A update about updates

There is a lot going on here in the land of MAHAH (Make a House a Home, doh!). Don't you love that? Ma-HaH! It sounds like the noise you make when you discover something while simultaneously snorting. Here is our current queue of pending projects you can look forward to reading all about in the near future:

Joey, Duane, and I are building a killer screen door. We have selected the colors:

A new post about how it turned out, how to weatherproof it, and hang it will be coming up next week! So excited about this one!

That pesky reupholstered chair - we will be posting soon, we had d-r-a-m-a with a tiny part of it...We can't post a "how-to" until we nail it down. But if you want a peek, enjoy:

Those Ikea buit-in's we were cloning from the oh-so-inventive Sherry and John over at Young House Love - It didn't quite work out - and we'll be sharing why! We will also have a full how-to build your own from scratch!

Not to mention LOADS MORE!, Like I said, we have been busy. Especially after discovering the Lumber Yard True Value has in the Bronx. There is a lot of problem solving going on as well. The amazing moose head, doesn't quite fit - so we are trying to relocate or figure out the antlers. So between the built-in's, the chair and the moose head - we are are backtracking as we move forward with actual design - yay!

If you didn't have a chance to check out our 10 Questions With...with fellow True Value Blog Squadder, Centsational Girl - pop over to the post and check it out. It was an intense pleasure meeting her, and I know you will love her perky personality and amazing projects.

Most important nuggest from today's post? Today is your last chance to enter to win $100 from True Value and a gift pack assembled by Joey and I!

Three Simple Design Solutions

We hope your week has been treating you well lovely readers! Here are some simple design solutions we found, and were so inspired by. Take a peek and let us know if you have tried any of these ideas out. We would love to see!

Stair Runners: Add pop, texture, and function! Look at these amazing ideas found on Apartment Therapy.

We love guests! We like to have slumber parties, weekend visitors and will take any design "excuse" to add more people to the party. We especially love the idea of letting them cozy up in a bed, which - why not, hangs from the ceiling! Hanging both large and small items from the ceiling adds depth and interest, just like our souls. I kid, I kid. :)

Photo one and three found on white and wander. Photo three on apartment therapy.

Perfectly curated chaos of your beloved items is a fun way to show off who you are. I love using mantels, windows, and large tables, as well as the obvious. The best part of sprucing up your flat surfaces with your collections - you can change them on a whim! Even simple things like spoons (above), or starfish, rocks or antique light bulbs look more deliberate when you display them in a collection.

We have been discovering new solutions ever day! We would love to know what tips and tricks you have for approaching a room before you design it. Do tell!

The Best Shopping Advice we can give

We get asked a lot of questions. A LOT. Sometimes they are simple, and other times they are so complex they get us thinking for weeks. People tend to gravitate to our style, comment on our decor, and praise us for taste. This is weird to us, whether it's coming from friends or readers, being we have always been attracted to the history or story of a piece more than the actual decor value it gives a room. So one question we are happy to address is; "Where do you guys find all of your stuff!". First we must admit we make a lot of our own stuff, refurbish it, or commission work. We love a good story, and we love it even more when these stories surround us in our home. But even compulsive DIY'ers like ourselves have to give in to a good buy when it's to be had. We wanted to give a break down of our favorite haunts, online and off. In the future, when we finish our shop, we will get a lot of our custom goods in there for you to use in your own home. For now, we'll share how we get such great deals on such unique and amazing pieces.

1.) Gotta love the internet! We LOVE online shopping. It lets you do an insane amount of research and helps with decision making so so so much. Many pieces you just have to see in person, but when it comes to amazing online deals this is how we break it down:

Ebay: The hunt is fun and frustrating all at once! We have grabbed vintage fans, vintage fabrics, wood (yes, wood!), and a slew of other goods - when we won of course!

Amazon: We organized a little shop to showcase what we have purchased, or are about to purchase. Amazon, like Ebay, is a beast of her own. We get A LOT of design books, magazines, outdoor accessories, linens, and hardware from Amazon. We love it! We also love the free shipping with purchases over $25!

Online Sample Sales: YES! You no longer have to be in New York or LA for these. This is a deep obsession of mine. Limited time, limited quantity, and invite only, but so worth it! It works like this: You need to be invited to most (if you click on the logos below, they all are invitation links, 'cause after all, you're a reader and you are special). The super duper discounts only last a day or two, and the options are amazing. We have gotten baby clothes, to Orla Kiely stationary, to ottomans to plates, and a Jonathan Adler piece I has been eyeing for years (photos below)! There are not enough good things I can say about the steals we have acquired. They all sell home goods, don't get distracted by the fashion, just keep moving to the home section!

    

 2.) Fake it until you make it. We are not rich people. We don't make a million dollars a year, and we can't afford to spend $30K+ on each room of our home. Even if we were loaded, I still think we wouldn't. However, we do tend to have what seems to be expensive taste. So what do we do when we can't have that $8,000 bed we love so much? We make it ourselves. Joey is not a master craftsman, nor am I, but with some proper planning, research, and a strong will - we have been able to accomplish a lot. We turn to sites like Knock-Off Wood (this girl Ana is AMAZING BTW), for help with construction advice and planning. We make drawing after drawing, calculation after calculation, hold our breath and dive in. Home Depot, Lowes, and the beloved True Value is where we "buy most of our furniture". If you view what they have in a new way - you can pretty much make anything you see in catalogues. Also, if you have an Ikea, check our Ikea Hacker and see what you can do with a little imagination and inspiration. It's OK to be inspired or even replicate things you see in magazines - it's even better to make those things yourself. It becomes so much more special and treasured.

3.) Discount Shopping is Cool Again. I don't think we have paid full price for anything major in our home to date. Between Home Goods, Target, the ABC Outlet in the Bronx, flea markets, garage and estate sales - we have saves thousands. Check our your local Salvation Army or Craig's List. We have adopted so many cool things (remember these from the flea market?) this way. It also ties into our "something old, something new" style.

 So, this is how we shop. We think it's fun and exciting to hunt our pieces and build the things we want but can't quite justify paying the sticker price for. How do you shop for you home? We would love to know!

Other sources we look to for inspiration: artful home, gardener's supply company, hudson reed, landscape usa, linen place, and modern furniture warehouse.