House Tour: Bedroom Updates

Slowly I've been trying to update the blog with a post of each room in its current state.  I've done a living room update, a kitchen update and our son's room update and today its time for our master room update.  I think out of all the rooms in our house this is the one I'm itching to change the most.  But before I get into what I want to change I'll focus on what we have done so far.

I love the light and airy feeling in our bedroom, something we started working on from day one when we painted the paneling and installed this ikea chandelier.  Recently I changed out the curtains for a lighter option and I'm liking the change.  These were the curtains we used to have in our living room so it was a free option and gave me a better idea of what I wanted to do in this room.

When we first moved in I really wanted a yellow and gray bedroom.  Now that we have been here for a while, I'm ready for something different so these side tables/drawers are going to be painted soon.  I'm also currently on the hunt for a different paint color for the walls.  I still want something in the gray family but more on the greige side.  I think some small changes like that will really make a big difference - at least for me.

Another big project for us coming in this room is installing new flooring.  This is the last of the carpet in our house and it needs to go.  This space is also really needing some better storage solutions.  Its a small room and I'm really great with that but I need to figure out the most efficient way to use the space we have.  I love the idea of building some sort of storage unit along the wall.

This space started dark and dingy and now is much brighter and lighter - things that I really like about this room.  Something I have definitely learned is that as you go, your style preference will change.  This room is in that stage of trying to piece together the things that we really like.  Sometimes it takes living in a space for a while to really figure out what that is.  So changes to our room are coming soon.

Thanks for stopping by today!  

Home Tour: Kids Room Ideas (for boys)

I've been trying to update the blog with a more current home tour.  I've shared our living room and the kitchen and today its time for a full look at our sons room.  

I feel like I'm getting pretty close to having this space complete.  I still have a little list of things I would like to do - like paint the little bookcase by his bed and exchange out the door knobs (but don't we always have a long list of things to do in our home?)

We all love his room and we have loved having Silas help us along the way, like choosing his wall color and deciding wear he wanted to hang things.

A few things we made for his space is this little diy "couch" as Silas calls it and then also deciding to  recover it.  We also installed this little pallet for shelf.  Probably one of Silas' favorite things in his room.

I found this little alphabet decal at Target on clearance for just a couple of bucks, its been great for him as he has been excited about learning letters and letter sounds - plus it filled in the space on this open wall.

)

We added curtains (nothing fancy) but it helped make the room feel more finished, replaced his ceiling light (which I don't think I have a photo of, bad blogger), hung a few old baseball gloves, and found a little elephant for over his bed.

We also framed an animal map of NC because this kid loves to learn about animals, he takes it rather seriously.

Last week I shared our little striped door project - its such a fun addition to his space.  The star we got in Thailand from a church who hand makes them and sells them to raise money for aids care.  One of my favorite things we have.

I love all the little Silas touches in here.  Its definitely a space made for him.

Thanks for stopping by today!  Kids spaces are always fun to be in :).

Master Bedroom Plan

We have been busy working on our son's room recently, putting our extra time into finishing up that space - and I'm determined to not move on until I have everything complete (as much as it can be).  But, I can't help but think about the next room on my list to conquer- our master bedroom.  A girl can dream right?  Some of the elements of our room I like and will keep but some I'm ready to change.  I think after several years I'm ready for an even more neutral toned room with natural elements and we are desperately in need of some storage and organization.  So below is a quick shot of where the bedroom is right now (just also imagine in piles of books and clothes to better accurately create a glimpse of our room).

To take it to the next level we want to replace the flooring, paint a lighter gray/beige on the walls, paint the side drawers white,  add some industrial wall sconces, build an industrial shelving unit and add some accessories.  So actually quite a few things but nothing to crazy difficult.

I kind of like the idea of pairing the industrial elements with some more delicate ones.  I think this would be such a relaxing and peaceful place to be.  This is the motivation I need to get some of the last projects in Silas' room complete so I can dive into all of this!  

Wall mounted light
schoolhouseelectric.com

Safavieh flat woven rug
target.com

Light blocking curtain
target.com

Home decor
target.com

Home decor
target.com

World Market metal storage shelf
worldmarket.com

Worlds Away white bedside table
laylagrayce.com

Threshold Oblong Throw Pillow Coral Triangle
target.com

& Accent Pillow Beige
target.com

We have a busy week ahead with a big student ministry event coming and this crazy weather is throwing us for a loop!  Snow today and maybe again this week! What?!  Do you guys have any rooms you are dreaming of updating?  Do share!

