Playing house...

*Note: I am behind on house updates and just about everything else in life. Growing a human is TIRING! But, I'm trying to get caught up so keep checking back for updates!

**Sorry for the iPhone quality pics!

Our lot as of Memorial Day weekend....

They were grading our lot! Even without permits... it was nice to see some progress.

Smiling (even though we still didn't have permits)

After finding out that our permits were approved in late-June we were very anxious to get the party started. We met with the site manager to go over our site plan, review all of our finish choices again, and talk about time lines. It was a pretty uneventful affair but afterwards we stopped by a newly set up model home for our particular model. It was fun playing house for a few minutes, really feeling how big the space felt with furniture, and envisioning what we could/would do with the same space. Our house will look pretty different due to the finish choices we picked but the model house is still a good representation:

Living Room

Main entry/Foyer

Dining Room

Kitchen

Kitchen Eat-In Area

Lower Level

Family Room

Family Room

Office

Rec Room

Basement Bathroom

Bedroom 1

Bedroom 2

Bedroom 3

Upstairs Bathroom

Laundry

Master Bedroom

Master Bedroom

Master Bathroom

Our lot as of late June.

 

my version of fancy

So the "formal" living room is a decorating conundrum for me. I'm not formal. I want my house to be a comfortable place where strangers feel at home kicking their shoes off and tucking their feet under them as we chat on the couch. Unlike many homes I've been in I want to use my living room and not have it become a museum.

My parents have been threatening to give us everything that was remotely mine as soon as we move into a house big enough... something about downsizing/decluttering. phesh. I thought parent's home was synonymous with free storage locker. One of the things my mom has been hinting at passing along is the upright piano that my grandparents showed up with in the back of their truck one night as a gift for me when I was four. I would love to have it but its shiney cherry finish isn't really my style. I thought about maybe painting it  in the future but right now I think working with the original finish would be easier WAY EASIER.

I feel like this inspiration board is the perfect combination of formal-ish pieces with more comfortable casual finishes. I feel like the antique brass finishes (because polished 80s brass is a BIG no-no) mixed with the warm wood tones of the cherry piano and nesting tables balances the whole room. And that blue velvet couch. Be still my heart. I might have to freeze my credit card so I don't pull the trigger on that baby until we move.

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ps- mom and dad you don't have to give up the piano.

like I need more inspiration to eat...

We are anxiously waiting for news about the building permits for our house this month. I'm an impatient person so I know these next few weeks/months are going to be an excruciating wait. In the meantime I continue to window shop and get inspiration for the house. Here are some ideas I have for the dining room...

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Since the main level is very open I'm hoping to keep all the rooms cohesive by picking a cool toned color scheme (blues, greens, grays  etc). I love the idea of a large rustic table with lush chairs that would encourage lounging. That built in is made of two Hemnes armoires from IKEA but looks so much more expensive. I would love to paint out the back a navy blue or add a beautiful navy patterned wallpaper which would really make my milk glass and bronze/antique gold chachkies pop.

Do you have a large open space? How do you keep the flow through your home?

my happy place

I'm just going to go ahead and put it out there... Target is my happy place. Find me a red bulls-eye and I am home. Target has a new line out right now, Threshold, that I'm kind of obsessed with. Its described by Target as "the right mix of classic and modern. An effortless elegance. Beautiful, yet affordable. Designed for a lifetime of housewarmings. It's everything you'll love about your home." I think their description is spot on. I tell you it is taking every bit of my restraint to wait until we move into the house before I start buying up the entire store. Since I am abstaining from purchasing home decor at the moment I thought we could take a moment to window shop.

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Grover did great through surgery. Although, for a dog that never barks he howled like a hound treeing a 'coon for hours coming out of anesthesia. The pathology came back that is was benign! He has a bandage on his leg to keep his stitches covered but you couldn't tell the way he runs and jumps and acts crazy. Stitches come out next week and I imagine he'll probably be crazier than he already is.

A few hours after surgery, still coming out of the anesthesia....

The next day, wide eyed and bushy tailed.

the gathering place

I love clean and order. Office supplies. Label makers. Clorox wipes. Closets organized by color and season.  Towels all  folded the same way. When my surroundings are in disarray I feel like my mind is also in disarray. Some people call this anal retentive, neurotic, crazy.... I say tom-A-to, tom-ah-to.

White cabinets have been on my wishlist since day one for their ability to create an open, light, and airy feeling to a home as well as highlight any dirt and grime. Most people dislike anything that highlights dirt in their home but I say if you can't see it how can you know you got in clean?!?!

Needless to say all of our kitchen choices were based primarily around the white cabinets. We chose to stain the oak hardwood floors saddle. The home came standard with a yellow-ish granite and we were looking for a more gray toned counter which brown eyes (I swear its a good mixture of mostly gray and a little brown). The GE stainless steel appliances are the only option DR Horton offered.

kitchen finishes

Like all married couples Ryan and I have some differences, including our decorating tastes. I like more casual farmhouse/cottage chic while he likes more formal colonial. We try to compromise. We are basing our kitchen mood board around one of those compromises, our current kitchen table. Ryan picked it out based on two criteria set by me-- round and dark finished. (*Note- Ryan wants to make sure you know that he hates the two chair options I've included in the mood board). 

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Do you and your significant other or roommate have different styles of decorating? How do you make it work?