holy he** you could do cartwheels in this pantry".

When coming up with a plan for it, I was completely lost. I knew I wanted as many shelves as I could get, so that's basically what I told the builder. We will see what they do with my such specific instructions and guidance...

We nixed the back splash, since we weren't crazy about any of their options, and it's something we can easily add ourselves down the road.

Next was the bathrooms. We picked a bronze hardware package, for the powder room, but left the standard/included chrome ones in the other bathrooms, because it was an expensive upgrade.

Any and all lighting we picked, was the "included" meaning it was already included in the base price. Neither of us loved any of the choices they had available, so we decided paying an extra $500 for a light plan we still didn't love just wasn't our cup of tea.

In the end we went with the included lights in every space and plan to replace them when the house is finished. Definitely not a choice that is right for everyone, but it is what works for us.

When it came to bathroom fixtures, we went with what was included in our base price.

Again, something we can upgrade later.

Another thing that we had to upgrade was the toilet. This may seem odd, but the toilet on the right sits much lower than the one on the left. My husband is over 6 feet tall, so a higher toilet is necessary for his comfort....something I never thought would be a concern.

We went with the base model shower/tub for the guest bathrooms, with a simple white subway tile (a look I actually love).

We upgraded the master tub to a separate shower and jetted tub. Something I've been dreaming about since day one.

In the master bathroom, we went with a high/low double vanity. This simply means that one sink sits higher than the other. I liked the look, and again with a tall man living there, a higher sink for face washing is a blessing.

In the powder room we went with a simple pedestal sink (I didn't snap a picture of this apparently).

In the guest bath we went with a double vanity as well, perfect for future kiddos or guests.

As I said before, we went with the lighting plan they had already included in the base price (pictured above) and for the most part the lights are ~~terrible~~ ~~horrible~~ just plain bad. They actually make the ugly boob lights in my current home look high end. With any luck they will be replaced pretty quickly, in fact I've already ordered one for the sunroom (stay tuned).

I am thinking about keeping the white large medal pendant on the far left (it is supposed to go in the kitchen nook) and maybe painting it a bronze color or even something bright and fun. I like the farmhouse/retro feel it gives.

We did upgrade the lighting in the kitchen to all recessed can lighting. It was a huge price increase, but something that is much more expensive and difficult to do later.

There are so many more decisions that we made left, but for the sake of bleeding all the blog content I can out of this, I think I'm going to save it for early next week.

Peace friends, I will be back soon.

NYLO gorgeous....

2014-06-17T09:31:00.000-05:00

Last weekend we were in Texas....again.

We've been trying to stay in different areas to kind of get a feel for the area. This weekend we stayed in the NYLO Hotel.

We loved the loft feel, a style I've always had a soft spot in my heart for, and now

Race is equally enamored with I couldn't help but snap some pictures to share with you guys, although these are pulled from their website (it's pretty obvious), since there was a wedding there this weekend, my Iphone pics would have been filled with creeped out strangers.

The whole hotel had a industrial/loft vibe. The rooms had exposed brick, cement floors, open duct work, 15 foot ceilings, large sliding doors, and amazing lights were just the beginning:

The hanging chairs in the game room were nothing short of amazing. I was so obsessed that I've been eyeing a few for the game room in our new house. And there was an old pool table, that had been painted white that was simply beautiful. The cool cowhide rugs just screamed Texas, but the gold speckles in it definitely gave it a "hip" vibe...in fact, I found myself one of these rugs while we were here ;)

I never saw this space obviously but I liked the idea of this long table in the banquet hall and office chairs for a dining room. It gives off an industrial feeling but accommodates a lot of people in a comfortable way.

The mirrors hanging on the cement walls added some glitz to a very industrial space.

Those hanging chairs again...yum.

I also really liked the built in chairs on the right (they went from the floor to ceiling), that faced each other with just a simple concrete table in between for game playing.

This amazing orange upholstered wall made seating area, was simply incredible. I've never seen anything quite like it.

This roof top pool/hot tub/fire pit is beautiful, I love the cobalt blue cushions against the blue skyline. The pull up ottoman/stools in orange and black are so convenient and fun around a fire pit.

The smaller pool had an amazing long fireplace built in to the wall.

LOCL was the restaurant and bar in the hotel.

It was packed every night we were there (again, I actually had to steal this picture off of the website, as to not creep any diners out with flashing lights).

