The Bedroom Do-Over

Have you ever looked at one of your rooms and thought, “I hate you.” This was one of those rooms that I could never make happen. I disliked the bedroom from the moment we moved in.   But when you move into a home you find the most important rooms you work on are the ones others will see.  So, in a sense, you sacrifice you own happiness . No matter how many comforters I bought. I hated it. I hated the wallpaper I was too lazy to remove and the carpet that was so light in color you were afraid to walk on it.  I looked at David one day without words and his response, “let’s get to work”. Have I mentioned I love this man. And so we did.  The first on the agenda we stripping the walls ( the worst in the home so far and we have stripped 6) and ripping up the carpet and praying the floors were decent. 

We added an accent wall and got some great pieces that were refurbished. We sold our old furniture in a consignment shop which paid for the entire Reno! All in all it took about two weeks simply because we didn’t work on it every day. And David ended up designing and making the most amazing tv display ever! So the big question…was it worth the work? Oh yes.  
Paint Color: Benjamin Moore Silver Fox   Floors: Minwax Ebony                                  Chicken Feeders: Zulily

Fall Bridal Shower

Wedding Coordinators Yay or Nay?

Let’s be honest.  We have all dreamed about the perfect wedding.  From the venue, to the menu, to the centerpieces.  We have planned a day of perfection.  And then reality sets in.  The average cost of today’s wedding is around 26,000 dollars.  Yes you read that right, 2-6-0-0-0 dollars!  It has been added that some couples are capable of cutting that down to $10,000 not including a honeymoon.  Seriously, if you think of young people getting married, most are in their twenties.  They are in their first years of their career and have little time to save this kind of money for one day of their lives.  So they turn to their parents.   Parents are just hitting retirement, with little to no income coming into their lives.  And in reality most parents have spent what they had on their child’s college expenses.   So what do we do to cut the wedding costs?

I live in the Midwest, about two hours from any major city.  We are surrounded by cornfields, and not a lot else.   Our price tags for weddings are probably significantly lower that those who are planning in the suburban and urban areas.  We also pay the price for that with a short list of caterers and venues.

Around here, most young people do not use wedding planners/ coordinators.  They either do it on their own or with help from a family member.  This puts a lot of pressure on the bride to plan the perfect wedding for all those involved.  By the end they are so stressed from managing  every detail, that they forget the wedding was supposed to be about them.

There are three types of brides when it comes to their weddings: The first is the attention to every detail, micro-managing brides.  You know the ones, who just can’t let go of the control. This may sound like an awful title, but it is not meant to be.  These are organized women who have spreadsheets, thousands of photos, expect samples of every detail and are overly prepared. Again this is not a bad thing, sometimes I wish I had these traits in my personal life.   It is not that they don’t want to relinquish this control, but they are simply afraid.  They fear the minute they give their wedding to someone else, everything will fall apart.  I totally get that. It’s a trust thing for the most important day of your life thus far.

The second type the Turnover Bride. She  is the one that wants to plan it. She has a  photos of things she loves and is eager to meet with the florist, caterer, etc.  When she feels ready, she turns everything over to a planner/ coordinator.  As long as she sees that the coordinator/planner “sees” her vision, she is confident in trusting them to make her day run smoothly.  Many people are beginning to hire a day of coordinator, so that they can enjoy the wedding day without worry.  Venues are also beginning to offer this service as part of booking with them.  As a rule, always ask about this in your initial meeting.  It has become a life saver for many.  One more random thought (David has dubbed them “random thoughts by Carrieann”), you have to trust them.  The worst mistake a bride can make is trying to micro-manage the coordinator.  He or she totally have this, it’s what they do! Let them do their job and you won’t be disappointed.  The worst thing you can do is try and take back control from the coordinator. It becomes mass confusion of who is responsible for what and then things have the potential for not getting done with lack of communication.  Above all stick with the plan and never have a second thought!

The third bride, the ” Make My Wedding Rock” bride. As a decorator,  I love these ladies! They have complete faith that things will be awesome. They will probably tell the you what they like and have a couple pictures,  but other than that it is up to someone else. They have this great ability to let go of control because they have thoroughly researched before deciding on everyone they use for their weddings. They have read up, asked people who have used a service before, been to events this coordinator has executed.  They feel confident sitting down with the coordinator and giving them info or sometimes figuring out what they want with the coordinator and simply lets the wedding go. On the day of their wedding they are confident that every piece will magically fall into place and it does.

So which bride are you? The most important thing to think about is your confidence on making your wedding what you want it to be.  You can’t change who you are and you certainly should not change who you are for this awesome day!

