Category Archives: Before And After

Before and After Of Our 1960s Ranch Style Home

27th January 2021

We are getting ready to move homes to another dated house to makeover so I wanted to document my before and afters of this sweet home before we go. Plus, I hope it will give you hope when you see pictures of our next dated space. Lol

Before: Someone said, “You know what, let’s paint this house cream and put cream rock all around it. That will set it off.

This is our 2, 000 sq ft ranch home we bought almost 9 years ago. Here is what it looked like on move in day in 2012.

After: Needlepoint Navy is the brick color with Colonial Yellow for the door. I believe it was from Porter Paints. We moved the Japanese Maple that was oddly in front of the big windows because it was to big for that space. I added a new light and paint and plants did the rest.

Original living room before:

After! I had my dad build my some simple custom shelves and a custom mantle and we walled in the bonus to make a master/4th bedroom.

Believe it or not, this was the original master! It looks bigger in this picture than it really was. This room is approximately one king size bed big.

After: New paint, lighting, and window treatments go a long way. Also, nothing like a rug to change a room. If you want a big change to a room, go rug and windows first! They warm up a space and really complete a look.

Before: Let’s talk about what you see here. It will be therapeutic because you can’t un-see it. What you are experiencing is a wet bar with fake leather pillowed front and fake marble tiles behind it to really set it off. For a special effect, the whole room is wrapped in red wood paneling. This is the room that became our master!

After: I never really felt like I finished this space, but it beats cheesy strip club wet bar any day.

Before: One of the girl’s bedrooms and I need you to know that there are 7 levels of border on that wall. SEVEN. Why do people do the things they do? Just don’t, Christopher. Don’t.

After: Those solid bunk beds are something special. That is an Opalhouse clearance indoor/outdoor rug. I like to use outdoor versatile rugs because, you know, kids.

Before: Kitchen

After: Added lighting and replaced lighting, added shelving, paint, and decor.

Here’s another angle.

Before: Laundry room corner

After: Home school space! I use to have a big cool rug in here and then, rabbits. They pooped and peed on it like a litter box and I gave them away in my mind for a minute.

Before: Front foyer

After: Paint and added this wall of hooks with shelf for just around 100 bucks. This is not how the shelf is normally styled, but we are moving and I don’t care. lol

Before: Hall bath

Again, just take this in. This yellow is something special. Also, please note the fronts of this vanity is covered in fake mosaic wallpaper. You’re welcome, eyes. The after is still under construction but….

After: New ere’thang. I JUST started doing this a few months ago during COVID stuff not knowing we were about to move. That’s a dark blue solid wood vanity with quartz top and soft close doors. New lights, epoxied yellow tile, new fixture, bath fitter, toilet, floors, and a cool mirror you can’t see all the way that is sort of rainbow shaped. The mirror was a big mantle mirror and I loved it. I actually used liquid nails to adhere it to the wall so it’s there until the house burns down or falls apart. Enjoy.

Well folks, that it’s for this sweet house. There are more rooms and I have more pictures, but my kids were in the bulk of them so this will have to do.

I CANNOT wait to move in to our next home and I will be documenting it heavily here and with videos on Instagram.

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Farmhouse Kitchen Makeover

20th May 2019

I did this kitchen for some friends of mine who needed some help decorating. It was simple and right up their alley and to make it all even better, I bought almost every single thing in the room for 15 to 50 percent off. Only one or two things in this entire kitchen were purchased at cost! Oh yeah, girl.

These bowls are much more jade-ish mint in real life and were half off from Hobby Lobby! They have matching pitchers and cake stands to this set that I love to death! I bought clear glasses from The Pioneer Woman collection from Walmart that sport the same antique glassware pattern.

The frames in the back were from the open frame collection at Hobby Lobby. The prints I had custom made for 5 bucks each from Hoot and a Holler on Etsy and then printed those files on Blueprint paper/engineering paper for $3.89 each and they were 24 by 36 inches!

This light fixture is my absolute favorite part of the room and I would happily rip it from their ceiling and take it to my house! It was simple and captures the farmhouse style perfectly. You can find it on Shades of Light.

