End of Summer Bucket List

Planner: Kate Spade | Notebook: Kate Spade | Monogrammed Candle: C.Wonder |  Paper Organizer: Target 

It's crazy to think that it's August let alone some people are already back-to-school. It feels like summer just started yesterday, and i'm a little bummed I have yet to achieve a serious sun tan. 

But while the days of 80+ degree weather is limited, i've created my own little bucket list of things i'd like to do before it starts to get too cold. 

1.) Visit the beach
2.) Go boating .. a few more times ;) 
3.) Run a 5k 
4. ) Wine tasting in Northern Michigan
5.)  Go somewhere new and exciting
6.) Take an extended bike ride around town
7.) See a concert in the park
8.) Try something new from the Farmers Market
9.) Take a nap outside
10.) Visit a U-Pick Strawberry Farm

What do you have on your bucket list of things to do before summer ends?

Outdoor Living - Part 2

So yesterday, I shared how awesome our yard was this spring, fresh from the melting snow. Since then we've removed all the weeds, ivy, leaves  and roots from overgrown trees. We then added new plants, patio furniture, mulch and grass (which is still a work in progress in some areas.) 

And yes that little black statue thing in the far right of the photo above came with the house. We didn't discover him until the snow melted. He's  a creepy/scary gargoyle but we've come to love and affectionately call him Goyle. As we've read they are to scare away demons from our home. So we've kept him for good luck and so far no problems. 

furniture & pillows: lowes 

When it came to patio furniture, the possibilities are endless, but so many options are super expensive. I searched high and low for something affordable and when we stumbled upon this set at Lowes, I couldn't have been happier. For the two couches, two chairs, and table we only spent $400. 

The pillows were $13 each, and the seat cushions ranged from $15-20 a piece costing a  grand total of $148. All said and done - $548 and some change wasn't that bad compared to some of the other similar sets that were almost double the price. What also helped is that we could buy this set in chunks, opting to only get the two chairs and one couch first and then deciding we liked it enough to complete it at a later date, which took away the sting it could have left on our bank account. 

In addition to the patio furniture, my father in-law agreed to create this console table using directions I can no longer find online to replicate a similar Pottery Barn Console.  I still need to stain it, but all said and done this bad boy cost only $50 where the PB version costs $700.  As a side note, this was made just in time for my birthday party, and it made for an awesome bar. 

While we still have a ways to go, our yard is starting to come together and makes for a great spot for entertaining or to sit back and relax. 

Outdoor Living - Part 1

So, hey guys check out our amazing backyard, it's so pretty! Aren't you impressed with it? Haha, just kidding! These photos are from this spring, after the snow finally melted (in May) and showed that yes life did exist in our yard the year prior, and there may be hope at the end of the tunnel. 

This photo was taken after we had already started the removal of some pretty intense half dead rose plants.  As you can see we inherited a descent sized deck with a pergola, some storage (about 7 trash cans)  & a (very) active bird house. 

The previous owners loved ivy, and had it in almost EVERY single flower bed. It was a real gem to take out. In addition, they hadn't removed ANY of the leaves from the fall, so we got to pick those up too. 

 The deck is in descent shape, but some boards are starting to show their age and warp. We think we have about one-two seasons left out of them before we will just go ahead and replace all of them. 

So who's ready to see the transformation? 

Bright White

When we first moved into our house, we knew that we had to do something to this 1970's fireplace, but we couldn't decide what. We were a bit torn, and our friends weren't much help, some people loved it as is, others agreed we needed to paint it. We gave it a good six months, and then I couldn't take it any longer we had to do something. As the picture above shows, we had lots of issues with this whole set up, too many cords, soot stains that wouldn't go away, discolored bricks from the previous owners etc. 

After searching the internet high and low, I convinced Andy to let me white wash it. From what I read it wouldn't take much paint, and was relatively easy. Someone said it took them all of 30 minutes. 

After finishing the whole bottom half, I stepped back and decided I actually hated it, and Andy agreed. It just had this unfinished texture to the brick, that I didn't love. So we decided to paint the entire thing. At this point I slightly regretted the idea of painting the fireplace because it took forever, multiple coats, and lots of elbow grease. 

