Happy Holidays! Well, technically, Halloween just passed, and we have several weeks until Thanksgiving. But, in our house, the day after Halloween we are in full-on Christmas mode. It started out when I was pregnant with Turner. He was due December 5th. So, in order to be prepared, we decorated for Christmas early, just in case. And, guess what, I had him November 17th. We had already decked the halls, so all we needed to do was come home and enjoy the magical glow of our Christmas lights. Ever since, it’s been the best tradition!
Now that we’ve established my family’s Christmas decorating traditions, I want to share with you the reason for my post. In a previous post, I told you all about my love affair with artificial trees. And in this post, I have a gift guide that is sure to please boys and girls of ALL ages! Take a look!
The Details
1. Slippers – I bought these slippers years ago. They were slightly different then, but they are my absolute favorites! My kids always tease me about how they never see me in the house without my slippers. And, it’s true!
2. Wallet – This is a great “man-gift”. Stew is a big fan of nice leather wallets. This feels special but is also practical!
3. Camera – My kids have been obsessed with this camera! Although my gut reaction is to say, “back in my day we bought these for $1.99 at Wallgreens”, I decided to bite the bullet and get it for them for Christmas. They’re going to FLIP!
4. Bag – Adorable, practical, and a blast from the past. Although we’ve “been there & done that”, I love when a trend comes back in stile. Fanny Pack Fo Life!
5. Glasses – I got these a few months back and I use them on a daily basis for our specialty cocktails. I love a chocolate martini, a new york sour, or even wine in them. A drink feels extra special in this fancy glass!
6. Fur Blanket – Last. but certainly not least, this blanket is what dreams are made of! I have one for me and one for Gracie. We use them nightly and they are the best of all time! You won’t be disappointed!
I hope you find something on this list that you can use! Whether for yourself, a spouse, a kid, or a friend, I know this gift guide has something for everyone! Happy gift planning!
xoxo Emily
Did you ever dream of a laundry room that would make all of your dreams come true? Perhaps one so beautiful that you would throw a party in the laundry room? Or make excuses to wash another load? Well, the laundry room we recently renovated certainly checks all of those boxes.
It started as your regular ol’ laundry room. You know the kind…. walk in, throw in a load, leave immediately. But after talking through the vision and dreams with my clients (who also happen to have killer taste and trust me with taking risks), we created the most beautiful laundry room in all the land! One that you linger in. One that has you begging for more dirty underwear! Maybe that’s too far. But I’ll let you see it for yourself!
Before
We demoed the old, waterproofed the entire floor, and tiled the wall where the washer/dryer would go. We added a big farm slop sink with a beautiful sleek faucet. We went with a white subway and dark grey grout. It took us a while to land on the perfect paint color for the cabinets. We finally went with Shebang by Glidden, which immediately launches me into the best (and only) Ricky Martin song of all time. We added some under-cabinet lighting and topped it off with a clean quartz countertop. And, SHEBANG, here it is!
If you want to see the REEL of this transformation, check it out HERE. It truly is a beautiful room. But more than that, it’s FUNCTIONAL! Who would have thought one could have both? I would have! I’m thrilled with how this room came out but even happier that our clients love it! So sorry for getting Ricky Martin stuck in your head. Until next time!
xoxo Emily
We have been renovating for years! Sometimes I feel like a broken record when I talk to my clients. But there are 5 things to know when renovating. These things come up in conversation with every reno. I’m not trying to be a Debby Downer. I just want you to mentally prepare! Let me explain.
1. It’s Not For the Faint of Heart:
Renovating is one of those things we read about on Instagram and watch TV shows about on HGTV. But the reality is, it’s more than a before and after reel and it takes much longer than 30 minutes. It’s messy, dusty, and looks unfinished for a very long time. Honestly, it looks unfinished until the last few days. I can’t think of one client who hasn’t called me in a panic during the final week saying, “there’s no way you’re gonna finish”. But the truth is, it takes a long time and you can’t judge it until it’s done!
