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Design Dilemma: Lighting and Furniture Just Barely Don’t Fit

July 8, 2016 by CORINNA HENDERSON

I complained recently on Instagram that I had just nearly, just barely found the perfect piece to fill in the gap of space between our bathroom vanity and the wall. Why yes, holy crap I’m finally talking about the bathroom again. Haha.

But yes, I had that useless gap of space and I had been planning on up shelves but I’ve been lazy. I’ve been using up my energy reserves for other projects I’ve been more inspired to work on or that have needed to get worked on first.

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The more the gap sat, the more it bothered me. Until I was staring at the wicker cabinet that I was no longer sure I wanted. As soon as the idea popped into my head, I grabbed a quick measurement and saw that it would fit perfectly between the vanity counter and the baseboard.

So I dragged it outside, hooked up my paint sprayer, grabbed some leftover white paint and went to town. Once it was dried, I pulled it back inside. I tried to coax it into it’s new home but I kept getting hooked on the toilet paper holder. I eventually worked my way around it, but then I ran into another problem.

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The sconce on this side of the vanity was literally less than an inch too close. The cabinet was pushing the light crooked. Gahhhhh!

Literally everything else about the fit was absolutely perfect. Even where it goes from the bottom shelf up to the upper shelves bends exactly at the window sill.

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At this point, I was too determined to make this work to move it back out. So it sat, crooked sconce and all.

Lightbulb moment: I could cut away the wicker between the two horizontal supports and that would allow for the sconce to hang.

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How To Cut Out A Section Of Wicker

determine which pieces can be removed without cutting within he window of supports.
remove those pieces
the remaining pieces that run through both this section but also into the other sections will need to be cut.
hold the pieces taught and cut with a pair of ultra sharp scissors
glue the ends down onto the horizontal supports to prevent them from shifting out of place and falling out.

This little peekaboo window on the side allows for plant growth overflow and adds and really good vibe to the piece. I find it much more interesting now and my sconce hangs straight. I have a few more projects coming up for the bathroom so make sure you stay tuned. The reveal is finally coming!

Vintage Interior Design Books More Relevant Than Ever

July 7, 2016 by CORINNA HENDERSON

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If you’re an interior design enthusiast like myself, you probably love to learn about past and present trends. I’ve spent a small fortune on a variety of books from actual interior design studies books to those written by my favorite designers. But holy cow, I’ve found a mecca!

In a recent trip to the thrift store, I found some books that are so helpful. And the images are wildly accurate for the current design trends. If there’s ever been anything more reaffirming of this, it’s seeing spaces that I could swear I’ve seen in my Instagram feed on pages with olddddd computers and TVs.

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Here are some I definitely recommend you look for and read now that I’ve picked them up and fallen in love:

Antiques In Interior Design

The Not So Big House

Family Circle Do-It-Yourself Encyclopedia 1

A Practical Guide to Interior Design Planning A Home

And some other equally entertaining books I picked up:

Reader’s Digest Hints and Tips To Make Life Easier

Macrame Creative Design In Knotting

Victorian Dream Homes from Home Planners

The Art Of Hanging Loose in an Uptight World

To be completely honest, I haven’t picked up a book outside of my bible for at least a year. It’s been a fun trip down memory lane since I used to love books. I think it’s an obsession that may be returning. 😉

Now that you have a list of potential reading material, lets browse some of my favorite thrift scores from #thriftscorethursday:

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A post shared by Bobette Carpenter (@bobettecarpenter)

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A post shared by Sandy (@whimsicalblue)

https://www.instagram.com/p/BHalZxjgj7A/

Wanna Play? Here’s The Rules!

We want you to participate! Hit up your local thrift stores, craigslist, yard sales, estate sales, side of the road, anything! Thrifty doesn’t necessarily mean from a thrift store. We want to see your good deals, wacky finds and treasures.
Don’t feel like you need to save those finds for Thursdays! Yes, features are shared on our blogs and Instagram on Thursdays, but we’re all checking in on (and using!) the hashtag all week long. So, when you see/find it, feel free to share it!
Want to get featured? Add the #thriftscorethursdsay hashtag, Follow the hosts (@the_gathered_home, @primitiveandproper, @adesignerathome and @maggieoverbystudios) and tag a friend to play along, too!
Each week, Cassie from Primitive and Proper, Brynne from The Gathered Home, Maggie from Maggie Overby Studios and Myself (A Designer At Home) will pick a favorite thrift score or two to feature! So please note that by linking up with #thriftscorethursday, you are giving us permission to share your finds via social media or on our blogs.

