Young House Love

Home Decorating & DIY Tutorials

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House Crashing: Perky & Personal

When Julia invited us to crash her house, which she describes as a typical cookie cutter Pennsylvania house on the outside (she’s not allowed to change much, even the color of the front door), we fell in love the moment she virtually let us inside.

House Crash Front

Here’s Julia now. She lives here with her husband Jarrid, her 10 year old son, her six year old daughter, and her three kitties.

House Crash Front Door

Their house definitely feels like a nice mix of quirky and fun with elegant and classic choices. Soft neutral walls with white molding are mixed with a cardboard deer head and a pretty crystal chandelier. You can see her living room peeking out down the hallway of this shot.

House Crash Liv1

I love the mix of classic items like the round mirror, the tufted sofa, and the white pedestal table with bold geometrics like the rug and the curtains (Julia painted those stripes onto plain white Ikea panels). And the transparent coffee table keeps things light and airy. As for where she buys things, most of them are thrifted or bought at estate auctions. The only splurges in the house were for their kitchen counters, sofas, and their bed. She also says Ikea plays a huge role in her life too. Gotta love a mix.

House Crash Live2

She can keep orchids alive. I know, I’m jealous too. And one tip to living with two kids and three cats while keeping the house looking good is that she uses mostly indoor/outdoor rugs since they’re so easy to clean.

House Crash Liv3

I love this shot because Julia describes herself as “a huge fan of silly things around the house – like my cuckoo clocks, gnomes, and deer. My brother hates it!” My brother doesn’t get my ceramic animal obsession either, Julia. Fist bump.

House Crash Liv4

She made the chandelier over the sink from a lamp, and here are those counters that she splurged on. I love the blue stripe that she painted on her stools too. Such a sweet and personal touch.

House Crash Kitchen

The 1960s painting and dining room table were both bought at auctions (the painting was $60 and the table was $25). The chandelier was 80 Euros from Germany, where Julia’s from (it’s a replica of the famous cellula chandelier) and the curtains are more painted Ikea panels that Julia whipped up herself.

House Crash Kitchen2

From the living room you walk up the stairs on the left to this hallway. I’m obsessed with that ceiling fixture that Julia made from a bowl. She also painted the dresser and lamps. The painting is from a known German WW2 painter that knew her grandmother’s family. She says it’s one of the most treasured items in their home.

House Crash Room

In her daughter’s room, Julia picked the headboard out of a neighbor’s trash. I love how she went for it with horizontal stripes on the wall and thinner black and white stripes on the headboard and bedding.

House Crash Kid Room1

Here’s an art wall across from the bed so you can see more of those striped walls. And I love the simple wire and clip system for an interchangeable art gallery.

House Crash Kid Room2

As Julia mentioned, she loves quirky items like cuckoo clocks and deer pillows, and this is actually a cuckoo clock that she hung in her daughter’s room after her daughter painted it with her. I’m a huge fan of doing projects with Clara, so I love the idea of painting something like this with her someday.

House Crash Kid Room3

Julia says she’s still searching for perfectly sized bedside tables (she thinks the mirrored ones are too small) and she’s thinking about attempting to reupholster the chaise herself this fall or winter. That’s the kind of project that makes me rashy just thinking about it, so I’m rooting for her. And in the meantime I love those lofted ceilings and the chandelier in there as well as those sweet and personal family portraits that she DIYed over the bed.

House Crash Bedroom1

Julia painted this dresser herself (I thought the neon handles were fun and unexpected) and got wood slices from the craft store and mounted white animal heads on them to beef them up. Look guys, that’s Ramsey on the left!

House Crash Bedroom2

Out in the backyard it’s lush and charming. And if you look closely you might see something pretty awesome, especially if you’re a cat.

House Crash Backyard0

Yup, Julia made a cat enclosure consisting of a wire tunnel for them with her own two hands. They enter it through a cat door which is in the living room window above the couch. No joke, but I think Burger would live out there. I swear he’s half cat.

House Crash Backyard 1

So a big thanks goes out to Julia and Jarrid for sharing their lovely home. As for Jarrid’s DIY help, he doesn’t like to work on projects at all, but he loves to bake, cook, and work in the yard so Julia says it’s a fair trade. You can read more about certain projects and how she did them over on her blog. My favorite parts of their house tour have to be that light fixture that Julia made from a bowl and those striped Ikea curtains that she painted as well as her general happy-go-lucky-meets-elegant style. What’s your favorite part? It’s the cat tunnel isn’t it?

Comments

  3. Liz says

    Her house is so pretty! I love that cat tunnel. My cats would never come inside if I built something like that, lol.

    Can she not change the outside because of HOA rules? Are those very common in the US? I don’t know anyone who lives in a neighbourhood with an HOA in Ontario, Canada.

    Reply

  5. Kara says

    I love this place, I’m a HUGE fan of having quirky fun stuff incorporated into my house too. Julia, you did an EXCELLENT job of mixing in Ikea stuff with the thrifted, DIY and upscale items! What a house inspiration!

    Reply

  9. Tawnya says

    Oh what a cute house!! The whole not being able to change anything about the exterior is a pain I share, so I understand why she really went for it with making the interior so great. I love those striped curtains, and I may just have to attempt to DIY my own. Maybe.

