Yay for more house renovation posts! Hopefully ya'll aren't getting sick of me trying to channel my inner Joanna Gaines. ;) But when we saw this house on the market, we knew it was a PERFECT way for us to experiment and renovate a house to be FUN and up and coming.

We started renovating this September Place house at the beginning of June. 7 weeks later, we're wrapping up and listing this beauty for sale. It was such a FUN project, with lots of long nights. But we are over-the-moon happy with the end result. We love our little beach-side town, but it's safe to say that the houses lack in a certain....ahem....trendiness. They tend to be a mixture of yellow stucco, yellow beige tile, and early 2000s kitchens. It's been Ryan and my goal for a long time to bring some FUN to the houses of our great town. There are so many people with different styles here and we want the homes to reflect 2019. So this one is definitely one of a kind!

So here's 16 September Place. A 1600+ sqf home in Seminole Woods, just about 10 minutes to our beautiful beach. It's a 3 bedroom/2 bathroom full of natural light. It's got a large kitchen, a 9 foot island, white granite, shiplap on shiplap, new appliances, a private backyard, and a few POPs of color here and there. (which we hope you like). We imagine that if we were moving into our town, this would be our next house....that's how much we love it. We hope another fun family loves it too! (info on paint colors + fun things at the end)

If you're interested in snatching our September baby up....click on the listing link here.
​

Book Nook + Bathroom Paint: Dark Harbor by Benjamin Moore
Shiplap + Trim Paint: Pure White by Sherwin Williams
Exterior Door: Decisive Yellow by Sherwin Williams
Exterior Paint: Chelsea Gray by Sherwin Williams
All other room paint (even the seemingly green-ish kitchen :): Repose Gray
Floors: Pergo Max Wheaton Oak
Bathroom Floors: Fun tile from lowes!
Shiplap: Made out of plywood by us!
Staging: Basically just the contents of my actual home brought over. ;)

Let me know if you have any specific questions about materials in the comments + and I'll try my best to reply!

Well, maybe just ONE wall. But it still felt like a HUGE risk. My house has felt WAY too white for too long. And I've been in a season of change and wanting something more fun.

I honestly felt like by trying to be so 'trendy' in my house before (ya know, shiplap, white walls, subway tile, etc) that none of my personality actually showed. 

And not that subway tile + other things are bad AT ALL. If they are you, than do you. But for me, it just felt like I was trying to fit into a trend that made me unlike me. 

The last few months of my life have been a returning to what I feel like IS me. I’m tired of feeling like I have to do what everyone expects. I want to live my life with rose colored glasses, outside the norm, and having more FUN....and inspiring other people to do the same.

​
So, feeling motivated by my new found riskiness, I begged Ryan to let us paint the wall a crazy color. We have a small living area/kitchen and our ceilings are super angled, so finding a color that was bright but not dark was hard.

​We tossed it up between blue and pink. I secretly loved pink, but I wanted him to decide because it's his kitchen too. And he LOVED the pink....it reminded him of joy and sunsets and rose colored glasses. And it was a sign, I knew. Pink was the way to go.

So, whatever the trend may be whenever you read this, don’t be afraid to do something different. Your house, life, + story isn’t supposed to look like anyone else’s. The minute we all try to follow the same trend, is the minute things become cookie cutter and dang BORING. So do that thing, take that risk, PAINT THAT WALL, + do what makes you feel alive.

Paint Color: Cockleshell by Behr

I really wanted to fill this awkwardly BLANK space on my wall. And since our ceilings are somewhat high, everything I tried here looked miniature size. We decided that three 6ft picture shelves would help our space feel less empty!

Turns out, buying pre-made 6ft shelves from any store is ridiculously expensive. Eeek! So we decided to build them ourselves. While we are by no means experts, here's a quick step by step guide for how we built ours and what we stained them with.

The cost of the material for the wood shelves was about $15-18 a shelf. (Depending on if you already have some of the supplies).

We used:

• 6 1x4x6 pieces
• 3 1x2x6
  

**Sometimes hardware store wood pieces are a TAD too long in certain areas. Make sure yours are the right length when buying or you may have to get a table saw of sorts to shorten them.

• Wood Glue
• Drill
• 1-1/4 Screws for shelves

* Other tutorials said to use finishing nails, but honestly this did not hold it as well as I hoped and since I have a baby and was        terrified it would fall on her head, I decided screws were better even though they were more visible. (honestly they're barely            noticeable).

• 2 1/4 Screws for hanging into wall
• ​Stain & rags
• Level for hanging

The glue helped these boards bond together better without gaps, but I liked the extra measure of the screws. We had to use a drill bit to bore a hole into the wood so it wouldn't split, and then we screwed the screws in. We placed three along the back edges of the 1x4x6.

Place a small amount of glue on backside and place it firmly against the edge of the exposed side of the 1x4x6. This should form a small lip so your frames can't slide off.

You'll see how we did it in the photo below. Then we *tried* to finish this piece with finishing nails. I felt they weren't secure enough, so we ended up just screwing in three of our screws for peace of mind. (1 on each end and 1 in the middle). My stain was dark enough that you didn't notice much.

Though, I'll be honest, I didn't stain the back because I got a little tired. ;)
They take about a couple hours to dry. 

Hanging is ALWAYS easier with two people, a ladder, and a LEVEL. We used painter's tape to place the shape and length of the shelves on the wall FIRST. Then we made marks and just screwed the back of our 1x4x6 right into the wall. We used three 2 1/4 screws (2 on each end and one in the middle).

