Colorful Kitchen Corner + House Snapshots

We have a kitchen! We have a kitchen! It's all very exciting. And exhausting. And exciting. I've been a bit quiet here for awhile. The days are flying by and blending together and I didn't even know where my computer was for a few days! I finally found it buried under a mountain of clothes in my bedroom.

 We have moved lots of furniture and lovely things up into our main living space, but at the same time, we aren't quite fully set up with storage. That makes for a bit of chaos. It's slowly coming together. We have gone from being overwhelmed with the "big" projects to being overwhelmed with a million "little" projects. When I start to think about all that still have to be completed, it makes me hyperventilate a little. ;-) We are so used to remodeling RVs and small spaces...it takes some time to get used to the fact that we probably won't be "done" improving the house for YEARS. 

BUT...isn't this sweet corner of my kitchen just dreamy? I could stand there all day long. And just a few minutes ago, Matt removed that large trailer from my view. Now it's extra dreamy. 

I have tons of photos and thoughts to share on the kitchen remodel that is still in progress. But that will come on another day. I just wanted to check in with you all and let you know I'm still here :) I post updates on Instragram pretty regularly, so if you don't see me here for a bit, check there.

Our current focus is getting our kitchen island finished and brought up to the house. Matt has been building it and painting it at his shop. I'm SO excited to install it...it's a thrifted dresser that we added new legs and a countertop to...and painted. It's our first real furniture refinishing that wasn't spray painted. ;-) My color inspiration was a treasured vintage Pyrex bowl. I'm in LOVE with it!

Other things on deck:

• Choosing wallpaper for a half-wall and closet in the entry.
• Buying pendant lights for over the island. I have some in mind. Ok, they are ALWAYS on my mind. 
• Refinishing our dining table and painting chairs.
• Finding/building a chicken coop...I'm missing having chickens so much!
• Building planters on the deck for a garden or building raised beds and deer-proof fencing. 
• Deck pretty-ing.
• Choosing backsplash tile and installing

And lastly...here are some snapshots that I've taken of our house lately. They are totally not "staged" and I would normally not be sharing photos of unfinished/in process things. Because I'm weird like that. BUT...because I have decided to bring you along on the journey instead of just show you the finished deal...

I give you: PROGRESS. Woohoo!

A light remodel on our main bathroom! Paint, stick-on tile, a new shower curtain, and a towel rack. Much better than before, no? We'll be remodeling it fully someday.

Furniture! So fun to have our living space upstairs again. Needs a bigger rug, different TV stand, and smaller lamps...but we love our cozy little snuggle nest. It's ever-changing.

Our toy/art/office space. This room is a little different now, because we found an art table and made a desk for me, but it's still a colorful happy place. I thrifted that Crate & Barrel rug for $8. Yes I did. 

Our resting place. The yellow bedspread on the end is my 1940's vintage find. I love it, but I may keep my colorful bedspread as well. We shall see. Lots of ideas for our room.

And lastly, my newest grandma chair. Velour avocado green. Yum. It sits next to it's mustard sister in the living room...and swivels to face the fire or the couches. I found this gem at a salvage store...on a busy Saturday afternoon. I couldn't BELIEVE no one had scooped it up. I practically ran to the checkout to buy it...constantly checking over my shoulder to make sure no one else had grabbed it. Ha!

So there you have it! We're having fun and only going half-crazy instead of totally crazy. Have a fun Wednesday everyone!

Creating a Nest : 5 Sources of Inspiration

The word "nest" makes me feel all happy inside. Beyond the beautiful imagery of a bird carefully and instinctually creating a home for her littles...I found a lovely definition that describes a nest as "...a place that is warm, safe, and comfortable".  I want my home to be all of those things!  But I have to continually remind myself that it doesn't happen overnight. It takes time, effort, and dedication. It is applied in layers...over the years. Building a nest for your family is an ACTIVE PROCESS. One that requires you to be IN your home...spending time there. Showing it love daily. 

I often get emails from friends who tell me they wish they had the creative "eye" for decorating. And while I don't think it's something that comes naturally to all, it can be developed like any skill  and it takes practice! And if you desire to create a nest that is welcoming and beautiful, YOU CAN! If you have $5 or $50,000...you can! 