With that being said, if you are a do-it yourself bride, I would make one suggestion.  Make sure your plate is completely clear the day of the wedding.  You do not want to be worrying about the caterer showing up while you are getting your makeup done. Instead, aweek or two before the wedding, catch up with all your vendors.  Double check.  Make a list with times, names, phone numbers, etc.  Then pick your favorite Aunt or Uncle or special friend and take them out to lunch.   You know they are itching to help.  You trust them.  Your mom and dad trust them.  So use them.  Sit down with them for as long as it takes for you to feel confident and turn that list over.  You have already done all the work, now hand them a mimosa,  and let them check things off your list on the wedding day.  Notice the add in of the Mimosa.  I know that if you asked me to help, I would be more apt to say yes with a mimosa in my hand…see where I am going with this…And guess what, they will say yes and feel completely honored with the task.  Your people  have totally  got this.

Whether you have your people or  you have hired  professionals,  they will make your day happen with out you there.  Enjoy your Day, Make it Count! Oh and you should have a mimosa too!  Next post….the decorators…

The Pinterest Wedding

Pinterest is awesome!  Plain and simple.  I spend my evenings before bed, scrolling finding the newest cute fall outfit ideas and ways to decorate for holidays.  I save recipes I will probably never make, and plan my 9 year old’s birthday party a year in advance. It is literally the best thing since sliced bread for people like me.

I don’t know if I have mentioned it yet, but I decorate weddings.  I used to have a side business with the BFF and we rocked it!  But when our kids started having sports lives and we started getting jammed with weddings, events, and sports it just wasn’t working for us. So we took a break from the business.  Our biggest issue was we couldn’t say no to anyone.

The past few years, I have started taking on a few weddings and events a year.  To be honest I missed it.  I r
eally enjoy the creativity that the events lent me.  My specialty is the latest craze, the shabby chic, barn wedding. My home is and has been for the past 20 years has always been decorated in the farmhouse style.  Let’s just say I decorated like that before it became “cool.”  Now I am competing with people buying things up in the sudden craze of decorating that used to be readily available to me.  But I digress..

It seems like everyone is pinning their perfect wedding.  From lace to mason jars.  Everyone wants the dream Pinterest wedding.  But at what cost? The next few blog posts will be devoted to discuss planning and some simple ideas for making your wedding more  meaningful and less stressful for everyone.

Wedding pins and boards on Pinterest are awesome!   Many of the ideas are super do-able.  Then there are those that just plain aren’t.  And some of those dream weddings on there, that you want so badly you can taste it, never mention the price tag attached.  So there are some things to think about before turning your Pinterest wedding into your dream wedding that will make it realistic and not a bank account breaker.

The first is cost of time.  Do you have the time it takes to invest in making table centerpieces, handmade gifts for your guests, or cutting out 500 pennants to hang from the ceiling of your barn?  I think the important thing here is separating reality from the dream.  As long as you are ready to devote the time into making/baking/taking the time to do these small touches, then I say go for it!   I love all the cute ideas I see on there, especially those sweet little gifts for the guests. Those little canned goods in apple baskets for their guests at the end of the evening.  Holy cuteness!  In my opinion that rocks compared to the beer coozie (although I love beer, sooo) I think the goal here is to gather ideas from Pinterest, evaluate,  and settle on one or two that you feel will personalize your event.

Collecting your Pinterest ideas is the first step, the second..print them. It helps. Trust me. You can see all the photos you have collected side by side. Normally, there is a pattern to them as you start looking through them.  You will find a repetition of ideas that you loved…more than once.  Go with those.  Once you have figured those things out, you need to look at the financial aspect.  Weddings are expensive. It is just a fact.  Now you have the ability to find things that work and that will not break the bank financially.  No one wants to go into marriage already hurting because you spent more than you should on your wedding day.  There are ways to make this day perfect with out making the next year painful.  Plan before you start.  Don’t let anything surprise you in regard to cost.  If you plan on creating gifts, centerpieces, floral arrangement begin by looking for sales, and online at craft shops. if you are rustic, attend auctions or sales and find things you can re-purpose.  You may even find some really cute items on Etsy. These may end up less expensive than making them yourself. If you decide on making your things for your special day, than here’s a no-brainer.   Share a day with your mom, sisters, and best friends and let them help you.  Too many brides think they have to do these things alone to do them right and end up completely stressed out.  And I say delegate.  Have a sample, have things ready, and simply create an assembly line.  Free labor rocks!

