At Last..or (our new old home)

Finally!! I got my passwords! Yesterday I had inspirations coming out of my yin yang, but for the life of me couldn't find my passwords. You know the really important ones that you put in that super safe place! (and then can never find?) Anyway, I'm here now, and it feels good. An open net to catch all my thoughts, ideas, and creative inspirations.

We moved into our new (old) home just over a month ago, and besides not being able to find those important papers, we feel just about moved in. Some fresh paint inside and out and a few bells and whistles here and there has made it feel like a new house. You see we lived here before, almost 3 yrs ago, when we first moved to the Midwest. After a few years we decided to make it a rental property and we bought another house as a flip project. (I hadn't counted on falling in love with it.) In May we sold the house we were living in, and in order to reduce debt and start reaching our long term goals, we moved back into our old house. The transition was hard, moving from my dream kitchen, having our first child born there, I didn't realize how much it felt like home, until I had to leave it. My heart still has its days of grief, but I am daily counting my blessings with a healthy family, and an almost debt free life. There is a lot of freedom in doing the right thing.

I have enjoyed being able to live here a second time, it's a new start, our lives are so different now, there is something fresh about having another opportunity to make this space a home again. I know myself and my style so much better now, and I am confidant in what I like and with that there is tremendous freedom.

The main difference is that our rooms are not so empty now! We have a bouncing boy to make our lives even more eventful! Leave it to a 18month old to become a jedi master on the stairwell in only a matter of hours! The child has no fear, but that's another story for another day. Today is the day for a sneak peak at the new project.
I just love a summer bed, flowing with white and ivory linens, piled high with pillows and a fluffy mattress topper! I searched high and low for the perfect warm-ish grey/blue color for our bedroom, too blue and the room would feel cold, tooo green and I would get ill. I settled on a silver/grey, blue/green, called Silver Sage from Restoration Hardware. (and i love, love, love it) We get a lot of western afternoon light, but the color keeps the room from feeling too hot in the summer or too cold in the winter. I just changed the sheets and linens today and I look forward to slipping under the crisp, fragrant, fresh sheets tonight after a relaxing bath. My favourite way to end the day.

For most of the house I choose a Sherwin Williams color called Summer White (isn't that a delicious name!) I swear that 50% of the color picking process is swayed by a good name! Again, it warms the house up, without weighing it down. Normally it would be too much of a boring neutral for my taste, but it has become my blank canvas in which to splash color against with all kinds of accents.

I am trying to stick to the same coastal palette, of greys, ivories, blues, and white through out the house, to give it a feel of continuity, but I had to sneak some red into the kitchen. I swear this kitchen just asks for it by name. I was planning on not doing any red this go around (last time California Poppies also by Sherwin Williams attacked the dinning room walls with out asking) but a sprinkle here and there never hurt anyone. My mother-in-law gave us this great 1940's enamel table with matching vinyl chairs, and I had to use it. Too perfect in our breakfast nook. Both the sides pop out, which is perfect for scootching up a little boy during the day and tucking it away at night. Ah... order, beauty, fresh, and new, our new (old) house.

Thank you for joining me on my little house tour! I hope you'll come back for more of my adventures and little stories!

-Beth