DIY or hire out: open kitchen shelving

7.30.2019

DIY or hire out: open kitchen shelving

Open shelving is all the rage! And for good reason! Ashley and I have both done open shelves in our last kitchens (and I just did some more DIY ones in my current kitchen reno. Sometimes you can do them yourself, but to get certain looks you might want to hire a pro or buy something custom. More on that today...

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Best toys for 1-year-olds: Otto's favorite toys at 15 months!

7.29.2019

Best toys for 1-year-olds: Otto's favorite toys at 15 months!

We have done a pretty good job of keeping our toys, books, and other baby stuff from getting out of hand. We keep most of it in the living room but it's not hard to store, and we have plenty of toys for Otto without letting them take over our house! We are all about avoiding purchasing more-more-more for ourselves or Otto, but definitely want him to have lots of options of things to be creative with. And, we can see which types of things he really, really enjoys and keeps playing with--so he helps inform our future toy purchases!

So, I thought I'd share the toys Otto has been getting the most use out of lately! In case you're shopping for a 1-year-old or just want some new toy ideas... here are our faves!

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Comparison of budget-friendly kitchen cabinet sources (IKEA and beyond!)

7.25.2019

Comparison of budget-friendly kitchen cabinet sources (IKEA and beyond!)

Cabinets are often the biggest, most impactful, most exciting, even most expensive part of a kitchen reno. I put a LOT of thought into where we purchased our cabinets from and am happy to share my research with you!!

As you may know, we just completed a full kitchen reno, entirely DIY. (See the full reveal here!) Here's the scoop on our cabinet decision!

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A foyer makeover and multi-phase transformation

7.23.2019

A foyer makeover and multi-phase transformation

On the Your Home Story podcast we talk about how our homes and design evolve, and what the story of your spaces are. Today, Ashley is sharing all about her foyer’s story, from where it started (formal and dated), to the more eclectic updates that she did a few years ago and now, to the space that she really feels is the perfect addition to her home.

Some links we talked about in the episode:

1. Foyer Reveal
2. Get a good look at that purple spray painted chandelier and where her space was 6 years ago.
3. The iron railing DIY project underwent such a huge change.
4. The entryway never felt “right” for the ORC reveal, but it was MUCH closer to what she had envisioned. It’s key to remember that progress is good! 

Here's the before!!

Tune in below or in your favorite podcast player to hear how Ashley worked through challenges with this space and transformed it over time!

You can find us on our blogs or connect with each of us on Instagram:
@suzannahstanley
@biggerthanthethreeofus
@yourhomestorypodcast

And you can join our Facebook group here to connect with other listeners and ask questions!

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Modern traditional DIY kitchen reno REVEAL!

7.22.2019

Modern traditional DIY kitchen reno REVEAL!

I LOVE THIS KITCHEN!!!! Such an exciting day after lots of hard work in here!

Almost two months ago now we demolished the cabinets, flooring, trim, and lighting in our 1980's oak kitchen and rebuilt everything ourselves. The end goal: the white kitchen I've been dreaming of since Pinterest began (!), plus some very 2019 touches including a modern traditional/updated classic/Emily Henderson-approved vibe.

The budget: not much to speak of. The time commitment: ~5 days of work work work, then another couple weeks of fixing this and that during baby naptimes. We learned new skills, made mistakes, made messes, cleaned (most of) them up... and I got to carry out my design vision for a space starting from scratch!

Modern traditional DIY kitchen renovation

I am so excited to reveal our modern traditional, entirely DIY kitchen renovation!

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DIY custom straight-sided vent hood with Zephyr insert

7.18.2019

DIY custom straight-sided vent hood with Zephyr insert

This is the LAST tutorial of our kitchen reno!! We've done the whole project ourselves so there are lots of DIYs to share with you, but this one was a brand new skill for us and I admit I was a little nervous before starting--but it turned out to be one of the most straightforward projects!

We wanted a modern, sleek, straight-sided built-in vent hood over our range, with an attractive insert visible underneath (as opposed to an independent, up-the-wall stainless steel vent hood like at our last house OR one that looked like part of the cabinets). After collecting lots of inspirations and ideas, we built this hood cover from scratch and used a high-end but affordable insert from Zephyr!

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