Top ten pins

Hey all! Well, our winter break turned into three weeks – another day off school today! We got more snow last night and the roads were crap so I’m glad they canceled again. We’ll hit 40 today and I can already hear the snow falling off the roof (SO loud). I’m ready to see the ground again!
I’ll be back to normal posting next week for sure – they won’t go up quite as late in the day! :)
So are you (still) a Pinterest fan? It’s kind of lost it’s dazzle to me – I still use it but it became a bit overwhelming. Just a lot of STUFF and overstimulation I guess. I do use it a lot to search for specific DIY/decorating things though – probably more than Google now. It’s just not not the obsession it once was for me.
So I was interested when my blog friend Melissa recently shared how to look up my most popular pins for any time period, say in the past year. (Go to analytics, set your time frame, acquisition, all referrals, Pinterest.) It was fascinating to see, especially since so many of them didn’t have great photos. I know the perfect shot will be pinned more, but many of these weren’t all that great so I thought that was cool.
My tenth most popular pin for 2013 was this one for my black doors in the basement:
I don’t see the black door trend going anywhere soon. At least I hope not cause I love it. :) You can see the post for the how-to here.
This one is a great example of a random picture that seemed to pique people’s interest:

That photo is a Goodwill lamp I spray painted and I think it’s funny that a shot like this would bring so much interest. Just goes to show it doesn’t need to be perfect. :)
One of my favorite projects ever, my $50 wood planked wall was number seven:

It was so easy and we get compliments on it every time someone sees it. Check out the update I made to it recently. :)
Here’s one that surprised me too – a shot of my glittery reindeer in process:

It’s funny because like most of these pins, I got more traffic than actual pins by far. (High pins doesn’t always mean high traffic and vice versa.) This only had 83 repins but brought in a lot of traffic – I think people were probably like, what in the world is that? :)
This one did not surprise me – it’s actually one of my most popular posts I’ve ever done. I shared my ideas on decorating above the kitchen cabinets here:
I think it’s a hard spot to work with and obviously others do too!
My painting tips post, again with a so not fancy photo, was high up there too:
I use an old mug when I’m painting with a brush – it’s so much easier to carry around than a gallon of paint!
This one made me smile – I shared my (easy) “summer beer” recipe in a post about our deck and the drink is what was popular on Pinterest:

It is pretty darn good. ;)
I thought this was interesting because it was a Christmas ornament DIY that wasn’t pinned till late in the year, but it was my third highest for traffic:

Like so many of these, the project wasn’t even from this year!
Another one along the same lines – an end of the year pin about my almost free Halloween decor and it was the second highest pin for traffic:

They really are cheap and easy ideas – file those away for next year. ;)
And my highest that brought me the most visits was a photo of our warm and cozy family room:

Our family room doesn’t look anything like that now but I did love it then! The sofas and rug didn’t hold up well at all – this was from three and half years ago. I think a traditional look will always be popular, that’s for sure! It’s classic and cozy – the reason I love it.
I just thought these were interesting and had to share. What was crazy was how some of the lowest repinned posts brought in more traffic. And some of mine with way more repins aren’t even close to the top ten for traffic.
Are you pinning as much as you used to? Has it lost it’s luster for you? (If you’d like to follow me you can do so here.)
And go ahead and try the summer beer in the winter – it’s allowed. ;)

THIS is the year

Hey hey! I’m writing today from under six inches of snow – with absolutely FRIGID temps coming next week. We’re talking feels like negative 50 degrees in Indiana. What?? So serious question here – what do you do with a Chihuahua dog who hates the cold already in those kind of temps? I mean, that’s not safe for a person, let alone an animal. We’re trying to figure out what the heck we’ll do to take him out?

Anyway, other than the insanely cold temps, I actually quite LOVE this time of year. It’s one of my favorite times really – it’s a new year and everything feels fresh and new and full of possibility. And I fall in love with my house all over again right about now. I get giddy with all the plans in my head.

I can even stand the cooler temps for about another four weeks. I love being warm and cozy in our house…till about mid-February. Then I’m D.O.N.E.

It’s funny because we’ve been in this house almost ten years and I still have a list a mile long of things I’d like to do. A couple of them are dream projects that I would need help with, but most I can do on my own. And that’s why my head feels like it may explode in early January – my list is long. Let’s talk about future plans shall we?

THIS will be the year that I finish painting all the doors black in the house:

The basement doors are done (well, one more door to go to the storage room) and I LOVE THEM. It is a long process because I’ll have to prime every door, but the end result is worth it. (You can see my latest black door here.)