2. Unforeseen Things Will Come Up:
Whenever you’re removing the old, you have to expect there to be surprises underneath. You’re at the mercy of the guy who did it before you. That means there could be water damage, uneven floors, messed up drywall, termites, shoddy electrical and plumbing, etc. I’ve seen it all. But the beauty of demoing the old is that, once we find it, we fix it!
3. It Will Take Longer Than Expected:
We live in a world of delay. It doesn’t matter how good the crew is, or how “on it” they are. You can order everything on time, but we’re at the mercy of the shipping companies. And with our economy the way it is, you can expect delays. Not only that, but if an item is damaged upon arrival, we have to return and wait for a new one. The name of the game is to BE FLEXIBLE.
4. Changing Things Once Work Has Begun Costs Money:
That should be a no brainer, but if you add things to the scope of work that wasn’t in the original bid, it costs money. If you don’t like what you see once it’s built/installed and want it removed or changed, it costs money. Ask for pricing when you want to change something so you’re not surprised with a bill! Work with your designer up front to nail down as many specifics as possible. Take the time to pick the exact items you want (plumbing fixtures, mirrors, lights, etc) so you stay within the budget!
5. It’s Worth It!
I always tell couples, if their marriage can survive a reno, it can survive anything. I’m half joking… but also, not HAHA! It’s long, it’s messy, and it’s expensive. The perfect storm of things that add stress to your life. But at the end of the day, you get the room of your dreams! And it’s definitely worth it!
Motivational Ending
The reason I share these things is because I want to encourage you to renovate! It’s the best thing ever. Taking a space you spend most of your time in and turning into your dream home, dream kitchen, dream bathroom, etc. is the most rewarding thing ever (just take a look at ours)! But also, be prepared! Nothing worthwhile is EASY. So, bite the bullet, get your mind right, and let’s DO THIS!
xoxo Emily
Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree …. I’m already counting the days down until I can deck the halls! If any of you have followed me on Instagram, you know that I have an insane obsession with Christmas. Much to others’ dismay we decorate THE DAY after Halloween. Our new (OLD) house is just begging for a tree in every room. So that’s exactly what I did. I loaded up on artificial trees so I could leave them up for months and not have to worry about them dropping pine needles after they died 2 weeks later.
The trick is to buy trees when they’re ON SALE and to buy trees that look so real you wouldn’t know the difference. Now, last year was our first year decorating this house, so I MAY get a real tree for one of the rooms. But I just loved having the trees up through February (sorry, not sorry) so I’m kind of in love with the idea. Not to mention, spending $100 on a real tree every year seriously blows the budget. I’d rather spend that money on a fancy dinner out on the town! I digress… without further ado, check out my artificial tree favorites.
1. Kid’s Playroom Tree — Now this tree is an el-cheapo from Target. I’ve had it for years. I’ve had to restring the lights a few times, but no one sees this except them, so it didn’t need to be a show stopper.
2. 7.5′ Unlit — This is the Mac Daddy of all trees. It’s absolutely stunning! You would NEVER know it was fake. I get this one Unlit because this is the one we decorate. And, if you’re reading this close to when I wrote this post, it’s likely ON SALE!
3. 7′ Pre-Lit This is equally as beautiful but doesn’t look as real because of the spacing of the branches. This one goes in the dining room. I don’t even decorate this one. I just like the twinkly glow next to the fire!
4. 7′ Fur with LED Lights – And finally, this is one of my favorites. This goes in our bedroom. The lighting is simple and it has a Charlie Brown feel, which I love. I put a little tinsel and ribbon on this one and that’s it!
Well I hope this was helpful for all of you artificial tree lovers out there! Let me know your thoughts. I love to hear them all!
Whenever I get asked what we do, I can’t help but think that it’s a loaded answer. Yes we own a renovation company, but it’s so much more than that.
