February 12, 2019

Getting Our Home Historically Designated - New Rules for Renovations & Tax Savings

February 12, 2019/ Ashley

Our house is a 1915 craftsman bungalow in a charming old neighborhood of San Diego. While the house is special in our eyes, we’ve been going through the process of making it even more special with historic designation. It gives us cool street cred, plus with an extra step, we get a discount on our property taxes. There’s a lot of wins, but also a few hurdles to jump over, so I wanna share where we’re at in the process, how to apply yourself, and what this all means for the future of our home.

January 29, 2019

Taking a Really Close Look at Our Energy Usage

January 29, 2019/ Ashley

Energy consumption has been on my mind lately as we’ve been gearing up to add solar panels to our roof and as we continue to think about our footprint on this lil’ world of ours. We hear lots about how we should use LED bulbs instead of incandescent and we should get energy star appliances instead of energy guzzlers - both of which I firmly believe and included in my list of ways to make green energy improvements at home. But, I wanted to know exactly how much energy each of my lights, appliances, tools, and electronics around the house were actually consuming. Because I’m type-A like that.

January 22, 2019

How to Fold Clothes the Marie Kondo Way - And My Take On It

January 22, 2019/ Ashley

With Netflix’s Marie Kondo special all the rage and her book selling like hot cakes, I wanted to chime in with my experience folding clothes and purging clutter the KonMari way. You may remember that a year ago my pal Natasha Habermann helped me clean out my closet using Marie Kondo’s method. Well, I started folding my clothes in the KonMari way and I’m smitten, so I’m here to show you how, too!

January 17, 2019

Answers to Your Questions!

January 17, 2019/ Ashley

I posed an open-ended “ask me anything!” questionnaire on Instagram last week and got oodles of questions. So, I’m here to answer them for you. Every. Single. One. I’m hoping this gives you more insight into who I am, more about the house, and my tricks of the trade. Enjoy!

January 10, 2019

My Home Featured on Emily Henderson's Blog!

January 10, 2019/ Ashley

My house was featured on Emily Henderson's blog this week!

January 01, 2019

Looking Back on 2018 and A Preview Of What I have Planned for 2019

January 01, 2019/ Ashley

Happy 2019!! This past year FLEW by. I definitely didn’t accomplish all the things I hoped to, but it was definitely year of great experiences and change. Let’s take a look back at 2018 and see what’s comin’ in 2019.

November 30, 2018

Article Holiday Decor Two Ways

November 30, 2018/ Ashley

Sometimes I get really into holiday decor, and sometimes I shy away from it opting for more minimal seasonal touches. This year, we aren’t doing a tree so I’m decorating the house in new ways to bring some holiday vibes without feeling like I’m drowning in over-the top holiday decor. Today I’m sharing two looks I’m experimenting with for the holidays.

November 13, 2018

We Got a New Roof! A Comprehensive Guide to Everything You Want To Know About The Process

November 13, 2018/ Ashley

If you follow me on Instagram, you know that we had a thrilling week with the addition of a new roof and the removal of FIVE layers of roofing material. This project was a long time coming and has been the topic of many discussions in our household. So, I’m here to give you all the details from picking a color, finding a contractor, and the cost. Hold on to your seats - roofing is very exciting.

October 23, 2018

Revisiting The Kitchen/Master/Bathroom Layout + Reader Contributions

October 23, 2018/ Ashley

Redesigning the kitchen layout has been a doozy! I first talked about it in this post seven months ago where I laid out our must-haves, some sketches, a video walk-through, and a few thoughts on the matter. I asked readers to share their designs and give me feedback, so that’s what I’m here to do today - after a brief half a year of noodling on the designs.

May 09, 2018

Master Bedroom Reveal - One Room Challenge Week 6! + VIDEO

May 09, 2018/ Ashley

IT'S DONE!! I've officially completed my THIRD One Room Challenge and what a journey! The ORC has been such a big part of my home and blog - HALF of my house has been transformed through the design challenge. I'm so proud and grateful to participate! I mean, look at this new bedroom I get to sleep in, now!

May 02, 2018

A New Door Off the Master and Fresh Paint - One Room Challenge Week 5 + A VIDEO!

May 02, 2018/ Ashley

OMG it's week five of the One Room Challenge! The moment we've all been waiting for - the new exterior door was installed, and boy is it a beaut. We also built a deck this week (so I didn't fall to my death out the new door) and painted the room in the prettiest hues.

April 30, 2018

My Episode on the Home Love Network!

April 30, 2018/ Ashley

I can't believe I'm saying these words, but I have an episode on Home Love Network's new show! GASP! I've been in love with Candis and Andy Meredith for ages now - you might know them as Old Home Love. For years, they've been fixing up old houses in the best possible way, they wrote a book that I treasure, they had an HGTV show before creating their own network, and they are just all around great humans. When they reached out to film at my house I had a mild panic attack from the sheer excitement of it.

How We Live Here Now, Vol. 2: The Backyard

The plants finally filled in, the veggie beds are in the wrong spot, and I've learned that the yard you design and the yard your kids actually use are two very different things.

How We Live Here Now - Volume 1: Introduction

Hi. It's been a while. I've missed this. I took a longer break than I planned. Life has gotten full. I've been developing film and knitting at soccer practice, attempting to garden with the girls and fussing around with furniture layouts. I’ve also been scheduling summer camps, refilling the watercolors multiple times a day, and trying to keep the toys tidied. Around the house, I’m adding color wherever it fits and making some changes to the overall function and feel.

How We Turned a Garage into a Living Room, Laundry Room, Office, and Storage Space

My friend Martha had a vision for this garage conversion: to turn her unfinished catch-all garage into a beautiful, hard-working space that could function as a living room, media room, playroom, laundry room, home office, and storage zone. I’ll be honest, I wasn’t entirely convinced all of that could fit. But somehow(?!), it absolutely does and it turned out even better than I imagined.

Weekly Roundup

What I’ve been up to - from gardening, to film photography, and the books and shows we’re enjoying. Plus a house tour that requires a closer look, grass seed to always have on hand, cedar shake excitement, historic window screens, and the privilege I’m reminded of daily.

Where I’ve been, shooting on film, my dream house, retro costume inspiration, energy rebates, a magic cake, textiles I don’t need but want, a lampshade DIY, my best defense against mosquitos, a new podcast, what’s killing home remodelers, best decision-making advice, overheard parenting, Little Women on acid home tour, best marble etch remover, and more.

Colorful Primary Bathroom Addition Reveal

If you like florals and color, this bathroom is for you. If you don’t, well, maybe scroll through and you’ll be converted? Or not? Either way, here’s the reveal of a bathroom addition that’s finally here - after a whole three years of construction.