Get the Look

 

We all know that Pottery Barn is a pretty popular store to shop and has a look that many people want try to have in their home. And I get it, their pieces are classic, timeless, and beautiful. However, it also comes as no surprise that their items are very costly- so most of us mimic the Pottery Barn look by getting pieces that look similar without the big price tag.

Well, now they have apparently come out with a new line called "The Collected Home." The price tag is still high but the pieces are interesting and not what you would typically think when you think Pottery Barn!

They have a variety of items to choose from in their bath collection and home furnishings decor as well. 

 

They even have a "collected look" lighting section with some unique pieces.

 

  I really LOVE this picture! The dark walls, wood tones, and gold touches- it's stunning!

 To be honest, these pieces don't even look like your typical Pottery Barn items...and I'm sure that was intentional. Don't you think a few of their pieces look like something you could get from Target or IKEA? (and for a lot less)?

Again, I love Pottery Barn, but the prices are so high that we don't actually own anything from them- but we do have some things that "look" like came from a Pottery Barn store (at least I think so). :)
Now that they have this new look in stores, and the fact that you can create a similar look at home, it makes me wonder if they are going in a different direction as a store. Although, I'm sure they will always sell their signature pieces!

Anyways, do you own any Pottery Barn items or are you the kind of person (like me) who just likes having the "Pottery Barn look" in your home without the big price tag (because it is possible to get a similar look for less!).

    

Now and Then

The title of today's post is "Now and Then"...and no, I'm not talking about the movie from 1994 (although that was a pretty good movie!) Today's post is just a quick look-back at some of the before photos of our home and the after photos of what our home looks like today.
It is not uncommon for decorating blogs to share before and after photos of different rooms in a home. But what I have noticed, and sometimes it bugs me a little, is the before photo is taken from a completely different angle than the after photo...so it can be hard to tell what the overall transformation of a room was. I did my best to take pictures of the same angle in the "after" so you can get a better sense of the changes some of these rooms went through over time.

So here we go!!
In my last post, which you can read about here, I started with a photo of the family room. Here is that photo:


Here is the family room today:

What we did:
*Replaced the old green carpet for a new neutral one
*Painted trim and walls (upper is BM Gray Owl and lower is SW Alabaster
*Recovered and added a valance over the double doors
*Painted ceiling fan white to give it a classic look
*Arranged furniture in a way to maximize seating and create better flow

Then I showed an older photo of the kitchen next:

Lots of orange wood tone, green counters, and yellow appliances

And here is that space today:

What we did:
*Painted cabinets BM Sea Haze
*Painted walls BM Gray Owl and trim SW Alabaster
*Painted counter tops and kitchen island 
*Painted fridge with chalkboard paint (hey, it's better than the yellow!)
*Added a thrift store round table and chairs
*Replaced ceiling fan over island with a brushed nickel light fixture
*Added a thrift store light over kitchen eating area


Off of the kitchen is the dining room and here is what it use to look like:
 

Here is that space now:

What we did:
*Painted trim in SW Alabaster
*Painted upper walls SW Intellectual Gray
*Added beadboard wallpaper (from Lowe's) to lower half of walls
*Changed out the curtains and blinds and added simple drapes (from IKEA)
*Decorated with our buffet table and thrifted chairs
*Painted and glazed the original chandelier

Next, I shared this photo:
 

Here is how this area looks today:

 What we did:
*Painted the oak rails 
*Painted the trim and walls
*Added beadboard wallpaper to lower half of walls
*Did some updates to the living room

 The nursery is next on the list:
 

And here is what it looks like now:

What we did:
*Rearranged furniture
*Changed out the valance and blinds
*Added a large oriental style rug
*Decorated

And the reading room:
 

 Here is what we did:
*Added rain gutter bookshelves (something we did in our last home)
*Made a bench and seat cover for extra storage and books

And now for the stairs:

 What we did:
*Painted walls (that was a fun task!) Credit to my man for getting those tall walls!
*Painted door with BM Ashwood Moss
*Added canvas photos and mirror
*Replaced light fixture by door with an updated lamp shade
*Added a gray and white trellis rug

Looking back at all of this and seeing the progress really does feel great! We worked on everything little by little and took it one day at a time, and it paid off in the long run! Of course, there is always more to do and some rooms that have barely been touched...but hopefully that will happen all in the good span of time. Hope you will stick around to see more changes along the way!

