2 Three’s Company

My little June Bug and I are no longer the only residents of my constructions site. Over the weekend my wonderful boyfriend, Michael, officially moved in. He’s that fabulous variety of boyfriend that understands how much I love my house and all the trash-to-treasure finds it contains…and he also realizes that I go nuts when clutter comes onto the scene. As a result, he’s spent much time figuring out  what he wants to keep vs toss to keep my clutter OCD at bay. Amazing, I tell you!—but the current state of the living room, not so amazing.

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3 What A Hoot

A Sunday closet cleanout can go one of two ways…



1. You spend half of your weekend stirring up dust and trying to figure out how on earth you are going to squeeze a trip to the Goodwill donation station into your week…

OR

2. You have the wonderfully enjoyable experience of finding the most precious owl garland your sister gave you two years ago, stumbling across a long lost picture of your parents on their wedding day and giggling as you read through the 1948 edition on Vogue’s Book of Etiquette.



I prefer the later.

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1 Paint on the brain

I don’t know if I’m just approaching a 3rd year homeowner crisis or what but over the past few weeks I’ve had the urge to paint nearly every room in my house. Sure, I still have a laundry room to finish and kitchen floors to install, but all I have on the brain are paint colors. I blame Pinterest for pushing me to the edge. Here are a few of the neutral wall color pins that set my paint envy in motion…

Happy Friday, y’all! I plan on spending the weekend talking some reason into myself.

 

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0 At Home in Arkansas: October Guest Post

Happy Hump Day, y’all!

This morning my October guest post for At Home in Arkansas Magazine went live on their blog. Head on over to At Home’s site to check out my DIY-er’s Guide to Playing Hostess…

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0 LTHL Fall Appreciation Day

It’s that time of year again. The time of year when I want to fast forward to Christmas. The itch to drag out the Christmas tree, spend way too much money on ornaments and throw Elf into the DVD player has hit hard.

Slow down sister. With a solid two months until Christmas, let’s take a breather and enjoy the cool temps and fall colors while they last…and boots. Let’s not forget the boots.

 

image source: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5

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0 It’s Giveaway Time!

I’ve had so much fun over the past few weeks with the opening The Property Group and we want you to join in on the fun as well! The Property Group is excited to partner up with Little Rock’s newest dining hotspot, The Packet House Grill, in offering a $50 gift card giveaway to our Facebook fans! (Missed my blog post about the fabulous dinner the boyfriend and I had a couple of weeks ago at The Packet House? Click here for the recap)

Click the banner below to enter and get ready to be a winner winner chicken dinner!

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1 Just Sold: Trey & Mary’s Hillcrest Home

A big congratulations to Trey & Mary on their new home in Hillcrest! These two have huge plans for this fixer upper and have already gotten to work bringing out its full potential. I can’t wait to see the transformation!

 

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1 Life Outside the Construction Site: Southern DIYer say what?

Remember way back in the gorgeous sunny days of May when I spent an entire day stomping around P. Allen Smith’s dreamland farm?—fully fabulous new cowgirl boots by Country Outfitter and a few chicken friends, mind you.

The entire day, P. Allen’s posse followed us around with cameras. If you ever want to capture embarrassment and ridiculous southern accents on camera, just shove a lens in my face and you’ll hear things like vaaaaaarnish and paint streeeeeper.

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1 Wintertime Weekend Warriors

 

When the days are shorter and the lack of daylight paired with colder temps force us to spend more time inside, why not put your indoor time to good use with a few simple home projects?

Deck the halls. This time of year, hanging wreaths on windows, embellishing a sparkling tree and decorating a mantle go a long way in transforming a house into a cozy winter wonderland. It’s also a fantastic opportunity to cover up the eyesores lurking around your house with holiday pretties—think carpet stains and scratched walls.

