House Update - September

Tile, tile, and more tile...

Tile selection, by far, has been one of the most difficult parts of the interior design process that I am working through for our personal house. Not only are there a bajillion choices in color, size, and thickness, but there are also varying degrees of price ranges and that makes it incredibly hard.

I really had to start narrowing down.

For me, that process meant finding an inspiration room and I have looked at probably 1,000 or more bathroom pics online and came up with this one as the inspiration for our master bath.

Because I have been searching for tile and perusing types online, I feel like I am now surrounded by it. Every ad, article, and targeting marketing strategy is now aimed at getting me to buy their tile... nice try. I cannot be coerced, it has to be perfect!

The trick with tile is to have a few pattens and colors for visual interest, varying degrees of sizes for the type of application (floor, wall, shower, etc.), and just a little bit of the really expensive stuff for that wow factor. And don't forget that it all needs to coordinate!

I have an appointment with my favorite tile person in a few days... we shall see what I come up with! 

Construction Has Started!

We broke ground on our new house! I hope to update with more pictures as we go... but here is where we started. We sure are counting our blessing right now and are so happy! :)

 before

ground officially broken!

Obligation, Game, Fat, TV, Party, Meeting - FREE MONTH

I am over-booked. I have been booked solid this past month with parties, promises, and moving, and I feel like I have nothing to show for it but a few good pictures and a million laughs. Granted, the laughs are worth it, but it is time to move forward with a few things that I have been neglecting in my life.

While all the drinking and philanthropy and events can be fun, I feel like I have had an entire year of that since I became a registered architect and that I haven't done much since. I know that it is a perception and that I have done plenty (changed jobs!) but I need to work on a few important things. Oh, like the design of our new house, for one, and my overall health commitment (or lack thereof) to clean eating, exercise, and general well-being of my body for another.

I am going to try to make a commitment to be uncommitted to things other than our house plans, my health, and my family until June 11th (I have a wedding June 12th). I made this decision a couple of weeks ago, but I had to get some stuff done first. haha - See? I have to plan to take a break. Quit planning, bro.

I will still be committed to my softball and kickball teams, but other than that and my one AXO happy hour a month, I should be relatively full on time with one request of myself, that I stop making plans and saying "yes!"

Currently there are no other appointments on my calendar, so, let's do this and make some progress on your dream house!

Love,
Yourself 

SOLD!

Today, my husband and I say goodbye to our first house. He bought it before we met, owned it for 7 years, and we've lived in it for the past three (we rented it out to live in my condo for the first couple years of engagement/marriage). Time has flown by!

This has been a great little house and I am sad to see it go, but this occasion marks the first step on the journey of building our own house!

Perfectionism: raises you up or holds you back?

I always get this super-weird-uneasy feeling when I'm about to hand over something creative into the care of someone else to finish... I can count on 1 finger how many people I would trust to do a project the way I would do it, and that finger is pointed right back at me. This isn’t a post about why I am so great, but more of a realization that I need to let go of some things…

It all started in 2003 when I needed to get my architecture student portfolios bound in college. I was headed to three big interviews and I had designed it all on the computer, printed the five copies at 10 minutes per page, both sides, and I left them in the care of some girl that was eating freaking Cheetos at the counter in Staples. She seriously had orange fingers and was cleaning them off when I handed her my immaculate printed and cut pages that were to be bound. That should've been my first clue. 

She bound them on the side of the page that was meant to be turned, the OPPOSITE side that I wanted the binding on. She messed up two of them before she realized her mistake. Luckily, there were still three left that she could bind on the correct side but there was still nothing I could do about the other two. This left me no spare copies; one per interview is all I had. That was 2003, ten years ago almost to the day and I still get a little heated when I think about it. 

My most recent service industry mishap happened yesterday. I gave a custom embroidery place two oven mitts to embroider as part of my friend‘s wedding gift. They did a really nice job, the letters looked perfect, and they used the right thread color, but the initials were upside down on one of the mitts. I even taped a piece of paper with the direction of the initials to it, but I have no proof of that. I just have to accept it the way it is, and it is wrong.

This is why my husband gets so frustrated with me, I am a perfectionist and I demand perfection so when I don't get it then it is a major letdown. It is one of the biggest reasons that I insisted on making pretty much everything in my wedding from invitations to my garter. To this day I still cannot get something spiral-bound at a print shop without my stomach being in knots assuming that they are going to do it wrong. Why is it that it is more of a surprise when someone does their job correctly then when they screw it up? 

I just have to assume that this is the sad state of the world and the type and quality of people that are living in it. I am a measure three times cut once type of girl, I drive 45 minutes to get my haircut because I can’t switch, I hate change, and my dad raised me this way. The thing about this part of our personalities is that people cannot stand to work with us sometimes.