First Post of the New Year

Like the title states, this is my first post of the new year- 2016!
I said it in my last post and I'll say it again, I can't believe another new year is upon us. And how is it that it is already the 5th of January?! Doesn't it seem like yesterday it was Christmas?? 

As I was thinking about what to write for my first post in the new year (a lot of pressure, I know), I came upon some pictures of our current home when we first moved in just a little over a year ago. I wanted to re-post some of them again because I have already forgotten what things looked like around here since the move. My husband and I have been able to make some changes with the house, some big and some small, and are very pleased at how things have been coming along so far. It's really, really starting to feel like our home and not someone else's and it was fun to look back on some of the older photos of the place and compare them to how things look now. 

First up, the family room!

To recap, we have since replaced the green carpet, painted the trim and the walls, painted the fan white (yes, you read that correctly!) and rearranged some furniture around. The only major cost in this room was replacing the carpet for a cleaner/updated one. Everything else was updated with paint pretty much.

Next up is the glorious kitchen.
(It really looks like a hoarders house with all the boxes and stuff piled onto the counters- just ignore all that). These photos were literally taken right after we moved in, obviously. ;)

And yes, we still own that lovely fridge and stove...when we can save a little bit more, we would like to update those as well. The current ones you see pictured are about 25 years old... and no, I am not making that up! 

For this area, I painted the cabinets, island, trim, and walls. I also painted the fridge, of course. 
We replaced the ceiling fan with a light fixture and also replaced the 80's table light with a Restore light fixture. We also added a thrift store table and chairs that I was able to refinish.

The dining room is next up on the tour!

There weren't any major changes to this space, just small ones that made a big impact.
The walls and trim were painted. I added bead board wallpaper to the bottom half of the walls (that stuff is pretty awesome and inexpensive...fyi)
We traded the older curtains and blinds for some simple white curtains.
I was able to paint the chandelier- there was nothing wrong with it and I thought it looked pretty in here, so it just got updated with some paint and glaze.
And of course, we added our signature buffet table in here as well as an IKEA storage piece for coffee.

 The rails on our stairs were painted and so was some of the trim.

The next room (pictured below) is now the nursery. 
We were able to remove the window valance and added curtains. Originally, I wanted to keep the valance, but because of the shape, it was just really hard to recover.
This room hasn't been painted yet. I'm still decided on whether or not to do that. Haven't found a paint color that would work in here yet- but the original wall color works for now.

Next to the nursery is this little room that is now the reading room that houses all the kiddos' books (it's pictured below).
We added some rain gutter shelves to the wall opposite the window and also took down the valance in here. The girl's lemonade stand got moved up here and we also added a storage bench we made to keep books and art supplies.
That's pretty much it for this space!

I threw this picture in here because my daughter was walking her doll up the stairs and thought that was so cute! Just looking at this picture reminds me of how much she has grown in the past year!!

And this last room is the office. Wallpaper is still up and no real attempts have been made to remove it. :) That would be a project to tackle for another day- far, far away in the future! 
The valance has been taken down and a desk has been moved into here...but that is about it! 
The room has a door and stays closed most of the time (mainly so I don't have to stare at the ducks and stripes when I walk by)

Hoping to type up a post soon with more "before and after" photos. That way you can see the changes that we have made since the move.
Overall, I'm happy with what we have been able to accomplish since moving into this house. Can't wait to see what kind of things we can get done this year! 
Here's to another good year!!