I want to share some of my favorite sources of inspiration for design and decor...because that's where it begins. If you aren't filled with inspiration to create, nothing much is going to happen. When your heart and mind are inspired, it spills out into everything you do...and that includes your home.

LET'S GO TO THE LIBRARY

The library is like hitting the inspiration jackpot. I always leave with a  HUGE pile of books. And they are FREE! Mind boggling! :-) Home design books are often large, and only come in hardback. They aren't something that I like to purchase on a regular basis unless I know I will refer to it again and again. So checking them out makes way more sense. 

We have a new library branch in our neighborhood (yay!) and during the grand opening, I picked up a stack of new design books.  I thought I had seen every book out there...but these blew my mind! So delightful. Full of color and whimsy. I especially loved this one called "Happy Home: Everyday Magic for a Colorful Life". Any book that has the words happy, magic, and colorful...ummmmm yes!

How great is this photo?!  Lots of inspiration there for our own white kitchen. I love to pour over every detail and every color combo. Swoon.

My favorites from the stack above:
I own this one: Decorate (amazing.)
I own this one: Decorate Workshop (double amazing.)
Happy Home: Everyday Magic for a Colorful Life
The Little Book of Big Decorating Ideas

YOU SHOULD PIN THAT

Of course, there is Pinterest. I resisted for a long time...thinking, "why in the world would I need to do something like that?". I laugh at that now, because it brings so much joy! Yes, it's easy to be sucked in (as with any social media)...but it's an incredible way to organize ideas for a project. Pinterest has taken the place of binders bursting with torn out magazine pages and mood boards glued together with Elmer's. I have public boards to share the goodies I've found, and lots of private boards for stuff I obsess about but don't want to blow up my feed with. Like walk-in mountain chicken coops and hairstyle ideas. Pinterest is also the first place I search for tutorials on things like "how to refinish furniture with milk paint" and "gardening in the mountains". I'm constantly pulling up a Pinterest board on my phone when talking to friends (and random strangers) about this or that. What? Doesn't everyone do that?! ;-)

I've heard people complain that they pin stuff but never do any of it...and I think that's OK! You are still looking at beautiful things. Filling your mind with ideas and good quotes and colorful genius. So pin away! Even if it's just to make your heart happy.

Here are some of my personal home inspiration boards:

Home Inspiration 
Lovely Spaces
Outdoor Spaces and Gardens

MAGAZINE LOVE

And then...my personal favorite: MAGAZINES! Pinterest is awesome, but there is just something about holding pretty pictures on glossy pages IN MY HANDS. I have a bit of a magazine obsession. I've overcome it somewhat, but oh...it's so hard to resist! There are definitely some magazines that just WOW me every time I open them. Here are my TOP THREE favorite home decorating magazines:

1. Domino (back in print! yesssssss! ...before it came back into print, I actually bought an entire year of back issues on eBay. it's that good.)
2. Country Living (chippy paint heaven!)
3. Better Homes & Gardens (not just for your Grandma!)

RUGS & TEXTILES = HAPPY

This is me with all my rug samples piled on my lap...driving them back to the store. I couldn't stop petting them...."my preciousssssss". Oh they were pretty. The one on the bottom right has been my dream rug for so long...but it's a flat weave and Matt doesn't love flat weave. Hmmmmm....can anyone help me make a case that it won't slip and slide all over?! Even with a pad? He's not convinced :)

I love local stores! There is nothing like seeing colors and textures in person...so different than just looking online. This particular trip was to the Unfinished Furniture Store in Boulder...where they carry my favorite rug company...Dash & Albert. Area rugs and textiles are a huge source of inspiration for me. When designing a room, that's my starting point. A fantastic pattern. A color combo that makes me giddy. I begin there and work everything around it. 

These pieces don't have to be expensive...but in my experience, spending a little more on these pieces is worth it. I purchased one of my favorite rugs of all time 5 years ago. It's been used in 3 RVs and 4 houses and it's still going strong! It's wool. I adore wool. Once you have wool rugs, it's hard to go back...they clean easily and wear like a dream!

I'm on high alert for the perfect rug for our great room right now. I'm pretty sure I have seen every rug that has ever been manufactured and I still haven't made up my mind. But it sure is fun looking!

