Chris and I grew up taking family road trips every year and have naturally fallen into the same pattern with our kids. While air travel is nice, we often decide on driving to a destination to save money and have our own transportation.

I have always loved the cottagecore style, but back when I was in college, it was called Shabby Chic! While the shabby chic trend in the 2000s had more of a romantic feel with creamier colors and light pinks, cottagecore paint colors are with warmer, natural earth tones.

You may not have a charming English cottage in the countryside, but you can still create a beautiful English cottage garden in your backyard. English cottages are definitely having a moment and I am all in with the cottagecore and grand millennial trend!

I found this old cabinet at a garage sale and immediately felt the urge to bring her back to life. I decided to paint the cabinet the perfect green paint color that aligns perfectly with the modern designs in my living room and dining room.

We have made it to the MCM living room reveal and I am so happy with the finished product. Our living room is the first area that you see when you come into our home and I am really excited to have a finished space that reflects who we are. Over these last 8 weeks, I have bought a few new items for the room, reused materials that we already owned, and finally put some of my thrifted items on display.

Welcome to Week 7 of the One Room Challenge! I gotta be honest, I have struggled with my time management on this project and am a little bummed that I missed writing my weekly post last week

Earlier this year we began work on our backyard to prep for the English garden I planned to build. Today I am sharing a quick and easy DIY project that has helped to camouflage the ugly electrical meter on the back of the house.

If you’re looking for a simple and cost-effective way to add some visual interest to your garden, consider using bricks as edging. Not only do they provide a clean and classic look, but they also help to define garden beds and prevent grass and weeds from encroaching on your plants. Here’s how to do it right.

This week of the One Room Challenge is all about budget-saving DIY projects for the living room. I have always been thrifty when it comes to decorating and this makeover is no different. The saying, “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure” definitely applies to me and I get such a rush out of creating something beautiful out of items that were discarded by others.

Filling the walls in a large room can be a little challenging for me. My goal is always to hang unique artwork that is interesting and doesn’t break the bank. Whatever I hang on our walls, I want it to feel like our family. For week 4 of the One Room Challenge, I am going to share some of the artwork I will be hanging in our living room and where I find them.

If this first time stopping by, welcome, and thanks for visiting! A few years ago I decided to quit my corporate job in Denver and my family moved back to …

Welcome back to Week 2 of the One Room Challenge! Our living room has great bones and the first improvement we made to the room was installing new floors and painting the walls. Check out all of the living room design plans in the Week 1 post.

We started working on our unfinished basement makeover about two months ago and I still cannot get over the transformation! Last year we decided to put our large basement to good use when the country went into quarantine and the kids needed a space to run wild.

Who’s ready for the Spring One Room Challenge?! This time around we will be working on our living room and I can’t wait to pull it all together! For the last two years, this room was set up with furniture we purchased 10 years ago after we were married.

As I write this blog post I am sitting on my back porch enjoying one of the first warm days of Spring. I love when I am able to work on outdoor DIY projects that improve the look of our home while also enjoying the fresh air.

When it comes to painting projects in my home, I always choose to paint myself instead of hiring it out. The cost of labor adds up quickly and I prefer to use that money in other areas of our home. Today I am sharing the best paint supplies I prefer when painting interior spaces in our house.

Last Fall I finished our master bedroom makeover and I am finally getting around to writing the closet organization post. Just in time for Spring cleaning! Our home has incredible storage with large closets in every bedroom and even more spacious closets in the hallway.

I enjoy working in the yard and have a select few tools that I consistently use year after year. I thought it would be fun to share what I consider the best gardening tools for beginners.

For the mudroom makeover, I was excited to hang a printed wallpaper above the newly installed plank wall. I chose the mudroom design to reflect an English cottage vibe and the Flora print was exactly what I was going for.

Our mudroom makeover is complete and I am excited to share how we installed the tongue and groove plank wall in this room. I chose this wall treatment because it worked well with the cottage architectural style of our home. This project is definitely doable for beginners and is affordable too.

The mudroom makeover came with plenty of surprises but I absolutely love the end result! The architecture of our home includes many cottage-style elements including a sloping cedar-shingled roof, large bay window, and carriage door entrance on the front of the house.

