Extreme Makeover Bathroom Edition: The Reveal!

I am SO EXCITED to share pictures of our newly remodeled bathroom with you today!  This project is FINALLY done with shower door being installed yesterday! (Remember, my blog post from March about this project?!)  Well, regardless of how long it took, we absolutely love our bathroom! 

Remember this bathroom?!

Now check this out!!

If you see anything you like, are curious where we found the idea or got the supplies, let me know and I'll get you the information!

Our vanity sits where the toilet and built in shelf used to sit (picture directly above.)  We completely re-did the layout of our bathroom which was a great decision!

Our cabinets are all custom made out of walnut - I love them!  We incorporated so much storage.  My cupboards aren't even full!

We have a local custom surfaces company that we worked with in town for our granite counter tops.  They do fantastic work!

To lighten up the room some, since we chose dark wood, I had glass inserts put into the doors.

Kind of funny to include a picture of our toilet but moving our toilet to the opposite corner of the room was a good move.  Now when you look into the bathroom you don't see the toilet.

Glass doors are definitely the way to go on a shower.  It seems so much bigger.  Apparently not many bathrooms have a combined tub and shower, but since this is our only bathroom (besides the half bath on the main floor) this was necessary.

I LOVE this shower inset that we included.  It saved space in the shower and added a little bit of dimension and interest!

Thanks for sticking with me on this project... I bet you were wondering if you were ever going to see after pictures!

What do you think?!

Living Room Update

Happy  Monday - I hope you all had a great weekend!  Mine was finally a low-key weekend that included supper and drinks with friends on Friday night and Saturday night, planting flowers and a Sunday afternoon nap - it was pretty great! :)

To kick off a Monday, here is a look at the updates I made to our living room.

Before

I would consider our living room just a little bit dull.  The only update I've made to the living room since I moved here in August was the curtains.  It just wasn't coming together as I had hoped, probably because I haven't spent much time on it. 

After

So here is the after.  It's not a drastic change, but it's enough to make a difference.  My favorite part is the curtain sheers.  They make the room feel so much larger and lighter.  My "rules" for making a few changes to the living room was that it had to be comfortable and livable. 

My update list included new pillows, curtains, rug and a couple accessories.

I found all of the pillows at Target (except the leaf one, that's from IKEA) - they have such a great selection and they added some extra color and comfort that I was looking for!

I mixed some old with new by adding these old boxes that my dad found on farm auctions awhile back.  All they needed was a little clean-up.  They double as great storage!

I stumbled across this vase at Marshalls.  It caught my eye and I couldn't resist getting it for only $10!  

The space is definitely coming along.  Hopefully we will be getting new furniture soon to fit the space a little bit better!  I'm hoping for a small sectional.  The living room isn't that big and it would be nice to add some seating.  Our current recliner is super comfortable but a little bit over-sized.

If you're curious where I found any of the items in the space - leave me a comment and I'll get back to you!

Have a great Monday! :) 

PS... I hope to have a before and after blog post of our bathroom remodel this week.  This has been a long time coming and I'm excited to share!

5 on Friday!

Here is another edition of 5 on Friday - a reminder to be inspired by the little things in life!

1} Take-Your-Girlfriend-To-Work Day

Springtime gets pretty busy when you live and breathe agriculture.  This past Saturday soybean planting started in full-swing so Adam had to work delivering soybean seed across his sales territory.  Since we like to hang out with each other (always a good thing in a relationship, right?!) and I could serve as extra help I spent the day delivering seed with him. I truly admire how hard he works and that he is so good at what he does.

2} "Me" Day

I celebrated my birthday this week - yes, I kind of get into birthdays! :)  I took the day off of work and did all of the things I wanted to do and none of the things I had to do.  It was a great way to spend the day and I highly recommend it.  The only thing that would have made it better was a day without wind so we could have gone golfing.  

3} Great Mail Week

I love to get mail - like real mail.  I think I've mentioned that in a previous 5 on Friday. It has been a good mail week receiving cards and packages.  It reminds me that I need to send more "real mail" to my friends and family.

4} The Power of a Thank You

I received two wonderful, thoughtful, personal thank you cards in the mail.  This is a lost art.  It is so much easier to send an email or a text these days - we remove the whole personal connection and people experience.  I have a set of thank you cards in my desk that I need to start using.

5} Interior Design Consult

Today is an exciting day for me.  One of my co-workers who follows my blog asked if we could get together to talk about her house and ideas for decorating it. This will be the first design-related meeting I've ever done but I love this stuff.  My dream job is to be an interior designer - I have a lot to learn and a long way to go, but this is a start!

I hope you have had a great week!  Feel free to share your highlights! :)

Tomorrow

Tomorrow is my birthday!  (I'll be at the end of my 20's! Yikes)  One of the birthday traditions I've started for myself is to take the day off from work and do whatever I want to do.  I wont check work email or answer work phone calls, I wont run errands, worry about laundry or any of the other things I should do.  The day will be mine so here are a few things that I am going to consider doing...

1. Sleep in (maybe)

2. Read a magazine (Real Simple or BHG) with a cup of coffee on the front porch

3. Plant flowers

4. Head to the gym (probably) or take 'Bam' for a walk

5. Spend some time with my blog and Design Your Dwelling Facebook page in order to better connect with my followers and welcome new ones

6. Play a round of golf with my guy

7. Work on some interior design ideas (I had my first person ask me for help with their home -I'm pretty excited)

8. Organize my Pinterest boards

9. Go somewhere for supper that we can eat outside (If it's warm out)

I'm curious... what are your birthday traditions?!

5 on Friday!

