Chris and I bought a foreclosure in September 2008.  It was, well, a disaster area.  DISASTER!  The bones were good, but it had been neglected for three years.  And before that, the homeowner TOUGHT he was really good at DIY construction.  Turns out, super gluing tiles to a linoleum floor is a bad choice.

Slowly but surely we are renovating the house.  Turning the nooks & crannies of what was super bad and giving back the 1929 charm that it had when it was new.  There are lots of weird little things, but I think that’s what gives it all it’s charm.  So, all of our free time is spent on our house.  Making it comfortable and a place that we want to be for a very long time. 

Lucky for me, Chris is INCREDIBLY good at house stuff.  I had no clue when I married him and I’m so glad that he is.  He just knows how to build things.  And when he doesn’t know, his Dad knows.  We’re in good hands!  Our last major project was this weird little offshoot of our dining room.   It was an empty room with disgusting brown & purple tile (super glued to the floor).  There was a janky ceiling fan.  And 2×4′s nailed to the walls to make a "door frame".  It was a hot mess.  And for over a year it was the kitty litter room.  Oh, and storage for the boxes that I hadn’t unpacked yet.  HA!

It is now a room that I want to sit in and stare at.  Just sit.  And stare.  I could not be happier with our new bar/library/staring room!

Chris built out an arch entrance, dropped the floor six inches and built floor to ceiling built-in cabinets and shelves.  New tiles. New chandelier. New shelves that need to be filled with lots and lots of stuff.

Most of things I’m buying from flea markets.  Little things here and there.  I’m building it slowly, with only things that I love.

This is one of my most favorite things.  It’s the receipt for the reception hall for my Great Great Grandparents wedding in 1903. They were charged $15 for the hall and were required to put down a $4 deposit.  Crazy!