Work Weekend Recap

Last weekend, we had a work weekend. My husband, father-in-law, and mother-in-law were able to take Friday off to start working upstairs. They worked all day Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. We also had both of my parents and a friend helping on Sunday. We got so much done! I won't show you everything, because I want to show you a big reveal when it's all finished, but I can't help but give you another sneak peek!

My mom and I worked on framing, upholstering and adding legs to our box spring. (Tutorial coming soon!)

 The guys drywalled the holes in our bedroom wall.

And sanded, stained, and polyurethaned our floor. (And accidentally broke the window... it was already cracked, it just got worse.)

 And took out our banister and built a new wall.

And took the carpet up and started framing the new rooms.

And my mother-in-law watched our toddler and our friend's 2 kids, plus did all our laundry, cleaned, and helped with the bedroom floor. We weren't busy at all! Ha.

And our friend found us these 2 AMAZING old doors in his cousin's barn that we will be using in the new rooms. And his cousin gave them to us for free. SHOUT OUT to Jon and cousin Dave!

Master Bedroom Remodel

So you know how I told you a couple of posts ago that we had lots of projects going on? I wanted to give you a sneak peak of our biggest one! We are completely remodeling 2 of the 3 rooms in our upstairs. Well, technically 1 of them isn't even a room yet. It's a loft that we're making into a room for the baby. But first we have to do all this stuff to the master bedroom (which I'm actually excited about, because it's been sorely neglected!).

First, here is a picture of what it looked like when we bought our house. Lovely, right?

And here are a couple pictures of what it looked like as we've been living in it. Not horrible, but as I said, I've neglected this room in the decorating process. We put new paint on the walls, took out the carpet (and found original, unfinished hardwood underneath!), and added our furniture.

And here is a preview of our makeover. We are in the process of adding 2 new closets to our room (they're almost done!), so we can knock out the closet that is in the room currently. We have to move our door to where the old closet is so we have room to add a bathroom upstairs.

(Just had to add this picture of our little "helper" because he's adorable)

I'm so excited for the construction part to be over so I can decorate! I made a little "inspiration" board for what I'm wanting to do with the room. Most of the room will be done in light blues and whites. And (as of right now) will have just a few coral accents. Aka, a few candles, maybe a pillow or two and a vase of flowers. I am also going to put a reading chair with a footstool (that I'm hoping to build myself) and a little round table in the alcove in between the new closets. I have a beautiful vision in my head and I hope it turns out the way I'm envisioning!

What do you think? I can't wait to get it done!

P.S. Here's the final reveal!

Winter Paint Colors

Earlier this year (or I guess last year!), I shared with you some paint colors that reminded me of fall. I wanted to do the same thing for winter. I used Pratt and Lambert Paints as the type of paint. When I worked as an interior designer, my company sold Pratt and Lambert and their paint is really good. (Again, they're not paying me to say that!) It's the paint I'm familiar with, so that's why I'm using it.

What are your favorite colors that remind you of winter?

Interior Design Standard Measurements

Have you ever wondered exactly what height outlets or light switches are supposed to be off of the floor? Or how tall a kitchen counter usually is? Or what the average width of a dining room chair is? Well, here are some answers!

Outlets and light switches:

• Outlets are typically placed 12"-18" off the floor.
• Light switches are typically placed 48" off the floor (to the center of the switch).

Dining room standards:

• Chairs are typically 18"-19" wide.
• Behind table and chairs you need about 2 feet for people to be able to walk (with the chair pulled out).
• To pull out your chair, you need about 2 feet as well, totaling at least 3 feet to 4 feet of space between the wall and the table. 
• A 48" round table will seat 6 people.

Source

Kitchen standards:

• Counters are typically 36" tall.
• Islands are typically 38" tall.
• Kitchens should have a work triangle between the sink, stove, and refrigerator. Any 2 appliances should be no less than 3 feet apart and no more than 7 feet apart. Total sides of the triangle should measure no less than 12 feet. 

Source

Mantel and pictures:

• Mantels should be at least 6" above the opening of the fireplace.
• Pictures should be hung at 57" on center (meaning the center of the picture is at 57").

Source

Mattress sizes:

• Twin 39"x75"
• Full 54"x 75"
• Queen 60"x80"
• King 76"x80"

Source

I hope these standards will be helpful for you! Are there any others that you would like to know about?

Beautiful Kitchens

Hey everyone, I've been super busy and haven't had time to write anything, but I wanted to let you know I'm still here. So here are some beautiful kitchen pictures I've found on the web.