There are two rooms in our house that are a pain in my rear. I can’t figure out a good set up for either one – the loft/former playroom/craft room is one:

My plan for years now has been to build in storage and a window seat along that wall with the window. I keep saying “this is the year!” and it’s never the year…but maybe this one will be the year. We’ll see.

That room is HARD because it basically has one usable wall. The wall with the windows isn’t really functional, the other wall is a half wall and then it’s open on the other side. I want tons of craft storage but also want to make it a bit more of a lounge space again. We don’t really NEED another lounge space but we’d use it more if it was one. It drives me batty not to make good use of a space so I want to make this room more functional this year.

The other room that gives me fits is our living room. Again, with only one useable wall:

At least one of you noticed in the Christmas tree post that I took the drapes down. You’re good! I’m planning a big DIY project on those windows – I wanted to try and tackle it in the month of December and then got my brain function back and realized this year may be better. :)

A few months ago I made a decision about this space. I’ve hated the sofa for seven plus years and I decided I’m 38 years old dangit and if I hate it I’m not going to keep it. I find it hard to replace something that’s functional but not my favorite thing – I feel guilty, like I shouldn’t spend on something when we have something that technically works just fine, you know? But I think I’ve found a really inexpensive option for this room, I just need to go test it out first.

Of course I will continue my record of taking years to finish a space – this time in the mud room. It’s been half way done for two years now:

I shared the latest paint and floor updates to the room earlier this week. I was planning on taking a trip out to Lowe’s today to start the bench but it may not happen with the snow.

I’ve had BIG plans in mind for our kitchen for years now – and yes it involves painting the cabinets. I know there are so many that love wood cabinets and I do too – but ours have some major wear and tear and there’s nothing we can do to fix it, other than sanding them down and restaining. That’s not happening. So, I have little plans that turned into bigger plans and those bigger plans are what are holding be back from starting the whole thing:

But I think I can move ahead with most of it so I’m determined to make that happen this year. I can see it all in my head – it’s been sitting in there for a while now. ;)

The master bedroom redo will continue this year and when I say continue I hope I mean finish:

There’s only one wall painted (it’s been like that since the summer) and I need to get going on that. The bed will get new pillows (most likely a DIY if I can find the right fabric), the bed wall may get some kind of special treatment and sometime this year I’d like to get new floors in there. The carpet is DONE.

Another project I’ve almost started numerous times is painting the family room and kitchen:

Our current wall color is Sisal from Ralph Lauren (one of the top questions I get her on the blog) and we’ve had it up since the day we closed on the house. I came over with the brand new keys and paint and worked for hours on it. :) I’ve been planning something a bit lighter, but then I see a dark, cozy color and fall in love with that again. So we’ll see.

I’m also contemplating a large built in unit where our entertainment “dresser” currently sits:

I’m pretty sure I think I’m five people instead of one, cause I don’t know how this girl (who works like molasses) will be able to accomplish all of this in a year, but it’s fun to daydream, right? I’m hoping to get most of it done!

AND I told my husband the other day that THIS is the year our closet will become a spotless, organized, magical place where stars burst out of your eyes when you walk in. If you could see it you’d know why he laughed and laughed and…laughed some more at me. But it will happen. You can’t see the before pictures though – not until I clean it and even then you’ll be mortified. And when I say that I’m so not being all, oh it’s kind of messy and I’m acting like it’s horrible. NO. It’s horrible. So, there’s that to look forward to. ;)

So do you love this time of year as much as I do? Do you have any fun plans for your home, or at least ones you daydream in your head? Any organization projects you want to tackle? Do tell!

I’ll be back next week and back to a regular posting schedule! Have a great weekend and stay safe if you are getting this weather too!

It was a good one

Hey. Remember me? My name is Sarah and I write a blog. You may have heard of it.

I didn’t mean to take so much time away but it was nice! I am now ITCHING to get going on something other than holiday decor, let me tell you. I have a list a mile long (I’ll share soon) that I want to tackle. I’m ready to get my hands dirty again (with something other than Christmas glitter)!

I’m also excited about organizing again. Since I purged most of the house earlier this year I feel more in control of our STUFF than I ever have. Now I just want to keep it going in 2014 by making the most of each space.

But today I’m looking back at 2013 at my biggest projects, according to your responses. I have to start with one I’m most proud of -- mostly because I love it, but also because I’m so dang happy to have it DONE:

The downstairs powder room was a work in progress for about three years. Or more. I lost track a couple years back. I’m SO happy with it now, it was truly worth the wait.

