September 16, 2020 By Kelly 16 Comments

Neutral Fall Fireplace Mantel

I’ve been working on fall-ifying my house this past week. No pumpkins in sight yet, just bringing some cozy textures and pillows into the mix. Today, I thought I would quickly share my neutral fall fireplace mantel decor. I used to change my mantel decor drastically for each season, but these days, I like to keep it simple. I like keeping this large mirror up here to anchor the space and then I just swap out little accessories here and there.

And yes, I was totally justified in having the fireplace on when I shot this, it’s actually been really cool here with temps in the 50’s in the mornings. ;)

I traded out the fresh summer greens in my vases for some grasses I clipped from the side of the road. Pro-tip; wash your hands after playing with these if you have allergies like me. My eyes promptly swelled shut after I arranged these perfectly – still totally worth it! Pro-tip number two; I actually cut some of these same grasses last year and dried them. They stored perfectly in our storage room in a vase and I was able to pull them back out this year.

I shopped my house and stole these aged brass candlesticks from our bedroom to add some more warmth to the mantel.

I mentioned this artwork in my fall Friday Feels last week and I love the subtle colors. I was planning on buying a smaller mat to show more of the art but I never got around to it. I still like the cropped version.

After I figured out the mantel I took my fall zhushing over to the bookshelves. Again I kept my same key players, namely my great grandmother’s old books and some fave vintage children’s books. Then I just tuck in a few seasonal items.

When I’m styling shelves I always think about having similar colors for your eye to follow. Since I switched out the white frame on the mantel for a black one I wanted to add black to the shelves as well. I’ve had these black and white prints forever. The Mr. and I bought on Napa trip a million years ago. Adding them to the shelves up here balances the black a bit. I picked up this Tradescantia Zebrina at my local nursery because the muted tones of the plant fit right in with the direction I was going for the living room.

This little black vase used to be white and I just hit it with a coat of black spray paint (I can spray it white again in the summer if the mood strikes) for a cozier fall vibe. Then I stuck a handful of cut grass in it. This time I used Karl Foerster from our yard.

Our dining table got a handful of clippings too!

Again, I really just shopped my house to keep things simple. Sometimes all you need to make your house feel fresh is to swap things around a bit.

I think that’s it, I’ll be sharing the rest of the room soon!

SOURCES: This post contains affiliate links. I may receive a small commission for purchases made through these links at no extra cost to you. Just click on the BOLD links.

Mantel beam – this was the original mantel beam of the cottage we knocked down to build here

Stone – J&N stone – Style Quartz, Color Price

Candlesticks

Art – Juniper Print shop

Vases

Mirror

Brass Bowls – no longer available

Dining Chairs

White Dining Chairs

Table – from a local store that unfortunately went out of business

Dining table vase – no longer available, this is a similar one

Dining Light

Wall Color – Extra White by Sherwin Williams

September 10, 2020 By Kelly 22 Comments

Fall Finds: Pillows, Clothes and more – Friday Feels

Welcome to another Friday Feels where I share what I’m feeling this week. This post contains affiliate links. I may receive a small commission for purchases made through these links at no extra cost to you. Just click on the BOLD links.

I have missed my random Friday Feels posts! I love to share all the odds and ends and things I’m loving throughout the week with you all. I’m going to try to get back to sharing these weekly, so prepare yourself for my ramblings! Today, I’ve got fall on the brain since Michigan has done an about-face and switched to sweater weather this week.

I’m adding lots of cozy textures and warmer colors in the living room to carry me through to winter. I also finally bought end tables and lamps after 3 years of searching, but more on that later…I picked up these pillows during the Labor Day sale (although last I checked they are still on sale) and they just arrived.

Grey Pillow / Lumbar Pillow / Patterned Pillow

They are SO pretty in person. I can’t wait to share the living room all decked out for fall, but in the meantime, here is a little sneaky peek.

Blanket / Blush Pillow / Pattern Pillow

I also bought this digital download from Juniper Print Shop that I talked about on Instagram this week. It’s called Lakeside, so obviously I had to have it. It looks perfect on the mantel. You can see I’m going for a very warm, cozy old library feel in the living room this year. I just need to flip the fireplace on and add a good book!