Some of my favorite rug sources:

Dash & Albert
Joss & Main 
Crate & Barrel
CB2
World Market
Pottery Barn Teen
Company C

Curtains are another favorite source of inspiration. I love the patterns and color!  The right curtains can radically change the feel of a room. 

Some of my favorite curtain sources:

Urban Outfitters
IKEA
World Market
Thrift Stores (vintage twin sheets!)

THRIFT IT UP

Saving the best for last...my true love...THRIFTING! There is nothing better than finding exactly what you are looking for at a fraction of the cost. It takes time and foresight and dedication...but the rewards are huge. The majority of my house decor and nearly all of my clothes are found second-hand. The trunk-full of vintage goodness above was found last week at an estate sale in Boulder. It was like taking a time machine back to the 70's...but everything in the house had a price tag. Not pictured...vintage Muppet, Little People, and pristine Strawberry Shortcake dolls. We were in heaven! 

It's garage sale season now too...and that is my ultimate favorite because those prices are usually half of the thrift store! Gleeeeeeee!

Other Online Inspiration:

Apartment Therapy (so much to see! love it. we've been featured several times for their tours…here is one of them)
Flickr group: Corners of my Home

I like to go back and see colors and arrangements I've used in the past. You can see all of the homes we have lived in and loved here.

So there you have it...
a whole bunch of my favorite sources of happy!
Where do you go to find design inspiration?

Happy Hardwood : Part II (Sealing & Finishing)

Just typing that title makes me giddy. We're so close to moving upstairs...I can taste it! After living in Matt's shop since Friday, we headed up to the house to check out our brand new floors...and as you can see, the girls are in love. It's so fun to run around and not have to stop every 5 seconds to pull splinters out of our toes. 

It's amazing to me how the floors transformed from such a raw state to feeling truly "finished". The satin finish is so smooth and lovely...but not overpowering and blindingly shiny like a high gloss. Our goal was rustic...we did not want a floor that you could see every scratch and every piece of dirt. We wanted a happy, lived-in, scratched up floor :) 

We decided to go with water-based polyurethane instead of oil-based for many reasons. Less fumes, dries faster, and easier to re-coat worn areas. It used to be that people were afraid of putting a water-based poly down because it wasn't as durable as oil...but technology has improved all things. :-) It's extremely durable and the best part is that it doesn't yellow over time. In fact, it doesn't have any color at all. Oil-based has a slightly amber color (even the clear finish)...but water-based stays clear. This was important to me because douglas fir is very warm-colored already. 

We chose Vermont Natural Coatings because they had the lowest VOC count of our water-based poly options. And all the reviews we read spoke very highly of the quality of the finish and how much they loved their floors. I was sold! It was a bonus that they are small company and it's made in the beautiful state of Vermont. Oh...did I mention that it's made out of a by-product of the cheese industry?! So cool. Watch the video above for some history and how it's made. *this is definitely not a sponsored post, we just like it!*

So how did it all happen? We started out by stirring, stirring, stirring. At least 5 minutes per can...to combine all the "stuff". 

Matt poured it on and carefully applied it to the floor. 

Once he found his groove, it went really fast. There is so much research and decision that goes into getting to this point...the actual DOING of it is much simpler than it seems leading up to it. We've learned that several times along the way. 

After the first coat, he sanded the entire thing lightly with 280 grit sandpaper....and applied another coat. It dried super fast and we could walk on it within 2 hours. We had initially planned on only doing 2 coats...but after speaking with retail reps, friends who have used this brand, and calling the company directly...we decided to bite the bullet and do three coats. 

The thing is...we're out of poly. And we have already bought out every single can from McGuckin's in Boulder. Denver is sold out as well. So today we are jumping in the car and driving 2 hours south to Colorado Springs to pick up more cans to complete that third coat. We'd rather have peace of mind and protection than have to pile all the furniture out in a year and do it over! 

Six weeks ago it looked like this. Remember that old carpet? Popcorn ceiling? Dark wood? I do.  But I also had a vision. 

And this was it! Fresh, rustic, and bright. It's home. It's ours. Our hearts are happy. 

I'm hoping the next time I share this room with you will be when we are installing the kitchen. The floor takes 1 week to "cure", so we'll be putting furniture in a week from today! Eeeeeep!

And that, friends, is how you put in a wide plank douglas fir on-site finished wood floor. That's a lot of words. Ta-da!