The floor to ceiling orange window panels and light fixtures are gorgeous. They pop off of the brick walls, cement floors/walls, and against the wood cafe chairs beautifully.

I would highly recommend this hotel to anyone visiting the area (or coming to visit me, it turns out there is another location only minutes from our new house).

Now it's your turn. Anyone else out there take pictures of hotels? Anyone else ever stayed in a loft like hotel?

You go.

A nod to nautical...

2014-06-10T10:20:00.001-05:00

Lately, all of my favorite home decor stops have been leaning more and more towards the nautical theme. My cousin's cousin (you read that right) is redoing her kids playroom (a loft space upstairs) and gave me carte blanche to do as I please. With our new home being in a "resort style" and somewhat tropically/nautical themed neighborhood and only a few miles from the marina, I've definitely been dying to add some of this style to a room.

Here's what we came up with:

Cotton duvet
modcloth.com

New york wall art
williams-sonoma.com

Dermond Peterson turquoise throw pillow
purehome.com

Nautical theme home decor
etsy.com

Leather ottoman
$235 - superette.co.nz

Tribeca Media Storage Wall Weathered White
rhbabyandchild.com

Vintage Schoolhouse Small Play Table
rhbabyandchild.com

IKEA RÅSKOG Kitchen cart, dark gray gray
ikea.com

Her only request was that this space be a room her 3 kiddos could grow with.

They had the gray sofa (one very similar to this one from Ikea) and gold lights already.

We wanted to create a little reading area in a small nook in the space, inspired by this idea:

via

The baskets will lend itself as easy/soft toy storage. The table and chairs (from Restoration Hardware) will be a great art center/game area, and the silver kitchen cart from Ikea, will be great arts and crafts storage space. The media unit is well over the original budget for a piece of furniture for this space, but not only will it grow with the kids, but with the family as well. They were so in love with it, it may eventually find itself in their family room, where the investment is much more worth it. The pouf and pillows will be thrown in the reading nook (where the art and lights will hang).

This is where we are now.

Most of the pieces are bought and now we are searching for kid friendly accessories, such as these:

via

And there you have it, a playroom for any of you sea dwellers.

Peace, friends.

Just a feeling...

2014-06-10T09:27:00.001-05:00

Friday we leave for Dallas to spend a day picking out every last detail in our new home. AKA...the second best day of Ashli's life. Usually, you do this over several visits to the builder's showroom, but since there are 500 miles between us and the showroom itself, we are hoping to get everything knocked out in one day. We've been preparing over the past couple weeks. We even spent an evening walking around Home Depot and a tile store, discussing what we liked and didn't like, basically finding out if we were on the same page....
Spoiler alert: we actually were.

Stonemark Granite 3 in. Granite Countertop Sample in White Springs
homedepot.com

Merola Tile Metro Hex 2 in. Matte White 10-1/2 in. x 11 in. x 5 mm...
homedepot.com

BEHR Premium Plus 8 oz. #720E-2 Light French Gray Interior/Exterior...
homedepot.com

Shaw 3/8 in. x 5 in. Hand Scraped Maple Edge Ash Engineered Hardwood...
homedepot.com

I quickly came up with this mood board. Basically, just an idea of the feel I wanted. Classic lines and details; such as white molding, a chunky white mantel, and banisters. Light walls, dark cabinets and floors, and a lighter granite and back splash. We're thinking open shelving or a chalkboard wall in the butler's pantry (something we will probably do on our own later). The outside of the house will be brick and stone, and for the balcony, I'm thinking white (although the hubby likes natural wood). The houses in the neighborhood are all a cape cod style, so I want our home to reflect that on the interior.
Light and airy, much like our current home.

This is where we are now, which could change within a few hours, honestly.

I will be back next week, with all of our choices, and probably hundreds of bad Iphone pictures for your viewing pleasure. See ya then ;)

For more sneak peeks of what I'm dreaming about in our new home, follow my board on Pinterest!

The Story of a Room Part Dos

2014-06-03T10:15:00.001-05:00

You may remember here when I discussed a project for my good friend Leesa, where we decided to turn the sitting area off of her master bedroom into a nursery for her new baby girl (due in September), and then I went off to Texas (twice since then actually) and bought some dirt, and had about a billion other things to do. So now I'm back, and shamelessly spreading out this project for as much blog content as I can possibly get from it #winning

Last we left off with an inspiration board of sorts, not an official design board, but it gave us a good idea of whether we were on the same page. It looked like this:

We combined our ideas, and took it down a notch on the "collected over time" look at Leesa's request.

