February 20, 2020

Six Ways We Prepared To Live Through a Major Kitchen Renovation

February 20, 2020/ Ashley

Demolition has officially begun on the kitchen this week - yaayayayyay! I’m sharing all of the play-by-plays on Instagram Stories so please follow along there for the most up-to-date happenings. But before demo commenced this week, we did lots of prep work to get ready for the big day. With a goal of being tidy, efficient, and eating healthy, we took a few steps to maintain our sanity while living without our cooking space for a few months. Here’s what we did.

February 17, 2020

Talking Old Houses, Energy Efficiency, Sustainability, and Historic Preservation on the True Tales From Old Houses Podcast

February 17, 2020/ Ashley

I sat down with Stacy of the blog Blake Hill House who runs the podcast True Tales From Old Houses to record an episode! We chatted about old homes, energy efficiency, sustainable improvements, modern upgrades, old window efficiency, and weighing the pros and cons of green updates like solar panels. This was a great conversation because I got to share some things that I’ve never discussed in much length on the blog or on Instagram. You’ll definitely want to listen! And I guess I’m overly chatty because Stacy had to split up my interview into two parts! In part two, I chat more about my experience living in a designated historic district, so stay tuned for that.

February 14, 2020

Weekly Roundup

February 14, 2020/ Ashley

This week on my mind is thrilling news of my upcoming renovation, Alison’s bathroom makeover, beautiful embroidery, a unique kitchen, a movie I’m looking forward to watching, a quilted jacket, a docuseries I recommend, questions for Ross, commenting PSA, and my playlists!

February 13, 2020

Getting You Up To Speed on the Kitchen and Bathroom Remodel Plans

February 13, 2020/ Ashley

I’ve been talking about my kitchen and bathroom remodel for ages. And we’re finally going to get started on the remodel next week! I want to use this blog post to recap the process of getting to today and then loop you in to some of the latest updates and final decisions. Demo has kinda sorta started, so now is the time to get well versed in what’s happenin’!

February 10, 2020

From The Vault: The Pre-Renovation Spring 2015 House Tour Video

February 10, 2020/ Ashley

Guess what!?! Ross found us some archival footage that I completely forgot we had from before we ever moved in! After I published last week’s 2020 house tour video I was wishing we had a recording of what the house looked like five years ago before we moved in. And we do!

February 07, 2020

Weekly Roundup

February 07, 2020/ Ashley

The inspiration and happenings this week including special visitors you’ll recognize, a podcast on the simple thing to change the world, thoughts on going grey, a gothic church turned home, non-cheesy Valentine’s Day cards and art, antique light fixtures, home tours, a favorite show, a $10 tool I recommended to two blogger buds and now you, an illustration that’s perfectly me, and more!

February 06, 2020

How Did The January Declutter and Organization Challenge Go?

February 06, 2020/ Ashley

I created an organization and declutter challenge for the month of January in an effort to kick off the new decade with clarity at home. How did you do? How did I do?

February 04, 2020

Winter 2020 House Tour Video

February 04, 2020/ Ashley

The house is super tidy, so I filmed the annual house tour! I love these little videos to give you a lay of the land and to look back on year after year to see the changes. I did a deep clean and organization because blogger superstars Julia and Chris of chrislovesjulia.com came over to my little abode! Get to know my house in this 4-minute video!

January 31, 2020

Weekly Roundup

January 31, 2020/ Ashley

The things on my mind this week including the prettiest kitchen I’ve ever set foot in, lovely stools that I wish were antique and cheaper, the cake and muffins I baked this week, my latest kitchen purchase, a bathroom makeover, a decision matrix, a new artist to crush on, and how to stop freaking out about the climate crisis.

January 28, 2020

All About Push Button Light Switches

January 28, 2020/ Ashley

I’m a big fan of my light switches - just those simple dimple little things we use every day. And I get asked about them a lot, so I want to share a little about those brass, black, and pearl things you see on all of my walls. I’m here to tell you about my period-appropriate light switches!

January 16, 2020

We Cut Down a Big Tree - Why I'm Glad and Why I'm Sad

January 16, 2020/ Ashley

There are very few things I love more than mature trees. Like, maybe only sleep, eating, and TV watching rank higher. My husband probably ranks below mature trees, and I’m sure he’s okay with that. Trees are the best and I love them and want everyone to plant at least 5 trees per person, right now. But - I cut one down. I’m sad about the loss, but glad about the future. I’m a bag of mixed emotions.

January 13, 2020

We Moved Our Master Closet To The Guest Room

January 13, 2020/ Ashley

We did some rearranging of our closet the other day. It was so easy thanks to the particular system we have - which is on sale! I’m also sharing how we store our clothes, give you insight into our layout, update you on our slow renovation status, and simply let you snoop at our clothes. Let’s jump in, shall we?

Backyard Renovation Report Card: Four Years of Tree Growth (Wins) and Decomposed Granite (Losers)

Welcome 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.

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.

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.