As our freshly painted stools dry in the sunroom (woot! pics tomorrow!) we thought we’d finally catch up on the May superlatives that we owe you (sorry to those who have been asking about them!). So here’s a look back at all the stuff that we check off in May. We even tossed in some never-before-seen stuff for kicks. You can check out all of our superlatives dating back to January of 2011 right here (it’s over a year of projects crammed into 16 posts). Plus, since I got to play model a lot this month (hair model, permit-getting model, etc) I threw in a new shot of me sporting next season’s hottest look at the end of this round-up. Just remember you saw it here first.
Biggest Party Girl: Clara, who was pumped for her 2nd birthday party this month… or at least pumped for some of the supplies we bought.
Wormiest: Clara’s birthday party, which was a fun, color, and worm filled day thanks to the theme that the birthday girl selected herself.
Most Gigantic: Clara, at least in comparison to the sweet family of pigs that reside in the new dollhouse that we built…
… and decorated for her.
Tidiest: Our new and improved bathroom drawer, after it got a little re-organizing and de-disasterizing as part of our organization week.
Most Secretive: Our storage ottoman (and other kiddie storage areas), which now houses a bunch of secret surplus toys that we can cycle in and out without having a sea of toys all over the place all the time.
Simplest: Sherry’s beauty routine, along with other ways we shared for keeping life simple around here.
Prettiest: Our reorganized Projects section that’s now been beautified with the addition of project thumbnails for easier browsability.
Most Appreciated: The new light in our kitchen (Ikea’s Aläng) because it’s finally bringing some illumination to a side of the room that’s been shadowed for months.
Dirtiest: My basement workshop, which I shamefully owned up to. It’s been in a crazy state of disarray and still hasn’t improved much since admitting this, although I did share some updated shots here.
Most Likely To Embrace The Chaos: Us, as we chatted about taking your time and enjoying the journey that is DIY.
Most Level Headed: Me (but only on occasion). Like when I managed to get a fairly straight picture of our new hall bathroom fixture whilst serving as a tripod and balancing the camera on my head.
Class Shopaholic: Sherry, for this “window shopping” post where we shared our latest loves (this time at Target). We gotta get back into more store-cruising posts thanks to all of the love you guys showed for it!
Most Likely To Contain A Hosta Pun: This post, which was all about using what we had (some spare hostas) to upgrade our weedy mailbox garden…
… and add a bit more greenery to our work-in-progress planting bed out front.
Most Likely To Become A Teenage Mutant Ninja: This turtle that we added (along with some hydrangeas and petunias) to our patio. He wins the award for no other reason than being a turtle. C’mon – have you ever heard of a Teenage Mutant Ninja Hydrangea?
Oh and we also transplanted some already-owned boxwoods to the planters on our front porch (update: haven’t killed them yet!):
Math Nerd Alert: Me, for using algebra to relocate and rehang these two Alaska botanical prints between our bedposts.
Most Potential: The “alley” where our new deck is gonna go, according to this plan of attack that we outlined here.
Best Score: This giant 9 x 12′ rug for our bedroom, that we scored at a $1,000+ discount at a local tent sale. Holla!
The Brick-Breaker Award: Clearing out the area where our new deck will go, which involved hauling over 100 bricks from an area that we previously dubbed “the shrine.”
Most Noodled: Our bedroom, which in addition to the rug and art change, was sporting new lamps and pillows by the end of the month too. It’s far from complete, but our new rug is definitely inspiring us to keep working in here!
Most Likely To Get Wood: Us… for our deck (get your mind out of the gutter people) after weighing lots of options, and making the decision to skip composite and go for pressure-treated wood.
Most Chipper: This super fast and cheap ($0!) hidden clipboard project that Sherry made for our microwave cabinet (to help keep our menus and grocery lists handy). Sometimes it’s the little things.
Hairiest: Sherry, actually – at least after giving me a DIY haircut that we finally documented for everyone to see. And I got to be a hair model for the first time. Not sure how I feel about it (embarrassed. mostly embarrassed).
Best Dressed: Me, in the “permit getting outfit” that helped boost my confidence to get the permit to build our new deck. High five.
Most Likely To Rock The Runway: All of the rugs that strutted their stuff in our little kitchen rug “fashion show” to help us pin down the perfect color and design.
Worst Dressed: Also me, for this lovely look at Clara’s birthday party. But c’mon, what dad wouldn’t see the new ballerina skirt that his daughter was gifted and immediately think “this needs to go on my head.”
What’d your May look like? Any major (or minor) projects checked off? Have you ever made a list of accomplishments to look back on? Feel free to use the comment section of this post to list what you’ve done (or just toss out a few highlights). It’s always fun to take a break from adding things to the to-do list for a second, just to look back and appreciate the things that are done-zo. We totally think it helps keep our momentum up – especially when it comes to tackling things like our big deck project, some kitchen stool painting and some tile-updating in the bathroom among at least a dozen other things at the top of our list. What are you guys most looking forward to tackling this month?