I’m slowly but surely (I’m the tortoise of DIY if you couldn't tell) working on redoing our master bedroom. I sold our old bed and so far haven’t even come close to using the money I made from that to redo the space. There were a few popular posts from that room this year, including the new DIY king-sized headboard for less than $100:

And then the 80’s nightstand redo that didn’t cost me anything:

And finally those brass thrift store lamps that were made over into glossy navy blue goodness:

I have big plans for this room coming soon – I still haven’t even finished painting it yet. :)

After a lot of trial and error over the past (nearly) ten years in this house, I’ve finally figured out what works in our yard. In other words – I’ve stopped killing things. Our backyard is coming together as a beautiful oasis for us, and I gave you a tour here:

I was busy in the kitchen this year – some of it I splurged on, like our new sofa table:

And some I did myself, like this IKEA table turned farmhouse table:

The whole nook got a new look with the table and the new light:

It works SO much better in this space compared to our old round table and we can easily fit six around it to eat (even without pulling it out).

I was craving color earlier this year and tried out one of my very favorite chalk paint colors in our foyer:

I painted one of my favorite Craigslist dressers with it and it’s such a deep, gorgeous color. LOVE it!

Speaking of that beautiful blue -- another bathroom in our house that sat undone forever was completed this year too. I showed you how I installed the floating wood shelves in our basement bathroom:

And then later on in my no-spend August I finished up the room and used that chalk paint color again. You can see the finished space here:

I made a few simple changes in the family room this year that made a BIG difference. The first was to change out the old dark mirror that was over the fireplace:

To this lighter, brighter one:

This mirror is one of the top five things I get asked about – I got it at HomeGoods and still haven’t seen another one like it since! It made a HUGE difference in there. Seriously…big. (You can see more about the fall mantel here.)

I saved up and finally found a rug I loved for this space too. It truly transformed the room:

And finally – if you’re like me the last thing you want to see right now is more Christmas stuff, but my holiday home tour was a big one and I appreciated all your sweet comments there so much:  

As always, the posts that got the most feedback were those that just talk about life, and usually those are my favorites. :) You can read more about our mouse problem and how I dealt with that here (I wish I had read something like this before we had the problem), my new favorite place to visit here, a BIG change in our lives (and the love of my life) here, giving up my soda addiction here and a rousing discussion on the prices at Goodwill here.

It was a very good year. Probably one of the best. I am so, SO grateful to do what I do. I have you to thank for that. Thank you for coming back to see what I’m up to, I truly appreciate you and I value the connections I have with so many of you. I’ll be back next week with some DIY and my plans for the new year! Have a great weekend!

House Happy

Hello all and happy, beautiful Friday to you! It is a lovely day here today, although we may get some rain later. For now I’m enjoying it!

I’m back with another House Happy post, where I recap some of my favorite photos from around the house, Pinterest, Facebook and Instagram over the past few weeks.

It’s been a busy couple of weeks here so I’m perfectly content to just chill at home this weekend, enjoying the house and our yard.

This is one of my favorite weeks of the year around here, because my azaleas were blooming:

They only have blooms for a few days, but it is FANTASTIC when they do. Long time readers may notice the window boxes are gone – I took them down this week because they were literally falling apart. (Figured I’d spare the neighbors that much longer.)

I’m planning to make more soon, but while the azaleas are blooming it’s kind of nice to just let them shine. ;)

Because I may or may not have backed over a bike with my SUV a few weeks ago, we were in a local bike shop getting a new tire when I fell in love with these bright bicycles:

I WANT!! All I would need is a basket and a bell!

I pinned these Ball jars (from HGTV.com) the other day because I loved the idea to paint them metallic:

I’ve painted some of my mason jars but never thought to do a shiny metallic like this. Wouldn’t that be so pretty for a wedding or shower this summer? LOVE!

Remember the super easy pineapple cake I told you about? Well many of you said you’ve made it with other fruit fillings as well, so I tried the cherry version:

And it was REALLY good too! I think I still prefer the pineapple, but both are yummy. I’m going to try strawberries too. :)

It was a thrill when I got the Ballard Designs catalog a few weeks ago and saw this shot:

I was there to see this photo shoot in action and it was a BLAST! I still need to tell you all about that trip. It was surreal to see that same space in the catalog!

