Home Renovation: My decorating wish list

Sort of... we are a few weeks out from me actually be able to decorate but it's not to early to start putting my wish list together (and ordering a few items of course)!

Since I explained to you how I sold all of our things, it's only natural that I show you what sorts of things I would like to fill our home back up with! :)  My vision for each room is starting to take shape, one item at a time.  Here are a few things I have my eye on right now.  I really want to fill our home with warmth, color, comfort, and maybe a little bit of the unexpected- like something shiny or the stag print!

1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9 / 10 / 11 / 12 / 13

If you'd like to see more items I'd love to have in my house, check out my Home Renovation 2014 Pinterest Board.

Oddly enough, I'm a little stressed about decorating my own house.  So often I quickly have a vision for other homes I decorate through my e-design business but struggle with me own. I'm trying to take it easy and remember that I don't have to have it done all at once, it can happen over time! :)

5 tips for selling things online

If our renovation was to done tomorrow and we could move back in, this is basically what we would have for stuff.  Why you  might ask?! It's because I have successfully sold nearly all of our furniture, appliances, and some household items online. I actually sold ALL of my living room furniture in 15 minutes. Yay for making way for new things!!

My husband's friends have actually called with concern that he might be for sale next (not happening).

All of the items I've posted for sale, with the exception of my Pottery Barn rug which sold on Craigs List, were sold through a Facebook group called For Sale or Swap in West Central Iowa.  If you aren't part of a Facebook group like this, definitely join one.  I'm pretty confident you will be able to find one in your area.  What I like about this Facebook group it is that people are logged into Facebook nearly all day or checking their Facebook account from their phone continually.

Since I've definitely had some success with online selling, here my top 5 tips for selling your things online.

1| Take good pictures.
A cell phone picture doesn't always cut it.  This is especially true for big-ticket items like furniture.  Take pictures of the items you want to sell in good lighting and from the best angle possible. People like to see the whole item before they are willing to make an offer.  If the site only allows you one picture, offer to send more through email or a personal message.

2| Write a good description.
Stick to "what it is and what it does."  This includes the following: item size, age, condition, and if your home is smoke free and pet free (SF/PF).  Don't include descriptive words like "beautiful" or "gorgeous"  to describe your lamp or your couch.  I am always disappointed when I open up the posting to view it  because its generally not beautiful or gorgeous. I guess the seller did get me to look... Remember, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. :)

3| Price it right.
Price your items to sell, but price them fairly. When posting online, people are looking for a good buy. Know what your bottom dollar is before you post the item for sale in case people would like to negotiate with you and don't go below that price.  Unless you absolutely need to get rid of it...

4| Manage offers.
Managing offers is somewhat stressful.  If you are selling a hot item like appliances or furniture be ready to manage a lot of offers in a short amount of time.  On Facebook some people will post "interested" in the comments.  That does not mean sold. I only respond to people who say "I'll take it" or those that make me an offer. Some people like you to hold onto your item until they talk to their significant other or friend. I don't hold my items.  Generally, whoever offers me my asking price first get the item!

5| Know the best time to post.
The best times to post your items for sale are Friday or Saturday mornings.  People are ready to have a distraction from work and are more willing to pick up an item over the week.

If your item doesn't sell, it's ok.  Just re-post it a few days or weeks later.

Top Items People Search For Online:
Appliances
Some electronics - iPhones, iPads, laptops
Baby stuff
Furniture
Light fixtures
Rugs

I hope you find these tips helpful! Good luck with your selling!!

High 5 For Friday

Happy Friday!  Generally I like to express how ready I am for the weekend but I'm not going to lie, spending a weekend in our un-finished home is less than awesome.  Fortunately, my husband reminds me to make the most of it and there will soon be an end in sight.  Glad I have him. :)

On to High Five For Friday!

