our very first home

So as promised, I've taken some pictures of the updates I've done to our house, so far. It's not anywhere NEAR finished (we've only been living here for 3 and a half weeks!), but we're making progress. Enjoy!


1. Refurbish an old, antique trunk to use as a coffee table/TV stand

 First, I found an old chest from the 1800's at an antique store. Original price: $135. Paid: $35. 

Yeah baby!

 Step 1: Strip old wall paper from trunk. 

Step 2: Sand flat surfaces to even everything out. 

 Step 3: Paint entire chest with primer. 

 Step 4: Paint with dark brown Valspar paint. 

And oua la! A coffee table! Actually, this is at our old house. We ended up using this as our TV stand for now. 

2. Sell old furniture on craigslist to buy new stuff
Sold dining room table and chairs for $150, bought new dining room table and chairs for $150. Total cost: $0
Sold dresser for $100, bought new dresser for $60. Saved: $40.
Sold bicycle for $50, bought beach cruiser for $60. Total cost: $10.
Sold microwave for $40. Spent that somehow. :)

3. Buy new dining room table and chairs
Check.
4. Repaint and distress dining room table and chairs

 First, we bought the table and chairs set (actually came with 6 chairs and a leaf to go in the center of the table, but we're using the other two chairs elsewhere. You'll see them. :))

 Step 1: Paint chairs dark brown.

Step 2: Find ADORABLE chair cushions. These are from Pier 1 but look very Anthropologie if I do say so myself. At least, that was the look I was going for. 

Step 3: Paint table and chairs antique white

 Step 4: Use an electric sander to rough up edges and groove spots to expose the brown paint underneath. 

 Ta da! Shabby Chic! 

5. Repaint guest bedroom
My mom and brother came down from Pittsburgh to help me do this! They were a HUGE help and I couldn't have done it without them! We had so much fun listening to the greatest 90s hits and getting paint everywhere. Here are some pictures of what this looked like before we started re-doing this room:

6. Get new bedding for guest room

And here are some pictures from after! 

7. Build an art supplies/filing cabinet/work desk station to go in the guest room
This is finished but I forgot to take a picture. Oops! Will post that later. 
8. Frame post cards of different countries we've been to and hang on walls

 Some of the places on our post cards include: Germany, Austria, Italy, France, London, Alaska, New Orleans, Outer Banks, D.C., Virginia, Florida, and Nashville, TN. 

9. Create a picture frame collage

 This isn't finished yet: I'd like to add about 5 or 7 more frames and continue them onto the next wall where the accent chair is located. P.S. please notice the adorable antique chair on the left. Snagged that from The Sleepy Poet antique store for $11! Score! 

10. Buy a dresser from an antique fair
(Picture to come. Haven't refurbished it yet. You can see the corner of it in the master bedroom)
11. Get an old piece of paint chipping wood to hang above the window in our living room. Attach hooks and hang curtain.

 This was an absolutely frustrating process. Good thing I had Jo to help me!! 
Step 1: Find an old piece of paint chipping wood: Originally $125, bought it from an architectural salvage store uptown for $20. 
Step 2: Purchase hooks ($2.99 for 3 at Blackhawk Hardware)
Step 3: Spray paint hooks gold
Step 4: Drill holes into wood and screw hooks in
Step 5: Drill holes into wood where the long screws will go into the wall
Step 6: Drill wood to wall. 

 This is the finished product! We really love it, but the wood is just a liiiitle bit short, so we might buy some decorative hooks to put on either side of the wood to extend the curtains. Suggestions are welcome! 

12. Re-do outside patio
13. Attach hardware to kitchen cabinets
14. Purchase linen wrapped canvas to hang earrings and necklaces on with cute push pins/door knobs

These little drawer knobs were on sale from Hobby Lobby for $1.50 each! Love!

15. Buy a bed for the master bedroom

This is what the room looked like beforehand: 

Aaaand, after! Yay! This room is still a work-in-progress. 

16. Tear out sliding doors for closets and install french doors
17. Paint the bottom layer of cabinets light grey (keep the top layer of cabinets white) to accomplish a two toned look.
18. Knock out all of the windows in the house and replace them with energy efficient ones (I know a guy...)
19. Buy a big accent chair for the living room space

Doesn't it match perfectly!? 