We came up with this:

Jamie Young aqua light
laylagrayce.com

Polka dot bedding
landofnod.com

Sunburst mirror
landofnod.com

Lumbar throw pillow
etsy.com

Weave basket
target.com

Aztec throw pillow
etsy.com

White furniture
landofnod.com

Pottery Barn round side table
potterybarn.com

BEHR Premium Plus 8 oz. #500B-4 Gem Turquoise Interior/Exterior Paint...
homedepot.com

HEMNES
ikea.com

I finally convinced her to go with the pure white walls (Benjamin Moore's White diamond for anyone curious), and to paint the inside of the tray ceiling Gem Turquoise (by Behr). The light is my absolute favorite part of the room. It was a splurge for sure, but it brings so much of the charm back into this vintage room and it will stay in here when this room is transformed back into a study for Leesa. We ordered the bedding and mirror from Land of Nod, the glider was from Land of Nod originally as well, but we found a very slightly used one on Craigslist. The side table is not actually the one on the board, but VERY similar, I actually stole it from her basement. The pillows are from Etsy and the baskets (that will soon be filled with baby toys!) are from Target. The Hemnes is from Ikea, and the plan is to switch out the knobs for something more vintage looking, and have her hubby frame it out with molding, hopefully giving it a built-in look. We found a dresser, similar to this one on Craiglist, that she will use (with a lipped pad of course) as a changing table, and it just adds so much storage. The rug (which I want to make out with) is the Leila Rug from Joss and Main, and I have already place-marked a spot for one in my new home too.

As far as decorative accents go, we are going to fully stock those shelves and bookcases with toys and baby books, and I'm hoping those will shine as the art/decorative accents in the room.

Now we wait, not only for the room to come together but for the baby to come too.

What do you guys think? I feel like it's a little too monochromatic, but I know once those shelves are full the room will be spilling with color.

Now you go. What projects are you currently working on? Do tell.

A dream home...Part Dos

2014-05-30T09:10:00.000-05:00

Last we left off with our decision to build a home in Savannah, Tx.

The neighborhood made of dreams.....Okay, too dramatic?

We went in knowing what we wanted. It's hard to go into building a home with a non-custom builder knowing exactly what you want. When you work with a neighborhood builder, for the most part they hand you a list of plans to choose from and you pick one.

When we sat down at Delores' desk and she pulled out the 3100 plan, which she claimed in her cute accent would work for us, the clouds parted. It was just perfect...Everything on our list of must-haves was checked, and there were more structural options than I thought possible with one of these types of mass builders.

Aint she cute...

This plan is over 3100 square feet, which I realize is way too large for just the two of us, but we want a home we can grow into and honestly houses in Texas are bigger.

*And for all my Kansas readers, remember that there are no basements in Texas, so a 3100 square foot home is about the same as a 2000 square foot two story home, with a finished basement, so it's not too large.

The house will not be done until around Christmas time...meaning for a couple months we will most likely be living in a hotel or a small apartment...not ideal at all. In fact, the other plan we liked as well was going to be ready in time for us to move right in, when we headed down. We decided it was worth the sacrifice in the end, to get the home we want in the neighborhood we had dreamt of.

It has 4 bedrooms, 2 1/2 baths, a loft/gameroom/media room. The kitchen is huge, which was one of my top priorities, and the secondary room sizes are really large. We added a few things immediately after hearing they were possibilities, such as the balcony (Race has been obsessed with balconies, since the first time we drove down to Texas, I imagine him as a princess "letting down his hair") and a "morning room," which for us Kansas people is basically a sun room that is open to the living space. And because of our rock star of a Realtor (and my undoubtedly charming self), we actually got those two upgrades for the price of one...jackpot. The "Flex space" will have glass french doors, and be the office/study.
We opted out of all other structural upgrades, since we were trying to stay within/below our budget, but honestly the list of options you can choose from goes on and on.

Our next step is to go to the "showroom" and pick all of the design aspects out...definitely the most exciting part for a design charged gal like myself. I will share those details as soon as we're done...Wish us luck.

And because posts with no color bum me out, here's a picture I took in the neighborhood....
Ahh Savannah...Heaven.

A dream home...

2014-05-29T12:48:00.000-05:00

So as of last weekend we are under contract on a big 'ol pile of dirt....a dream come true, I tell ya.