The best part? There are 4 regular posts to check out every Thursday! Yup, you’ve got more thrift scores to look at. I know you’re not disappointed. Ha. Click on my beautiful cohost’s faces below to check out what they’ve scored and featured.

home improvements with a good return on investment

July 5, 2016 by CORINNA HENDERSON

One of the toughest things about home ownership is choosing what to live with, what to improve, and what to completely replace or reconfigure. It’s really hard to find a house that not only ticks all the boxes but that also doesn’t warrant improving in any way. So what do you improve? Obviously fiscal resources will dictate a lot of what you can and can’t do. But what’s really worth it? Sure you may want something, but does it make sense for your neighborhood, the market or long term goals? Let’s dive into things that are pretty much always a good return on investment.

Roof Repairs/Replacement

Your roof is a very precious part of protecting your home. There’s no point in making anything below it better if the roof isn’t going to protect it.

Replacement Windows

A brand new home shouldn’t need this and if you’ve done this fairly recently you shouldn’t need to either. But efficiency matters, leaks aren’t a joke, and outdoor noises are no fun to listen to inside.

Basic Exteriors Work

Old siding, Foundations that need repairs, Broken gutters/shutters/etc. These things keep your home looking and functioning properly. It’s really important to maintain the outside of your home just like it’s important to maintain your furnace. Too quickly the list of small repairs becomes overwhelming.

Maintenance & Upgrading Plumbing/Air Conditioning/Furnaces/Related Systems

It’s easy to take these things for granted. And it’s better for your wallet if you plan on upgrading and servicing these things before you run into problems. And then potential buyers don’t want to factor in the fact that they may need to shell out money just to live comfortably in the house.

Kitchen & Bathroom Upgrades

What makes sense for one person in their neighborhood won’t make sense for someone else. If you’ve got 2 bathrooms in a predominately 2 bathroom neighborhood and you’re thinking of taking on a master bedroom addition that would add a third bathroom but your kitchen is from the 70’s – that doesn’t make sense. On the other hand, if you only have 1 bathroom in homes in your neighborhood have 2, it’s probably smartest to add the second bath before throwing a ton of cash at your kitchen.

If all of these things are in good order with your home and you’ve got the room to improve in your neighborhood and the cash, you’re all set. But you should probably focus on making sure these upgrades are checked off before moving onto anything else.

Small Porch Essentials

July 4, 2016 by CORINNA HENDERSON

Since we just wrapped up a bit of makeover on our front porch and created a porch patio, I thought it’d be fun to share what my porch essentials were. Being the space that greets us every time we get home and that greets our guests, I wanted it to be a space I put some special thought into it.

A porch that I can actually hang out on and enjoy is important for me because it’s where I greet neighbors to hang out and chat. It’s also where I supervise my son playing games in the street. The amount of porch essentials will vary depending on how you use your space. So think about your space and how you use it as you peruse these ideas below:

Every gathering space has to have a lot of seating. I’m an introvert, but when I do have guests over I want them to be comfortable. There’s a seat for everyone. Some of my friends like sitting in my peacock wicker chairs because it’s fun and makes them feel special. Others prefer getting cozy on a couch.

Plants. Get to know how much sun your porch gets and find a plant that will thrive there. Start with one and work your way up to many. A lot of porches benefit from using hanging planters, so if you have an overhang, give it a go and see if it works for you. Plants add life and interest, they’re a perfect accessory. Check out my pro plant purchasing tips guide for ways to get all my plant buying advice.

A welcome mat. Yes, duh, but I think it’s worth mentioning and adding that it should be one that is large enough to be practical and proportional to the size of your house. Too often I see larger homes with dinky little mats. They just look silly.

Pop of color. A pop of color can be as vibrant or muted as you want, but I think it’s important for adding interest to a space (unless you’re a rockstar at a neutral monotone look). I used a mint color to help incorporate the beachy vibes of the neighborhood we live in. I also pulled in orange to contrast with the mint.

Carefully chosen lighting. Evaluate what your purposes your porch needs to serve and your security needs and choose lighting that makes sense. There are lots of different ways to light up a yard so definitely check out your options.

Bring in textiles. Whispy curtains, cushions, rugs: they all make a porch feel cozier. If you want to actually be on your porch, give it some of the same comfort you’d give any other room of your house. Not only did I bring pillows into my porch patio, I also picked up a small area rug that could be thrown in the wash easily.

Accessories. Obviously you don’t want to go too crazy and it’s good to keep weatherproofing in mind. But a cute lantern, handmade banner, windchimes or a citronella candle or two. Those added little touches bring a bit of fun and personality in.

And once you pull all those items together, you’ll have a welcoming and comfortable patio. Even if your space doesn’t have enough room for a chair, you can still do other little things to make the space warm, inviting and charming.