But then it started to look pretty, and I liked it better once the mantel & the hearth were painted.  For those wondering the bricks and mantel were painted in Alabaster by Sherwin Williams, and the black used on the hearth is just a heat resistant flat black spray paint from Lowes. 

And here it is with the room not yet decorated, but at least somewhat put together.We still have quite a bit to do, curtains, new window treatments (the current blinds are hideous), hide the wires, new rug, new furniture, add artwork, potentially new flooring, etc. So look for more updates soon! 

So what do you think? 

Washington D.C. Bound

Photo Credit

Our anniversary is just a few weeks away, and I am so excited for the trip Andy and I have planned to Washington D.C. Andy is a Political Science Guru/History Buff/Future Lawyer, so D.C. is like a children's playground for him. That and he knows everything when it comes to our nation's capital, so it'll be like having my own personal tour guide. 

Besides the museum's and monuments I'm really excited for the food. There are so many great restaurants to try I'm not sure how we will fit them all in.  

For those that have been to D.C. any favorites? 

Garage Sale Find

A few weeks ago while hosting our own garage sale, I caught another one down the road and saw this desk for sale. The owner was asking $20 and reassured me of the craftsmanship I'd find in the wood and blah, blah blah.  Truthfully I was looking for something I could "white wash" and then put into my "office" that i'll probably never use,  but hey it was $20, and I was excited for a new project.  So without thinking twice I took it home.

Andy was excited to start on it (I could see the excitement in his eyes, but not really), and we quickly did a search on Pinterest to see how other people "white washed" their furniture. Once we came to an educated consensus on how it appears to be done we ended purchased these supplies:

(1) 14 oz of White Paint w/ Primer 
(1) 8 oz can of Miniwax Clear Finishing Wax
(1) Three Sheet of 120 Grade Sanding Paper
(1) Tube of Wood Filler - We used Elmers

We Already Had:
(1) Paint Brush
(1) Cup to put paint in
Water

Before starting any major wood project we like to dab wood filler in to help make any rough spots, a bit more level.  For this desk, while it had exceptional quality it did need a little bit of repair in a few spots.

Once our Wood Filler dried we we're ready to go we sanded down the entire desk, making sure to remove the previous glue gun spills and marker that although hardly there once existed on the desk.

We then created the "white wash" or one part paint, three part water mixture. Depending on the look you are trying to attain you can make this thinner or thicker by adding more of either water or paint, we then let this dry. (Note: If you make your mixture really watery make sure to check the edges for pooling because once it's dry, it's just a blob and doesn't look very pretty)

Next, Andy got to join in and sand the edges, and make it look "weathered."  When I had the chance to examine it after the fact, I wasn't that thrilled NOT because Andy didn't do a great job, he did, but because I didn't like the color underneath that was coming through, so I did a second coat over it.

Once dry, we put a light coat of the Finishing Wax all over the desk, the directions ask that you put the coat on and then wait 10-15 minutes to then come back and polish. We did that, and to be honest couldn't tell a huge difference.

When it came to put the knobs in, I had originally purchased these gorgeous glass knobs with gold detail, however because of how thick the original holes were that would have taken a lot of wood filler, we decided to spray paint the previous ones gold, and use them. I used Rustolem Spray Paint in Gold (which I use for a lot of things.)

So here is the finished product. What do you think?

Wedding Bells

It has almost been a year since Andy and I said "I do." Its crazy to think how fast the year has gone by,  I feel like it was yesterday that we were running around frantically planning and then finally making the 4+ hour trip up to Mackinaw Island with all our friends. 

This weekend I attended a girlfriends bridal shower, and it reminded me how much I miss one part of getting married. The gifts! Each year there are so many fun and exciting new things to put on a registry, and I couldn't help but be envious of some of the goodies she scored. 

Here are some of my favorite Wedding Season Gifts:

His & Hers Drink Glasses: Kate Spade / Monogram Flute: Williams-Sonoma / Mixing Bowls: Crate & Barrel / Painted Tray: Crate & Barrel / Striped Placemats: Burke Decor / Lemon Dinner Plates: Sur La Table / Monogram Mug: Anthropologie / His & Hers Pillows: Etsy / Monogram Pillow: West Elm

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