I’ve been on the hunt for cute and comfortable face masks and I’ve tried about a million, but so far these masks are my fave.

In my quest to get free shipping, I added their satin pillowcase and hair towel to my cart as well. I’m happy to report that I love them both! I tried another cheap silk pillowcase from amazon and it was awful – I didn’t even last the night on it. However, this one is great, under $20, and I like that it has a zipper so it’s not sliding off your pillow all night. Silk pillowcases are supposed to be much gentler on your hair and your face. I don’t look 20 years younger yet, but my hair is less tangly in the morning!

This Microfiber hair towel works great at cutting down my drying time on hair wash days.

Speaking of hair, I tried these Gimme Beauty hair ties this summer and I’ve become a convert! I love their silk scrunchies for sleeping – I put my hair in a low ponytail to sleep and they don’t leave creases. The seamless design on their hair ties is so much gentler on my hair and I love that they come in different sizes for different thickness of hair. I like the thin ones for my fine thin hair. If you use my link above for the month of September you can get 35% off and free shipping over $25!

I’ve already been freezing in our house so I just bought this cardigan…and yes I will wear it while listening to Cardigan by Taylor Swift, but I draw the line at drinking Pumpkin Spice Latte…

I bought this bodysuit to wear underneath it. Even though I have major flashbacks to the ’80s every time I wear one, I do like a good bodysuit.

Everything is 20% off at Abercrombie right now, so I also snagged this classic long camel coat for fall/winter. I feel like this is the kind of coat you throw on over leggings and sneakers and look super cool, but it looks equally great dressed up too. Or you know, it covers up your jammies in the carpool drop-off line since it has a certain cozy bathrobe vibe to it. I love that it’s available in tall sizes so the length will actually hit me right too.

I bought my daughter this cozy split neck hoodie, I’m not saying I’m going to borrow it, but I’m not, NOT saying I’m going to ;)

Ok and last I switched face primers this summer to go along with my fave CC cream and I love this one from IT cosmetics. This stuff makes my skin look so smooth, plus my makeup stays put, even with wearing a mask.

Primer / CC Cream

I think that’s it for this week! I’m working on a new book list for next week and I think my fall mantel will make its debut too!

September 8, 2020 By Kelly 13 Comments

Painting a Leather Chair DIY

Last week I debuted my daughter’s new teen girl bedroom, and you were all the best as usual with the sweet comments! I’m so glad you loved the room as much as we do. Today I’m sharing the quick painting a leather chair DIY we used. to spiff up this midcentury modern find.

We found this beauty on a rainy Sunday afternoon when we hit up a local antique store. We were actually there to find a dresser (thankfully we nabbed one of those too, some days you just luck out)! I walked around the corner to find my daughter cozied up in this old chair.

It was the perfect size for her, and her room – love at first sight! The leather was in rough shape though – dirty, dingy, and sporting a few madmen-esque authentic 50’s era cigarette burns. For $30 we thought we would bring it home and see if we could save it.

First, we hit it with every cleaning product known to man and a lot of good old fashioned elbow grease. It definitely removed a few years of grime, but nothing could erase every bit of its previous life. I used Tide and warm water, Dawn and warm water, a magic eraser, Norwex cleaning paste, and actual leather cleaner to name a few. Here it is after we cleaned it, doesn’t look much different, but I promise this was after many buckets of blackened water.

I was pretty convinced this was as squeaky clean as it was going to get, so onto phase 2. – leather paint! I had absolutely no clue you could paint leather, but my daughter had watched a crafting youtube video where a fun design was painted on a leather bag. We thought why not give it a shot? I ordered Angelus leather paint from Amazon in white. I bought 3 bottles because I had no idea how much I would need, but we only ended up using 2. My typical prep for painting any surface is cleaning said surface really well first. Since I had scrubbed this to death already, I felt like we were good to go.

Here it is after the first coat.

I used a regular old paintbrush (the Wooster short-handled paintbrushes are my go-to for every project) and started applying the paint. I quickly realized I was going to need a lot of thin coats. The paint wasn’t covering everything and was a little streaky at first.

After letting it dry for a few hours, I applied the 2nd coat, and a 3rd….and 7 coats later it was complete!

Here it is after 4 coats.