It's time for 5 on Friday!  Here 5 great things that happened in my life this week!  What are your 5?!

1} Weekend In Nebraska
Last weekend I headed to Nebraska to see my sister, Kayle, and her husband, Heath.  It was such a fun trip to get to hang out with them, see where they live and work and I was able to ride horse too which I haven't done in a long time!  My sister has their horses riding great and will hopefully start riding competitively this summer!

2} No Rain
Last week it rained most of the week so it kept the farmers out of the fields and me from any outdoor activities.  This week has been completely different and offered up some great weather here in west central Iowa!  I was able to get out for a walk with the dog on Wednesday night.  I took this picture while experimenting with Instagram. (I still need to find zoom! Ha!)  It is a picture of our farm site from the gravel road Bam and I walk on. 

  
3} Course Facilitator
One of the things I like most about working within a training and development group is facilitating classroom courses.  This week my co-worker invited me to co-facilitate our core sales training course.  I love helping people learn and enjoy what they are doing!

4} "Hoo" Wants One?!
Check out this cute little guy that I found at Target this week!  For some reason I wanted an Owl figurine and I found this one on sale in the garden department!

5} Patio is set!
All of the cement for our garage has been poured.  This includes the stampcrete that was set for a patio between the garage and house.  It looks Ahhh--mazing!  The pictures don't do it justice.

Feel free to write your own '5 on Friday' and share it back with a link to your post in the comments section!

Mother's Day Gift Ideas

Mother's Day is this weekend - YIKES!  Are you still trying to figure out what to get for your mom that is fun, funky, creative, sentimental or simply something she will love?!  Well, I've come up with a few gift ideas for Mother's Day to hopefully help you out if it comes down to the last minute.

This summer-y placemat and napkin set is from Target.  It is so bright and happy!  I think it also comes in shades of orange! Click here to get it.

Funky dessert plates and napkins are probably not something that mom is going to rush out and buy for herself (that's the beauty of gift-giving)!  So why not pick out something that is just a little bit different?!  I love these desert plates and double-sided napkins from Target.  Click here to get the plates and click here to get the napkins.

If you're mom is more the jewelry type I would suggest a statement piece like this watch from New York & Company.  I believe it comes in white, green, magenta and red too.  You can also find some cool pieces at from Lia Sophia - my favorite jewelry source!

Summer is just around the corner so what about getting her some hosting piece like this pitcher and blue tumblers!  There is no need for them to match, just make them fun outdoor pieces.  These are both from Target also.  (Can you tell I love to shop here?! But who doesn't!) Click here for the pitcher and click here for the tumblers.

Ok - so for those of you who are DIY-ers these next projects are for you!

Make and gift your own seasonings!  I think this is a clever idea for a lot of reasons and I can have a vision of them being beautifully packaged in mason jars with clever labels!

Check out Self Reliance by Jamie to get the recipes!

These DIY air fresheners are super cute and easy to make.  Check out this post from my blog last week!

If your mom likes wine - purchase a bottle from a local winery (if you have one nearby) and wrap it in a cloth napkin.  Pair it with a couple of classy wine glasses and encourage your mom to take a step back and relax.

There are my Mother's Day gift-giving ideas!  Hopefully you found them helpful!  

Mom - if you read this, your Mother's Day gift is shown in this post!  Can you guess which one it is?!

What is the best Mother's Day gift you've given - or received?!

Monday Morning Inspiration

Need a little inspiration today like I do?!  This quote is so simple but so true!

Via

Happy Monday!

5 on Friday

I missed 5 on Friday last week!  Work got in the way of my hobbies - don't you hate it when that happens?! (I this is a poor excuse)  Regardless, I am back to share 5 great things from the week!  Feel free to link your 5 on Friday in the comments section and/or grab my button to include in your 5 on Friday post!

1} Baby Kittens
Our cats are reproducing!  I can't say that this is a great thing but the kittens sure are cute.  We have two litters now (thankfully they both have homes) one of the litters still doesn't have their eyes open while the other litter of 6 kittens are all about playtime!  They are so darn cute, full of personality and LOVE attention from Adam and I!  I tried to snap a picture, but they just wont hold still long enough for me....

2} Minnesota FFA Past State Officer Reunion
Two Sunday's ago I ventured up to Minnesota to help judge an FFA contest and attend a past state FFA officer reunion.  It amazes me how quickly time passes - a short 10 years ago I was elected as the state FFA Vice President!  Below is a picture of the past state Vice Presidents that attended the reunion and my friend Jill,  who was on my state officer team.  I wish more of us could have been there, but that's how life goes.  If you are curious was FFA is, check out these websites: www.ffa.org and www.mnffa.org

Jill & I

Past Minnesota FFA Vice Presidents

3} A New Living Room Rug
I have been thinking of giving my living room a mini-facelift which includes new curtains, throw pillows, accessories and a rug.  Finding a rug has been hard because I don't want to spend $600+ on a rug, but those are the ones I seem to like the best.  Luckily I did find one at a furniture store in Des Moines.  More to come on my living room update...

4} Great Online Design Find
As I was exploring Pinterest, I found an awesome website called Olioboard, which is a FREE moodboard creator website.  I have always wanted to try to create design boards so this was a great find.  Maybe it will help me to continue to develop my design skills so one day my dream of being an interior designer will come true...

5} New Office Chair
Yes, I find joy in the little things. I had just begun using my new office/craft space in the basement and my chair broke.  It wouldn't stay at the height I wanted... instead it would slowly sink back down.  It was a bad deal.  Luckily I found a great new chair at office depot that was on sale.

What are some of the great things that happened to you this week?!  Please share!