Lighting

It's been awhile (a long while) and no promises but I decided I needed to start recording these updates on a regular basis again. We'll see how that actually goes...

I've done a few updates to the lighting since I last posted including getting a new fixture for the front entry and moving that fixture to the back entry which made a huge difference.


That being said there is still a long ways to go. I despise boob lights. Could there really not have been a better choice then these jokers?

Capital Lighting

They are builder grade and due to us having a very limited budget while building these lovelies were scattered throughout our house. Now that we are becoming a little more settled (still a LONG way from being comfortable though) I'm starting to become ready to switch them out for more up-to-date fixtures with a bit more character. Although this house started as a 5-7 year house for us, we're already at 4 years and have no plans to even being moving anytime soon....although I did recently list us on Zillow at a make-me-move price about $75,000 over the last estimate of our house. That's why it's classified as "Make Me Move" right?

Here are some updates I'd like to get to eventually. I keep lots of records on my Pinterest boards now but that doesn't record where we've been & the path along the way :).

KITCHEN:
1. It's so dang dark in here, I want to put in some under cabinet lighting operated on a switch.

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2. Again, speaking of the darkness, I'd like to add a semi-flush mount fixture in the center of the room. I loved this one but apparently Ballard doesn't carry it anymore.

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3. I really like the look of little pendants hanging down over the sink. I don't know if this would end up being too busy & I don't know about having to have pretty bulbs but I like this one.

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LAUNDRY ROOM:

This just has your standard boob light which does a good enough job of lighting up the room but I'd like a little more character. Something along these lines but less expensive & smaller.

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STAIRS:

The lights we currently have are good enough but not really my style. I'd like something low-profile but with style, like this, but that emits a bit more than just a "warm glow."

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TIM'S CLOSET:

Poor guy has a straight-up florescent fixture, ugly as can be & awful colored lighting no matter the bulb. I'd like to get him something that gives better light for him & isn't ugly (for me).

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UPSTAIRS BEDROOMS, BONUS ROOM & MASTER BEDROOM:

I know some people don't like ceiling fans but around here the mugginess just sits on you like a wet blanket and without the extra airflow from ceiling fans in the bedroom it just gets to be a bit stifling. That being said, I'd like to have ceiling fans that are attractive and add to the room rather than detract. The upstairs rooms & bonus room currently only have lights in them & we have an ugly ceiling fan with a light kit so I'd like to replace all four with something like this, but not $400 each, yikes!

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FAMILY ROOM:

We currently have 4 can lights & a fan in the den but although the plan was originally to add a light kit to the fan I think I'd rather just replace it. If I couldn't convince Tim to get rid of the fan altogether I'd likely just get the same as what is in the bedrooms but I think some negotiating with putting the fan in the bonus room just might let me get away with getting rid of that one. In that case I think I want a rustic looking chandelier which I haven't seen any of that really interest me just yet.

HALLWAY:

Our upstairs hallway just has can lighting (smart!) but our downstairs hallway still has a boob light. I think that I'd like to replace it with the flush-mount that matches all of our other pieces.

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HALF BATH & OFFICE:

I can't remember if the half-bath has a vanity light fixture or if it has a ceiling mount. I could swear to you that it is a ceiling mount though. I have some big plans for this room (at least for now) which a large light would compete with too much so I think I want something pretty, but low-profile.

The office has the most basic flush-mount imaginable right now with no character at all but I'd like to replace it with this very simple flush-mount that does not look like a boob. (side-note: I'd also consider this for the Laundry Room & for the Hallway).

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MASTER BATH & GUEST BATH:

This is our current fixture in our master bathroom & I'm pretty sure its the same but with a different number of lights for the guest bathroom:

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Nothing really bad about it, but nothing particularly interesting either. I also want to frame in our mirror & put a built-in cabinet between our sinks for more storage so we will need two separate fixtures for that to work. 

For our master bath, I'd like something a little quirky & am willing to spend a bit more since I will be using it/seeing it multiple times each day. Something like this could be fun.

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For the guest bathroom I think I'd end up waiting to see if our first child ends up being a little girl or a little boy because I love both of these (although they'd both be too small).

Little Girl:

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Little Boy (in antique brass):

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Ultimately I think we can all learn a lesson from this...boob lights are not a necessity and even builder basic could transition into something much more attractive such as this. :)

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Updates (Downstairs) - pictures & details to follow!

Front Entry
- Got a rug (HomeDecorators.com)
- Got a new light (Ballard Designs)
- Got a table (Craigslist - $35)
- Got some art (by friends)
- Made some curtains (I did it)

Dining Room
- Got rid of the table & chairs (sold on Craigslist)
- Got a hutch/china cabinet (Ballard Designs)

Hallway
- Got rugs (West Elm)
- Got art (frame gallery fm Target, others custom framed)

Office
- Painted (mixed a few random colors together)
- Built desk & shelf (I did it)
- Built in corkboard (I did it)

Back Entry
- Replaced light (from front entry)
- Got a vase... (that empty area was killing me - Neiman Marcus)

Family Room
- Got a TV (& surround sound - thanks lightning storm - Jeff Lynch)
- Got some art (custom framed & donated by Grandma)
- Got tables (Rug & Home)
- Got couches (Hand me downs, sold the others on Craigslist)
- Got lamp (local antique store)
- Got pillows (Pottery Barn)

