6 Months in the New House
Can you believe that this weekend marked a whopping six months of living in this house?! Six months seems like a long time, but I also still consider this house our “new house”.
We’ve gotten tons of quality time with this house since March when our local stay-home orders went into effect, and at least once a week, Corey and I look at each other and exclaim over how grateful we are to be here for all of this. We love this house so deeply and it’s been such a joy turning it into our own space!
In honor of spending half a year living here, I thought I’d take a moment today to look at a few of the spaces that we’ve worked on and see how far they’ve come. We (obviously) still have a looooong way to go in this house and so many projects that we want to tackle, but I love the journey and I love celebrating the little milestones, so here’s to progress.
The exterior
I realized as I was writing this that I never really took a good “before” photo of the entire front yard. I have a few photos from when we moved in, but they’re all closer up – and you know that I’m going to want to celebrate how big these trees get over time. Not much has changed out here, but I found this shot from a few months ago (before the leaves fully few in on our trees), and I figure it’s a good enough before…along with a gorgeous look at how they’re blooming now!
But you know what has changed a lot already? The back yard! We stained the fence, added a playhouse, and painted the ceiling of the back porch. And this space will transform even more this week with the extension of our back patio!
Long term plans back here include an outdoor kitchen, tons of plants, and string lights all along the fence. It may be the smallest yard we’ve ever had, but I have a feeling that in the long run it’ll end up being our favorite!
Fence Stain: October Brown by Valspar | Playhouse (Paint colors: Jasper by Sherwin Williams and Tricorn Black by Sherwin Williams) | String Lights | Rug (Similar)
Ceiling paint: Rain by Sherwin Williams | Outdoor chairs | Grill | Rug (Similar) | Ceiling Fan
the entryway
This is probably the most “complete” space in our home, and I’m grateful for it because it makes quite an impact when you walk into our home! If you want to read more about this space, here’s where I talked about the wallpaper and furniture, here’s where I added beadboard paneling, and here are all the details on the large art prints above the stairs!
I still have a couple of things here I’ll likely tweak down the line – the lamp color isn’t really working for me now that the green paneling is in, and someday when the kids are older I’m sure we’ll remove the carpet from the stairs. But, for now, this space is pretty much everything I dreamed it could be!
Wall Color: First Star by Sherwin Williams | Paneling Color: Bonsai Trunk by Behr | Entry Table | Wallpaper | Faux Leaves | Mirror | Lamp | Acrylic Tray
The great room
We still have big (HUGE!) plans for this space, including adding several things on the walls, swapping out the builder-grade light fixtures, installing a fireplace, and changing literally everything in the living room except for the sofa and leather chair. Oh, and I’m sure somewhere down the line (far down the line) we’ll tackle a kitchen renovation because the all-white cabinetry, granite counters, and the gray backsplash are all things I wouldn’t have chosen myself!
But, I have to say that even in this fully unfinished (some might even say kind of blank) state, I am so in love with this space. We were nervous about living in a fully open-concept home, but so far it has been the exact right decision for us!
Wall Color: First Star by Sherwin Williams | Sofa | Leather Chair | Rug | Dining Table | Dining Chairs | Floor Lamp | Floor Basket
Island Color: NYPD by Behr | Shiplap tutorial | Barstools | Pendant lights | Learning Tower | Wreath | Cutting Board
Master bedroom
Maaaaaybe my favorite transformation we’ve ever done. Our master bedroom is seriously my favorite room in the house and is the best master we’ve ever had by a long shot. I added DIY picture molding all around the room, hung the most luxurious gold curtains, and built a pair of DIY nightstands for beside the bed. It still needs a bit of work (most notably, the wall opposite our bed which is completely blank other than a tv and a dust-gathering (ugly) console we picked up for free in our neighborhood.
But, you know, progress! Let’s celebrate it!
Wall Color: Ink Black by Behr | Bed Frame | Duvet | Rug | Mirror | Curtains | Lamps | Frame TV | Hall Light | Faux Fiddle Leaf
laundry room
This room is still actively in progress (I’m hoping to get the shelving hung this week!), but I’m so excited about how it’s all coming together. It was a really great blank slate with good bones (that floor tile!), and I knew it had the potential to be amazing.
Still on the to-do list? Adding shelving, possibly some art on the large wall, and figuring out a cute way to store all of the ugly laundry supplies. Any ideas for me?!
Wood Counter | Black Tile {Tutorial, Sealing} | Light | White Cabinet | Rug
game room
While I can’t reveal all of the progress in the game room to you yet (we’re currently doing a Phase 1 makeover of it with Home Depot!), I figure a few sneak peeks don’t hurt anything, right?!
This was the space in our house we were probably the most excited about when we moved in – we were desperately in need of a separate play space for the kids, and we wanted a cozy family movie room as well. Up until a couple of weeks ago this space wasn’t functioning very well for us, but we’re already seeing a huge difference with the changes we’ve made so far, and I have a feeling it’ll end up being the most-used room in the house when all is said and done!
Wall Color: Coliseum Marble by Behr | Shiplap Color: Black Evergreen by Behr | Shiplap | Sectional | Rug | Coffee Table | Pouf | Faux Olive Tree | Media Console
We’ve come a long way already with this house and, as hard as it is to believe, in the next month or so we’ll have tons of other new spaces to reveal to you!
And, of course, lest you worry that we’re going to run out of things to do here quickly, that won’t be an issue. We have a ginormous list of to-dos that range from the small (hanging some art) to the large (adding windows, a full master bathroom renovation), and we’ve got yeeeeeears of work ahead of us.
For now, we’re just gonna sit back and enjoy the process!
I just found your blog the other day, loving having a look around and seeing all the DIY projects you guys have tackled together! Also gathering inspiration! Your house is lovely, well done!! I stumbled across your blog because I was looking up reviews on the lounge II sofa, as we are thinking about getting it for one of our living areas. However, looking at your new house photos It doesn’t seem like you have it anymore! Wondering did it end up not making the cut? Or did it just not hold up very well after a couple years? Any follow up info you have on it would be so appreciated! Thanks!
Hi Stefany! We LOVED that sofa, it just didn’t really work with the layout of this house. It’s so much more spacious and we wanted sectionals in both living spaces. I would 100% buy that sofa again if it worked for a future space!