I let it dry for 48 hours just to be sure before anyone sat in it, but it looks brand new! It even filled in those cigarette burns.

I’ve had a few questions on how I think this will wear over time – to be honest, I’m not sure?! I’ll keep you all posted if we have issues. I think the fact that we are keeping this little faux fur throw in here will probably save it from a lot of wear and tear. I’m assuming touching it up won’t be too hard if we do see some issues.

So far so good though! The paint is really flexible and the seat still feels nice and soft. I think this product worked great for a thinly padded chair like this, but I’m not sure it would work on an old leather couch with thicker cushions. I would say the less squishy the better, so you aren’t testing the limits of the stretchiness of the paint. So proceed with caution if you try this at home.

This was such a fun project and it’s always great to be able to give new life to an old piece of furniture with this painting a leather chair DIY!

If you missed my daughter’s bedroom reveal be sure to check it out!

September 3, 2020 By Kelly 50 Comments

Teen Girl Bedroom Decor

Ok, look at me all on time and delivering on my post promises for once! Last week I shared the design board for my daughter’s Tween Bedroom Refresh – which, note the title change for this post to Teen Girl Bedroom Decor…My child informed me that she is really closer to 13 than 12 and she is almost, basically, not really, even a tween anymore. It’s time to move onto full-fledged teen. ;) She frantically stuffed all her dirty laundry (and dishes) in her closet yesterday, so I could shoot her room. So without further ado, her new TEEN room!

I mentioned we started with this art from Juniper Print Shop. They have so many great prints, but the colors in this one really caught her eye.

We pulled the seafoam/blueish/greenish paint color for her walls from the painting. She loves to peruse Pinterest (who doesn’t?) and found this color-blocking trend that she really loved, so we tried our hand at it.

It was actually much easier than I thought it would be, thanks to the laser level I borrowed from my brother. The level allowed us to just measure the height on each wall, line the level up, and shoot. My daughter traced the lines down the walls in pencil while I held it steady. Then we used Frog Tape to tape the lines and got to painting.

It took a bit of debating to figure out what height to make the line. We decided to line it up with the grids on the windows, although you can’t really see that in the photos that well. It was so bright when I shot this that I ended up shutting the shades for most of the photos to cut down on the glare.

She really loves her new much lower bed (so does our dog, Charlie, it’s his new fave spot to nap now that he can hop up easily). I will say the pricepoint on this bed is amazing, but putting it together is a chore. It comes in about a zillion pieces, but the Mr. and I managed it with minimal griping or marital strife.

We kept all of her old bedding, but added in the cute lumbar pillow and throw at the end of the bed for a pop of color.

The nightstands are the same too, but I swapped out the art so as not to compete with the new print above her bed. I found these gold frames at Target, and added in more printed art from BFF Printshop.

I love all of these print shops that offer affordable downloadable art. I’ve had a few questions about how I go about printing these out. For the smaller prints, I print them right at home on our home printer. The larger prints I actually have printed at my local Staples. I have them printed on heavier duty matte paper to make them feel more like real art.

The old prints found their way to this corner of the room with her new chair. If you only knew how many holes I put in the wall trying to get that stripe right down the center of these prints!

And yes that electrical cord is making me all kinds of twitchy! I didn’t hide it in the photos, I’m a bit rusty getting my big girl camera back out for the first time in a while!

I know some of you are surprised that we got rid of the hanging chair that she loved, but it took up a lot of space in her room and she was ready for a change. We found this cool midcentury modern one at a local antique store for $30. I will share the little makeover we did on it next week. Let’s just say it had a very authentic 50’s vibe complete with cigarette burns, but you would never know now! A new lamp and a few accessories, and this is now her fave spot to curl up with her kindle.

This dresser was another find that same day at the antique store, again I will share that makeover next week too! Her old dresser was much taller and she wanted to have a mirror in her room that she could actually see herself in. This one was a perfect size, and with a few coats of paint looks so cute. And yes I’m doing this completely backward showing you the finished room before all the projects in it, but I just couldn’t wait.

For those of you keeping track, this is now the 4th “hairdo” this cute lady is sporting. Safe to say my daughter didn’t inherit my green thumb. She keeps getting a fresh do when the others have shriveled up and died. Hopefully, this one makes it!

