The post so so SO many of you have been asking for! A full plant guide of the each of the flora in my front yard. The collection includes a mix of California natives, a few Australian natives that thrive in our similar climate, but all with an emphasis on low water that are beautiful and mostly evergreen.
Read MoreThe things on my mind this week including a house I have no words for, an epic snack table, my favorite TV show back for another season, the best intro to zero waste ever, priorities and perspective, how to wash produce without gimmicks, a beautiful kitchen reveal, buying bloggers coffee, a new house renovation to follow, a podcast on the future of our earth and bodies, and more!
Read MoreI’ve made it to the garden installation story, after many other posts all about prepping and planning - here we are! While I'm here to share the installation of the plantings and irrigation, this isn’t going to be a DIY tutorial post as much as a story of what happened and a bunch of photos of the process.
Read MoreI’m back with a garden post! I did a BUNCH of research when it came time to plan my garden. But I’m DEFINITELY not an expert and I’m not going to pretend to be. So, I want to direct you to the books, classes, rebates, programs, garden tours, etc. that I used when planning my Southern California low-water native and adaptive garden.
Read MoreThe things on my mind this week including a fireplace addition, the TV show leaving my stomach in knots, bee hotels, a vegan mozzarella cheese recipe, an outdoor kids playhouse makeover, a new card game I love, the hidden problem with balloons, white kitchens, a new way of looking at social media, and my May playlist.
Read MoreI have lots of front yard gardening posts to share with you so I’m breaking them up into a few pieces. In this one, I want to share with you the goals for our front yard landscape. A a serial over-thinker, you can bet that I had multiple goals that I thought long and hard about when planning what to plant to replace our pathetic front yard. From trying to save the planet to wanting to enjoy all the pretty things, here are my garden goals.
Read MoreThe things on my mind this week including a grey brown kitchen, the surprising responses from my latest blog post, a podcast about meat, a new podcast from everyone’s favorite scientist, conscientious human bingo, where you can get a sneak peek at my future designs, phrases to replace, composting humans, old vs. new houses, a vegan cookbook, and my thoughts on this weekend’s sales.
Read MoreOnce we removed the existing plantings and regraded our dirt pile, it became obvious that there was some stucco repair to be done. I’m here to share what I did, how I did it, and give you some satisfying before and afters to enjoy.
Read MoreThe things on my mind this week including the status of my kitchen remodel, linen sheets, toxicity of Dollar stores, my glasses, restoring wood stairs, designers that sleep on the job, a new show, and more!
Read MoreA couple of weeks ago I shared how I refreshed a tired fence, and now I’m back to tell you how I covered up the refinished fence with vines and flowers. I love foliage and will happily plant a tree or bush or shrub or vine anywhere and everywhere outside. So, while I covered up my freshly stained fence, I’m v pleased with my wall of leaves and flowers.
Read MoreThe things on my mind this week including the bathroom I want to copy and paste into my house, a show I binge watched, is local shopping less eco-friendly than online shopping, a podcast about electronic glitches, a vintage item I love, who I like to donate to on Mother’s Day, a new house purchase from fave bloggers of mine, speeding up extinction, and followers copying my projects.
Read MoreI visited New Orleans for the first time last week and it was such a treat! I asked Instagram followers for recommendations for their favorite Nola eateries and sights - thanks, folks! It would be just plain rude to not share the hot tips, so here they are for you. I’m calling out the places Ross and I enjoyed as well as the recommendations that we didn’t have time for but I’m v sure are worthwhile. Check ‘em all out the next time you visit Nola!
Read MoreWelcome to a new series: Report Card. I'm going through (nearly) everything in a space and telling you how it's actually held up. The backyard's first up, and spoiler, I did not ace this one.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Hammocks, cookbooks, gardening, sewing, and the other things I’ve been up to on my impromptu break, and more.
Ashley’s restoring her historic home at a snail’s pace in California. She shares home improvement DIYs, tips for sustainable living, and renovation stories - all while aiming to add more color and present real, lived-in, family friendly spaces.
I'm Ashley, a deeply systematic homebody restoring my 1915 Craftsman bungalow in California, slowly and on purpose. I don't make a single decision without first opening 100 tabs. Renovation, DIY, color, and what it actually looks like to live in an old house with two young kids.
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