I have such love for my historic house, but I’ve shamefully been neglecting the exterior paint. The tired finish was peeling and the faded colors did no justice to the architectural beauty of my 1915 craftsman bungalow. It was time for a change - a transformation that would honor the home's history while infusing it with fresh energy.
Read MoreOur century-old house has been in need of a fresh paint job and the task of dealing with the layers of lead-based paint was admittedly intimidating. There are a few key steps to keep lead out of our waterways, soil, air, and homes when working outside. I’m here to share exactly what to do (and not do!) when prepping a house for a quality paint job while taking the greatest cautions with lead.
Read MoreI’ve heard of other blogger buds using fancy masking fluid to ease the painting job of painting windows and divided lite doors, but I never used it myself. Until Now. I learned some lessons and have some takeaways from the experience for ya. Here’s how it went.
Read MoreI found a lost table hiding in my attic! She’s a cute lil’ thing that needed some TLC and now has a prominent spot in my living room. What a doll, she is!
Read MoreThe dining room sold me on the house with the built-in buffet, the plate rail, the picture rail, the swinging door, and the room dividers. Swoon! But, I ended up just putting random tchotchkes behind the leaded glass, and filled the drawers with junk. It was nothing to write home about and I feel bad for neglecting it for so long. So, I gave it a quick weekend refresh!
Read MoreI shared a photo of me wearing my favorite overalls on Instagram Stories and got a flood of questions about them. So, here I am to tell you about what I like to wear when doing messy projects.
Read MoreI shared a couple of weeks ago that I was inspired to paint my dining room a super dark moody color. So, in an effort to write more popping-in-to-share-inspiration-and-thoughts-blog-posts I wanted to well, pop in to share inspiration and thoughts about giving my dining room a dark hue. I’ve compiled a bunch of inspiration images and mocked up the dark hue in Photoshop to give you a good look at the potential
Read MoreThank you all so much for the love of my One Room Challenge mural! Many of you are reaching out asking for updates, but I think I'm going to keep you in suspense until the reveal on November 16!
As you probably already know, to achieve the mural, I took a vintage etching and converted it into a paint-by-numbers-style image. So, I searched all over Etsy for vintage prints and paintings that you may enjoy in your home - on a smaller non-mural scale!
Click on your favorite image to add it to your personal collection!
If you're less into the grayscale etching look and you're after the colorful paint-by-numbers style, I give you these.
Come back on Thursday for more One Room Challenge updates!
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.
Margot is getting an upgraded room to make space for baby sister in the nursery.
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.
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.
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.
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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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.