One| First and foremost thank YOU all so much for the congratulations you left us in comments on Facebook and on my blog post.  We are excited to be parents!  You all are awesome - don't forget it.  And, since you showed so much interest, I'll do my best to step up my game on sharing maternity and baby blog posts. 

Two| Progress.  I remind myself that a little progress on the house is completely worthwhile.  This week we got new windows in what will be our kitchen area.  We actually increased the size of one of the windows and it was completely worth it!

Three| I have a big sweet tooth, it comes from my dad.  I found this recipe for half and half cookies.  They turned out awesome!

Four| I've had a lot of fun lately searching for ideas for to decorate the house.  I've been capturing my ideas on my Home Renovation 2014 pinterest board.

Five| We had two awesome days of warm weather here in Iowa this week (followed by a snowstorm today, but that's beside the fact). It was a perfect taste of spring.  I can't wait for more warm weather. 

I hope you all had a fantastic week! Thanks for stopping by!

The reason behind the renovation

Besides the fact that our kitchen was poorly constructed and our house was cold.  And, even though we knew we wanted to renovate the first floor someday, there is an even bigger reason.  Are you ready for this?!

Nope.  I did not swallow a watermelon seed.  We are having a baby!! Wild huh?!  What's even crazier is that we are halfway there!  Our baby will arrive at the beginning of July - somewhere around July 7!

We decided a renovation was just easier while it was the two of us and figured it probably wasn't a fab idea to have a baby while living in a home full of dust and loud noises for a couple of months.  So, here we are, in the midst of a home renovation. :)

How am I feeling you might ask?! Pretty darn good actually.  In fact, I actually need to learn to chill out, take a break, and ask for help once in awhile.  While I don't really have any cravings, or food aversions, I do miss having a few drinks with my husband and friends. I'm still wearing my regular clothes with a few maternity things, like these pants from GAP, mixed in. I'm also still heading to the gym about 4 times/week.  I'm doing less weight lifting and more cardio.

Our world will definitely change, and I have a lot to learn but we are pretty darn excited! (and maybe I'm a little nervous. That's ok, right?!) 

I'm not sure that I'll transition into doing a lot of baby and pregnancy-related blog posts but as I learn things that I feel are worth sharing or find things that I can't help but love I'll pass them along to you all.  I'll for sure be sharing a decorating vision (or two) for our babies room!

Oh yeah... we aren't finding out if it's a boy or girl either.  We decided to be surprised because there are far too few surprises in life anymore and I'm sure there will come a point in the delivery room where I'll need a little bit of extra motivation.

Cheers!

High 5 For Friday + A Valentine For You!

One. I re-discovered lunchables this week, they are pretty good but definitely come in child-size portions.

Two. Our house is painted! I love the color I chose - Pensive Sky by Behr.  (Now we play the waiting game until our cabinets get done.)

Three. I was asked by a friend and co-worker to make some thank you cards for her.  I love doing this sort of stuff!  Read her post about the cards I made here. You can find some of my cards in my etsy shop. 

Four. We officially have four calves on the ground.  They are pretty cute and full of energy!

Five. Adam took me to the Ralston cafe for lunch this week.  It is literally a 1 1/2 miles from our house and I've never been there before in the nearly 3 years I've lived here. Its wonderful!

And since it's Valentine's Day I have a little valentine for you....

Visit my E-design services page for more information!

Enjoy your day celebrating love!

Tile Decisions

Our home renovation is moving along quite smoothly.  In fact, my last decision (that I'm aware of) is what tile to go with for our backsplash.  I've narrowed down my choices to two options from The Tile Shop.  My two options are shown with the quartz counter top we decided on.

Option 1: Hampton Carrara Smooth Rectified Tile

Option 2: Hampton Carrara Cardine Tile

Our kitchen is a small U-shaped kitchen (we didn't add on) so to help the space look larger we chose a light-colored counter top surface and are going to compliment it with a very light colored backsplash.  The cabinets will be a dark walnut (white is out of the question for us since we live on a farm) and the flooring will be a wood laminate.  I like the classic look of these tile options because I want something that will look nice and still somewhat "modern" down the road. 