The vases are Hearth and Hand by Joanna Gaines from Target, as well as the artificial stems. The vases have glass tubes on the inside so that you can use real stems also. The hand towels are also from the same Joanna line! Farmhouse made easy, fo’ sho’.

Jars by Anchor from Target and basket by Opal House at Target.

Jadeite dessert glasses in the top shelf, again, are way more mint jade in real life, and they are also Hearth and Hand from Target.

Again, I repeat, I did not put that small carpet under the counter stools! The owner put them there to protect a spot in the floor that was being redone. These great gray natural barn wood colored counter stools were from World Market and were perfect for their style and this room!

So simple, but I adore these black iron schoolhouse hooks from Target by Threshold! I actually bought a few packs for my own house, but they didn’t look good in the only spot I could put them. Figures….

I can’t end without talking about the rug from Ruggable! If you aren’t familiar with the company, they sell rugs that are water proof, stain resistant, and the top part, the uh…rug, folds up and is machine washable! It adheres to a rubberized mat that fits the rug and it holds perfectly in place with a velcro type of gripping. It is high quality and simply the best solution for anyone who needs rugs that can take a beating! LOVE them!

This rug in particular, though it’s hard to tell, has mint and turquoise very subtly within the nuetral scheme and it was perfect for this nuetral loving momma’s family, all while giving some color just so slightly that I could pull out in other spots of the room.

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Crosby’s Nursery Reveal

4th December 2017

*Affiliate links appear in this post

Notoriously, I have the world’s worst lighting in my house, but a home girl tries. This is the most light in any room so, take what yo’ momma (mother nature) gave ya. Without further adieu, here is my son’s small 10 by 11 nursery, complete with 6 ish DIY projects!

Greens, some blue and a pop of yellows with white walls and a subtle gray ceiling. This boss simple clean lined crib is solid wood, down to the slats. If you thought most cribs were all wood, think again, Sparky AND I got it for 100 dollars on a closeout. Holler if you’re a baller!

(Hollering in the background…)

It’s compact and great for a small space. Good job, tree, that became this crib. You did a real swell job.

Just breath it in, because I like this wall. FUN FACT ALERT: The framed dino up there is a toy I used for his Lochness Monster 1st Birthday party. It floated in a large bowl of chocolate milk like Nessie in the Lochness Strait of my dreams. I used Velcro Command Strips to put him up there floating in the middle and used an old wood frame to go around him. Fun for days.

In the bottom left, those are his hospital footprints…at least I hope or that would be weird. No, they are. I was there. And in the top right, that is sheet music from a hymn by Fanny Crosby, the greatest hymn writer of all time. That is where we got his name, Crosby. Nope, it wasn’t from Parenthood, though that show was THE best.

I bought the cactus print 2 years ago during my pregnancy, along with the raccoon print off of Etsy. Gotta love Etsy. The globe which tied in all of my colors was purchased from a consignment shop. It was an old globe from a school. Neato.

The hat is my grandfather’s and I love seeing it in his room. He wore this hat and ones like it all of the time. Surprisingly, even with it on the edge of the wire basket we use for diapers, it never gets in the way. It’s like a magic polite hat.

OH Bertha. I bought a gumball machine, which I have always wanted, from Hobby Lobby, which is also where this polyresin Octopus came from. I took out the guts of the gumball machine and added rocks and a succulent. I give it 2 thumbs up.

I LOVE using old buffets in kid’s rooms as dressers and I have them in 2 of my children’s rooms currently. The doors on the side give great extra storage! This was an 80’s honey wheat wooden buffet I purchased from a cool consignment store in town for 90 ish bucks. I painted it white, sprayed all of the original hinges and pulls and then added the round, flat brushed gold knobs to the doors. I hate painting furniture, but I love when it’s done!

This green super cute bookshelf was old, layered in orange and black chipped paint and about to be trashed. I thought the lines of it were so cute so i did what any good DIY-er does and sanded it to be painted…and then my husband hit it with his car.

(dramatic pause)

I hammered some nails in to straighten it up and all’s well that ends well.