Have you ever painted latex over oil-based paint without properly prepping the walls? If you are one of the unlucky readers who answered yes, you know exactly how painful this mistake can be!

One of the most common questions I get is how to choose the best paint colors for your home. Often it is from readers who are moving into a new home and don’t know where to start in terms of paint colors.

Planning a home project and want your paint color to be on-trend? This is the perfect post for you! I love following the paint and decor trends expected for the new year because it helps steer some of my design decisions for the year.

Christmas decor can be expensive to buy all at once and personally, I enjoy collecting meaningful decor throughout the years. I have compiled a list of easy and inexpensive decorations for the holidays while the collection grows.

Looking for a unique gift idea for your loved ones this Christmas? Check out these easy and affordable DIY gift ideas for the holiday season!

Have you ever tried one of the popular IKEA hacks found on Pinterest? There are so many incredible DIY projects using IKEA furniture and I am always completely blown away by the transformations! I have tried out a few of my own and am so pleased with the results. I have pulled together some of the best IKEA furniture hacks to try at home.

For the last 8 years, I have used the Shutterfly program to create our family yearbooks. It is rare that I print photos out anymore and these yearbooks are a great way to compile all of our memories and favorite photos each year.

The master bedroom reveal is here and it looks nothing like it did a few months ago! I love these 6-week challenges so much because they really push me to complete the projects in one single space. I often find myself bouncing around from project to project around the house, but when I really focus on one area, it is so worth it in the end.

For week 5 of the Better Homes & Gardens One Room Challenge, I focused on the design details. I have all of the furniture purchased and in place and I was excited to add our personality to the space. After living in our home for just over a year, we had identified the key areas that lacked function in our room.

In my week 2 update, I shared that I had purchased a pricey new dresser only to discover that it was way too small for our clothing storage needs. IKEA furniture has always held up extremely well in our home, especially the dresser units, so I decided to keep our current dresser but add some detailing.

With the walls finally painted, I spent week 3 of the One Room Challenge installing closet organization systems and assembling our new bed frame. Our master bedroom has three huge …

Week 2 of the One Room Challenge was dominated by painting the bedroom. Six weeks can really fly by so when I didn’t have a paintbrush in my hand, I …

Is it just me or does it feel like we just wrapped up the Spring One Room Challenge? Either way, my home is never lacking a space that needs a …

Today I am excited to share how we painted our pool and saved thousands of dollars! Would you believe me if I told you we almost walked away from our house because there was a pool in the backyard? We have young kids and the idea of having a pool was really intimidating to me.

I am digging the rich, moody paint colors trend and am craving this design aesthetic even more as we head into Fall! I love how the perfect paint color can warm up a room and give it a cozy vibe.

Today I am sharing simple bathroom organization solutions for our cluttered master bath! After living in our master bathroom for a year, I identified a handful of areas that needed …

As school starts up again, many of our kids have to remain at home due to the COVID outbreak. When my son isn’t virtually learning online, I have tried to get him outside to explore new places around town. I have created a full list of kid-friendly places to enjoy around Toledo for any parent who needs to find an activity outside of the home!

Our master bathroom was tired, outdated, lacking function, and ready for a makeover. I embraced the retro style of the 70s and our master bathroom is now a showstopper after a few budget-friendly improvements!

The most effective way to whiten your tile grout is with a simple homemade grout cleaner made of 4 ingredients. If your tile floors were installed with white grout, there is a good chance that it is stained with dirt. Using household products that are usually stocked in your kitchen, you can whiten your tile grout without any chemicals!

Today I am sharing tips for one of my most effective renovation strategies – how to remove wallpaper! My latest home project is giving our dated master bathroom a little refresh.

Looking for a reason to decorate with vintage items in your home? Along with the thrill of the hunt, there many benefits to purchasing gently used furniture and vintage decor items for your home.

If you own a home built in the 50s or 60s, there is a good chance you have at least one retro bathroom.