I love finding my boy sitting at the new kitchen table:

We have so much more space on there now, I absolutely love this table! I was a little careful with it at first, but I’ve found the top holds up GREAT. No worries anymore. :)

I had a video shoot with Home Depot this week, so I’ve been working like a mad woman to get the patio ready for it. I took a minute to sit down and enjoy it last week:

Facebook folks were loving the pillow – isn’t it awesome?? I found it at Home Depot and it works perfectly with the colors on our patio!

The good thing about having to have everything prepped for the shoot was that most of the outside is ready for us to enjoy for the season. I cleaned my house really well too, but I don’t think anyone noticed by the time the crew set up:

It was CRAZY! A really fun experience, I’ll tell you more about it next week!

I shared this one on Facebook too, perfect for Mother’s Day:

So worth it and so true! :)

Have you seen the new Threshold items for summer at Target? I’m obsessed with the whole line. I thought this shadowbox art was so pretty:

And I took a pic because I have all of the pieces to make this at home – a shadowbox, burlap and shells. I’m going to try it!

I pinned this pretty purple plant from bhg.com – it’s called a Oxalis purple clover I believe?:

Holy canoly, that would look so amazing on the patio!! Anyone have one? Are they a shade plant or full sun? I’m going to try to find one today. :)

Hope you have a wonderful weekend! Anything fun planned? We have baseball and stuff at hubby’s school, and of course cheering on our Pacers!!

The days of our stairs

First up, my friend Cassie over at Hi Sugarplum did a FUN series while she gallivants around Italy (I’m not jealous or anything). You can check out my answers to her 20 questions here. Go ahead. I’ll wait. :)

Fun right??

I’m feeling so nostalgic about our house lately – I don’t know if it’s because I’m coming up on five years of blogging in less than a month (whoa) or because as of five days from now we will have lived in this house for nine years.

It may be a combination of both -- it’s just this time of year I guess. :)

I love looking back at the transformation of certain spaces in our house and one of the projects I’m big fat puffy proud of is our staircase. I can’t believe in five years of blogging I only have one before picture of the stairs with the carpet, but here it is, in all of it’s dark, horrible picture-ness:

I got a wild hair a few years ago – I knew we had beautiful wood stairs under that carpet because I was here every. single. day. when they built our house.

One day I got the nerve up to tear off the carpet and the mess started – there was blood. Lots of sweat. And tears. (Just a little.):

Tearing up the carpet was easy. Getting every tack strip off and all of the staples (the millions of staples!!!!) was some of the hardest work ever.

But it was worth it when I saw the potential:

I started sanding but then my late father-in-law stepped in with his heavy duty equipment – they got all the overspray off the steps for me so I could start staining and painting.

I still say this transformation is one of the biggest in our house, and I only spent $50 total:

I still LOVE having the memory of my father-in-law working on this too. It’s like we’ll have a part of him in our house forever – he worked SO hard to help out.

You can see that I painted the wall below the handrail while I was painting the risers. Later on I finished that part off by adding trim:

And then I made a simple change that made a big difference – painting the handrail:

Isn’t that crazy? I couldn’t believe how much that little change kind of tied it all together!

And I still don’t know if those mice are coming back this fall. Maybe with time I will forget. Or not. :)

We said goodbye to the pink(ish) walls last year and I haven't’ missed them one bit. Then I added my DIY sunburst mirrors to the big wall in the staircase:

Getting rid of that dark ceiling in the dining room made a HUGE difference too. (Filing that one away into “what was I thinking?”)

But I felt like it was looking kind of blah – I loved it, but I’m craving some color here lately.

I recently added just a bit with the little changes I made to the foyer and I think it already makes a difference:

But I still want more. (We want more! We want more! Name that commercial.) I had to take down the “best things in life” saying on the gallery wall when we painted, so there’s an empty spot needing filled still (almost a year later…this is how I roll) I think I’ll just add another frame, but I’m wondering if I should paint the frames? Just a little color? I don’t know. It will come to me if I sit on it (forever).

And soon I’m having the treads sanded down and I’m going to stain them all the color of our hardwoods (Jacobean stain) so they match. Right now they are a reddish tone and the fact that they don’t match is starting to bug me.

It’s been a long process, one that was harder than I thought it would be, but it has made SUCH a huge difference in our house! The before, a few years ago:

And today!

And I still stand by my thought that hardwood stairs are less slippery than carpeted ones. I’m really good at falling down stairs and so far so good…knock on wood. ;)

Have you torn the carpet off your stairs or out of a room? I thought about it for months (years) and one day just started ripping – scary but so worth it in the end!