Grab a paintbrush. I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again—Alright, fine. I’ve said it a thousand times but it still holds true: When it comes to easy do-it-yourself projects, a little paint goes a long way. Whether you are thinking about giving your living room a fresh coat or painting a dated brick fireplace, the minimal cost and big result make this project a no-brainer.

Accessorize your bathroom. A new shower curtain, fluffy new towels and a few bath accessories and your bathroom will feel like new in no time. With so many fun accessory options, why not give your bathroom the boost it deserves?

Backsplash it up. While a kitchen remodel is out of the question when it comes to quick and easy weekend updates, adding a tile backsplash is high on the you-can-do-it list and also a great starter project for wannabe tile gurus. With so many how-to videos on the internet that show just how simple a backsplash can be to install—like the one below from DIY Network—why not put a little lipstick on your kitchen before holiday guests arrive?

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0 Pin-spiration

With a weekend run to IKEA a success (thanks to one wonderful boyrfriend and a uhaul cargo van) my mind is starting to shift from office chairs and desks to wall art and accessories. Hovering under blank walls all day is no one’s idea of a good time. Fortunately Pinterest has been dishing up plenty of good ideas.

Last weekend, I picked up a few large white frames without a plan for how to fill them.



I’m thinking house cutouts similar (but on a larger) to this little number I pulled up on Pinterest could be fun…



We’ll see what actually ends up in this quartet of frames, but for now, I’m at least feeling that wall decor hope is within reach with the help of a little Pin-spiration.

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1 Before Story: A (soon to be) fashionable file cabby

Metal file cabinets are the most elegant, sophisticated, timeless furniture pieces in all the universe…said no one ever, including myself as I dove head first into decorating The Property Group’s new office space. (Missed the before pictures of this little gem? Click here to play catch-up.)

The thought of bringing in one of those metal monsters was not high on my opening-a-new-office to-do list and figuring out where to put one without being such an enormous eye sore was an even bigger piece of the puzzle…until a gift from the rehabbing gods fell into my lap in the form of this guy…


This wooden file cabby is perfectly paintable, the exact size we are needing and with precious paneling detail on the sides, I’m picturing much more of a cozy furniture piece than a cold, metal file-eating contraption. This file cabinet is on the fast track to rehab and I can’t wait to share the after photos!

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2 Before Story: The Office

Love the TV show and about to tear up just thinking about the last episode creeping our way. (I mean, Jim & Pam’s wedding?! I was a puddle of emotion)…but this post is less “The Office” TV talk and more real life before pics.

Presenting The Property Group office…in all it’s ‘before’ glory…

Between beige walls, blue carpet and the obvious fact that it was being used as a storage shed before we moved in, I had (and still have) a lot of work cut out for me.

Obstacle #1: You get what you see. As a DIYing homeowner, I’m used to doing whatever I want to a space. A little paint here…a few holes in the wall there…but we're determined to be good tenants and not stir up too much trouble, at least on the front end…(Update: We gave in on the paint. We had to have new paint) 

Obstacle #2: Lack of charm. In it’s before state this office is just that, an office.

Never fear. I have not doubt that we can whip these walls into an inviting place to call home away from home. Our logo is blue so maybe the carpet won’t be so awful after all...

Stay tuned as we keep working to give The Property Group office the life it deserves.

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6 Oh, what a day!

Big, big news in my world today, friends. For the past few months, I’ve been working away to create Little Rock’s newest real estate company, The Property Group. My business partner (doesn’t that sound fancy?) and I have been planning around the clock over to turn our vision into reality and today, it’s finally here!

Our little real estate baby is born and has already hit the ground running. I can’t wait to share with you more details on what it took to get this business off the ground, what we have planned for the future and most importantly for the readers of this blog, what we have in store as we finish decorating our new office. You’ll know I’ll take you along on that ride!

In the meantime, cruise on over to The Property Group website and Facebook page for more scoop on what we’re up to.

Thank you, my wonderful friends, for all of your support over the years with my real estate adventures and rambling rehabs. You make my job so much fun!

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