Stew and I built our company after a series of unfortunate events. I had a very lucrative job that was taken from me in an instant (I guess that’s how the real world works). Shortly after that, we had a global pandemic. Stew was working as a contractor keeping us afloat by doing odd jobs and small renos by himself while I found myself suddenly working as a Homeschool Mom. It was a very hard season for us, to say the least. But, I believe that most great things are formed by the way we react to failure.
This Whole House
I could have crumbled, and I did for a short time. But, I had a very wise friend tell me to figure out what was easy for me and hard for other people. And that’s exactly what I did. I brainstormed what brought me joy and married that with my giftings. I took online courses during the COVID Shut Down to become a licensed designer and worked alongside Stew on his home renos. From the ashes birthed our company This Whole House.
I wanted to create a business that would be fulfilling but also make me smile. Not only that, but I wanted it to be accessible for all people with all budgets both near and far. It evolved over the years, but I couldn’t be more thankful with what we’ve built to this day! We still have huge goals and even bigger dreams that will hopefully come with time and being faithful to what is in front of us!
We just recently finished up a kitchen with the goal of making it classic and clean. We wanted to take that brown and beige (that every home builder loves), and turn it into a new and bright space! I linked to all products we used!
The Plan
When I talked to my clients initially, they really wanted a space that was practical. They love to cook, so I knew it had to be a cook’s kitchen! We ended up moving some things around to make the layout more functional.
The island was huge but really had no purpose. So we moved the sink and dishwasher over there so the flow would be better. This allowed for much more prep space!
I love to start with a blank slate. I usually track every detail of the project on my insta so you can see the down and dirty! If you don’t already follow, be sure to check it out! Once everything is out of the way, I walk the space to make sure that my vision will actually work! And in this case, it definitely did! We turned this huge space into the perfect classic and clean kitchen!
It’s hard to believe this is the same kitchen! It’s amazing what color and layout can do for a space. This is one for the books. An absolute show stopper that is timeless!
All I’ll say is, if I can do it, you can do it! Refinishing floors sounds daunting, but it’s one of many ways to save loads of money on a home reno. In this post, I’ll show you a video I put together on how to refinish wood floors.
Start by vacuuming the floors (HERE is a link to my favorite vac) .
Use a palm sander (and plenty of sandpaper) to sand the perimeter of the room
Rent a large sander from your local Home Depot (like this one) and get plenty of sandpaper to go with it! Sand the floors first with 60 grit. Use an even back and forth motion, LIFTING THE BELT as you transition or stop. Go over the floors again using 100 grit. Touch up with the palm sander as needed.
Vacuum again.
Use wool applicator attached to the end of a broomstick & THIS MATTE POLY to evenly coat the floors. Let dry completely. I did two coats. It actually doesn’t smell, even though I had a gas mask on that would prevent me from a dirty bomb attack. Good to know!
Save $8000 – you’re welcome!
There you have it! How to refinish wood floors in one quick video. Good luck! Be sure to follow me on Instagram and check out more tips on budget friendly reno tips HERE.
We’re officially in our house and I’m ready to give you a “semi-finished” new old house – home tour!! Check out the full story HERE,
We closed on our house the second week of October. Stew would work during the day on client renos and then come here in the afternoons for a few hours to knock out some demo. We also had our electrician in here rewiring the entire house (which is still actually happening, unfortunately) hoping to get most of the “dirty work” finished up before moving in.
We rented a cottage around the corner from our house from mid November to mid December in hopes that we’d be able to move in before Christmas. And… WE DID IT! We scheduled our jobs to start back up in January so we could be here working for the holiday break, which ended up being perfect timing!
Now, I’ll warn you, the house is NOT complete by any means. In fact, we’re living in the upstairs guest room because we haven’t even touched the master suite yet. But the rest of the house is turning out quite nicely! I’ll let you see for yourselves. I’ve linked to everything below. I present to you… our Old New House – Home Tour!
I hope you enjoyed our New Old House – Home Tour! There will be more to come, but this is all we have so far! Can’t wait to share the journey. Be sure to follow me on Instagram as I post daily stories on the happenings of our reno! Much love xoxo