My dad almost drove my then boyfriend, now husband, insane when they were installing a bathtub in my condo. My dad measured, looked, thought about it again, put it in, took it out, measured it again, and then cut it, and the whole time Steven was crawling the walls. He's a jump in with both feet and look later kind of guy. This is an important quality for a person to have in my life because at times I can be very slow at making decisions, especially the ones that count, but the worst thing that one can do is rush me.

I do find that this mostly has to do with design items that are related directly to me as I don’t really have this problem with clients. If I am actually the one making the item and the decisions involving it, I know that if it does not come out perfectly I will not be able to give it to that person without redoing the entire thing until it is absolutely spot on. The thing about this condition is that the flaw is usually so minor that no one else will notice, except me. Even if I don't have to look at it every day I will still know that it is there. 

The bright side to this whole condition is that my friends like coming to me to help them design stuff for their house and/or event. I have designed countless invitations, blankets, programs, logos, rooms, etc. for people because I feel like they trust my work, and that means something to me. I feel really good in knowing that they feel comfortable asking me for my help, and I love to give it.

Now, I will have to give these potholders to my friend, with one of the initials stitched upside down from the other, and live with it because there is nothing else I can do about it. I hate when the fate of my project is in the hands of someone else, and this is something I'm just going to have to learn to get over as we embark on my biggest project of all time, building our own house. There are SURE to be some meltdowns over this one…

Legless Lizard - Posing Like a Snake!

My husband and I were mowing our new lot last weekend for the first time. It was a land-mine field filled with fire ant hills and snakes! Or so we thought.

I was pushing my mower through a particularly thick patch of clover when this came slithering out...

Yes, I screamed. Like a girl even.

Steven stopped his mower and came across the lot to see me pointing to about an 18" long "snake" and he went to go get a shovel to kill it pick it up and throw it back in the marsh.

Our neighbor lady came down from her house and walked over to us to take a look and she picked it up! She said "Oh, this is a legless lizard or 'glass' lizard. I see him all the time. Oh no, the end of his tail got cut off." and started walking away with the lizard to set him free.

Found out later she is an arborist. And I am guessing an avid animal lover. Being an animal lover myself I am so glad I didn't chop off more of that lizard than the tip of its tail! In case you are wondering I think I could have talked Steven into letting that poor baby go back into the marsh, even if it was a snake.

The fire ants, however, did get the best of my right foot. And I got the best of their hill with some leftover gasoline. What? I can be a little vindictive. ;)

Side note:
This neighbor lady is on one side and the neighbor lady on the other does triathalons. I think I am going to have to step up my game to live in an area with these bad a$$ bit*&^es! :)

Bargain Bedding for a Guest Room

I LOVE finding a bargain. To me, it feels like winning a small lottery or a big game or something. I am not big on coupons because I honestly just don't have the time, but taking bits and pieces from all over the city, found on clearance, and bringing them together to create an amazing design is one of my most favorite things to do, ever.

I found this duvet cover at Bed, Bath, and Beyond and it immediately caught my eye. Not just because it was one the clearance cart, but because I really like the colors and the pattern isn't too froo froo. As I checked it out I realized it was the right size that I needed! (I already have the down comforter that is going inside this cover).

Since I didn't really need it, I just held it in my hand for a while. This is part of my whole process.

As I held it I realized that it was pretty quality and soft and a brand I knew. The design is by Amy Butler and she is well-regarded for her modern fabrics.

Well, now I need to see how much it is since there wasn't a sticker... It was marked to $40.00! Plus I of course had my 20% off coupon with me - this made the duvet $32 and I could only find it online for $100 more than that... essentially like $100 off, like $100 in your pocket - or so I told my husband who was being quite agreeable this particular day. :)

But it was just a duvet and there were no coordinating pieces to be found in the store. Thank God for smart phones because I was immediately able to find the matching shams on amazon.

They were actually more costly than the dang duvet, but the longer I held it in my hand, the more I knew it was going to go home with me, so it did. :)

 

I can't wait to get my guest room all put together! I don't need a bedskirt because of the type of bed we have. I am going to buy some coordinating sheets and also sew some new coordinating bed pillows and there you have it, bargain bedding for the guest room.

Bathroom Design - Sneak Peek

This page of finishes is what we are looking at for our bathroom re-design. We had a water leak that ruined pretty much anything touching the ground so this is our attempt at putting the pieces back together under-budget and still stylish. [While also staying neutral enough that if we put our house on the market, we won't scare anyone. :) It is a delicate balance!]