I'm stuck - I like both of these backsplash options!  Ahhhh!! What do you think?  I would love to get your opinion so please leave a comment below letting me know what you would choose!

DIY Jewelry Dish

It's been awhile since you've seen a DIY project from me so I'm excited to have one to share - especially for Valentine's Day!

I all of a sudden found a little inspiration while I was in Target last week!  I decided two combine two of the things I love - giving gifts and jewelry dishes and  Ta-da! A DIY jewelry holder!!  Little bowls are perfect for the bathroom, kitchen, your nightstand, dresser or nearly anywhere you take off your jewelry.

Here is the super simple how-to:

Step One| Gather Your Supplies

All you need is a dip bowl from Target (found in the aisle with the white dishes) and Sharpie markers.

Step Two| Create Your Design

My designs are definitely imperfect but that's on one of the things I love about handmade things!

Step Three| Bake Them

Put these dishes in your oven at 350F for 30 minutes. Let them cool when you remove them from the oven.

Step Four| Gift Them

I filled the jewelry dishes I made with some Dove chocolates and will gift them to some special peeps in my life as a little Valentine's Day gift! :)

Even though Valentine's Day is kind of a 'Hallmark holiday" it's still fun to give gifts and let people know how much you love and appreciate them!

Stay tuned for a Valentine's Day gift from me on Friday... :)

The worst kitchen in the world... besides not having one

Are you ready for this?  These before pictures of our kitchen may shock you.

Don't mind the packing mess... however it didn't look that much better when it was all picked up. This kitchen was an addition that was put on our house in (probably) the 60's or 70's.  Where the carpet meets the linoleum is where the original house ended.  The construction was poor on this kitchen addition... the floor slanted, there was minimal insulation (thus the reason I had to thaw a beef roast in my living room) and the ceiling rafters were not fastened down.  Oh yeah and we sorta had a mouse problem.  

Here is our game plan...

• Tear out everything to the studs (actually to the dirt floor underneath the kitchen)
• Refasten and level floor boards
• Add a new floor
• Change out windows
• Remove header
• Update waterlines
• Add spray foam insulation!
• New countertops and tile backsplash
• New custom cabinets
• New appliances
• New wood laminate flooring
• Adjust lighting

Here is the other side of our kitchen.

Don't judge. The wallpaper was not our decision.  And who, by the way, puts a bathroom in the center of the house?! It's super awesome to have guests over and everyone can hear them pee...

To do list continued...

• Remove the whole bathroom to to create an open floor plan
• Remove plumbing to the bathroom
• Replace the north-facing window with a larger window
• Extend the countertop under the window (ending where the current bathroom wall connects) to create a breakfast bar
• New paint

Here is how the kitchen area currently looks.

It looks better already, doesn't it?

Renovation Game Plan - Guest Bedroom Decor Plan

It's about that time that I start to think about how I want to decorate our renovated home - as if I haven't thought about it already, right?! However, it's putting the vision into play that is sometimes the challenge - like finding the exact item to create the feel you want the space to have.

Oddly enough, the one room I have a clear vision for it our new main floor guest bedroom.  I showed you what was all being done to the new guest room from a construction perspective, here is an idea of how the completed room to look.

  Most of the items I already own but there are a few I need to get including the light fixture (Lowes) and the sheets (West Elm).  The 'Goodnight' wall hanging will be a DIY project so stay tuned. 

For some crazy reason, I want a dark room in the house.  My husband is against it but he'll come around! :)  The room sits on the south side of our house so that sun shines in nearly all day long which will brighten up the space - I'm also going to compliment the space with white bedding, white/gray curtains, white light fixture and some white decor - like the 'goodnight' wall hanging.

If it doesn't work... I can always repaint!