The Financial Cost of the Pinterest Wedding can be overwhelming.  Many brides do weddings on their own and that is awesome! I know when I was young, we happily decorated and put together my first wedding.  I don’t think I realized at the time how much work that was for my parents.  Looking back it was overwhelming.  They were running between decorating the reception to getting to the church on time. And then there was the clean up, tear down and hauling home.  I look back now and feel horrible for not allowing my parents to enjoy that day with me.  Too many responsibilities.  And weddings, back in that day, were a lot more simple than the new style of weddings.  Add on the amount of time and money to make all these Pinterest dreams come true and… just holy wow!  Now that I am older and a little wiser, I would recommend to any bride to look for a decorator.  The amount of money you will invest in 45 table runners and 20 trillion yards of tulle and burlap, as well as glass and centerpieces you will never use again seems almost ridiculous.  And you think, well, I can sell them afterwards.  Good luck with that. You want to make back what you invested and people who are buying used are looking for used prices. Back to the hiring a decorator.  You can probably find someone who already has those things and even better they will set it up and tear it down all without your dad climbing a ladder an hour before the wedding to get up the last set of lights. I’ll talk more about picking a decorator and what to look for tomorrow. For now, I will leave you with this.  Your wedding will be perfect because it is yours. The key is to allow everyone to enjoy this special occasion with you.

 

 

Road Trip

This weekend we traveled 2 hours away to hit a flea market. South of Chicago in Indiana. One of my friends had mentioned driving past it and said it was so me, I just had to go.  So with nothing on our plate, we took off. But first, coffee.

It was a kid free weekend and those days are pretty special for us. We try to go and do what we can without the sound of boys in the backseat informing us that they are hungry ( for the record boys are always hungry) or that some battery percentage is getting low.  Nope not that day.  We turned on Pandora and hit the road. I like that time that we get to visit and laugh.  I like that we can talk about anything and we seem so removed from the rest of the world.

I think we caught the flea market on a bad weekend. I am not sure if the vendors were out and about at various fall festivals, or if they simply decided not to set up.  All in all it was a complete bust.  We looked and we didn’t buy a single thing.  I am not sure if it was because we were so close to Chicago that the prices seemed high, but it wasn’t what we were accustomed to spending wise.  There were a few pieces of milk glass I would have bought, but were overpriced.  Flea market lady was not interested in making a deal.   She informed me that $24 was an excellent price and that it was worth $80. For her maybe, but for me, the girl who picks it up pieces most of the time under $6 dollars, I found that a little steep. She was slightly offended that I was not up for the purchase and  as we were walking away, she hollered that I wouldn’t find any that low around there.  Side note: Yesterday, I bought two milk glass pieces for $1.99 a piece (one being the same piece she wanted to sell to me at $24) So, you were right flea market lady, I didn’t find a piece any cheaper….that day.

The rest of the day we ended up just driving.  We were close to Lake Michigan and thought it was a pretty day, so why not.  We ended up on a beach in Michigan City.  It was a pretty day and we watched children play in the sand and run up and down the dune paths. This beach was not first choice of a beach but none the less a beach. So we did what we do best (OK second best, normally we bake in the sun but it was a little too chilly for that) we found ourselves a beach bar.  Again it wasn’t Harry T’s in Destin, but it had beer and beer is always good when one is near the beach. Who knew when we woke up that morning that we would find ourselves there.  But we did, and it was great!

There are days when you can plan and things don’t go the way you expect them to go. This was one of those.  But you have choices in times like this.  You can be disappointed in the moment or you can make that moment count.  This turned out not only to count , but made one of those life long memories in the process. It was a good day.

Shiny Brite

 So I have a slight addiction to Shiny Brite.  This little jewel was given to me as a “Happy Beginning of the School Year” gift by another teacher who also has a thing for vintage.  She is lucky enough to have her own little shop just down my street called the  Jenny Wren. She said she found it at Goodwill and in the box!  I am not sure where my fascination and absolute adoration for Shiny Brite came from and I suppose it doesn’t really matter, does it!

Drying Hydrangeas

I have a bridal shower to decorate soon and all I can think about is a mix of old wood, white pumpkins, crochet doilies, and dried hydrangeas. So in order to make this happen, I am going to try my hand at drying hydrangeas.  I looked online at a lot of different articles and found a basic tutorial on HGTV’s from Garden to Table.   I love the fact that I can enjoy them as I dry them out! So they are now happily separated into small bunches in clear glass containers put way up high, as far away from the cat’s reach as I could get.   Happy drying! http://www.hgtv.com/outdoors/gardens/garden-to-table/how-to-dry-hydrangeas

Getting my Fall On

 I decided that today was the day that we would drag my four huge crates of fall decor from the attic. It’s football Sunday, so while he is busy with that I can try and get a few things put out and finish up this week. I don’t know about you, but there is something about decorating for the holidays or seasons. It makes my house feel fresh and it just makes me happy! So for all of you out there, I hope you get your fall on and have a great week!