Ikea Hack - Rast 3 Drawer Chest

As you know, we live in a small house and have limited space for storage - so every inch counts for us.  Our master bedroom is particularly small so we have made an effort to make it feel as large as possible, mainly by not adding lots of furniture.  Up until this point we have had our bed and a small antique dresser in our room and that's it.  We do have ample space on either side of the bed and have been wanting to add some sort of side table/storage option on either side, mainly for the added storage but also for some added decor and color.  We didn't want to spend much of course, so we began searching Craigslist and thrift stores for something that would work.  I'll be honest, it's hard to find a cheap solution, let alonne two cheap solutions that would work together.   Along comes Ikea.  I think this has become one of our favorite stores, have you noticed a trend?  They had lots of options but the smallest and cheapest was perfect for us.  So here's what we decided on:

This is the Rast 3 Drawer Chest from Ikea, it cost a mere $39.99 - which believe me was totally cheap, even compared to things I found on Craigslist.  The problem though, it's pretty ugly in it's raw state so we needed to vamp it up a bit.  I have been wanting to add more yellow accents to our gray and white beginnings so this project was the perfect chance.  The instructions tell you to assemble first before you paint or stain and that's what we did.  If you have never bought anything from Ikea you must know that this furniture comes in a lot of pieces and is packed tight.  Justin did say though that is was pretty easy to put together and he did it really fast. 

The instructions also say to sand before you do anything.  Hmmm, skipped that step but we still love the result.  I think the non-sanding left a textured look, which we like.  You can still see the wood grain texture which is kind of cool.  We added two coats of paint and that was that.  

As far as knobs go, we wanted to buy something new but couldn't find anything cheap enough that we liked right now so we will keep looking.  Instead, I spray painted the knobs with a silver paint in the meantime.  

We love the yellow color so much, it's not too bright and overwhelming but it's plenty bold enough to make a statement.  We used Olympic no VOC paint in a satin finish, color name - Belgian Waffle.  We also added these great table lamps (also purchased at Ikea).  I love how the pattern on the lamp ties in the fabric in our doorway.  

We love how this bedroom is coming together and we love the added storage we now have in our bedroom!

We still have things to add like some sort of artwork, we want to add shelving and maybe even a sitting chair - as long as it doesn't overwhelm.  But until then we are totally enjoying our little retreat called our bedroom.

The House Tour

I know so many of you are waiting in much anticipation for an official tour of our house so let's get to it.  These photos were all taken before we officially moved in, so nothing had been changed yet, yes we actually bought this house like this.  WARNING! - Ugly Paneling Ahead!!  Viewer discretion is advised.

Up First - Our Living/Family Room - Exciting I know, we do however love the fact that the family room is open to the kitchen, we love the open feel and it makes a small home feel much bigger than it is - plus for us, let's ride the bus.

Now, maybe the most retro part of the house - The Kitchen.  This baby is chock full of knotty pine goodness and mis-matched paneled walls complete with faux wood countertops and a faux granite backsplash - this room had us at hello.

 I never knew how controversial knotty pine cabinets are.  I had several people give me lectures on why not to paint knotty pine, not because it's difficult or the fear of the knots showing back through again but I have discovered there are actually people out there who love the look.  I even found this website (which is actually pretty cool) that pays homage to the old look of knotty pine.  Were these people able to sway my decision?  Stay tuned.

If you look closely you can see the cabinet over the stove is actually paneling instead of real wood - tricky

Moving on to the Master Bedroom -aka The Cave, who doesn't want to sleep in a room covered in floor to ceiling paneling?

Off of the Master Cave is our Laundry/Storage/Walk-In Closet/Half Bath, I don't think we have enough doors in this tiny space...

To the right of this space is where our closet sits

First words from Justin about this space - "This bathroom is disgusting!" - not a comment on cleanliness but the actual aesthetics.

Had to give you a close up of our groovy retro vinyl

We have two more bedrooms, the first will end up being some sort of guest room/office/playroom/craft room (let's call is multi-functional) and the second will be Silas' Room

And finally our luxurious Full Bathroom, it has a nice spa-like feel....sure - but it's not quite as throw-back retro as some of the other parts of the house and it is totally functional and meets it's purpose so we couldn't ask for anything more.

So there you have it, our little home.  We love it, the last three days have been wonderful here and we are so excited to continue working on improvements.