    Reply

  13. Laura says

    Love the cat tunnel!! Her house and the garden were just beautiful. She has a great eye for decor, but I just wish I could see more originality among the decorating bloggers today. It seems that every post I come across seems to have the same gray walls, chevron or Ikat designs, silhouettes of the kids and the white antlers. The white antlers are everywhere! I’d love to see more decorating bloggers step outside the cookie cutter boxes.

    Reply

  14. Julia @ Cuckoo4Design says

    I’m thanking you guys with a big fat grin on my face. And fist bump right back at you for the ceramic animal obsession ;)

    Reply

    • Lauren says

      Hey @Julia, BEAUTIFUL home!!!

      I was wondering if you could give me a brief step-by-step for your painted curtain panels? I want to do the same but I’m not sure how you applied the paint. I’m assuming you taped it of and then used maybe a roller? And what kind of paint?

      Any help would be appreciated! Thanks!

  15. Kara says

    That cat enclosure is amazing, I love that it sort of tucks into greenery and blends in with the fence. We have a ton of coyotes in my neighborhood so an “indoor-outdoor cat” often doesn’t have the longest lifespan.

    Reply

  17. Amy says

    Living in Pennsylvania myself, I immediately knew Julia’s home was a PA home. It’s nice to see the possibilities that this style holds! Thanks for sharing!

    Reply

  20. Randa says

    I love the soothing & fun color palette! I’d totally live here. :)

    On another note, Shady Tree Service is here today cutting down some big trees that are uncomfortably close to our house. I didn’t specifically ask him today but I’m sure William sends you a “holla!” :) We did chat about you guys when I had him come for an estimate. I’m praying that the rain holds off for them!

    Reply

  21. Patricia says

    Love the cat tunnel but our enormously fat cat would need a kitty elevator to go along with it. She struggles just climbing up on the couch for snuggies.

    Reply

  22. Peggy Sullivan says

    Wow what a fabulous place she has created. Everything is so balanced and elegant and fits the space so beautifully. Thank you for crashing their house and giving everyone a good reason to go to Home Goods and Hobby Lobby more often to try and do the same in our own homes. LOVE the cat tunnel. I have 2 welsh corgis and I know they would love a “corgi tunnel”–it wouldn’t have to be very tall!!

    Reply

  23. Dominique says

    I love everything about this house! Her style is so airy and elegant but easily lived in. I wish I could copy this into my house!

    Reply

  24. Patti says

    I love too many things to mention about this house, but the clip on art hanging gizmo and the cat tunnel had me saying ha look at that! and I don’t even like cats!

    Reply

  25. Lisa says

    Did Julia do a once over when Sherry left to make sure her ceramic animals didn’t disappear? Might wanna double check that Ramsey is still there. :)

    Also, cat tunnels ftw. My chihuahua would majorly dig that. Like Burger, Wrigley is half cat.

    Reply

  29. Sarah says

    Insanely lovely house, Julia & family! I’m a cat person too (unfortunately, don’t have any currently because of the fiance’s allergies) and that cat walk is genius. The whole house has such personality. One of my favorite crashes to date!

    Reply

  31. janice says

    OH. EM. GEE! That cat enclosure is GENIUS!! Love it! And I see my next inspired project!!! And it involves more spraypaint and maybe more plastic animals!! YAY! :)

    Reply

  34. Kate says

    Great share! I loved a lot of the design details. Especially the painted cuckoo clock. I never thought of that! I’m going to be keeping my eye out for ugly cuckoo clocks that I can paint now when I am thrifting. =)

    Reply

  35. Jessica says

    The house looks awesome. But that cat enclosure is definitely my favorite. My cat would be in heaven if i could figure that out.

    Reply

  37. Jesse @ Scout & Nimble says

    I love Julia and her fun house! If I ever had to be re-incarnated as an animal, I would totally choose to be a cat of hers! And what’s so fabulous about her is she has a tremendous sense of style, but she is also so sweet and hilarious herself! Love that girl! ;)

    Reply

  38. Gillian says

    Great house!
    A couple of your pictures have been switcherooed, your foyer has magically transported itself to her daughters bedroom and you have a lovely cuckoo clock in your foyer post yesterday :)
    Oh…what if it’s just my phone??? Or I am cuckoo…

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Ah yes, if you’re on a smart phone it’s glitchy like that sometimes. Usually if you refresh or close the window and open a new one it’ll be straight again. My favorite is when photos are inexplicably upside down!

      xo
      s

  44. Tashia D says

    That cat tunnel is brilliant. I don’t have cats, but a lot of people in our neighborhood do and when they let them outside they end up leaving us little surprises in our mulch. Yuck.

    Reply

  47. Natalie says

    L.O.L. on the cat tunnel. I’m not a cat person but I can certainly appreciate a person who loves her animals. Just curious why they can’t go outside? Is it personal choice? HOA?

    Reply

  48. Stacey says

    Julia is so creative and talented! Thank you both for the peek inside where it’s NOT cookie cutter. I am totally copying the painted Ikea curtain idea. The cat tunnel is cool–if you’re a cat person. My golden retriever would be a little snug in there.

    Reply

  49. Asia says

    So nice to see a builder grade house with character. I am always after character, now I realize you can add your own!

    Reply

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