Search Results for: splurge

Save VS Splurge: 3 Great Ways To Design Your Living Room For Spring
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Save VS Splurge: 3 Great Tips To Design Your Living Room For Spring

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Spring is here! The sun is shining, the birds are singing, spring cleaning has begun and project planning is in full swing. If you are contemplating (or have begun) planning a project, then you realize that so many aspects of life have opportunity costs… questions of this piece or that piece or this event or that event can tend to swirl around in our minds as we consider the tender mix of time, investments and aesthetics. For many of these situations, we know that budget is a large factor and how that gets doled out can change a project scope and our sanity in the process….

Transitional Dining Room Save VS. Splurge: Easy Ways To Get The Look
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Transitional Dining Room Save VS. Splurge: Easy Ways To Get The Look

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As I mentioned in the Whimsical Dining Room Save vs. Splurge post last week, the dining room is one of my favorite rooms of the house. Home to such daily beauty of friends, family and loved ones gathering around a dinner table, the dining room can be, if you let it, a hub of life. Sometimes this hub happens naturally, and sometimes through great intention, but either way, it can be a special place. I have found that most often, the things that I am most proud of and that I take joy in, took at least some degree of intention. Whether that is design, a gathering, a budget, a landscape plan, a Bible study group, a casual get together…there comes a point in which I have to come up with a vision and then move towards it. It may not come together exactly as I imagine, but it is this pursuit that brings about something lovely. It is in this mindset, that I wanted to create a transitional dining room mood board to help initiate a vision….

Whimsical Dining Room Save Vs. Splurge: How To Get The Look
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Whimsical Dining Room Save VS. Splurge: How To Get The Look

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One of my favorite rooms in the house is our dining room. The dining room is a place to gather, to celebrate meals, to start the day with breakfast and end the day with dessert. In our house, our dining room is also where we set up our Christmas tree, open gifts, welcome people into our home and share life together. While I know that many people have transformed their dining room into an office or have done away with formality in favor of eating at the kitchen island, I believe the dining room is a special place to pause and get to know those around your table. Even while schedules are crazy, we have tried to prioritize family dinner as a moment to stop the hustle and bustle and just be together. While your space doesn’t have to be designed to the nines, having it reflect your personality can be key in how you feel about coming to this spot everyday. In this vein, I wanted to provide a series of mood boards that can help to give inspiration and motivation to find your own style and aesthetic for this special room. For today, I have created two whimsical dining room mood boards that blend modern and traditional while providing pops of color….

Planning With Summer In Mind: My Favorite Way To Save With The EveryDollar App
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Planning With Summer In Mind: My Favorite Way To Save With The EveryDollar App

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When Charlie and I were in premarital counseling the months leading up to our wedding, we received many great pieces of advice and had wonderful conversations surrounding blending families, daily habits and conflict resolution. But one tip in particular that has been a tremendous blessing to this day has been the EveryDollar App. You might wonder why an app would rank in the top things we gained from our marriage counseling, but studies show that roughly 20% of Americans say that they have financial disagreements with their significant other MONTHLY (1) and that 44% of Americans attribute finances as their primary stressor, even over relationships and work (2). Clearly financial affairs was a crucial topic to address as it can steal one’s joy for purposeful living rather quickly. Now, before you feel bored to tears or think I am going to give professional financial advice, please know that I am not a financial advisor and am in no way being paid to pitch this app. I am just a girl who enjoys finding easy ways to save money and plan for the future and thought you all might enjoy learning about them also. That being said, I recently was reminded of how helpful it has been to Charlie and I to be on the same page as we have been reestablishing our budget for living in Germany (in Euros! That will take me a minute to get used to), and how much we have enjoyed being able to strategically save for home projects or travel plans. So, whether you are wanting to start budgeting, become on the same financial page with your spouse, save for a home project or plan a trip, I hope that sharing my own experience with EveryDollar might help encourage you with your….

Updating Our Entry Part 1: Hardware Options I Love
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Updating Our Entry Part 1: Door Hardware Options I Love

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As any homeowner knows, turning your house into a home is a process. While Charlie and I tried to complete many projects before we moved in, the past 3 years (almost to the week!) have held many adventures, long nights and working weekends. Even when we think we have almost gotten everything how we like it, we find another area to tweak and project to undertake. Most recently, that adventure has led us to updating our front door and entry. As our home is a gem from the late 1970s (originally fit with popcorn ceilings, bathroom wall tile and living room paneling), it has a storm door that just about has given its all. While you’ll have to stay tuned for updates on the antique door we found to replace our existing metal door and storm door, as well as the process of refinishing it, I did want highlight a few awesome hardware finds I have been searching….

Designer Lighting Look-A-Likes: 10 Fixtures That Give A Big Bang For Your Buck
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Designer Lighting Look-A-Likes: 10 Fixtures That Give A Big Bang For Your Buck

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Have you ever fallen in love with a light fixture just to realize that it is more than double your budget? I am all too familiar with finding the “perfect” option for a space just before realizing that the dream lighting fixture is far above the budget that I have to work within. Fortunately, there are many fixtures out there which can provide a similar aesthetic for a fraction of the cost. Through this post, I want to highlight 10 great alternatives to designer light fixtures which will provide a similar look for a must less costly price tag. Coming from the design community, I certainly do not want to claim that the alternatives…