I've gone back and forth on whether to share this on the blog, because so many things could go wrong in the next few months that could change everything.

We haven't sold our home yet (it's actually only been 25 days, so we're not worried....yet), we chose to put a contingency on the contract on our new house. Meaning that they will build our house, but if we decide to back out because our home hasn't sold, we can do so without being penalized and they can sell OUR dream house to someone else....not an option I even want to think about at this point.
Then there is life in general, that could get in the way. We don't close on our house until the day it's finished, meaning that if something happened in the next six months to Race's job or anything else that could threaten our finances, bye bye dream home.
Because of these reasons I was not planning on sharing our new home with the blog world, and then I thought...

HELLO.....THAT'S LIFE ASHLI

In the end, I know it will probably be the most stressful 6+ months of my young life, but I also know that if I can share in that process, I could probably ease someone else's anxiety that is going through the same thing and maybe help them through the process.
Besides, I'm bursting with excitement to share it with someone.

On to the fun stuff...

We had things narrowed down to two plans, in two different neighborhoods on our last trip to Dallas:

Plan 1-Also known as the one with the average "giant" lot...

The lot was large for the area (lots are so small in the "380 corridor" of Dallas, compared to what we are used to in our current area, so here in Kansas this lot would have been kind of meh, but there in the area we loved, it was a very large lot). It had an amazing media room, a two story entryway that really opened up the house, and I loved the kitchen. It was only 4 miles to the beach/marina, which was definitely the biggest pro for the neighborhood.

On the other hand...

Plan 1's base price was on the lower end of our budget, but their upgrades were really high priced. As anyone that has ever built a house knows, the base price is just that, a base. If you want to add doors and windows, it takes a lot more money. They weren't willing at all to let us change things out. We were stuck with the lights, floors, and paint (yes even paint) that they always used, without paying a large sum of upgrades fees. Any upgrades at all would have put our low end budget house above our max budget. There was absolutely no way we could make structural changes to the plan...
Basically the builder wasn't in the mood for negotiating or allowing us to make any changes.
While the neighborhood was pretty, it was nothing phenomenal. The house itself was great, but the family room was a bit on the small side. We would lose a study (or have to give up a dining room for one with no doors), which was a must have, since Race will work from home sometimes, and I will all the time. The only lot that would accommodate this plan had a large electrical box in the front, which they claimed they could hide with a shrub...I don't buy it.

Plan 2-Also known as the most amazing neighborhood you will ever drive through in your entire life...ever.

The beautiful neighborhood and palm tree lined streets had me at hello...I mean look:

Let me brag...for just a second....

Savannah, is what they consider a "resort style community," something that just doesn't exist here in Kansas. The neighborhood has it's own resort style pool, that includes an adult only pool (with a bar), and a water park. There are both indoor and outdoor tennis courts, beach volleyball courts, a baseball field, 5 playgrounds, and an activities director that plans everything from "Mom's Night Out" to movie in the park (they were showing Frozen when we were there). A full gym, that includes a sauna and hot tub. There is a juice bar, coffee bar, neighborhood theater, library, billiards room, and rooms to rent for parties in the club house. There is a neighborhood dog park, bike trails, and walking trails. There are 5 lakes throughout the neighborhood with paddle boats, and fishing. You can take classes from jujutsu to yoga, and they even have classes to learn new languages, crafts, or cooking at the clubhouse.
The schools are in the top 50 in the country and within the neighborhood (we could actually walk future baby G's to school someday) and the houses are gorgeous.
The plan had everything we wanted: four bedrooms, 3 baths, an office AND dining room. There was no media room in this plan, but it had a huge gameroom/ loft upstairs that could easily be configured into one. This neighborhood is more like 7 miles from the marina/beach (still a very easy drive/bike ride) but it is several miles CLOSER to the city and Race's work. The house shows a base price online at $50,000 less than it actually is because prices in the area are going up so much (which says something about the growing economy in the area), but luckily was still near the low end of our budget. It was several hundred square feet bigger, and they were willing to negotiate.

On the other hand...

The lots are tiny...like really small.....like minuscule. It seems to be pretty normal in this area, and no one else batted an eye at how small they were, but for us it was a serious bummer. The houses are also pretty close together (which has been an issue in every neighborhood in the corridor we've been looking in). These two downsides though are also probably why we can even afford to live in this neighborhood.
And the winner is...Drum roll please...