20. Invite people over for a house-warming party

So there are some updates of our very first home! We love it so much. My next post will include pictures of the kitchen, bathrooms, and outside area. Stay tuned!

new house, new hair, new projects

A lot has happened since the last set of blogs (our road trip)!! Hmm..where to start...

WE BOUGHT A HOUSE!!

We are so excited to be first-time home owners. Actually, the day Val and I got back from our road trip, Josh let me relax for a few hours and then said, "I think we might have found our house...want to check it out?" DUH, of course! I mustered the energy to get in the car (don't worry, I brought the Pink with me. For those of you who don't know...the Pink is my blanket that I bring everywhere.)

(Professional pictures from our wedding day. Yes, the Pink was present. Yes, I almost wore it instead of my dress.)

Anyway, I digress. We showed up at the townhouse, which is about 2 miles away from where we used to live, and we both instantly loved it. So, after much negotiating, praying, paper-signing, mortgage talking, and more paper-signing, we bought the townhouse!!! I promise I'll post pictures in the next blog post. I've already started about 20 projects, so I want to be able to post "before and after" pictures. Here are the projects I've taken on:

1. Refurbish an old, antique trunk to use as a coffee table/TV stand
2. Sell old furniture on craigslist to buy new stuff
3. Buy new dining room table and chairs
4. Repaint and distress dining room table and chairs
5. Repaint guest bedroom
6. Get new bedding for guest room
7. Build an art supplies/filing cabinet/work desk station to go in the guest room
8. Frame post cards of different countries we've been to and hang on walls
9. Create a picture frame collage
10. Buy a dresser from an antique fair
11. Get an old piece of paint chipping wood to hang above the window in our living room. Attach hooks and hang curtain.
12. Re-do outside patio
13. Attach hardware to kitchen cabinets
14. Purchase linen wrapped canvas to hang earrings and necklaces on with cute push pins/door knobs
15. Buy a bed for the master bedroom
16. Tear out sliding doors for closets and install french doors
17. Paint the bottom layer of cabinets light grey (keep the top layer of cabinets white) to accomplish a two toned look.
18. Knock out all of the windows in the house and replace them with energy efficient ones (I know a guy...)
19. Buy a big accent chair for the living room space
20. Invite people over for a house-warming party

In the next post, I'll show pictures of everything I've crossed off.

So besides all of the home projects, the other new thing is my haircut! I talked with the "Artistic Director" (yes, you have to say that with a nasaly rich accent) at a local salon and told him to make me black. So he cut my hair into a baby fro. I think I love it. :)

Okay, talk to you soon. Have a great day!

atlanta isn't THAT bad...

So our last stop on the road trip was Atlanta, GA. We couldn't believe our great adventure was coming to a close!! After all of the creepy, cheap motels we stayed at during our trip, we decided to reward ourselves by staying in a bed and breakfast in the historic district in Atlanta. SO glad we did...it was adorable!! The name of it is The Social Goat and we HIGHLY recommend it to anyone passing through Atlanta.

 The owner even made us an amaaaazing breakfast with SWEET POTATO PANCAKES. So delish.

 This photo is courtesy of Val's talent. :)

 The next morning, on our way back home, we stopped in the center of the city so I could get my Atlanta mug (I collect Starbucks mugs from all the cities I visit).

On our way to find a Starbucks, we were stopped by a homeless man; obviously hungry, high, and looking for a meal. He told us he'd help us find the Starbucks, so through back alleys and side streets, we followed him. (Yes, I realize that may not have been the smartest idea, but let's keep in mind that homeless people are still people...not animals lurking and waiting to attack any civilian that crosses their path). We ended up right where he promised he'd take us: Starbucks. We invited him to join us for some breakfast, so after he picked out about 3 meals worth of food, we chatted with him and parted ways. I still pray for that man...he seemed so sad.

So our road trip was pretty much over...all we had to do was drive the three hours back to Charlotte. We made it home safely, I gave Josh a huge hug and kiss, and we crashed on the couch for the next few hours. We had SO much fun, made incredible memories, and learned more about new people, new places, and our wonderful God. What an amazing experience. :)