Two years ago, today, we moved into this house--our very first after looking at over 90 homes and putting an offer on two others. But when we walked into this one--our eyes were big. This was it. Our hands were eager with paintbrushes...and cleaning supplies. The first year, from 2011 to 2012, was a major learning experience that I wouldn't trade for anything. It's good to paint rooms whatever color you want, just because you can. This past year, we have finally settled into a style that we like and honed our decor choices. It is pretty different from the look we thought we loved our first year. But that is O. Kay. You live and learn. In our second year in this home, we focused on eight spaces.
This year we upgraded the mirror in our entry and added super slim shoe storage--a game changer. I don't know how we lived without it.
Our living room also went through a major transformation--a transformation that isn't complete, but looks dramatically different even still:
Our staircase is a great example of how pushing it a little farther can do wonders:
Of course the kitchen is still a work in progress, but check out how far we've come in a year. In two years! (Psst. 2013's photo was taken before we added the third open shelf.)
This time last year, we were knee-deep in our family room renovation. It was the first room we really transformed into what we really, really liked--on the second try. ;)
The laundry room also got a makeover in our second year. This room definitely holds the biggest bang for our buck, with our only major purchase being a new sink and cabinet for around $300.
This was also the year we finally opened the door to the second upstairs bedroom and transformed it into my studio:
Most recently, we put the "done" stamp on Greta's big-girl room that is now warm, playful and classic.
And lastly, because she changes even more than the rooms in our home, here how Greta-the-great has changed over the past two years.
(Awww! She is growing so fast.) We look forward to sharing our home with you every day, and are grateful for the growing number of you that seem equally interested in hearing about it. Cheers to another wonderful, exciting and full year ahead of us. I can't wait to see what rooms end up here next April!
What do you think?
Leave a Reply
Previous Post
Next Post
all the latest
WE'RE CHRIS + JULIA
We believe we should all love where we live.
We’re a couple of homebodies, working to uncover the home our home wants to be. And we’re so happy to have you here.
read more
Popular Posts
Top Categories
01
Portfolio
Befores, afters, mood boards, plans, failures, wins. We’ve done a lot of projects, and they’re all here.
browse all
02
Projects
We have a long-standing relationship with DIY, and love rolling our sleeves up and making it happen.
browse all
03
Design
Even when you don’t want to rip down a wall, you can make that space in your home better. Right now.
browse all
Seeing all the transformations is really cool.
You guys came so far and have done such an amazing job. I remember a lot of the changes like I have lived through it myself. I cant wait to see what happens next
I love seeing how it has come together over time. What a great post!
Jenny
http://Www.simcoestreet.blogspot.com
every blog should do this- I absolutely love seeing the evolution of a space!
now if only I could figure out when I took what photos... seems I was very unorganized in my photo storage!
Amazing changes! LOVE The black in the entry!!
Jaw dropping. Greta HAS always had perfect eyebrows. The gene pool in that girl.
you have done amazing things in 2 years. it's inspiring. and how neat you have pictures of the changes. keep it up! it's fun to see.
Happy Houseiversary! We'll be celebrating our one year housiversary on May 31st and I can't believe how many spaces we haven't even touched yet! Do you guys feel the same way? What's in store for your 3rd year?
Absolutely. We haven't touched either upstairs bathrooms, our room still needs a lot of work, we have a fifth bedroom in the basement and our exterior needs work, too. Any (or all) of those are fair game this year. :)
The house looks amazing. Did you add a window to the family room?
Yes we did!
Love this post! Your before and after pictures were what hooked me to your blog. It makes me feel like hey, maybe I can do this after all! We have been in our place just over two years now and I feel like I'm getting to that point where I am starting to make tweaks and re-dos. It's an ongoing process!
It definitely is. I can't imagine ever feeling "done."
Where did you get the shoe storage thing? I'm looking for something similar!
Ikea! :)
Happy Houseiversary!!! I'm so curious what is next on the list for this year. Is it the year of the bathrooms?
Oh heavens. It better be!!
Yay, happy house-iversary!
And you're right - it's good and fun to paint walls because you can, but it's also nice to watch yourself ease into a new style that makes you feel happy.
The house has come SUCH a long way!! So fun to go back and see the early 'before' shots and the progress in between. We have done the same with our place - lots of learning and growing as we figure out what our style really is.
Looking forward to watching what you get up to this year! :)
Aw, thanks Gemma!
This is amazing and inspiring! Jenn and I are coming up on one year, and we haven't done HALF as much. You've got me planning for the weekend, girl.
Can't wait to see what you girls come up with.
Your house has come so far! It looks absolutely fabulous!
Thanks Ashley!
Wow. You have no idea how much seeing the transformations-over-time of your rooms is calming down my crazy fears of not knowing what I'm doing/not getting it perfect the first try! Thank you so much for posting what you do. I only recently discovered your blog but I'm very glad I did!
Oh good! Thanks for reading, Maria.