Over on this side of the room, I put up some fun hooks so she has a place to hang bags, hats, whatever she wants.

The new rug really pulls everything together here.

The subtle pattern is so pretty, the colors are perfect, and it’s nice and soft underfoot. I think that’s the grand tour? This was so fun to work on with her this summer and feels so much more “teen” now.

SOURCES: Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. I may make a small commission on purchases made through these links at no extra cost to you.

White Wall Color – Extra White by Sherwin Williams

Green Wall Color – Azores by Benjamin Moore

Nightstands

Bed – the queen size is sold out right now

Lamps

Duvet Cover

White Throw Pillows

Striped Throw Pillow

Pink Blanket

Knit Blanket

Landscape Artwork – Juniper Print Shop

C and Butterfly Artwork – BFF Print Shop

Rug

Pink Pillow

Chair faux fur – Ikea

Floor Lamp

Brass Tray

Brass Frames

Large Brass Frame

Wood Stools

Wall Hooks

Round Mirror

Planter – local store

Black and White Prints

Beaded Chandelier

August 26, 2020 By Kelly 34 Comments

Tween Girl Bedroom Design Plan

Hey!! So it’s been a few weeks, ok months since I posted here. Sorry I disappeared without notice. I tend to post a bit more sporadically in the summer, but I decided to postpone a few partnerships and projects to really just unplug and be with my kids. I figure when am I going to get another summer with my kids when all of their activities, camps, and sports have been canceled? So they were basically forced to hang out with me all the time. My kids would probably say hopefully never again ;), but we actually had a great summer together. I’m so grateful for the flexibility of this job that allowed me to do that and so grateful for all of you for essentially giving me this job! Also, so many of you were so sweet to check up on me and make sure we were all healthy and ok, we are all good! I honestly didn’t think anyone would notice if I took a break, but thank you for all the kind messages and sweet words. It was really nice to just live life for a bit without documenting it all. All that said, I’m ready to get back to it! Well, first, I need to shoo the dust bunnies away from my computer, wade through a month worth of emails, and drink a gallon of coffee…but I’m easing into posting with a quick update on my daughter’s bedroom today.

The last time we talked about her room it looked like this…(you can see more in this post Tween Bedroom Makeover)

We put up this wallpaper, moved our old bed down there, and bought some new nightstands.

We never quite got past that stage because she kept changing her mind. I think one of the big roadblocks was this wallpaper that she HAD to have. In-person it was…well, a lot. Anything we paired with it bedding wise or style-wise in the room just seemed to be competing with it. To the point that this summer she begged me to just rip it down and change directions completely. Listen, I get it, I was 12 years old with design whims of my own once upon a time! To be honest, I was sick of the wallpaper too. The good news is, newer wallpaper like this removes SO easily! It peeled right off the wall and took about 10 minutes total.

We also decided our old bed was just way too tall for her. My daughter is tiny for her age – 4’10” (sidenote when I was her age I was already 5’9” so my gangly 12-year-old self would have been quite envious) and she basically had to catapult herself up into this bed. So I sold that bed (to a sweet reader actually!) and found a new much lower one. We have completely changed directions in her room. It’s more modern which is more of her vibe. It’s almost done, so I will be sharing it soon!

In the meantime here is the design board we made, the whole room started with this artwork she loved from Juniper Print Shop. We started with that color pallet and everything else came together.

She wanted to tackle this color blocking wall treatment idea she found on Pinterest. I was kind of dreading it, but it actually was relatively easy with a laser level. Then we added in the new lower bed. We kept her existing nightstands, lamps, and bedding. We hit up a local antique store and scored some fun finds (more on that next week) and added in a cozy rug.

This feels so much more her and she loves the new space. I’ll link everything below, but I promise I won’t keep you waiting – I’m going to finish up a few details this weekend and the big reveal will be next week!

Also a little run down of what is coming up this fall – I’ll be sharing my parent’s finished kitchen renovation, everything happening in the pool house (plumbing starts next week so we are finally getting to the fun part), fun fall decor, recipes, Friday Feels and whatever else pops into my head in the meantime. Hope you all have enjoyed your summer!

SOURCES: Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. I may make a small commission on purchases made through these links at no extra cost to you.