BHG

BHG

Source

Southern Living

Source

Top 10 American House Styles (#3)

I have had so much fun writing about some of the most popular house styles in America (check out the first 6 here and here)! Today, I'm giving you the last 4 in the top 10. Spanish Eclectic, Tudor Revival, Colonial Revival, and Contemporary.

Spanish Eclectic
Spanish Eclectic style blends design elements from Spain and Italy. You can tell this type of house by its low-pitched red roof, stucco siding, and arches. 

Spanish Eclectic

Spanish Eclectic

Tudor Revival
Tudor style houses are reminiscent of the Tudor Period in England. They often have visible timber framing, parapets (a low, protective wall along the edge of a roof, bridge, or balcony), and gables. They most often also use brick as part of the exterior.  

Tudor Revival 

Tudor Revival

Colonial Revival
Colonial Revival homes have symmetrical brick or wood exteriors and gabled roofs. Most homes in this style use pillars or columns to frame the porch or entry. This style "was all about patriotism and a desire to retreat from earlier Victorian excesses and build something more authentically American." (MSN)

Colonial Revival

Colonial Revival

Contemporary
Contemporary homes are a sort of hybrid. They take design elements from an array of different periods and blend them together to make an ideal home. These homes also incorporate today's lifestyles into their floor plans. For example, many of them have a great room in which families can easily entertain and use in a multitude of ways.

Contemporary

Contemporary

I hope you've enjoyed defining the most popular American house styles! If you have any questions or comments, I would love to read them! 

Top 10 American House Styles (#2)

Yesterday, I started introducing you to the top American house styles. We started with the Prairie School, Victorian, and the Cape Cod styles. Today, are the Art Deco, Craftsman Bungalow, and Ranch styles. 

Art Deco
You can most often find examples of Art Deco in big cities, such as New York, Los Angeles and Miami. It uses a lot of geometric design, symmetry, and patterns. It is a very streamlined style, especially found on the exterior of buildings. The Chrysler Building in New York City is a very famous example of Art Deco.

Chrysler Building

Miami Art Deco

Craftsman Bungalow
This is my all-time favorite style of house. I absolutely LOVE everything about it! The Craftsman Bungalow is part of the Arts and Crafts era, where artists celebrated working with their hands and using natural materials. The exterior of a bungalow is marked by its low-pitched roof, wood or stone siding and thick square pillars. It also characterized by using earth-toned colors. Because it's my favorite, I'm putting in extra pictures :)

Craftsman

Craftsman

Craftsman 

Craftsman

Ranch
Ranch style houses started after WWII, when suburban developments became popular. Garages became more popular and were most often attached to the house. Ranches are characterized by the fact that they only have one floor. 

Ranch 

Ranch

Come on by tomorrow for the last segment which includes Spanish Eclectic, Tudor Revival, Colonial Revival, and Contemporary styles.

Top 10 American House Styles (#1)

We all have certain styles that appeal to us, but most of us don't know the names of the styles we like. I ran across this MSN article that tells what the top American house styles are. I thought I would share it with you and post some pictures, so you can know what your favorite style is called!

The styles are:
Prairie School, Victorian, Cape Cod, Art Deco, Craftsman Bungalow, Ranch, Spanish Eclectic, Tudor Revival, Colonial Revival, and Contemporary. I'm going to give a little snippet of information about each of these styles, and therefore, will be posting this in 3 parts.

Prairie School
This style was made famous by the architect Frank Lloyd Wright. It uses horizontal lines which mimic the prairie landscape, and is often even integrated into the landscape. It has flat roofs with overhanging eaves, and windows grouped together to make more horizontal lines.

FLW "Falling Water" House

FLW "Robie" House

Victorian
Victorian style is easily recognizable because it uses a lot of ornamentation, embellishments and fancy woodwork. There are a lot of types of Victorian architecture because the style spans more than 60 years of the Victorian era. One type is the Queen Anne style, which is known for it's "flamboyant combination of Victorian excesses such as turrets, gables, bays, and towers." (MSN)

Victorian Style

Queen Anne Style

Cape Cod
Unlike the Victorian style, the Cape Cod style has very little ornamentation. It often has a chimney on one side of the house (in older styles, the chimney was in the very center), dormer windows and finished half-stories.

Cape Cod Style

Cape Cod Style

Check back tomorrow for the next 3 styles, Art Deco, Craftsman Bungalow, and Ranch!