Our home was built in the late ’60s and we have 3 original bathrooms! This month I am excited to tackle a budget-friendly makeover to our master bathroom! My goal is to highlight the charming aspects of our bathroom while adding more function for our family’s needs today. After living with this bathroom for the last year, I have identified a handful of quick fixes that will modernize the space and add efficiency.

Today I am sharing how to update a lamp base with spray paint.
I love the challenge of updating a space on a budget. Along with saving money, I enjoy finding new ways to use items that I already own.

This is exactly what I did when I needed a lamp for Thomas’ modern bedroom makeover. The original lamp was nice with a chrome finish, but I really wanted a black lamp in the reading nook.

Today I am excited to show you how to color block a piece of art for your home! This DIY is great for artwork that is usually passed over at …

Are you ready for the boys’ bedroom reveal for Week 8 of the One Room Challenge?! Even though my design plans changed quite a bit, I am SO happy with how Thomas’s bedroom turned out. And most importantly, Thomas is overjoyed with the new look of his bedroom!

Week 7 of the One Room Challenge and I am looking forward to wrapping up this project. There are definitely some challenges that come along with renovating a child’s bedroom …

We are in the final weeks of the One Room Challenge and I am FEELING it! Last week was heavy and to be honest, the Challenge felt a little trivial. …

Ever since I was a little girl, I have loved a good DIY project, especially when I can upcycle an old item. I found an old lamp at a local thrift store and decided to give it a modern look with an easy DIY by adding plaster to the lamp base.

Last week I found an old iron arbor on the side of the road with “free” attached to the front. Aside from the arbor being my favorite price, the design was perfect for my English garden!

I have been hard at work creating my English Garden and the beds are starting to fill up! All of the perennials that I have put in my garden were given to me or transferred from another spot in my yard.

I gotta be honest, I wasn’t sure I was going to finish this week 4 of the One Room Challenge! In the final minutes, I finished my Ikea Billy Bookcase hack and I am so proud of how it came out.

Welcome to week 3 of the Better Homes & Gardens One Room Challenge! This week, I added some personality into my boys’ bedroom by installing a wall mural on one wall, and LOVE how it turned out!

Whenever I begin a room makeover, I always start with paint. The wall color lays the foundation for the design and painting a room makes it feel fresh and new. Today I am going to take you through how to paint a carpeted room in 5 easy steps.

The Better Homes & Gardens Spring One Room Challenge is here and I am so excited to participate again! Over the next 8 weeks, I will be transforming my boy’s …

Designing and building an English garden in my backyard | Building Bluebird #landscaping #gardening #greenthumb

Building a compost station at your home is a great way to reduce waste and create nutrient-rich soil. My family has been composting for a few years now using a rolling bin and decided to take our composting one step further at our new home.

The Toledo flip house is COMPLETE and sold to its new owners! I am so proud that we successfully and profitably flipped our first home. Let’s get started on the tour!

I still can’t get over how amazing my freshly painted, old linoleum floors look in the laundry room! For this project, I partnered with Rust-Oleum to try out their interior paint product, Rust-Oleum HOME Floor Coating.

My $300 laundry room makeover is complete! Today I am sharing a quick and easy contact paper countertop tutorial for you to try at home. I finished this project in a few short hours and for under $25. Let’s get started with this simple tutorial!

Steve and Jan wanted a home that functioned for their family today while also fitting in with the period when the home was built in 1875. Unfortunately, because the roof had been removed for 6 years, there wasn’t much to salvage in terms of original materials.

The Bosler house was built in 1875 by Ambrose Bosler and became one of the first homes built in North Denver (now the Highlands neighborhood). This home was built right before Colorado received statehood status.

It is not uncommon to hear someone talk about wanting to get their real estate license. While it is true that anyone can buy the real estate course and take the test, becoming a successful real estate agent takes a lot of work.
Today I am answering common questions about getting a real estate license and sharing my personal experience. I was definitely naive when I first signed up for the course and have learned a lot of lessons during my first few years as a realtor.

 I am so excited to take you through my favorite project of our third house, the master bathroom renovation! Our previous house had an amazing master closet and master bathroom, so when we moved into our new house, the outdated and small master bath and closet were NOT ideal.  