White Wall Color – Extra White by Sherwin Williams

Green Wall Color – Azores by Benjamin Moore

Nightstands

Bed – the queen size is sold out right now

Lamps

Duvet Cover

White Throw Pillows

Striped Throw Pillow

Pink Blanket

Knit Blanket

Landscape Artwork – Juniper Print Shop

C and Butterfly Artwork – BFF Print Shop

Rug

June 25, 2020 By Kelly 21 Comments

Pool House Updates

I’ve been sharing pool house updates over on Instagram, but I realize I’ve been holding out on you all here on the blog. There has been a bit more progress made over at the pool house and I haven’t shared anything since Christmas! So here we go –

First, let’s take a look back where we started –

And a year after we moved in –

And now! I still need to paint the doors white and do a lot of touch-up painting, but I’m so happy with the balcony and the doors out here. It’s so nice to open these doors wide and get a nice breeze, and it’s made it SO much brighter up in the loft too.

Now on the inside, it looked like this the last time I shared the upstairs. Cringe, it was a bit scary up here but it was my kid’s art studio/messy craft space.

And I shared our tentative plans for the bunkhouse/hang out room.

Here’s where we are at now –

We ended up being able to do 6 twin size beds along both sides of this wall. I threw an old 12×14 rug down at the end of the room to give you an idea of the space left. I think we will go with a 6 ft couch and some poufs/floor cushions/ottoman for extra seating. Although I think the beds will also function as additional seating kind of like a daybed.

There was a big debate about whether to run the wall all the way up like our plans or just go with more of a half wall look. I love the way the full wall looks, but I thought it may close the room off too much. Also, we plan on using this for slumber parties and my daughter pointed out that it would be hard to talk or see the tv for a movie night with full walls. I have to say this was actually practical advice coming from the girl who wants a slide off the balcony ;)! I know it’s hard to envision now, but each little half wall will have a wall sconce on the side and a bookcase/nook at the foot of the bed. Here’s a quick sketch so you can maybe see what I mean a bit better.

We still plan on mounting a tv on the wall by the seating area. Along with an air hockey or foosball table (hot debate at our house which one we will go with).

Over here by the stairs, we decided to build out a counter area with bar stools.

This will act as a little pseudo kitchen area with a mini-fridge and microwave tucked in this back corner.

I know a lot of you suggested a sink up here but there wasn’t a great spot to put it and I just don’t see us using it that often. This will mostly be kids hang out spot, but it will function as a guest space when needed too. Here’s another fancy sketch of the bar. There is room for 3 bar stools and then we will do a built-in looking cabinet for the microwave and fridge with a drawer or cabinet for popcorn. The chair is just a place holder for when we were trying to envision the space. We will be going with counter height stools.

Just to refresh your memory here is the bathroom/pool equipment/mudroom situation downstairs.

All the framing is done which is exciting and we are just waiting on the electrician to come back to finish up wiring the upstairs. After that, we plan on adding insulation and a mini-split heating and cooling system. Yes, we have to cover up the cool ceilings, but we are hoping to plank back over them. I’m on the hunt for paneling that we can do in the upstairs space to get the planked vibe without having to drywall and then plank everything. I’ll keep you posted if/when I figure that out.

Oh and we got the new exterior door installed with a window and it’s so nice to have the extra light in here! It still needs a coat of paint and obviously everything needs to be power washed.

Here is the only photo I could find of the old door, but you can see what an improvement this is!

The bathroom is on hold for now because we have to bust out all of the cement to run the new pipes and hook it up to the sewer. Since the pool is over here and we are using that, at least for a few more weeks before it’s drained and resurfaced, (that was supposed to happen this spring, but it got pushed way back due to construction being shut down) we are waiting to tackle this until fall. Just to avoid the mess of cement dust etc so we can still use the pool area in peace for the summer.

So I guess it doesn’t seem like a whole lot has happened, but we have the bones of the place figured out which feels exciting!

Oh and I had to share this photo from last week, we had crazy storms blow through and this was the calm after the storm. :)

June 17, 2020 By Kelly 24 Comments

Lake House Outdoor Space

This post is sponsored by Unique Loom, however, all opinions are my own.