The snail pillow is something I bought 3 kids ago handmade from Etsy and repainted it to meet the color scheme I needed.

This print is the very first thing I bought when I found out I was having my 1st son. Go Hobby Lobby, it’s your birthday. We’re gonna party like it’s your birthday. The basket is from there also and the lamp, is from God’s country: Target.

I bought a Jelly Cat Alligator because we call my son, Crosby Ryle Crocodile. I know, I know, it’s an alligator, not a croc! What are you? Steve Irwin?

Do you love this dinosaur terrarium???!!! I thought i came up with this idea and then I found some on Pinterest. Boo. Since it wasn’t my idea, I decided to copy the rock pattern I saw in someone else’s post to ease the burn and enjoy it anyways.

I sprayed painted tiny dinosaurs we got from goody bags at parties and I got the big dino from a dollar store because hey, dollar store. The succulents are from Hobby Lobby.

When it all came together, I wished for a moment that dinosaurs weren’t extinct.

Rest in peace, brothers.

This wall hook was something I bought when this was my daughter’s nursery. I spray painted it blue back then and decided to keep it in all of it’s glory. I always hang a favorite outfit on it and admire their cute teeny clothes. I wanted a cute hanger to put it on but there isn’t a large market for cute display baby hangers so, we deal and accept that ain’t nobody got no kinna time to worry about a hanger.

The door knob is from the greatest DIY bloggers of all time, Young House Love. They did a run at Target a couple of years ago and angels sang.

THIS PIC IS THE WORST ALERT! A bit blurry, bad light, so let’s just use it! I wanted you to get a feel for how small the room is and I was going to jump off my roof if I had to take anymore pictures. You get the idea.

The closet knobs are a natural wood here and dimensional and cute. The end.

I made these curtains for under 20 bucks for 2! I got a mega deal for 5 bucks a panel at Target and then I bought large width ribbon from Michael’s and hot glued them on in large chunky stripes. Hey, hey! Cute and clean like I like it!

This big print is a DIY and I made it all myself!!!! It is my proudest art/DIY I’ve done because letters/spacing are harder than passing kidney stones. I have a post that I’m working on just for this print. This is a page from the classic book The Giving Tree and it strums all of the strings of my heart.

This is crib sheet is from Land of Nod because, it’s Land of Nod, my favorite one stop high quality and cute design kid’s decor and furniture.

I got this huge 8 by 10 big daddy rug from where I buy ALLL of my rugs, Overstock. I got this big colorful rag rug for about 60 bucks, shipped! It was better in person than on-line. If you have a really high traffic area, I don’t recommend it because you can’t really vacuum it and it can get pulls. Just ignore that I said all of that though because it’s colors perfectly tied in the room and it’s comfy under your feet.

This is the room dweller himself, sniffing or choking his “crocodile”. I’m not sure which. It’s his room. He does what he wants.

THINGS STILL LEFT TO DO:

Add a blanket to hang over the crib

Put out a cute sloth that Santa is bringing him

(I’m never REALLY done, it seems like.)

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Nursery Reveal: Home Sweet Home

4th October 2015

Hallelujah! It only took me 13,000 years to post this! Okay, she’s 8 weeks old, but it feels like forever. Especially it felt like forever to all my friends who weren’t allowed in the room the whole time it’s been done because I made them wait for this post. Off of our master, this small little 10 by 10 room painted all white became the coziest little nursery and I love it. Hope you do too! Read the captions to see what I did, what is still left to do, and where I got the decor. Enjoy, pin, and please like this project on Project Nursery using the Facebook icon by my images and give me a star rating while you are at it! Find it here. You guys are a bunch of rascals and I love ya’.