Obviously we chose Savannah. In the end, we decided the amenities in this neighborhood, the opportunities for us and our future kids to meet people, and the love we have for this house and the beautiful neighborhood compared to the other one, certainly made up for the small yard. It's definitely not the right choice for everyone, but it was the right choice for us.

I'm going to save our new floor plan and the changes we made for my next post, since this one is wordy enough as it is....So stick around this week and I will definitely share all the details soon.

In the meantime, I'll leave you with this cheesy/blurry/rainy Iphone pic ;)

Peace friends...

Radiant Orchid

2014-05-13T08:30:00.000-05:00

I don't know about you all, but I was pretty pleased when I heard that Pantones Color of the Year was Orchid......or maybe you don't spend hours a week pondering the strengths/weaknesses of different paint colors...like a normal person. I've always loved this color, and feel it's underutilized. Check it our for yourself:

Radiant Orchid by ashliherself on Polyvore

Pinterest
pinterest.com

HGTV Design Blog – Design Happens | Bloggin it! | Pinterest
pinterest.com

Be Bold Outrageous Yet Sophisticated Color Combos
pinterest.com

Pin by Ashli @TheGrayHouseOnTheLeft on To Pin Later | Pinterest
pinterest.com

Pinterest
pinterest.com

Pin by Ashli @TheGrayHouseOnTheLeft on To Pin Later | Pinterest
pinterest.com

What do you guys think? Orchid....yes or no?

H&M...

2014-04-02T09:50:00.001-05:00

Well I planned on taking about a week and a half off, but the universe had other plans. After a week long bronchial infection (that I wrongly assumed was allergies) and a week of getting the house ready (it goes on the market next weekend!), I ended up taking about a 3 week unplanned blogging break. I'm back now, and ready to hit it hard...
I've always loved H&M's clothing options...I feel like it's the Forever 21 for people over the age of 21. When I found out they had a home line, I knew it would be nothing short of amazing....and I was right. Everything is so well priced and they have things from every spectra of the design world. Check it out for yourself:

Untitled #26 by ashliherself featuring a tiered cake stand

H M jacquard bedding

$42 - hm.com

H M tiered cake stand

$25 - hm.com

H M cotton table cloth

$22 - hm.com

H M serveware

$12 - hm.com

H M wooden salad server

$12 - hm.com

H M wooden box

$17 - hm.com

H M small item storage

$12 - hm.com

H M candles candleholder

$12 - hm.com

H&M Cotton cushion cover

$13 - hm.com

Product Detail | H&M US

hm.com

What do you think? Are you as enamored as me? What are your go to "cheap" decor stops?

The New Coastal Threshold Line...

2014-04-02T09:32:00.001-05:00

Target you sly biotch....You've done it again.

Your Threshold line has pulled at my heartstrings for some time, but this new summer/coastal line is seriously at the top of my list. With my impending vacation, I've been dreaming of the beach, so all of these coastal accessories are right up my alley...

Untitled #25 by ashliherself featuring coral home accessories

Threshold window frame

target.com

Coral home accessory

target.com

Threshold asian home decor

target.com

Threshold Brass Cage Accent Table

target.com

Is it weird to hoard things for a future beach house that you can in no way afford at this current time?....I don't think so.

I couldn't leave this shopping trip completely empty handed...
I mean what if Target's everywhere burnt to the ground that night and I never had another chance to buy a piece of the Threshold coastal line?

So with that indisputable logic in mind, I left with this Threshold frame:

On sale nonetheless....I've been feeling like my living room was too "model homeish" #technical term. So I thought the rustic wood in this frame might add some soul to my very contemporary Expedit bookcase...and I was right.

How about you? Do you love the Threshold line as much as me? Any other hoarders out there?
Oh and just a reminder, I will be on vacation the next week or so, so it may be quiet around here for a few days....forgive me....or don't, I'll be on vacation so I really don't care ;)

McDreamy's Dreamy Home...

2014-03-31T12:16:00.001-05:00

Jillian and Patrick Dempsey's (you all know him as Dr. Derek Shepherd from Grey's Anatomy...me?, I know him as Ronald Miller from Can't Buy Me Love and Robert from Enchanted) 5000 square foot Frank Gehry home in Malibu is nothing short of Amazing. Sitting on five acres, shaded entirely by olive trees, this house oozes charm, casual coziness, and a natural, textural wonderland.