Hey, remember waaay back when I shared my lake house outdoor space plans? I’ve finally brought my design boards to life and managed to catch a dry day to snap a few photos. My plans started with these pretty outdoor rugs from Unique Loom. They are actually from the Jill Zarin Outdoor Collection™, yes that Jill Zarin if you are a Housewives of New York fan. I can just imagine them in her Hamptons house, but they are right at home here too.

Lake House Deck

I was going to split this up into two blog posts. However, I’m too excited to share, so I’ll just show you both spaces that I gave a little upgrade.

Well, maybe Charlie will show you around the first space since he insisted on being in every single shot on our master deck. I don’t blame him, this is my favorite spot in our whole house.

He actually has figured out how to open the screen slider doors and routinely lets himself out here to sunbathe – no joke. What a life he has! ;)

Also, I should point out that I flipped a chair around in a few of these photos to show the lake view. This is one of those cases where I wish I had a mission impossible flying suit/pulley system situation because it’s impossible to photograph this deck well. Rest assured these chairs face the lake in real life to take advantage of the view.

The rug I had here last summer was too small, so I was happy to upgrade to this 7×10 which really fits the space so much better. You know I love blue and white stripes, so this was the perfect rug to lighten up all our dark outdoor furniture.

The new throw pillows go perfect with the subtle blue color. Charlie wants you to see his profile in this photo apparently…appreciate all the angles people!

I went with bigger planters out on our deck, and I love the little added privacy and pop of color out here. The white flowers are Mandevilla, the pink ones are Spider Flower, and the purple, Catmint.

Adding the umbrella up here has been the best thing ever for the 90 degree days we have been having. This is now the perfect little oasis to drink my coffee and answer emails before my kids rise and shine for the day.

Lake House Patio

Let’s head down to the patio now, possibly my 2nd favorite hang out spot!

We were using our old rug down here from the last house, but this patio was so much larger. So again, I upgraded to the larger size. The patio feels so much brighter with the new rug not to mention cooler on our feet.

I went with this diamond pattern here, and it’s such a fun pattern play with our striped pillows.

I’m really happy with the quality of these rugs from the Jill Zarin Outdoor Collection™. They dry super fast so I don’t have to deal with any mildew issues, and they feel great underfoot. I always get care questions on outdoor rugs. The only thing I do is use my little handheld leaf blower to keep it clean, and powerwash before I put it away for the year. Just be sure to let it dry completely, then roll it up and store inside for the winter.

Again white and blue, I know, I know, but it goes so well with our whole house so I don’t think I’ll ever give it up!

I’ve had a few questions about having this fire pit table on a rug but we haven’t had any issues with it at all. It doesn’t have a very powerful flame and doesn’t give off a ton of heat. Just enough to roast our marshmallows.

I’m so impressed with these new throw pillows. I’ve left them out in the rain on accident a few times, and they have dried right up. I love the reversible pattern because a girl needs options. Although now that I say that I realize I completely forgot to actually snap a photo of the other side, ha!

I painted our old brown planters white which I have been wanting to do forever.

I wasn’t sure it was going to work, so I threw a handful of leftover tile grout into the paint to add some texture.

They have held up well so far! I went with more Mandevilla for some height and a mixture of Verbena and White Petunias.

We have been so enjoying our time out here as a family, so much so that I haven’t been on the blog much! I do have a fun pool house update coming soon, so stay tuned for that next week!

SOURCES: Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. I may make a small commission on purchases made through these links at no extra cost to you.

Striped Rug

Firepit table

Polywood Adirondack chair – these are indestructible and I love them, we have slowly been upgrading our wood ones to these.

Wood Adirondack chair – these are a great budget-friendly option

Striped Pillows

Umbrella

Planters (the ones I ordered sold out but these are similar)

Table- this one is similar to ours but doesn’t have an opening for an umbrella

Blue Pillow

Wicker Chair

Diamond Patterned Rug

June 12, 2020 By Kelly 24 Comments

White Pink and Purple Flower Boxes

Well, I’ve been promising to blog about my window boxes for a few weeks now, but I always like to give them a little chance to take off and fill in first. I’m happy to report they are doing well. So, I’m finally sharing my white, pink, and purple flower boxes with you all! Here they are on the first day I planted them.