The first project at our third flip house was to build a legal bedroom in the basement with an attached bathroom. I was pregnant with our second child and we made the decision to hire an au pair once our daughter arrived. Not only did the cultural aspect of this experience excite us, but it made more sense financially in terms of childcare in Denver. The basement was a blank canvas that was perfect for creating a guest suite for our au pair, Maria.

Today I am excited to take you through one of the most popular Airbnb listings in Toledo, OH – The Gas Lantern Cottage. This beauty is 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and within walking distance of downtown Sylvania.

As I slowly furnish our living room in our new home, I am on the hunt for a round table under $500. I would like to put a table in the bay window nook to serve as a place to do puzzles or play games.

Today I am sharing 10 simple ways to make your bathroom more eco-friendly! Bathroom renovations have been on my mind because the bathrooms in our new home are original to when the house was built in the 1970s. This means that they are very colorful and not very efficient.

Living in a flip house is a great strategy for beginner investors and offers many benefits. One big challenge that new real estate investors encounter is capital. This strategy is beneficial for investors who are just starting out and can only afford one property.

As a licensed realtor with Danberry in NW Ohio, I know the importance of high-quality images to sell a home. In fact, I included professional photography in my services as a listing agent because it is so important. I spoke with Mary Wyar, a professional real estate photographer, to discuss why you should hire a professional photographer to sell your home. I have summarized her insights into the top five most important reasons to have professional photos taken of your home.

Today I am sharing my 10 simple home staging tips to sell your house fast!  As a licensed real estate agent and investor, I absolutely LOVE this part of selling a home! With these tips, I know you will maximize the value of your home and stand out from the competition.

When you buy a fixer-upper, it is imperative that you prioritize and plan your home renovation projects! Renovating a home can be overwhelming and I have learned quite a bit living through renovations these last 10 years. Today I am sharing my tips for how Chris and I plan our home renovation projects and prioritize each one.

If you are looking to sell your home, one of the easiest ways to maximize its value is to create a blank slate with neutral paint colors on your walls.

Home renovation costs can add up quickly! Today I am sharing my top 5 money saving tips for your next big home project. After flipping four houses and renovating our current home, Chris and I have learned lots of ways to save money with each project we take on.

This year I want to continue to create habits and use products that are more eco-friendly. I have slowly been implementing these habits, like composting and using LED light bulbs, …

The first big project in 2020 will be my laundry room! I am excited to take you through my laundry room design plans today and give you a tour of the current space. The plan is to incorporate big design into this space on a little budget! I am looking forward to this project because I love to get thrifty and creative in with home renovation projects. My goal is to spend under $300 for this entire makeover.

Laundry rooms are one of my favorite DIY projects because they are often overlooked and left as boring and uninspiring spaces. My first big project of 2020 is to tackle our dated laundry room. I have gathered a few of my favorite laundry room design ideas that are inspiring me for this budget-friendly project.

It is so refreshing to do a not-so-fun task like laundry in a beautiful space. While kitchens and bathrooms often sell the home, I believe that beautiful laundry rooms seal the deal.

Let’s get started!

We purchased this old bed frame off of Craigslist almost 8 years ago for $100. When I bought it, I had every intention of painting it right away, but it never happened! When we moved into our new home 6 months ago, we planned to use this bed in our daughter’s bedroom.

LED light bulbs are the easiest and quickest way to make your home more energy-efficient. If you haven’t made the switch to LEDs yet, add this to your 2020 New Year’s resolution list right now! LED light bulbs have become much more affordable than they used to be and there are numerous benefits to making the switch from old CFL bulbs.

Joining a real estate team or becoming an independent agent is a big decision! When I became a realtor 1.5 years ago, I started as an independent agent at a brokerage. I recently joined the Rigali Group with Danberry Realty and am loving the benefits of working on a real estate team. Today I am sharing my tips on what to consider when deciding to join a real estate group.

Modern families today want that open concept design in their homes. The kitchen is the most common place where homeowners want that open-concept feel. It is the heart of the home where everyone wants to gather.

