Y'all... I don't have the words to even begin to put together for this post... and this ain't even a full reveal or a behind the design. For the past 6 or so months, we decided to finally cross off a major task from our exterior projects to do list - our deck!
Here's the thing... working on the deck wasn't just about the deck... it was about creating an al fresco lifestyle. This project was, first and foremost, always about bringing the hygge outside. While we'd always had a deck, because it didn't feel like an extension of our interior spaces, I didn't really appreciate or enjoy it. I would always joke that I wanna do more than just sit on a folding chair... because that was literally all I could do. And after all of the work that would go into upgrading the deck & adding a pergola + so many other details, the last thing I wanted was to resume just sitting on a folding chair. So once we made the decision to tackle this project, I simultaneously began doing what I do best - shopping!
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In the past 4 years I dabbled with quite a few bra brands, however, none quite fit the bill for me across the board and I'd soon find myself right back to just not wanting to wear a bra at home at all. They'd be great for outside and/or for working out, just never found anything quite right for my lifestyle as someone who spends 94% of their time at home.
You can tell by the title that I finally found my groove, and specifically, with Harper Wilde.
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If you recall last year, I shared my plans for the hygge ranch backyard resort. Going into this new year of projects, we made a conscious decision to prioritize exterior projects. We're extremely comfortable with the current state of the home's interior, in that we wanna spend time just living in the house, not tackling projects around the house. Summer spaces are made in the Winter, so instead, we've been spending the majority of the Fall into the Winter tackling the next phase of the backyard renovation - our deck.
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This time of year is when everyone is hitting reset for the new year ahead -- making resolutions, setting goals, choosing words to serve as their "North Star", etc -- all in order to really set the tone for the next 12 months. This doesn't necessarily mean drastic changes of any kind, but there is something about a new year that really makes you go, "I need to get my ish together!"
As someone who's made a life out of always being home, I decided to share with you some of my productivity hacks and ways that I stay focused & keep myself accountable day to day.
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Throughout this renovation I've always maintained that I never wanted to sacrifice style for function, or vice versa. In order to truly improve our quality of life it had to be an equal balance and Leviton's products allowed me to achieve that.
In comparison to many of the other upgrades we made, these were minimal changes... minimal with maximum impact that makes every routines easier. It's always been said that good design is in the details, and taking the time to be intentional about these details paid off.
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You guys have heard so much about my countertops, and yet I've never gotten a chance to actually tell you all about my countertops! All you know is that it took a while before I got them; and can I just say... totally worth the wait!
I've always been familiar with Formica, however, only for their laminate surfaces. While I was doing my research, Kim & Scott of @yellowbrickhome were revealing the kitchens of their 2 unit flat. Unit 2 featured supermatte black shakers cabinets from Semihandmade — yep... the same ones in our media room! — with a white countertop... a design that paralleled exactly what I had in mind for the hygge ranch.
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It's no secret that organization is my jam, so when thinking about the kitchen renovation, how it would be organized has always been top of mind — from the design layout to the cabinetry options. But that's only one piece of the puzzle — the perimeter edges of the puzzle — but while the kitchen has been in a holding pattern, awaiting the countertops, I've been working on the middle pieces of my storage puzzle.
What's a dream kitchen without dream storage solutions?
It's no secret — and should come as no surprise — that The Container Store is my go to destination when it comes to storage, even if it's just to window shop. Switching out all the cabinetry, adding brand new cabinetry, and upgrading the existing pantry system meant a chance to optimizing our existing storage while also getting to bring in new products and solutions.
We going shopping y'all!
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Did you know that my plan for the laundry room was heavily inspired by what we'd originally planned to be the media room? It leads to the laundry room & was originally designed to be a lot of black on black, so I wanted to lighten it up a bit in the laundry room, while still carrying the darker hues into the space. But my do things change!
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Years ago I determined that lighting is the unsung hero of every design -- residential, commercial, doesn't even matter. Lighting is the jewelry of the room, from pendants to floor lamps to sconces and everything in between. Needless to say, when we bought our house, I knew we'd be upgrading all of he lighting to designs that were more "us".
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If you've been hanging out with me for some time then you already know that before we bought a house I was working on a refresh for the living room, which then triggered our decision to covert the dining room to a study.
The design plan was to keep as much of what we already owned and give them a proper upcycle to recreate the space. Two things we knew we wanted to keep were my old desk and our IKEA Besta sideboard.
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Once upon a time there was a girl that got her dream washer and dryer. And she lived happily ever after. The end. That's the story. And the girl... is me!
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As I type this, it's been over 60 days since we became homeowners and it has completely upended my world — more on that later though! — but one of the best unexpected surprises is shopping retailers that I'd only previously shopped for clients... one being Build with Ferguson.
The home improvement e-retailer is one that I have sourced for years for everything from lighting to flooring to plumbing for e-design clients, so the chance to browse their catalog for myself has always been a secret dream. I'll have to go through a whole bunch of other posts talking through what projects are happening (planned or in progress) but in the meantime, here's what's in my cart…
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While ideating what Christmas in our new home would look like, I put together a round up of black, white, and gold Christmas decor. In our apartment, our white Christmas tree lived in the dining room, where I would also do light holiday tablescaping. Now having the options to have more than one tree + other trimmings, and tablescape — yay! — The Home Depot was an easy one stop shop for creating our Hygge Holiday Home.
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Up until this point, admittedly, I never really did any "reveals" anywhere I've lived. In our condo, I shared quite a few rooms and that was my first taste at opening up the virtual doors to our home. But this is different... it feels different.
This design was almost 5 months in the making but it was also in partnership with many of my favorite brands. I didn't just move in and start designing.
Now rather than having you see my design and dismiss it as impossible and/or get inspired only to get sticker shock, I wanted to bring you behind the design — numbers & all — so you can see what & how much is feasible for YOU.
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2020 has been the year of online shopping but if I'm being completely honest, online shopping has always been my jam — more choices, less people. Granted there's nothing that can fully replace the in person experience of shopping and engaging all of your senses as you make your decision, but sometimes online is all you have...like during a global a pandemic or when you're shopping an e-tailer like one of my favs, Apt2B.
But how do you shop for a sofa online — pandemic or not — when you can't see it in person, feel the upholstery, or sit on it to do a comfort test?
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This time of year is when everyone is hitting reset for the new year ahead -- making resolutions, setting goals, choosing words to serve as their "North Star", etc -- all in order to really set the tone for the next 12 months. This doesn't necessarily mean drastic changes of any kind, but there is something about a new year that really makes you go, "I need to get my ish together!"
As someone who's made a life out of always being home, I decided to share with you some of my productivity hacks and ways that I stay focused & keep myself accountable day to day.
Read More