Kitchen
- Curtains (shower curtain from Pottery Barn, spray painted rod from West Elm)
- Art (spray painted EAT from Hobby Lobby, frames from Pottery Barn)
- Under cabinet storage (Lowe's)
- iPad mount (gift from brother & sister-in-law)
- Barstools (hand-me-downs)
- Rug (Pottery Barn)
- Trash Can (Bed, Bath & Beyond)
- Added spice rack to lower cabinet (Lowe's)

Pantry
- New shelving configuration (I did it)

Master Bedroom
- Quilt (Pottery Barn)
- New Dog Bed (I did it)
- New buffet (Local antique store refinished by me)
- Bedskirt (Pottery Barn)
- Art (by me)
- New TV (Best Buy Black Friday purchase)
- Bedside lamps (Pottery Barn)

Master Bathroom
- New rugs (Pottery Barn)
- New towels (Belk)
- Updated gallery wall (by me)
- Reconfigured Tim's Closet (by me)
- Reconfigured My Closet (by me)
- New toilet plunger (ooh fancy... - Lowe's)

Half (Guest) Bath
- Storage Cabinet (Pottery Barn)

Laundry Room
- Air Register (Lowe's)
- Art (Ballard Designs)
- Drying Rack (Ballard Designs)
- Rug (Ballard Designs)

No Excuses

There've been quite a few changes in my life recently not limited to a new job, raising almost $15,000 for cancer research, dealing with multiple different courses of treatment for Tim (and about to start a new one), trying to keep a house together, trying to keep my sanity & trying to keep up a social life, but honestly I just got bored of blogging for awhile (pbly bc I've been keeping up with Tim's blog so much). Still probably won't be back full time but thought I'd catch everyone up on what I've been up to lately!

So here are a few posts you can look forward to reading sometime (hopefully soon):

A new dog bed - constructed by me (& my dad)
My latest obsession - Accupuncture!
Dehydrating Food - aka what not to do
Refinishing a buffet - still can't believe I did it
Some things I'm dreaming about right now
Hanging a flatscreen/hiding the cables
New kitchen rug, trash can (& soon curtains)
New hallway runner(s) & art
New bedroom art
Restructuring the bathroom gallery wall
Curtains for the front door
New art for the den & new (to us) couches
San Francisco Trip
Refresh of the pantry
Little landscaping refresh
Garage Clean-out/Basement Organization

And here are some (hopefully) upcoming projects that will be happening at the hizzay sooner than later:

Cabinets in the laundry room
Replace transom in the laundry room (seriously dad...lets finish this one! :))
Staining/sealing the back deck (yep 2 1/2 years later we still haven't done this)
More landscaping...
Master Bedroom curtains
Hallway Art Project
Master Bedroom Art Project(s)
Front/Back Hall Light Replacements (might as well do it at the same time)
Front Hall Rug

....told you I've been busy.

Not too much of a welcome . . . yet

So right now when you walk in our house its blank...as in tan walls, brown floors and thats about it. I mean even the carpet is a slight beige color. Along with having issues keeping plants alive, I also have issues making decisions so anything that is slightly difficult to change (paint colors, carpet, wood stain, etc) is immediately regulated to my neutral color palette. I'm always afraid I'm going to regret my decision and be too lazy to change it after putting in the work. That statement will make a lot more sense after you see the mirror/porthole I bought without measuring to see if it would fit first...oops!

 Below is a reference picture:

Can you make out any shapes or do all of the tans just blend together? Anyways, as you can see there is a LONG way to go with this "room".

Things we have left to do here:

1. Buy a rug! - My grandfather helped us out by paying for our wood floors as a wedding gift and we are SO glad he was kind enough to sponsor those for us, they turned out really well! With as much as we like them we would like to keep them protected since this is the main entrance to our house, plus why give up an excuse to go to Pottery Barn? Problem for me may be that every rug I like right now happens to be on clearance (usually a great thing for me) and each time I'm actually ready to buy one they sell out of the size I need, go figure. Anyways here is the rug I love for this space that will most likely be sold out when I finally head back over to pick it up.

2. Update the light fixture -  Don't get me wrong, I adore our current fixture but it doesn't make as much of a "statement" as I'm looking for. My big plan is to move the current fixture into the back hallway and replace it with this beauty from Restoration Hardware, stay tuned for the electrocution of the newlywed. Just kidding my dad will be supervising me, or I may supervise him as I "learn" what I'm doing, aka talk him into doing it for me. Right now the only problem being that I finally saw this in person last weekend and it may actually make too much of a statement...I should probably get out that measuring tape!

3. Find a console table - The one below from Pier 1 is similar to what I like but not all there just yet, we'll see what I come across. I've started searching antique stores but still can't really see what a piece of furniture could be from what it already is and can't commit to any one piece (see indecision above). 

4. Get some art for that tan wall... and yes it still is kind of neutral but in my defense it does have some brighter colors in it. I found this on Pier 1 online and haven't seen it in person but am thinking I would want to replace the frame with something nice, big, chunky and brown (sounds like a description of some shoes I want right now as well...).

5. Get some knick-knacks onto the table - Typically I am not a fan of knick-knacks (aka dust collectors) but I have recently discovered that I don't think something really looks "done" until it has a knick-knack involved. Maybe a bowl that had a previous life mixing dough, some scholarly hard-cover books I can try to convince people I actually read but in fact have never picked up in my life, picture frames that I'll never get around to actually putting a picture into or even some type of little statue, but no candles for this girl. I've learned that candles + me = danger, whether it be hot wax spilled everywhere or the fact that I left a candle burning all night...again...its just never a good ending. 


Now that I actually put this all down it doesn't seem like there all too much to do...well except starting to make some decisions. This could take awhile...