Monday, April 30, 2018

MAKING A HOUSE A HOME WITH MINTED ART

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It’s hard to believe we’ve been in our new home for almost a year now and so many of our walls still need something hanging on them.  When we were building, I looked through Minted’s art selection dreaming of the days when the house would be done and we could decorate each room.  Almost a year later, we’re ready to finish decorating our house and I am more than ready to make our house a home using art from Minted.

I love that I can shop for pieces for every room in our home in one place.  From the kids bathroom to our living room, Minted Art has something for everyone and every room in the house.  And believe me, we need something for (almost) every room in the house!

I absolutely LOVE this (affiliate link)  parrot and really want to find a place for him in our house.  I think he would be a fun addition to the kids bathroom.

Hello Cocky! Art Print

Our breakfast nook has a large window that looks out into the back yard.  I want to put a fiddle fig tree in the corner on one side and how fun is (affiliate link) this picture for the other?  Literally perfect for the place we eat all of our meals.

Zuma Beach Malibu No. 7 Art Print

Our main floor bathroom has been begging for some color and personality since we moved in.  I’ve always envisioned something simple like (affiliate links) this or this in the bathroom.

Palm Lean Domino Non-custom Art Print

Balboa Park Art Print

However, I have really fallen in love with (affiliate link) this which ties in the blues from our living room.

Verdant Ocean Art Print

If you haven’t shopped Minted Art, you should really check it out.  I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

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Monday, February 5, 2018

BACKYARD DREAMIN’

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We’ve had a dirt backyard since we moved into our home in May.  Anyone with small kids knows that’s not an ideal situation to have for long and we are more than ready to have a usable yard.  Our new yard is small but we hope to be able to get everything we’re looking for and have been backyard dreamin’ for quite awhile.

Our home has a good sized covered patio perfect for a table and plenty of chairs for meals outside.  In our actual yard, we plan to put in a pool and grill and the rest is still up in the air.  We’ve been busy pinning backyards we like (you can follow along here) so we have some ideas when we talk with landscapers to come up with the backyard we’ve been dreaming about.

I’m excited to finally have a space to eat outside.  Eating lunch or dinner and playing in the pool outside with the kids are some of my favorite memories from previous summers.  They loved it when we brought food down to the pool and ate and swam but it wasn’t the most convenient thing to do at our old condo.  I’m so excited to do this in our new house and cannot wait to pick up some outdoor entertaining essentials.   I’ve had my eye on Crate and Barrel’s galvanized outdoor trays and acrylic dishes for a couple of years and can’t wait to have a use for them!  Dreaming of our new backyard has me almost (not quite since Arizona summers are LONG and HOT) missing summer.backyard entertaining

melamine dishes | water jug | three tier stand | tray | flatware caddy

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Thursday, August 17, 2017

HOME OFFICE PLANS

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In our new house we have a home office space which is really nice since I work from home everyday.  We sold our office furniture when Lexi was born and had a built in desk in our condo so we will be starting from scratch in the office.  I really want the office to look and feel like the rest of the house.  Like pretty much every other room, I’ve gone back and forth on design plans but thought I would share what I am thinking for the office right now.
Home Officeall images from Pottery Barn

Nick is quick to remind me that the office is not my space and that he would like a work area too.  I love these desks and would put them together to have one long surface.  Doing this leaves enough room in the space for a chair or small table and chairs for the kids.

The floors are plank tile and the walls are currently white.  In keeping with the gray, tan, black accent feel of the main level of the home, I love these gray desks.  I’m undecided on chairs and we also need a light fixture in this room.

Above the desk, I love the idea of a framed chalkboard for quick notes and a pin board to keep track of birthday party invitations, school calendar and kids art work.  On the opposite wall, possibly over a table and chairs for the kids, I think a large gallery wall would be the perfect place to display some of our favorite pictures of the kids.  Finally, a few fun and functional accessories to complete the space.

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Tuesday, February 21, 2017

DYLAN’S BIG BOY ROOM PLANS

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I think I’ve said this before but getting the kids rooms situated is high on my list of priorities when we move into our new house.  They’ve been so good about moving, putting their things in storage and the general uprooting that happens when you move twice in twelve months.  Today I thought I’d share what I’m thinking of for Dylan’s new room.  He needs new bedding and decor so this is the perfect time to freshen up his room and make it more of a place for the boy that he is rather than the baby we brought home from the hospital.  Someone pass the tissues.

Growing up we didn’t have overly themed bedrooms but had “kid” sheets. For awhile my brother and I both had California Raisin sheets – only in the eighties. ha!  I tend to favor the same style of rooms for our kids.  Luckily for me, Pottery Barn Kids has bedding the kids and I both love and it’s super easy to change out the sheets without making over the whole room when their tastes change.Boy Room Plansduvet | light | quilt | sheets | pillow

For Dylan’s new room I’m leaning toward shades of navy, grey, white and pops of red.  For his bedding I love the plaid duvet cover and shams, navy and grey quilt, the cutest truck sheets and a throw pillow for some texture.  Dylan saw me looking at lighting and really wants the ‘blue one’ so that’s probably what we will get.  I’m leaning toward a light grey for the walls which will look really nice with his dark brown furniture.

I initially wanted to put a license plate map of the USA above his dresser but I’m having a hard time finding one with good reviews; if you know of one, let me know.  With that being said, I am not sure what we will hang on his walls just yet.  If there’s room next to his bed, I think a couple of these shelves would be nice to add to hold some books to read before bed.

The overall feel of the room fits Dylan now and can grow with him for a number of years, which is a win in my book.  There you have it, what I’m thinking of right now for Dylan’s big boy room.  It will be interesting to see what stays and what changes in the coming months.

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Monday, February 6, 2017

HOUSE PROGRESS UPDATE

Yesterday we stopped by the new house to check on the progress and I thought I’d post a quick update.  It’s looking more and more like a home and we are getting excited!
house updateThey’ve painted the exterior, put most of the tile on the roof and our front door has been installed.  Inside, they’ve installed baseboards and railings upstairs, hung hardware for the interior doors, installed closet shelves and painted.  I’m so in love with all of the white walls.  Eventually we will probably paint them a light gray (it will look better with the kitchen cabinets) but the white is such a nice change from the builders beige we had in our condo.
house update
Dylan was so excited for the pantry in the kitchen. He’s never seen an actual pantry so it’s a pretty big deal for him. Truth be told, I am pretty excited about the pantry too!  I don’t think I’ve ever been more excited to organize than I am now.

The work on our house tends to be a few days to a week behind the neighbors house and they have kitchen cabinets.  I can’t wait to check back next weekend to see if our kitchen cabinets are in.

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