Shannon {aka}|design says
Yes, yes, yes! My hubster, Dean, totally puts odd things on his head for laughs!!!
xo,
Shannon
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, glad John’s in good company with so many other dads out there!
xo,
s
Jill says
Thanks for the reminder to look back and acknowledge progress. In late April, the floor in our shower gave way and my recently retired father saw this as his new project. We had the 9′ x 4′ space gutted in a weekend, but it’s taking us forever to move forward. Dad has added an outlet to the bathroom (the only one was part of the 1960’s light fixture) and one to the hallway. We had it replumbed (also removing the turn off valves for our shower from the adjoining full-sized bathroom – so weird, hidden behind the vanity drawers. Finally have a subfloor back in and had the plumber come back to lower the toilet flange.
My dad and husband are putting in the sheet rock and I’m doing the tiling and painting. It’s just taking FOREVER because we both work full-time and what little free time we have seems to be directed towards our boys.
But we’re getting there…thanks for the daily inspiration.
YoungHouseLove says
Aw, that sounds like a giant project Jill! Good luck with everything – and we’d love to see pics when it’s done!
xo,
s
The Mrs @ Success Along the Weigh says
Great recap! Love the tutu hat! ;)
More than half of our May was spent in Hawaii. Sigh.
But I just booked our home for Kauai in 43 weeks but whose counting?
YoungHouseLove says
Oh my gosh, that’s amaaaaaazing! Color me jealous. Haha.
xo,
s
Violeta S. says
Other than the tutu, do I see a bear holding a heart gold necklace … or is it just my imagination :)))))
YoungHouseLove says
Haha- that’s actually just Clara’s gold hair clip (it’s the shape of a bow) that I clipped to John’s collar so we wouldn’t lose it!
xo,
s
Violeta S. says
Just a bow!… I expected more from John :)))
YoungHouseLove says
Hahahaha, I know. So boring.
xo,
s
Pam says
I believe you forgot Most Photographed ;) This post has 7 John pictures :P
YoungHouseLove says
Seriously! Hubby was a ham in May! Haha.
xo,
s
Christa @ a*typicaljourney says
I don’t get much time for project-doing, but May was a surprisingly productive month around our place! My favorite part is that I bought an amazing mid-century hutch at a local thrift store for only $65 – marked down from $200! It now lives in our living/dining/office space as a dry bar. Always wanted one of those :)
http://instagr.am/p/LWYpHUwOzz/
YoungHouseLove says
That’s amazing! So gorgeous!
xo,
s
Andrea says
You know I keep thinking Clara is looking so much like Sherry these days and then John goes and puts a ballerina skirt on his head and WHAM Clara is his mini (girly) look-a-like. Well any way you slice it she is a cutie-pie and her birthday was adorable – worms, whoda thunkit?
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks Andrea! I like to think she’s a good chunk of both of us, so we can both be proud. Haha.
xo,
s
Julia at Home on 129 Acres says
Thanks for the invitation to share. I’m starting to feel like our basement reno is really dragging on, so it’s nice to realize that we actually have accomplished something. In May we framed up new walls in our gutted bathroom and installed drywall and cement board. This month I hope that we’ll be able to tile the bathroom and install drywall in the rest of the basement. Kudos on your superlatives.
Rhiana says
Did you see your new bedroom rug on page 84 of June’s Real Simple magazine? It says the rug is $949 so score for you!
YoungHouseLove says
Isn’t that awesome?! It’s such a funny coincidence!
xo,
s
Krissy says
May was slow, I don’t think we accomplished anything (lol), but so far in June… we’ve got our front deck planned and priced out, AND Nathan surprised me and hung a light in our bedroom and wired a light switch! (When we moved in, there were only 2 light switches in this ‘house,’ and they were a 3-way setup for the same light in the kitchen!)
YoungHouseLove says
Aw, so exciting!
xo,
s
Stacey says
So this is going to be a rather long comment. . .
This May my boyfriend and I switched out all the hardware in our kitchen for clean-lined stainless steel pull handles. We are so pleased with the simple update to our otherwise ‘too country’ kitchen. Before we start with our bedroom wardrobes, please could I ask you to link me to your hardware installation tutorial for your Ikea office filing cabinet? We cannot find a stencil similar to the one you used in your new kitchen.
My best score this month was a free capiz chandelier. Free because I rescued it from the dump! It’s in mint condition since all the shells were still wrapped in protective packaging and the price tag was still attached! I don’t know which shocks me more; that someone would throw away a new chandelier worth $120 or that I actually scored a-la-YHL?
And last; I cannot believe the thought John put into his outfit before his visit to your local authority! I thought only women did that! I’m a structural engineer and on most days I wear site boots, a flourescent vest, and a hardhat over pretty old clothes. But on days where we meet Clients on site I have to put some serious thought into a smart, feminine, appropriate site outfit!
YoungHouseLove says
Here’s that link to our tutorial with the homemade hardware template: https://www.younghouselove.com/2011/08/can-you-handle-it/
-John