The large palm (if you follow me on Instagram you know I love a good palm tree) and daybed greet you at the front of the property.

I love the comfortable dining space they created with a banquette and 4 large chairs.

Those green chaises had me at hello.

The living room is probably my favorite space. I could talk about the wood wall installation for hours...no seriously try me.

The bright and industrial kitchen is open to the rest of the home and I absolutely love the rustic island, that adds soul to a mostly commercial kitchen. And how cute is the chalkboard wall, that Jillian was inspired to do from Pinterest (yes, even the stars use Pinterest).

And if they weren't adorable enough, this small Airstream trailer sits on the back of their property and is used for date nights for the couple....I mean, seriously....gush.

all images via Architectural Digest

What do you think? Is anyone else as enamored by this home as me?

The Story of A Room...Part 1

2014-03-27T10:58:00.001-05:00

My friend Leesa is expecting her second beautiful baby girl in Septermber. Because her and her hubby make some of the best little human girls in the world, I'm over the moon excited. She's not due until after I will be moved, so we're starting on the nursery pretty early, because of course I want to be a part of that design, like I was for her first daughter, Charlotte's nursery. Plus I can't resist doing some "big girl room" reworking for my girl Charlotte too. Because, Leesa is such a good sport (and I'm working for free), she's letting me share the entire process on the blog (yes, I'm pretty desperate for blog content right now). I've talked about the E-design process before here, but since Leesa is a client turned very, very good friend, we're a little more casual about the whole thing. Casual like, I can drink wine, and tease her about not being able to drink wine while we work.
We've had many a conversation about what she wants this room to be for her new bundle, and these are the basic guidelines:

No pink
Bright and fun
Bohemian vibe (which I'm so excited about...no more "model home decorating" for this gal)
Needs to work with the architecture of the older home they live in
Storage, storage, storage

We have very little space. They are not willing to part with their playroom (for good reason), so the small sitting room off of their master bedroom will be baby G's new room. They're adding transom doors, like these (again working with the architecture of the home) to the space so that when she's older and moves in with her big sister, this could be transformed into Leesa's new study/"momcave". There is no closet in this space, so storage will be a must. The room DOES have a large beautiful window, with chunky molding, a tray ceiling (that is just dying for a splash of color) and beautiful wood floors that flow from the master.

From here we both starting collecting images/ideas to create an inspiration board (not to be confused with my pinterest board for her here) and here's what I came up with:

The center picture is the feeling I'm going for....collected over time, vintage, but with some bright colors thrown in. I'm dying to leave the walls bright white (Leesa is taking some convincing, but I'll get her there like I always do). The tray ceiling, will be painted a bright turquoise blue (not quite the color in the above ceiling picture) that I will pull from that gorgeous green rug. Since storage is such an issue (no closet since it's not a traditional bedroom) I thought the Hemnes system (anchored to the wall so sister Charlotte doesn't get hurt when she inevitably tries to climb it) would be great for the nursery, but also afterwards for her in a study. Adding gold hardware and molding around it, will hopefully give it the affect of being built in....again matching the architecture of their vintage home. I've been dying over these acrylic bookshelves (bought from here, so they are also super cheap) and I love that they let the beautiful covers of all of the baby's new books be the art in the room. I'm hoping to find a vintage dresser, possibly one we could leave with the natural wood or paint a bright fun color to use as a changing table (with the proper lipped changing pad attachment of course...no rolling babies here) and for even more storage. The gold side table will sit next to the rocker and I'm hoping to DIY a vintage style Love sign like the one above, or maybe just find the letters in an antique store. I would love to find a vintage chandelier/light, I've been hitting up Habitat Restore/Goodwill and praying for a miraculous hidden treasure that they didn't know they had in our tight budget, but haven't found one yet, so I may have to go with this one by YoungHouseLove, it's really great (I have many plans for this fixture in our new house) and a fantastic price. I've found tons of textiles on Etsy I'm dying to use and am still contemplating window treatments.

This is where we are now.
I will be on vacation next week, but I'm excited to create an official mood board with some finalized design decisions to share with you guys in the next couple weeks.

So what's your process when you're designing a new space?

A whole new world....

2014-03-10T10:27:00.001-05:00

Ever wonder what happens when an interior stylist ~~wannabe~~ and handy hubby get bored on a Saturday afternoon at home?.....Here's a hint via Instagram:

Answer: They completely reaks havoc in their living room....