Before: Believe it or not, this was the original master bedroom of the house. Here is the before picture from when we purchased the home. After: Wah-lah! White floor to ceiling with pops of color. New paint, new fixture, new everything but beadboard and floors! This stellar handmade blanket was a Land of Nod knock-off of one of their quilts but in transverse colors. Want to snag this blanket or have one custom made? Buy it here on the Etsy shop Slumber Spun. This blanket was made for me and it was all the charm of Land of Nod for less expense with ALL of the same quality! Anyone that has seen my nursery has commented on the cozy, thick crocheted blanket. Stacy at Slumber Spun makes lots of items including the fox you will see below and baby booties that will make you smack your granny they are so cute. Check her out! You won’t be disappointed. You can really see how small the room is now when you see the crib and the closet on the other wall in the same close-up picture! This dresser was an antique buffet I bought in Tennessee. I adored that it had the two doors on each side and not only was it cute, it has great storage! It was originally cherry and I painted it white and used the original hinges, spray painting them a light gray color. I don’t consider this part of the room totally done yet. I want a small, subtle pattern lamp shade with gray tones for starters. Now just to find one….. This lamp was originally 80 at Hobby Lobby and I snagged it on clearance for 25! This rug is HUGE and indoor/outdoor so great for traffic. I bought it from Target and had it shipped to my door, tax and all for 160! The subtle theme of the whole nursery is “Home Sweet Home”. It’s unique and not a phrase you see in nurseries and doesn’t it make your heart swoon to see a tiny baby next to this print? I ordered the print from Katie Daisy, thewheatfield on Etsy. You will DIE at all of her prints she makes. They are all custom water colors of original art and you are buying a reprint of her work. I had this large rectangle print trimmed into an oval and matted at Hobby Lobby and this awesome frame is from Ikea. Ohhhh, Ikea. I love you. I knew I wanted white walls with bright colors. The color scheme of the room started with this sheet that I LOVE from The Land of Nod. I want to marry that store. It’s serious. Emerald, two tone pinks, off-beat orange, bright yellow….I mean COME ON!!!! This killer Ikea light casts the COOLEST PATTERN on the walls and ceilings for my little one to look at. Meet Mr. Fox also handmade from SlumberSpun on Etsy. Contact her for these little guys! She also makes an elephant like this attached to a crocheted blanked. So precious! So perfectly made! Colorful ceramic knobs I nabbed from my sister’s house for my closet doors. This adds to hint of Home Sweet Home. This vintage door knob and plate are a line from Young House Love who are bloggers who happen to run my favorite blog! They have the neatest line right now at Target that you must check out! I sprayed painted this originally white wall knob a pop of blue to coordinate with the room colors. The ceilings are a light gray that coordinate with the hardware of the antique dresser and tie the room subtly together from floor to ceiling. It’s less dramatic in real life but still a touch you pick up on in the overall feel. Do you love this 1950 elephant sculpture???!!! I do! I found it at a local consignment shop and when I saw it on the sidewalk as I drove by, I called right away to claim him. I love him in the room and one day he may move on to be coated in a rustoleum outdoor gloss spray paint to live in a garden or around a swing set. So many possibilities! This coca-cola crate is also an antique that I took from my father-in-law who gave me one from his collection. I thought it was a fun way to display books in her room.

Tri-colored bird cages that I mixed and matched from Hobby Lobby. On the inside are these neat little birds from West Elm that are made overseas from seed pods that look like birds! They are 9 dollars each and ship for free. I plan on hand painting some of them different tones down the road to compliment the room a tad more in spots. A stork seedpod bird in a nursery? Of course. These prints that are the original artwork of the amazing Etsy shop SealDesignStudio. For the home theme, I bought these row houses that are homes in Australia and the nursery print of Golidlocks and Three Bears, not only showed a little girl at home, but what is more perfect for a nursery than a fairy tale print? Woo hoo! Just wait until you see the other fairy tale print I bought for another daughter’s room. This Etsy shop has all of my heart strings and I wasn’t surprised when I saw they were featured in West Elm. And I HAD to end my home sweet home nursery with this amazing barnwood Kentucky silhouette for my Kentucky babies. It’s personal and therefore has intention in the room. It’s made of old barnwood so it’s unique and old. I can use this in any room for the rest of our lives and I’ll always remember when our homestate hung above one sweet little baby. Love it! I bought this from a local shop in hometown called Digs on the River and these states are made by a man in Tennessee. If you are interested, contact me and I’ll get you the info. Like on Project Nursery here! Thanks!