And here is how they look three weeks later! You’ll have to excuse their soggy appearance – they got a little beat up in the storms we had last night, but I wanted to show you the same angle so you could see how much they have grown.

Here they are on a sunnier day.

I didn’t really have a plan in mind when I went to the greenhouse this year, and I basically did a supermarket sweep through the greenhouse. I really just grabbed anything that caught my eye and hoped I could sort it all out when I got home.

Thankfully the smorgasbord of flowers I ended up with seem to be playing nicely in my window boxes. I ended up with lots of white flowers with a few pops of pink and purple thrown in.

The hummingbirds have been loving this combo, and it’s been so fun to watch from the breakfast nook.

In years past, I have been afraid to plant something taller because I thought I may want to open the windows. I finally realized, however, I have never actually opened either of these windows (they are in front of the breakfast nook and our master bath), so I should go for it. I added some geraniums and verbena now that I’m not worrying about beheading them all.

I took photos of all the tags I used, but I’ll also list them all out below as well.

Best Flowers for Sun or Part Sun Window Boxes

I’ll go left to right in this photo –

variegated vinca vine

white petunias (just realized I’m missing that tag!)

snowstorm giant snowflake

super bells double orchid

lanai upright verbena

snowstorm giant snowflake

white geranium

angelonia

burgundy star petunias

I think that’s everything in there! My window boxes get full morning sun and late in the afternoon/evening sun, so I try to get flowers that like sun to part sun.

You can click on this link 5 Tips for Gorgeous Window Boxes for all of my tips and tricks. You also check out Window Boxes That Won’t Fall Apart for more info on how our window boxes are built.

Oh, and I couldn’t resist sharing photos of a few friends I encountered while watering my flowers earlier this week…

The butterflies love our salvia. Charlie however did not love this massive turtle. I wish I had caught his reaction on video!

Happy Weekend!

May 20, 2020 By Kelly 26 Comments

Lake House Dining Room Light Fixture

I have been a busy bee planting my flower boxes, garden, and planters this past weekend! I was so excited to share with you all and then it proceeded to rain the last 3 days nonstop. Hopefully, it will dry up soon and I can head outside again with my camera, but let’s switch gears to the inside and a fun little change-up in the dining room!

If you have been following me for a while, you know I love to change things up! Nothing has brought this out more than not leaving our house for the last 2 months. (See this blog post on our new kitchen island paint color for further evidence).

After 3 years of living here, I decided it was time to swap out a few light fixtures. I think at the last house I had changed our dining room light fixture twice at this point?! So, I feel like this has shown real restraint on my part. :) Don’t worry all the old lights are going to a good home!

I’m waiting on the new kitchen pendants I ordered to show up still (I’ll share soon!), but my new lake house dining room light fixture arrived! I loved the old light fixture, but it took up a bit more visual space than I anticipated. It blocked quite a bit of our lake view from the kitchen area.

I wanted something a little more streamlined this time to really let the view shine. Pretend it’s a sunny day out there and the water is all pretty and blue in the background instead of the gray MI spring skies.

And yes I needed to move my camera over a bit to have everything centered argh (ha!), but you can see how pretty and simple it is without interrupting the view.

I loved the classic yet modern style of this light fixture (and the price point – it’s under $200!), but they didn’t have it in black. The other light fixtures on the main floor here are all black so I wanted to stick with that color scheme. Although, I do think it is pretty in all the color options, and if you aren’t as picky as me the oil rubbed bronze would give you the same feel I’m sure.

I actually painted the old light fixture black in here, so I knew it wouldn’t be a big deal to raid my spray paint stash again. If you try this at home, just be sure to tape off the light sockets and wiring and you are good to go. I use matte black paint and a few coats later it was ready to hang up.

I bribed the Mr. with a margarita (side note we have been sharing all sorts of fun cocktail recipes on Instagram on the weekends so be sure to check out my stories if you need a little happy hour help), and he helped me hang it up. Swapping out lights is not hard, but be sure to shut your power off first!

I love the new look and the softer ambiance the shades let off. It will be perfect for our next dinner party – whenever that is able to happen again!

I also like how simple it is looking the long way through to the living room. Your eye travels to the fireplace and the large light fixture in there as well.