We are so excited to finally share photos of our recent Florida house renovation! Whoop whoop!
​
We purchased the house mid-November and had about a month to finish before we moved in. We were definitely on a budget, so there's still little tweaks I want to make over time (adding color, decor, rugs, etc), but we are SO thrilled with what we got accomplished in just a month. Proof you really CAN renovate a house if you've ever thought about it. HGTV, for the win. :) 

Because we worked within a tighter budget, we did a lot of the things ourselves and hired out sub-contractors for the more complicated jobs. We also tried to re-use as much furniture we already owned... and we managed all the projects ourselves. Some of the projects we personally did most of:

• Demo of walls, tile, etc.
• Laying the laminate floors
• Painting 
• Removing and replacing all baseboards
• Project managing & decorating, landscaping

Things we found it easier to outsource: 

• Painting the cabinets white (a good cabinet paint job is hard!)
• Installing counter top/sink
• Laying tile in kitchen & bathrooms

We googled most things, youtubed a lot, and had a TON of help from family and friends!

We are still finishing up our master bathroom, office, and backyard, but can't wait to post a recap of those in the next few months!

If you have any questions, leave 'em in the comments and I'll try my best to answer. Florida houses are NOT the typical houses, so getting them to have that soft farmhouse-y feel is HARD. I'm so happy with the DIY way in which we did it!

​I've left as many links to colors and products we used below the images. Enjoy! <3

​As you can see, we repainted everything white, demoed a whole wall and room to expand the living room/kitchen, updated all the lighting, and decorated with a soft wood/blonde feel. 

​                                                                Products:
Couch:  Ashley Furniture - Floors: Hidalgo Oak Pergo Max - Rug: World Market on Black Friday Sale - End Table: Target - Coat Rack Mirror: Target - Over Couch Mirror: Target - Farmhouse Light: Lowes - Plant: Ikea - Behind Couch Table: World Market on Black Friday Sale - Wall Color: Alabaster by Sherwin Williams - Baseboards & Ceiling Color: Pure White by Sherwin Williams - Wooden Chair: Yard Sale 

​In the kitchen, we went with a very white and simple feel. Knowing we won't live here forever, we wanted the average Florida buyer to be interested in our house. It was easiest to keep the kitchen all against one wall. We did subway tile, installed recessed lighting, painted the dark wood cabinets a pure white, and used brass hardware. 

                                                
​                                                          Products:
Island: Too expensive to build, so we snagged this off Wayfair for under $200 during a sale - Subway Tile: Lowes - Cabinet Pulls: Amazon - Kitchen rug runner: Target - Kitchen Table: Thrifted and refurbished for only $50 - Kitchen Chairs: Tj Maxx - Island Stools: Ikea - Most towels & vases: Hearth & Hand at Target

​Again, we kept our bedroom very simple. I have always just loved white, so we painted it from a purple-ish gray to a soft white. We kept the darker tile the last owners had laid and overlaid it with some soft rugs. We updated with gold accents and peachy tones. 

                                                          Products:
Wall Color: Alabaster by Sherwin Williams - Bedside Tables: Wal-Mart - Rug: E-Rugs - Comforter: Target - White/Gold Lamp: TJ Maxx - Blue Chair: Ikea - Bed frame: Thrifted
Basket: Thrifted - Tv Stand/Drawers: Family Heirloom - Gold Pulls: Amazon - Wall Hanging: Target - Curtains: Ikea

This bathroom was dark, so we had to find a way to lighten it up and make it more exciting and bright. We kept the vanity and mirror the previous owners installed, but re-painted it with a soft gray, added white knobs and decorations, and some soft wood. Finally, the Moroccan white based tile was an attempt to try and make it more fun!

                                                              Products:
Wall Color: Silver Drop by Behr - Floor Tile: Overstock - Knobs: Target - Shelves: Target - Shower Curtain: Target - Farmhouse Light: Lowes in Aged Bronze

We wanted our nursery to be bright, because there was only one window available. We kept the wood floors through out and painted it a soft green-gray. Our theme was national parks, so we decorated with vintage posters we already owned, photos of our roadtrip across the country, and some mid-century pieces. As you can see, I started to install curtains and then they blocked the light too much...so those will have to come later. ;)

                                                       Products:
Wall Color: Sea Salt by Sherwin Williams lightened by one shade - Eames Chair: TJ Maxx- Changing Table: Wayfair - Pendant Light: World Market - Lamp: Ikea - Wall Hanging; TJ Maxx - Crib: Amazon - Chair: Target - Rug: Overstock - Posters: Anderson Design Group

Okay, okay....not moving anywhere huge. But down the street counts, right? We are so excited to share that we are in the process of buying our first house....eek!

As many of you know, we've hopped around quite a bit since we got married. A tiny apartment was our first home of choice, and then we bought and renovated a camper....which was a blast (and what we really, truly consider 'our first home'), and since returning from our roadtrip, we've lived in a cozy and quaint apartment when we aren't traveling the world. It has been perfect for us, especially because we've been so used to living smaller. 

Last year, we bought 6 acres to build a one-day farm on. I thought that would be the first move we made, but with a baby coming, rent going up, and the thought of building the perfect farmhouse feeling a little daunting, we decided to wait and buy something to live in and rent out as investment later.

Soooo.....we put in an offer and it was accepted on a 3 bedroom in our small Florida town. It's only a few streets over from my parents and siblings, which is awesome. It has the cutest fenced in yard (Darling can finally run!) and an extra bedroom for our soon to be babe.

We haven't closed yet and so it's still in process, but I couldn't wait to share the news! The house is a little Florida-y looking, but we are planning on doing some fun, minor renovations to bring in a farmhouse feel before we move in December. Make sure to subscribe on the right to get updates and photos about all of our home renovations. We love sharing our adventures. 

Can't wait to share more soon!

​Chelsie