Thrift Shopping For Color

June 30, 2016 by CORINNA HENDERSON

I had noticed somewhat recently that I was getting bored with my thrifting routine. Scarves, baskets and brass thingies were and are all really awesome finds. But I guess I had started getting successful enough at it that it wasn’t feeling like the thrifting challenge I loved.

So I decided on going into my next thrifting adventures with a different mindset. The mindset being that I want to focus on the color scheme of my house in order to get me to branch out to some pieces I may not ordinarily gravitate towards. This has actually already paid off in a great stack of interesting books and a pretty vase.

I did also find a pretty scarf that I’m using as a table runner but I’m also using my dining table as a desk and…

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A post shared by Jennifer K Carbone (@jkcvintagedecor)

Clearly I’m a genius. Haha. So let’s dive into my favorite thrift scores shared to the #thriftscorethursday feed.

Features:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BHJK0EKjzDD/

Great stuff, right? And it’s not everyday you get to peek at a kitchen in the feed. I’m loving this whole shot.

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A post shared by Liz Kamarul (@liz_kamarul)

Wanna Play? Here’s The Rules!

We want you to participate! Hit up your local thrift stores, craigslist, yard sales, estate sales, side of the road, anything! Thrifty doesn’t necessarily mean from a thrift store. We want to see your good deals, wacky finds and treasures.
Don’t feel like you need to save those finds for Thursdays! Yes, features are shared on our blogs and Instagram on Thursdays, but we’re all checking in on (and using!) the hashtag all week long. So, when you see/find it, feel free to share it!
Want to get featured? Add the #thriftscorethursdsay hashtag, Follow the hosts (@the_gathered_home, @primitiveandproper, @adesignerathome and @maggieoverbystudios) and tag a friend to play along, too!
Each week, Cassie from Primitive and Proper, Brynne from The Gathered Home, Maggie from Maggie Overby Studios and Myself (A Designer At Home) will pick a favorite thrift score or two to feature! So please note that by linking up with #thriftscorethursday, you are giving us permission to share your finds via social media or on our blogs.

Occasionally we are graced by a guest cohost and today it’s Karen from Copper Dot Interiors. Please be sure to give her some extra love for joining us today.

Ways To Save On Summer Utility Costs

June 29, 2016 by CORINNA HENDERSON

Gosh, is it blazing hot outside for anyone else? We’re still in the beginning of summer here so the evenings and mornings are still bearable, but here pretty soon it’s going to be indoor season and the AC is going to be earning it’s keep. So naturally I’ve been doing a bit of research on ways I can help keep those utility costs from skyrocketing because I need to preserve my thrifting budget, haha.

We have a couple of things in place that are already working in our favor: Metal awnings on most of the windows (I recently removed a few when working on our curb appeal) to keep the sun from heating up rooms unnecessarily and our unit is on a side of the house that gets less sunlight than the other sides of the house. As part of a year long collaboration with Rheem, I want to chat a bit today about this heat and the effect it has on our utility bills.

Short of paying a fortune to have all our walls ripped down and reinsulated with the best stuff, what else can I do?

Low Cost & No Cost Ideas for Saving On Utility Bills:

Because I live in an older home, some rooms seem to be more prone to getting hotter during the day than others. Instead of turning my beloved temperature of 75 down, I can get a small window unit for cheap on craigslist to cool those rooms when we need them to be more comfortable.
Replace filters. I know this now that I’ve started looking into these things (I was a first time homeowner before my parents so I didn’t grow up knowing an awful lot) but at least every season check, clean and replace those filters.
Lower drapes or even close them when the sun is on the side of the house the windows face. This helps to reduce the natural warming up the sun provides much like our awnings.
Toaster ovens, crock pots, microwaves and outdoor grills. Avoid using the oven and stove if you can help it. A 350 plus degree fahrenheit oven is definitely going to heat up the kitchen.
Make up for the increase in electric use by lessening other bills. I rely heavily on rainwater collection during the summer months to help makeup for the extra electricity use. We use this for wet outdoor play, gardening and rinsing off the car/patio/bikes/etc. I also save extra water from my kitchen sink to water plants!
Caulk. The caulk around my home is in very sad shape. So one of my upcoming “not so fun” projects is going to be tearing out the thick old caulk and replacing it with fresh caulk.
Let timers and solar power do their thing. Utilize lights in the yard that will run on solar and for lights you need extra reliability from, choose motion sensing and dusk to dawn lights to save on the power draw. See more landscaping lighting advice here.
Air dry dishes.
Wash clothes on “cold.”
When I feel like I’m getting hot in the house and want to crank the A/C down, I go outside for 20 minutes. Perspective is everything, isn’t it?

Do you have any low cost/no cost ideas for keeping those electric bills down this summer? I feel like some of these things takes a bit of a lifestyle shift but I’m happy and I hope you’ll give them a go, too.