I love our new lake house dining room light fixture and cannot wait to see it paired with the new kitchen lights coming soon!

You can see the old light fixture in this post here.

SOURCES: Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. I may make a small commission on purchases made through these links at no extra cost to you. Just click on the BOLD words.

Light Fixture

Table – Art Van Furniture which recently went out of business

Chairs – I have the light gray color they don’t seem to offer anymore but these are similar if you want gray

Slipcovered chairs

Wall Color – Extra White by Sherwin Williams

Wood Floor

Art – Katherine Cordon

Frames

Bar Cart

Vase – no longer available but this one is similar

Flowers – cut off my tree

May 14, 2020 By Kelly 3 Comments

My Fave Hair Products

I recently shared a little hair tutorial on Instagram as it has been the number one requested thing lately on my little Q & A’s. If you missed it, I saved it to my Instagram highlights. I’m there in all my awkward glory, complete with Vanna White gestures and random jazz hands. Anyone else unable to talk unless they use their hands? Anyway, I linked up all my fave hair products and tools at the end, but I thought I would share them over here too. In case you are in the market for some new hair goodies, or maybe you are just experimenting with how long you can go without washing your hair at this point while we are home. She said as she sheepishly raises her hand…

So here are my fave hair products and tools –

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. I may make a small commission on purchases made through these links at no extra cost to you.

My Fave Hair Products & Tools

Morrocan Oil Hydrating Styling Cream – I use this as a detangler/moisturizer on my hair when I get out of the shower. I just smooth it through my damp hair. This makes all the difference for my dry ends, especially during the summer.
Morrocan Oil Root Boost – I spray this right on my roots before I blowdry it and it really gives my fine hair some volume.
Kristen Ess Dry Shampoo – I alternate dry shampoos a lot and this one is always in the rotation. It’s nice and lightweight.
Kristen Ess Beach Wave Spray – I spray this on my hair when I’m done curling it and it adds a lot of texture and shine without making my hair sticky. It’s also great to touch up curls that 2nd or 3rd day of hair.
Oribe Swept Up Volume Powder – Ok, I’m not gonna lie this stuff is pricey, but I love it and a little goes a long way! I sprinkle this on my roots on day 2 and 3 to perk up my limp hair. I don’t know how it does what it does, but it adds so much volume. I actually bought the travel size to try it out and it’s lasted me a few months. So while it’s pricey you don’t need much.
Redken HotSets – I have been using this for a million years. I spray this on after before I curl my hair and it helps protect your hair from the heat and also helps hold my curl for longer. I spray it on, brush it throughout, and then curl.
Living Proof Full Dry Volume Blast – I’ve only had this a few weeks and I love this stuff. I spray this on my roots and around my crown it adds a lot of texture and volume.
Loreal Elnett Hairspray – I do a light mist of this when I’m all done styling my hair. It has great hold without giving you that untouchable helmet head feeling.
Comb Trio – I have this set of combs and they are great for sectioning off your hair or doing a little backcombing if needed.
Alligator Clip Grips – I don’t typically need to section my hair to curl it but my daughter has really thick hair and these are the absolute best clips out there! They can hold so much hair and won’t slip or tangle when you go to remove them.
Wet Brush – My daughter and I both swear by the Wet Brush any of them are great but I like this paddle one a lot.
La Fortezza Hair Dryer – I received this hairdryer in a PR package (the sometimes perks of being a blogger) and I really like it. I’ve never had a fancy expensive hair dyer before but wow does it save me a lot of time on the days I do actually wash my hair. I normally let my hair air dry most of the way and then dry it the rest. This does a great job of it without getting too hot or making my hair frizzy.
T3 Curling Wand – I recently splurged on a T3 to see what all the hype was about it. I have to say it is a really nice curling iron and my curl hold so well with this. I never feel like my hair is getting fried either.
Hot Tools Extra Long Barrel – I have had this curling iron for a long time and it’s a great less expensive option that still really does a great job and gives an even curl.

I think that’s everything!? Like I said if you want to see me put all these products to use you can check out my little tutorial here on Instagram. Happy Weekend!

Lake House Deck

Lake House Patio

Best Flowers for Sun or Part Sun Window Boxes

My Fave Hair Products & Tools

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