Today I am sharing my favorite functional kitchen ideas to maximize efficiency and organization! When a kitchen is organized well, valuable time is given back to the homeowner. In the last 10 years, I have moved 8 times and have learned a thing or two about efficiently organizing my kitchen.

Today, I am sharing five popular Victorian homes designs and their key identifiable features. These include Gothic Revival, Queen Ann, Folk Victorian, Italianate, and Second Empire styles.

Choosing the right paint sheen for your project is almost as important as getting the right paint color – ALMOST. Choosing the right paint sheen for your project is almost as important as getting the right paint color – ALMOST. 🙂 Paint comes in a variety of sheens ranging from no shine at all to very shiny paint. As a general rule of thumb, you want your walls to blend into the design of your space. When you apply a sheen that is not appropriate for the space, it can be quite distracting to the eye. Today I am breaking down how to choose the appropriate paint sheen for your next paint project!

for all beginner bloggers so they can avoid my mistakes. Starting a blog is hard and scary. For most people starting out, you have to learn an entirely new skill to create your own website. Along with learning this new skill, you have to be vulnerable and open when writing about your experiences. Learning to tell a story in your own voice is harder than it looks!

Today I am sharing 7 kid-friendly activities in Toledo to check out this winter. The cold winter months in Northwest Ohio can make you want to hibernate in your home, but these activities encourage learning, exploration and are enjoyable for both kids and parents. This winter break we visited many of these places and had a blast!

Are you someone who follows the anticipated paint color trends each year? I love when big paint brands choose a color of the year and find it fascinating the thought that is put into each decision. Last year there were mixed reviews with the Sherwin Williams choice of Cavern Clay but I feel like 2020 has all crowd-pleasers!

2019 was a big year for me personally and professionally. As I prepare to enter a new year (and decade!), I wanted to share some of my favorite projects and …

Dried orange slice garland is all the rage this holiday season and I am loving this trend! I happily hopped on this bandwagon and made some dried orange slices of my own to decorate our home.

The DIY picture ledge in our dining room has been a huge hit!

I have had so many positive responses to this piece, someone even asked if it was from Pottery Barn! How’s that for a compliment?! Building this ledge is super easy, it only takes a few hours, costs less than $30 and I am going to show YOU how to build it.

The dollhouse makeover is complete!
In the words of Pinkalicious (my daughter’s favorite show), “it’s pinkatastic!” This was such a fun project for me. I loved designing this house with my daughter in mind, you will quickly realize that she LOVES the color pink and everything girly. I can’t wait to give it to her on Christmas morning.

Let me take you through the full makeover of this sweet little dollhouse!

Today I am sharing my step by step tutorial on how to install your kitchen backsplash. With this tutorial, you will get all of the tips and tricks I wish I had when I tackled my first tiling project!

My goal for our kitchen renovation was to create an open concept that complimented the traditional style of the home while also adding that modern vibe for our family today.

For the final week of this challenge, I am sharing the reveal of the dining room transformation AND a festive table setting designed for the holidays.

I say this all the time, but paint is so transformative! On the blog today, I am sharing a step by step tutorial on how to paint a room like a pro.

We are so close to the finish line for the One Room Challenge! This week we are getting art and decor up on the walls in our dining room.

The dining room was in need of a buffet and week 4 of the One Room Challenge was all about finding the perfect piece. When I couldn’t find the perfect buffet online, I decided to go thrifting and refinish a piece myself. We blew past the halfway point of this 6 week challenge and I love putting this room back together!

Week 3 of the One Room Challenge brought on the biggest transformation yet. I say this all the time and I will say it again…PAINT IS SO TRANSFORMATIVE! I spent …

Week 2 of the One Room Challenge is all about dining room prep! This week is all about prepping the room – making it ugly so it can look so beautiful at the end of this 6 week challenge! Specifically, I am focusing on removing wallpaper, moving the chandelier & repairing chipped paint.

The Better Homes & Gardens Fall One Room Challenge is here and I am so excited to be a guest participant! For the next 6 weeks, I will be transforming our dining room just in time for the holidays. Every Wednesday I will be posting updates on my progress and you can check out all of the behind-the-scenes fun over on Instagram.