When You Stumble Upon Perfection...

Drewpy and I were participating in one of our favorite hobbies.... Driving around looking at houses.... It's almost overwhelming how many horrible McMansions there are out there. WHY??? As we were driving through a land if stucco this beauty appeared, and restored my faith in humanity.

Just look at this masterpiece. Cedar shakes that are first, actual cedar. Second, stained and not painted. The cream trim with the blue stain. The details on the trim, and corbels. The five paneled, stained door, with the stain breadboard ceiling. The positioning of the porch, the shape of the porch.... I'm geeking out over here! The turret room windows are stained glass, and the mission style windows are so perfect.

I could go on..... And on..... And on..... And on.....

The side of the house, I love how from the front it hides the homes massiveness.... But more than that, it is well done ALL THE WAY AROUND.... One of my biggest pet peeves is what I call a "faceplate home". Remember the phones where you could change the front cover? That's what the new cheap homes remind me of, where the front has detail and trim that only wraps around two inches on the other side of the house.... It's offensive. Quit doing that! Thanks! Smitten by this house!

 

Just a Little Guy

This is a little house I worked on.....

I wanted a yellow door.... Benjamin Moore Palladian Blue was the owners choice. You know I'm crazy about my yellow doors...

(My yellow door, and Cleo who looks extremely small.... She is extremely not...)

Maybe next time darling little house.

The inside of this house was AWESOME! Royal red carpet, pink trim, and pastel green walls. All over the heaviest Sheetrock texture you have ever seen. Looked like frosting. Basically the home could have been the inside of the castle at the end of the game Candyland. If that jovial king became depressed, brought in a whole bunch of cats and let himself go.

People do creative problem solving in their homes when they add additions. Check out the countertop and cupboards notched out for the doorway.

Kitchen is simple and cheap. I wanted pendant lights that would help create a visual divider for the two rooms. I found the look I liked at Home Depot for $90 a light. Then found the "look for less" at Lowes for $40 a light. Deal.

How great does Drew's board and batten look? Answer: good. I had to pick a paint color for the floor which was fun. First color I chose got an oil top coat which made the whole thing look yellow. Second color is Benjamin Moore Shenandoah Taupe. With a water based acrylic top coat which thank heavens is actually clear.

The bathroom before.

I went with the square tile on the floor because this house had a tight budget, and these are cheaper but still look nice. And this 1000 sq/ft home has a much more urban loft feel. The straight lines definitely fit that look. I loved this vanity. Shaker panel doors, and an all white marble top. Roth and Allen line from Lowes. Small house, small budget, big change.

Tears....

I have been laughing about this for weeks.... I keep making people listen to it, my mom and I cried we were laughing so hard.... The more I listen the funnier it gets!

Listen here.

Braverman Kitchen Cabinets

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While I was putting together some design boards for clients I was also expanding my mind by catching up on endless television shows.... One of which was Parenthood... A great one...

I feel for these cabinets, not necessarily the color.... Which is nice, but the paneling.  Amazing.  I think they would look exceptional if they were painted a nice deep grey.... ah! Love...  A great version of a classic look.

You can find these pictures and more movie and television show homes on this awesome blog.

hookedonhouses.net

Scraps....

We had extra 6" crown moulding and sheet metal from the office makeover Drew and I did. We were able to make a 2 1/2' x 2 1/2' magnet board. As of right now I have kept the natural wood, even leaving the nail holes and I love it. Kind of a rustic/reclaimed look. It's the perfect place for me to hang amd display my favorite inspiration pictures from magazines. And paper tape... Or washi tape.... Are you kidding me, I'm mad about it. I would put it on every inch of my house, home, body.... You name it....

I want them all!

After this project was done and we did it all with scraps we had in the garage I realized being a hoarder might not be so bad.....

Parade of Homes Spring Lane

There was a Parade of Homes that we walked through. Their credit card machine was down so we toured the only one we wanted to see for free. Perfect.

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This painting was from the designer Robert McArthur.

The exposed brick walls , with three pendant lights, and large crown on the cupboards was done really well. I'm not sure I'm sold on painting trim the same color of the walls.

What I'm really taken with is everything they repurposed and reused in this house. It started with this bench. Love the distressed colors.

Wallpaper is so fun! Love this silverware wallpaper in the dining room.

Stained paneled ceiling, lit up by this funky steal punk light. I appreciate the unexpected.

The transoms in this house I believe we're all original and reused. The doors were weathered and superb.

Crazy about the wood and stain on this island. The large shaker panels worked well.

This art could easily be a DIY. It's subway art with names of near by streets and places. I'm not sure if there was deeper significance to the specific names, but they could easily make this custom for you.

This large tile mosaic was really neat. So we're Drewpy's shoe covers.

Exposed brick wall in the mudroom. The paint on the trim was perfect for this room.

What is better than wallpaper? Wallpaper in unexpected places. This wallpaper is on the ceiling in a bathroom and is vintage postal notes, totally adorable. And the huge crown moulding. Brilliant.

More transoms.

Brass plumbing fixtures...

This penny tile wasn't laid very well, I'm sure it's not an easy task, but I love the idea.

I want Drew to build this for me. It's a small little end table that looks like some weathered 4x4's.

Wainscot....

Mason jar light love.

Windmill wallapaper in the laundry room. I am so crazy about grey cabinets.

This twin bed built into the nook of the room to increase size of room. I think I'm crazy about it. But don't know if it would just end up driving the sleeper crazy. The built in bookshelf is terrific.

Oh my.... The trim in this room.... The built in seat with the window above, is charming.

Track lighting in a bedroom? It works in this little nook perfectly! Love this use of space in the home.

It was such a charming home. Love seeing how people can make old things new.

Doors of Europe

Oh the doors..... The details, the patina.... Love!

The ones on the water make me especially jealous.... Can't beat that. I want to go to there.... Liz Lemon.

The metal work is phenomenal, the wood work exceptional.

Brick work above is so pretty, and such a subtle elegance.

There are no words....