I've been wanting a change in here for awhile, but with the odd layout theres not too many options. But this is what we came up with:

So far I'm loving the space. Having the sofa pushed over and the expedit bookcase (the one with the pretty hardware from here) turned vertically really opens up the space and makes the room feel twice the size.....And for those of you of you that are regulars here at The Gray House...Why, yes we did get a new sectional. It's by Simmons and is in their famous gray color "gunsmoke"...and although its definitely reading blue in these photos, it is in fact a beautiful gray.

Its super comfy, seats way more than our old sectional did due to the chaise, and the ottoman fits right into the corner of the sofa, for optimum movie watching comfort.

This space has changed a lot in the last few weeks, but right now its reading very model home-esque....which is great for our new realtor but not so great for an eclectic gal like me. The space needs soul. Everything is too new and contemporary. Id love to replace that green side table with an industrial/rustic table just too add some depth. Something like this perhaps:

via World Market

Either way I'll keep you posted.

Also let me apolgize now, for what I'm sure has been a post riddled with gramatical and spelling errors. I'm typing this post from my tablet (which is proving to be more difficult than I first perceived), since my laptop is currently in the shop...and by the shop I mean my computer-genius of a husband's office.

So there you have it, a lazy Saturday afternoon turned musical ~~chairs~~ sectionals...

What about you? How'd you spend your weekend? Do tell...

Doin' it for less...

2014-02-26T09:41:00.001-06:00

After doing the research for my Keepin' Up with the Kardashian's post (found here), I fell in love with Penelope's nursery:

I realized quickly that it probably cost more than I make in a year for this one space, so I decided to see if I could do it for less...less than $2500 that is...and because I love to share, here you are:

Green home decor
etsy.com

Ink painting
etsy.com

Babyletto Spruce Tree Bookcase - White
target.com

Mahogany furniture
$800 - outthereinteriors.com

Natural Dyed Vintage Handwoven Kilim Rug Coral Red by Sheepsroad
etsy.com

Blushing Peach Tassel Garland
etsy.com

I'm Lovin' It January....a little late

2014-02-12T09:30:00.001-06:00

It was brought to my attention that I skipped January's I'm Lovin' It post....oops...so here it is:

Untitled #21 by ashliherself featuring hardware furniture

Navy throw pillow
etsy.com

Hardware furniture
target.com

the Sisters light grey wool mountain range by ThreeBadSeeds
etsy.com

Small Vintage Copper Cup Hanging Planter / Modern by HRUSKAA
etsy.com

Target : Expect More Pay Less
target.com

Kansas City Digital Art Print NY Life Insurance by MattKube
etsy.com

Wall Art Quote Love Is In The House Tribal by LaLunaDesigns
etsy.com

What about you guys? What are you lovin' this month?

Keepin' up with those Kardashians...

2014-02-07T09:11:00.001-06:00

I've never watched a single episode of the housewives series. I don't understand the reasoning behind the Bachelor. I have no single interest in who America's Next Top Model will be; and I cannot stand American Idol. The Kardashians, however, they hold a strange trance over me. Not only do I watch Keeping up with The Kardashians , but I DVR every episode, and will only watch it in complete silence, when my husband is no where to be found. I will buy any magazine that has one of their beautiful faces on the cover, and follow them all on every possible social media outlet I can. Kourtney has been my favorite for as long as I can remember, but after finding out about her complete design obsession I loved her even more. When I saw Domaine Home had exclusive photos of her design loving home, I was dying to get my hands on them.

Of course, so I could share them with you:

All photos via

She describes her style as Beetlejuice meets Alice in Wonderland (crushing any question of why she is my favorite). From the bold black and white stripes in her formal living room, to the calm, comfortable, and incredibly textural family room, I love it all. I'm obviously dying over those teal chairs in her living room, and the gold ram used as a base at her dining table, but what I really love is that it still works for a family. The playful teepees in the piano room and family room, the mini pink piano in the piano room, the play kitchen against the back wall in the family room where they watch movies (you can't see it here but I've seen it on the show many times) all look like they belong, but allow her two kids to play freely; reminding us all that kids stuff doesn't have to be ugly. Now let's just talk about that wallpaper (it's the Pheasant by Twigs wallpaper, for anyone interested) and it is a textural wonderland. It's hand painted and so intricate. That mixed with the amazing chevron window treatments, and the large sofa make this room comfortable and cozy. A perfect place to watch movies as a family.

What's your favorite part? Go on, share.