Little House Updates

We've done a few little updates around the house lately and I thought I'd share them with you guys!

These are super small updates but made a big impact in our home.

The first has to do with recycling. I am a huge promoter of recycling and we generally have a completely filled outdoor recycling bin every week. We always have more recycling than trash, a fact I am very proud of, so why was our recycling bin so tiny?

This was our setup before, trash on the left, recycling on the right. Often the recycling was overflowing and we had to either empty or move it everytime we left the house because we were worried Sophie would get into it. 

In HomeGoods I was browsing the clearance section as I like to do and found a bunch of trash bins with lids for only $22! I picked one out that I liked and Tim carried it out of the store for me.

It would definitely look better if they matched, but I am thinking about getting a recycling sticker to put on the top so it will be easier for guests to know which is which.

Tim asked if it was silly that we had a bigger recycling than a trash but I said no because we have so much recycling every week! Also, trash is better taken out more frequently since food trash starts to smell.

Next up is our wedding guestbook!

We finally got it custom framed. You might remember I tried to stick it in a poster frame but unfortunately it was too thick and it wouldn't stay put. Now we have it in a custom frame from Michael's and it looks great!

To see a closer up version you can check it out here and here. It was made by a family friend, Kate, and you can find her at KaitlynsOccasions

The last is a really small update and just involved us getting a new toothbrush holder. Our old one was literally falling apart and I had cut my hand on it a couple of times. Eventually we want to redo the whole bathroom so I was trying to hold off, but for only a few dollars I bought a pretty marble one from HomeGoods and it makes me happy!

Any small (or big) changes going on in your home lately?

Living Room Updates

Hi again! Today I'm showing you some living room updates we made! Every corner of our house is a work in progress and I'm quickly learning that even when I say something is "done" I mean "done for now" 

If you are on Instagram check out MyTexasHouse who has a house that is GOALS but also continually is changing things which just goes to show that even when your house looks perfect you can still want to change things up!

So today is all about our living room updates. I finally convinced Tim to hang up our Etsy sign from Pallettes and Peonies. I saw this originally on The SunnySide Up blog and absolutely loved it. 

We debated where on the wall to place it but ended up going just about center. I am considering putting a shelf on either side of the sign but I haven't fully decided yet. I just don't want it to look overcrowded, I much prefer a very simple and clean look.

If you have any suggestions please leave them in the comments!

This is what the view of it looks like from the kitchen. Very simple but at least there is something on the wall now!

The other new update in our living room is our new coffee table....

Instead of the bulky, wooden top coffee table now we have a smaller, bright white table. I love that it matches our small table from At Home.

I picked up this new coffee table at Wayfair and I'm so glad it helped pull the room together.

Sophie just loves to jump in every picture that I take of the house :)

I think this coffee table fits the space much better than the other one did. It also is a lot lighter weight and just brightens up the whole living room.

I also pulled Sophie's old bed out of the living room. Girl doesn't need two beds in the living room right?! We also picked up a new bin from HomeGoods to hold some of her toys because her toy bin was overflowing! Little spoiled pup.

I don't feel like this room is complete at all despite getting a new rug, new table and new wall art in here. I definitely am considering another small table and lamp in the back corner by the side of the couch. Like I mentioned before I am still figuring out if I want anything else on the wall. I also still want to change out the fan, which is a project for another day.

We have been living without coasters for awhile in fear that Sophie would eat them. While at HomeGoods I found marble coasters that are super heavy. I know that Sophie won't be able to eat them and they look great and fit into the aesthetic that I'm going for.

While I look at the pictures I can see how badly our couch needs to be cleaned, I desperately need to order a steam cleaner.

Here you can see our new toy bin how much less crowded it is with only one bed! I still am figuring out how I want to set everything up. I know I keep saying that everything isn't complete but I'm sure everyone is feeling the same about their own homes. In this picture you can also see our new little door mat that I picked up from Amazon. I actually picked up two of these and put one by the kitchen side door as well. I'm not 100% sold on them but they were only $17 a piece so they work for now!

Here are the marble coasters from HomeGoods. They are heavy and solid and work great!

Clearly someone is interested in them :)

So those are the updates to our living room! I will keep you updated as we make more updates!

Hallway Wall Decor

Hey everyone! 

We finally have stuff up on the walls in our hallway! Slowly things are happening around here!!

I originally planned on doing a gallery wall, similar to the one we had in our apartment above the couch. You can see that gallery wall in this post. The reason I decided to not do that in this hallway is because I thought it would be too overwhelming. I don't like things to look cluttered and I thought the wall would look far too cluttered if it was filled with frames.

For this project I laid out exactly what I wanted and then coerced asked Tim to help me. I am very impatient when it comes to measuring and making sure everything is perfect where Tim is a perfectionist. He carefully measures and uses the level so I put him to work getting the three items up on the wall. 

Here he is hard at work! 

I love that it's super simple with only three pieces. I will change out the pictures in the future but for now I have a picture of Tim and I from Florida in 2016 and a picture of Sophie in the other frame from this Christmas.

The palette sign I believe is from Target and Tim picked this out for apartment when we first moved in there back in 2016! 

The glare makes it a little hard to see, but I'm just thankful we had some sunny, warm days this past weekend that I will take all the sunlight we can get!

I'm very pleased with how it came out and that's one thing I can check off my to do list!