Bathroom Reno

Our home is a 1910 traditional. Two stories with a full floored attic and a cellar basement, complete with the old canning cupboards. There are so many things I love about this house.  The beautiful woodwork, two staircases, and the fabulous pocket doors.  I could go on and on.  A lot of the house had been tastefully updated prior to purchase 10 years ago. All we have really done are more cosmetic changes to suit our tastes (including removing A LOT of wallpaper).  One of the few things that had not been updated was the upstairs bathroom.  When  you hear the words bathroom renovation, most people will take off running.  Bathrooms, especially in older homes, become money pits.  Once you open up the walls, you never know what you will find.  And plumbing, well, we don’t even want to go there.

But one day I broached the subject gently.  And surprisingly enough, the big guy didn’t even hesitate to say OK.  I believe a major factor was that he was super tired of having to lean down to get water in the shower.  Whomever had added the shower years ago had put it in for very short people.  Now for me at 5’4” it was perfect, for the 6’2” boy, it was not great.

We started with the demo the following week.  The walls were covered in a 40’s-50’s gray square tile and the floor was covered in layers of linoleum.  We bought a handy tool at Harbor Freight that just popped the tiles right off but the floor was a bit of a hassle. Uncovering the tub, we found we had to replace some areas of floor that had suffered some rot from leaks over the years. Knowing that we were going to be without a bathroom, we decided to work really hard to get the bathtub in first and foremost.

Our bathroom has an entrance to the hallway and close to the back staircase as well as an entrance to a bedroom.  We can only assume that the room was originally used as the nanny/maid quarters and later turned into the indoor bathroom.

It is good to say that David and I work remarkably well together, even in close quarters.  He’s the builder and I am the finisher.  Side note we have this cat named Jackson who adopted us a few years ago.  The poor boy is allergic to 18+ allergens and takes daily meds and is completely death.  He is David’s best bud.  And when David is running any form of a power tool, Jack is right there on the sidelines.

We seem to  have a remarkable way of finding sales on the things we like.  Menards is our closest go to for most things and we found our ceramic tile for the shower and flooring. As for the wall we were both way over the idea of either sanding all that crap off or tearing out the plaster and drywall so we opted for carsiding.  It gave a farmhouse feel and also helped to hide the fact that our poor 100+ year old house is not square anymore. We used our go to for our painting needs, Benjamin Moore and the siding covered beautifully in one coat with only a little touch up here and there. Our bathroom is not big by any means, so it was really important for us to try to select items and colors that would make the space seem larger.

I think one of my favorite parts about the bathroom is I feel like I have gone to a fancy hotel or spa each time I walk into it.  It has a great modern farmhouse feel. I absolutely love the wood ceiling that he put in the tub and the copper tubing shower curtain rod he built! (did i mention I love this guy and his handiness)  How many different ways can you say gorgeous! So I think in a nutshell we rocked our bathroom and made it for us…and added bonus,  we didn’t kill each other in the process!

           

 

Westinghouse Electric

One of my most favorite things to do is to go junking.  It’s not an every weekend thing. And I am certainly not one of those “hoarder” junkers.  I am more the type that picks up things that strike my fancy.  Things I would put in my own house.  Same thing when we build things.  We build what we would use.  Someday I would love to have a little shop, but that’s another story.  And I am rambling….

David and I go marketing or junking together most of the time. (and then there are those times where he will divert my eyes in a different direction if he sees something laying alongside the road I might want..he’s sneaky like that).

The day we found our Westinghouse heat lamp, we weren’t really looking for anything (sometimes those are the best days)  We walked around the corner of a little shop and there it was, staring us in the face.  Now I know when David’s got an interest in something.  He spends time examining it.  And that day was not exception.  He was examining. Rather thoroughly.  It was a dirty thing.  It was so dirty you couldn’t read the metal tag on it and the rust was thick on the bent wire frame. It looked like a fire waiting happen.   I looked at him and I knew it was going home with us.

We got it home and started cleaning on it.  I cleaned. He researched.  We found out after uncovering the metal Westinghouse tag along with its patent number, that it was indeed an old heat lamp. After ungunking it, it was already showing potential of something completely great. After cleaning it, we put a little Minwax Paste Finishing Wax on it for good measure.

Now neither one of us had the guts to plug it in.  So we decided to recreate it.  We had purchased a black cord and lamp kit from IKEA a few months ago and had not used it, so this was perfect. We knocked out the old core and put our new light kit in it.  I had an extra Edison bulb lying around (who doesn’t) and we plugged it in…..ummmm, awesome!  Best $10 we had spent in a while!