- Ashland Vanity from Home Depot - $299 (includes countertop)
This vanity is on super special! It is has modern lines, but nothing too out of the box. The color is a little light for my taste, but will go well with the wood floor that we chose for the rest of the house (top pic).

- Interceramic Linen Smoke Tile - 16x24 (about $ 1.50/ square foot)
This is a great way to cover a lot of area at a good price. Adding an accent tile ($10/ square foot) like you see in the top picture will add that pop of color and design without a huge cost increase. I have done a lot of research on using glass tile on the floor and have summed it that you shouldn't do it, but if you do install it, keep it just for an accent. We're gonna try it. Make sure you use un-sanded grout with a latex modifier so you don't scratch your glass with the sand and the latex helps with stains.

- Widespread Peerless Faucet from Lowe's - $106 (clearance)
I love satin nickel finish and will usually go toward this metal's look. It was the best one on clearance and we are sticking to a budget! Notice the word "widespread" in front of the faucet name. It is important to check the holes on your coutertop to know if you need widespread or centerset faucet design. Widespread is a bit more money, but it is the only faucet that will work with our pre-drilled holes.

- Paint, 'Baking Stone' from Lowe's
It is SO important to look at your paint with all your finishes like you see above. What may look good with one item might not look good with another. I started with my head set on one color, but after getting all my materials together, I completely warmed up the gray I had originally chosen and 15 color swatches later, here with are with "Baking Stone."



I can't wait to see it all put together! :)

A little Thanksgiving Cheer

The best thing about Thanksgiving is the food and family. And out of town family guests mean you have to complete the little projects around the house that you have been avoiding. That meant touch up paint on our door and a new hanging porch light for our house! I love it. :)

This was the first year that I have hosted Thanksgiving as an "adult." I am not a huge fan of turkey, but my coworker swore by this turkey [recipe] and it was actually quite delicious! I don't think I would add all the sugar and salt to the brine (maybe cut it in half?) but all the hard work was definitely worth it.

Now that is a huge dang bay leaf in the brine, an all natural grain-fed turkey, and the finished product!

I must say that my least favorite part was violating that turkey and pulling out some of the insides... not my greatest moment.

Design Idea: Wallpaper Your Stair Risers!

Not a huge fan of the animal print, but I could see some gorgeous pattern like the one below... even with a color accent! A fun way to bring some life to a maybe otherwise boring foyer. :)

Bathroom Design!

This is a rendering I just did for a potential new client. She and her husband have a gorgeous house and this unused space on their second floor was the perfect spot to add in a spa oasis, even though this will be their daughter's new bathroom.

Here are a few tips for those thinking of doing their own design but you can always message me for ideas!

1. Always overlight your bathroom, but put the fixtures on dimmers. That way you have enough light for grooming, but can dim the light down for a bubble bath.

2. Cleaning a bathroom does not have to be as hard if you use the right construction methods and materials. Tile can be murder to clean for some, but I recommend using a grout with a latex modifier that will not allow the penetration of bacteria and that will make it harder for scum to grow.

3. Having enough storage (and in the right spots) is key to keeping your bathroom tidy. What about adding a large cabinet with an outlet inside of it so that your hairdryer and straightener can live there? Or making sure your vanity mirror has a medicine cabinet for your toothbrush and makeup?

4. Technically that chandelier above the tub is against code... you should be able to stand up in the tub without hitting your head, but doesn't it look sweet? and who stands up in a tub? :)

Alessi Jar

I love designer housewares more than just about anything! Here is a sweet little jar that I bought (I actually got two, one shorter and fatter and one taller and skinnier) for my bathroom. The designer is Alessi and I love most anything I have seen from the collection.

It started from a need for new jars to hold my cotton pads and Q-tips in my bathroom. I got a new shelf to store some lotion and body splash and wanted something a little different to go on there as well, and this is what I came up with! Well, I had my eye on a different Italian design (here) but couldn't bring myself to spend 60 dollars on something to hold cotton swabs... so the fun one above is what ended up in my cart.

I am excited to get them in the mail! Should be here by the end of this week or beginning of next! :)

Kitchen is Finished!

Took twice as long and twice the cost of what it should, but we are enjoying it very much! :)

Kitchen Renovation Time!

I have hated my tile countertops literally since the day I moved into my condo. Not only are they a bacteria's haven, but they are also not installed very nicely - half inch wide BLUE grout lines - yeah.

Steven and I decided to use part of our savings on home improvement since, because of the economy, we aren't moving anywhere anytime soon. I made the plan of attack and Steven put it into action. He doesn't like it when I call myself the project manager, but that is just the nature of my field :)

Here are some shots of before and during, and trust me when I say, I can wait for the after shots!